>From: lizard <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>On the other issue -- I would be very, very careful about discouraging
>people from making new games using the D20 system. If you want those
>network effects, you're going to have to accept there will be D20 games
>in a lot of genres, some of them directly competing with WOTC, but most
>of them not. Furthermore, new rules and mechanics designed to support
>new genres (advanced gun combat rules, super-power rules, heroic pulp
>action rules) can be 'rolled back' into the core D20 products,
>strengthening the system as a whole and making it a more tempting
>platform.
>
I very strongly agree with the Lizard on this one. If the d20 system is to
be a unifying force in the gaming industry then there must be certain acts
of good faith on the providers part. Without any intention of sounding
ungracious some of these restrictions are crippling to game designers and
will serve to weaken d20's effectiveness as a universal platform. While I
understand that the license is mainly a WotC marketing tool it has the
potential to be used by independent developers to produce product beyond the
scope of simply D&D fantasy gaming. If the system is restricted to D&D style
of play independent developers have their hands tied and the license doesn't
achieve its full potential.
>I don't mind a game which says "Create characters as per the Players
>Handbook, but do 'x' at step 6". But if I can't even say that much, or
>say "Superheroes gain feats at every level, not every three levels" or
>the like, the possibilities of the D20 system become limited.
>
This limitation in particular forbids so many possibilities. Considering
that the styles of games that could be produced with looser restrictions I
think it would be an error to forbid those outright. Because this system is
so new it the directions that it could take are far greater than have been
yet conceived. Although I am not privy to what WotC has in development I do
think that independent developers, if given the opportunity, could create
product that fills niches yet untapped and possibly even overlooked.
>Open source takes courage. You have to believe WOTC can produce, and
>market *better* products built on the D20 engine than your competitors
>can.
>
The fact of the matter is that WotC has far more resources and marketing
clout than any of the existing developers on this list and I would even
hazard to say any of the other larger companies that have expressed interest
or are currently in development. I don't believe that there is any risk for
them (WotC) in having looser restrictions. After all, it is open to
everybody.
So, in short, I would like to see things a little looser. In that respect we
have the option of developing this new system further and not simply
patching or adding to in an prescribed manner.
Relurk,
Sedge
io Spam, jail Shub-niggurath
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