Have your attitudes towards DCC RPG changed since Jan. 3rd?

[Geoffrey]

The first designer's blog was posted on January 4th. Before that day, I was casually curious about DCC RPG, but I had ZERO intention of buying it.

Now, over two months later, I have moved from NO WAY to a solid MAYBE. Virtually everything I've heard about the game is a plus in my estimation. I look forward to learning more about the game in the coming months. If things keep going my way, my MAYBE will become a PROBABLY.

My final decision on whether to buy DCC RPG will be in a store, looking through a copy of the book.

How has everyone else's attitudes towards the game changed since Jan. 3rd?

[GnomeBoy]

My attitude has only gone UP -- even though I'm not sure my D&D buddies will play it much, beyond the occasional one-shot adventure type of situation.

But the more I see of what it actually is, the more I like it. The playtest at DDC and what I've read about it, really take me back to the earliest gaming I did. And revisiting that sure ain't a bad thing...

[Ogrepuppy]

My final decision on whether to buy DCC RPG will be in a store, looking through a copy of the book.

Bah.

Be a man. Be Jim Kirk, with half a shirt and an oily chest and part of his hair curled down over his forehead, fighting the obviously-paper-mâché-headed Gorn. Pony up the preorder cash like the rest of us!

And like Gnome Boy, I'm even more excited about DCC RPG than before. Then again, it's quite possible Gnomie and I are actually the same hive-mind...

[Machpants]

Well I only heard about it after the first blog, so I don't count. Looking forward to it, ponied up for the pre-order and really looking forward to reading the BETA. Hope it does go the way of the Razor Coast pre-order I did!

[joela]

How has everyone else's attitudes towards the game changed since Jan. 3rd?

No. Buying it. 'course, I participated in one of the playtest before this forum even went up.

[rabindranath72]

Definitely looking forward to it. I am still looking for the perfect RPG to play Hyborian Age adventures.

[finarvyn]

My attitude has only gone UP -- even though I'm not sure my D&D buddies will play it much, beyond the occasional one-shot adventure type of situation.

This may be my situation as well.

First of all, I've already pre-ordered so I don't have the "do I or don't I" issue to deal with. It's done and now I can sit back and enjoy the ride.

The thing is that this has been a very interesting set of discussions in design. Similar in many ways to the design forums of Castles & Crusades in '03 but I was more on the inside there and had more input as to the final product. Here we have spent lots of time debating some great issues, but all the while I know that some of the design elements are a "done deal" even if we don't know it yet. That can be a little frustrating amid all of the rest of the excitement of the boards.

When the final product is revealed I'm sure it will be a lot of fun and somewhat ground-breaking in many ways, but that newness will be both good and bad. Most of my players will want to give it a shot, but possibly as a side campaign and not our main rules set. Some of the random elements may turn off a few of my players, particularly those who like their spellcasters to be powerful and predictable. I've been trying to warn them about some of the randomness of the game, but we'll have to see how it goes when we actually get to play it because if we have a great first session that may make a big impresion on them but a poor first session may kill it for the group.

So I think my reaction is a lot like GnomeBoy's. The game looks awesome to me but I'm not sure how it will be accepted or not by my players who don't read Appendix-N style literature.

I can't wait to get my hands on playtest rules!

[mshensley]

My interest has only increased since then. I can't wait to get a beta game going.

[smathis]

My attitude has only gone UP -- even though I'm not sure my D&D buddies will play it much, beyond the occasional one-shot adventure type of situation.

I liked it so much I ponied up for a copy within 2 hours of reading the blog. Now I'm working on a 3PP supplement/adventure/setting and I'm eagerly awaiting a chance to read the playtest rules.

So I've kinda bought in hard.

But I also have no idea how well my D&D group will like this game or if it will appeal to my indie-gaming group either. I'd love for it to become the "game of choice" for either of those groups. Then again, I haven't seen the rules so I'm trying not to worry about it too much.

[smathis]

The thing is that this has been a very interesting set of discussions in design. Similar in many ways to the design forums of Castles & Crusades in '03 but I was more on the inside there and had more input as to the final product. Here we have spent lots of time debating some great issues, but all the while I know that some of the design elements are a "done deal" even if we don't know it yet. That can be a little frustrating amid all of the rest of the excitement of the boards.

