This thread is commentary on tBP, so if it ain't your sort of bag, feel free to ignore it.

Over on that other site, they have a poll up comparing the two.  Qin is ahead 62% to 33%, nearly double. Interestingly enough, most posters in the thread are strongly in favor of WOTG (though more than a few of them also cop to having voted for Qin in the end).

Interesting.   If they seem to think Qin is the better game nearly 2-1, why do they feel the need to shout out how WoTG is the better game?

Is this circled wagons 'me too' mentality, trying to assure others 'I belong' as WoTG is strongly supported as an 'RPG.net Darling'?  Is it solidarity for the writings of the Borg?

Once again, players vs. posters. Some game, some just talk about it.

Or perhaps it's even as simple as poll versus post.  It's easier to just hit the poll button than to post an elaborate explanation.

!i!

Quote from: Ian AbsentiaOr perhaps it's even as simple as poll versus post.  It's easier to just hit the poll button than to post an elaborate explanation.

!i!

yes, I agree. I almost did the same.

however, there is still the fact that nearly every (80%?) of the actual posts feel the need to defend WoTG, and only a tiny handful defend Qin while posting that they voted the other way.

One can assume that lazy pollsters should still reflect the numbers.

It is a point of curiousity, of course, nothing more.

There may also be some "game as it's written" versus "game as it could have been" stuff going on. Qin is a more successfully realized game because its design is tighter and ore straightforward, and the writing is much clearer. WotG has a ton of errors and a system that--while not completely opaque--deserves a lot more explanation than was presented in the book. As a result, a GM needs to spend a great deal of time with WotG before play can even begin. If you start at the same time, the Qin GM will finish his first session before the WotG GM has finished reading the book. That said, WotG has a lot of interesting stuff in it, and would be fun to play, with a little more clarity.

Also, maybe some Qin board is sending people over there, while the WotG board didn't. Erm, scratch that, tBP _is_ the WotG board...

Quote from: Ian AbsentiaOr perhaps it's even as simple as poll versus post.  It's easier to just hit the poll button than to post an elaborate explanation.

!i!

This is what I did.  I just selected "Qin" on the poll, clicked on submit, and was done with it.

I didn't vote, but posted, because I like them both.

There's a lot to like about WotG: The River, the coolness of the combat styles, the idea of colored Chi management, excellent campaign setup techniques, and some glorious prose. It stumbles upon itself with the Strike-is-king problem, its cluttered organization and the unwieldy format of Secret Arts (the five-wheeled elemental stuff was particularly vague.) It was a game that shot for the moon, and while it could not reach it, I admire the effort and wish I could play WotG sometime.

Qin is very clean and very dry. I understood the mechanics quickly, and it takes place in China. Not kinda-oriental-as-white-folks-get-it Rokugan, not the wild-and-wahoo Shen Zhou of WotG, just straight-up, actually-researched Warring-States China with a sprinkle of wire-fu and Taoist hermits. The only real disadvantage is that the history section can get dull for me, and Qin doesn't have the promise that WotG does that I can open the book to any given page and there will be something cool on it. I still want to play it.

Or maybe Qin simply attracts more players.

BTW: I wouldn't mind a link to the poll... so I can vote (for Qin)

Quote from: AlnagOr maybe Qin simply attracts more players.

BTW: I wouldn't mind a link to the poll... so I can vote (for Qin)

That would be here.

thanks Ghostrat, I'm terrible with all the linking and quoting and stuff... too many steps and my little pikachu brain gets all mushy and runs out my ears.

Quote from: Spikethanks Ghostrat, I'm terrible with all the linking and quoting and stuff... too many steps and my little pikachu brain gets all mushy and runs out my ears.

No prob. Newb question: I got that tBP means rpg.net, but what does it stand for? The only thing that I could think of was "the Big Purple"...

Quote from: ghost ratNo prob. Newb question: I got that tBP means rpg.net, but what does it stand for? The only thing that I could think of was "the Big Purple"...

I'm 99% certain that you have it right. Nobody gave me a glossary of local terms.

Quote from: ghost ratNewb question: I got that tBP means rpg.net, but what does it stand for? The only thing that I could think of was "the Big Purple"...

Give that rat a cigar!

As for the posing habits? When you're in the minority, you're gonna feel more obliged to defend your choice.

Disclaimer: I voted for and posted about WotGs.

I think part of it is that Qin is in some respects the new(er) RPG.net darling, and that a lot of WotGs fans are really into the game, and have probably done some tinkering with it; that's the kind of thing that makes one want to defend it more.

Add in the fact that the developer seems like a nice guy who often goes out of his way to answer questions about the game and has provided a lot of web freebies, and you have a fairly dedicated playerbase that likes to talk about the game.