I remember those days. I was more of a lurker during that timeframe. I didn't have a regular gaming group so I wasn't able to playtest C&C. I didn't have much input but I found the discussions to be very interesting. Alot like here, only with more back-and-forth from TLG.

And, while I think some elements of DCC are a done deal and have been for a while, I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that it's locked down. There have probably been ideas and discussions on this forum that Joseph, Harley and the other "insiders" have been following closely. And probably a few ideas they've had discussions about or maybe even tried privately or in their own games.

They just don't comment either way. So we don't have visibility into that and don't know their thoughts on them.

I can understand how the lack of visibility could be frustrating. But I wouldn't assume that we're not being listened to. I think that Joseph is probably reading a lot of the ideas getting thrown around here. It's wise not to commit to one approach or another publicly until one has to. And seeing how the product is pretty much designed, developed, written by one guy -- who can say how much input he's taking in? Or what areas he feels need further exploration?

So I'd qualify it as closed design process being run by an open mind with a vision.

[Ravenheart87]

When I first heard about DCC RPG, I thought it will be "just another D&D clone". Now I see it as a unique game, one of the ways where D&D could have been taken - just like HackMaster. It's full of brilliant ideas and solutions. Can't wait to see the final product.

[Harley Stroh]

And, while I think some elements of DCC are a done deal and have been for a while, I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that it's locked down. There have probably been ideas and discussions on this forum that Joseph, Harley and the other "insiders" have been following closely. And probably a few ideas they've had discussions about or maybe even tried privately or in their own games.

They just don't comment either way. So we don't have visibility into that and don't know their thoughts on them.

This is very much the case. One of the key reasons we don't weigh in too strongly is because certain aspects of the game have been so fluid. Based upon input from the forums and discussion in Joseph's in-house designers, I ran two different versions of several of classes at Genghis. And I was surprised on multiple counts. All that playtest feed back gets kicked back to Joseph and the Circle of Five.

You might not see us weighing in on ideas very often, but know that we are reading these forums every day, and tossing your thoughts into the hopper along with playtest feedback and copious internal debate. And all that gets served up beneath the grisly, otherworldly light that is Joseph's vision for an Appendix N game.

//H

[mshensley]

When I first heard about DCC RPG, I thought it will be "just another D&D clone". Now I see it as a unique game, one of the ways where D&D could have been taken - just like HackMaster. It's full of brilliant ideas and solutions. Can't wait to see the final product.

I'm thinking that this is looking to be what I wanted HackMaster to be more like. The DCC game promises to bring the flavor I wanted without being so fiddly and complex.

[Hamel™]

Personally I have a raising hype, also if sometimes I feel a lil blurred by the amount of information we read here.

We wanna see some compiled Character Sheets.

[mshensley]

We wanna see some compiled Character Sheets.

Here's one-

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_g5h76UahDMo/T ... 00/IMG.jpg

[Hamel™]

Here's one-

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_g5h76UahDMo/T ... 00/IMG.jpg

That's an old one.. and the only one, I think.

Telling very few about the game.

[Black Dougal]

How has everyone else's attitudes towards the game changed since Jan. 3rd?

I playtested this game back in September at Tacticon. I was sold on it then. The designer blogs and the conversations here have made me more excited. But the thing that really sealed the deal for me was the playtest at GenghisCon in February. (The morning game was amazing, but the afternoon game was made of pure WIN.)

One of the things that really has me hooked, is that this is the first time I have ever playtested a game. I am not sure how much my contributions have changed the game, but I definitely feel a sense of ownership.

Naturally, it doesn't hurt that the game kicks a$$.

[geordie racer]

How has everyone else's attitudes towards the game changed since Jan. 3rd?

I liked the initial rundown of ideas but it was the follow-up posts and playtest reports that led me to pre-order it. Also, the buzz on the forum reminds me of the early days of Swords & Wizardry, loads of ideas bouncing around - and this is before we've seen the game! It's a healthy sign.

So yeh, more enthusiastic.

[JediOre]

My attitude has not changed much. I find the whole concept of a RPG based upon Appendix N is fascinating. As Joseph Goodman has posted his thoughts, it has simply re-enforced my interest in the game. I pre-ordered the game fairly quickly, I think the first day the ability came about.

I guess my underlying assumption has been I've been on-board with Goodman Games since early 2004 and have found Joseph's DCC line in-line with my concept of the game. I have little doubt he, Harley, et. al., will deliver a quality product and one that will give the user lots of memorable gaming experiences.

[finarvyn]

[And, while I think some elements of DCC are a done deal and have been for a while, I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that it's locked down. There have probably been ideas and discussions on this forum that Joseph, Harley and the other "insiders" have been following closely. And probably a few ideas they've had discussions about or maybe even tried privately or in their own games.
<snip>
So I'd qualify it as closed design process being run by an open mind with a vision.

Don't get me wrong: I'm not trying to be critical when I suggest that some of the design elements are already determined without our input. I'm just suggesting that some parts of the game are fixed and all of our speculation and brainstorming may not change certain aspects of the game.

It's just a somewhat different experience than C&C, where I felt that the entire system was open for discussion and debate, and that the final product was more a group effort.

I fully support the notion that Joseph has a vision for the final product and I am pretty confident in his judgement on these things and I'm pretty sure that Joseph and Co. are reading these boards and watching for good ideas that can be brought into DCC.

[goodmangames]

I fully support the notion that Joseph has a vision for the final product and I am pretty confident in his judgement on these things and I'm pretty sure that Joseph and Co. are reading these boards and watching for good ideas that can be brought into DCC.

Trust me guys, I'm reading. I do have a vision for what I want but there are a lot of details still to be worked out. One of the things I caution every playtester on is that "the details will change...so feel free to post your impressions but know that rule X and rule Y may change between now and the final version." I welcome the comments, and anticipate many, many more when the beta rules are released!

[DCCfan]

My excitement has cooled down quite a bit since I pre-ordered the DCC RPG. I want to play this game and can't. This is going to be a long wait.

[finarvyn]

My excitement has cooled down quite a bit since I pre-ordered the DCC RPG. I want to play this game and can't. This is going to be a long wait.

Certainly I can sympathize with this viewpoint. I'll admit that posting discussion and speculation about a game that none of us actually has seen is a little tiring after a while. 90% of the ideas posted might be in the "cool, but not for this game" category. We just don't know until we see the Beta rules in June.

[mshensley]

My excitement has cooled down quite a bit since I pre-ordered the DCC RPG. I want to play this game and can't. This is going to be a long wait.

Certainly I can sympathize with this viewpoint. I'll admit that posting discussion and speculation about a game that none of us actually has seen is a little tiring after a while. 90% of the ideas posted might be in the "cool, but not for this game" category. We just don't know until we see the Beta rules in June.

That's why we need more designer blog posts!

[Stainless]

I hadn't heard of the DCC RPG until after the second designer note was posted, thus I'm a late comer. Having no experience with 2e, 3e, 3.5e or 4e (other than by reputation), much of the first designer note passed over me but I persisted in reading playtest reports, etc. and slowly I've educated myself (largely through inference) in how the DCC RPG will differ from RPGs of the same genre. What I've seen looks very promising, so to answer the OP's question, yes my attitudes have improved over time. There are some issues I and many others have raised about just how streamlined the game will be, but I'm currently trusting to the opinions of those who have played the alpha version that it runs smoothly.

From my perspective, it looks like the game's aims, approach, inspiration, etc. will all make it stand out from the crowd. It also looks like it's being developed by those who are eminently qualified and who have the means to support it once published.

But I will say one thing, I'm not sure how approachable "Dungeon Crawl Classics" will be to potential customers who are not familiar with the term. I fear that many will take one look at the name and assume it's something cheesy and so put it straight back on the shelf. Obviously many sales will go to those already familiar with the game's development and pedigree, but surely the best business model is to reach out to new customers and we all know that first impressions are extremely important. If it were me, I'd be trying to think of a more instinctive and distinctive name, but I understand if there's been too much invested in this already.