"Ten feet, twenty feet, thirty feet south. Passage turns east and west. Which way do you go?"
"We go South."
Stupefied look and momentary pause. "Okay. Bump, bump, bump."
-E. Gary Gygax to adventurers in Greyhawk Castle, circa 1972
You have now entered the realm of the LORD OF THE GREEN DRAGONS -- a "Classic Gaming" blog.
Honestly, I'm not surprised. It's a sign of the times, and an artifact of search engines. Google et al don't distinguish between a site labeled RPG and one labeled MMORPG, only that the both contain the 'rpg' string of characters.
The fact that all the computer gaming sites get more traffic/links that lead them to be rated higher than traditional table top RPG sites is simply a reflection of the fact that more people are out there playing computer games than table top games.
Good points, but I was certainly looking for general news sites, not specific matter of the type you note, drnuncheon. Still relevant for RPG searches, yes.
No point. No such beast exists. The last one got bought out and disappeared a few years ago. Then again it had been in decline for a while, the high point being that its coverage of Gen Con was usually pretty good for those of us not attending. There is www.rpgnews.com, but that does not amount to very much.
The question is, what do you want? Just press releases, news, or news and commentary? The issue is one of money. Setting up a site and running a site costs money, and nobody wants to pay for what they can get for free from the internet if they look hard enough. Running and supporting such a site would be more a labour of love than something that would support itself.
I found out long ago that using "RPG" or "Role-Playing Game(s)" in a search is a major crap-shoot, as its a much overused term.
If you switch "RPG" with "Role-playing", Wizards.com comes up first - I find it ironic, as I consider 4e more of a beer & pretzel boardgame then anything else.
I usually get better result with "tabletop" thrown somewhere into the mix - just try it!
Made the mistake of reading some of those links that came up first. . . [emphasis is mine]
"Also, staying true to their game formula will deliver you from having to deal with outdated stuff like having an inventory or actual stats to customize."
Outdated?!
"If you define an RPG as a game where you equip your hero by sifting through an inventory of hundreds of miscellaneous items and spend hours fiddling with numerical statistics, then [this game] isn't one,"
Like it's a bad thing? Ugh.
"We focused on what we love about RPGs: An awesome sense of exploration, intense combat, a deep and non-linear story that's affected by your actions, and rich customisation of your armour, weapons and appearance...
Yes, focus on what they love about Role-Playing that has nothing to do to enhance actual role-playing.
"We had an overwhelmingly positive response to this approach, and while we'll make further adjustments to it for [the next game], we're really happy with how it's been received so far."
AAARRGH! Why did I read this before having coffee? Why?!
[Puts on helm, raises shield and sword, and walks once more into the wild & strange "brave new world" of RPGs]
Seems as if you accidentally created a Google bomb. In some sense that's encouraging, as it means enough people are reading this blog to skew search results.
The first 25 sites are all CRPG, entry 26 is GURPS-the first pen & paper one to appear.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I'm not surprised. It's a sign of the times, and an artifact of search engines. Google et al don't distinguish between a site labeled RPG and one labeled MMORPG, only that the both contain the 'rpg' string of characters.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that all the computer gaming sites get more traffic/links that lead them to be rated higher than traditional table top RPG sites is simply a reflection of the fact that more people are out there playing computer games than table top games.
That's really quite lame, but I'm also not surprised.
ReplyDeleteYes. I already knew it was a futile gesture and understood the odds. It did not lessen the feeling of real dread that i experienced, though.
ReplyDeleteGoogling the much shorter (and more likely to be typed?) "rpg news" gets you rpg.net and ENworld at spots #2 & 3.
ReplyDeleteAmusingly, "d&d news" gets you ENworld first, and the WOTC page doesn't even show up until #6.
Good points, but I was certainly looking for general news sites, not specific matter of the type you note, drnuncheon. Still relevant for RPG searches, yes.
ReplyDeleteNo point. No such beast exists. The last one got bought out and disappeared a few years ago. Then again it had been in decline for a while, the high point being that its coverage of Gen Con was usually pretty good for those of us not attending. There is www.rpgnews.com, but that does not amount to very much.
ReplyDeleteThe question is, what do you want? Just press releases, news, or news and commentary? The issue is one of money. Setting up a site and running a site costs money, and nobody wants to pay for what they can get for free from the internet if they look hard enough. Running and supporting such a site would be more a labour of love than something that would support itself.
Then again I have the same issue with reviews.
What might be interesting is what may have changed. I've just Googled and got rpgbloggers.com at #4.
ReplyDeleteHave to admit search engine optimisation is something I don't think about much.
Maybe that needs to change. :)
I found out long ago that using "RPG" or "Role-Playing Game(s)" in a search is a major crap-shoot, as its a much overused term.
ReplyDeleteIf you switch "RPG" with "Role-playing", Wizards.com comes up first - I find it ironic, as I consider 4e more of a beer & pretzel boardgame then anything else.
I usually get better result with "tabletop" thrown somewhere into the mix - just try it!
Made the mistake of reading some of those links that came up first. . . [emphasis is mine]
ReplyDelete"Also, staying true to their game formula will deliver you from having to deal with outdated stuff like having an inventory or actual stats to customize."
Outdated?!
"If you define an RPG as a game where you equip your hero by sifting through an inventory of hundreds of miscellaneous items and spend hours fiddling with numerical statistics, then [this game] isn't one,"
Like it's a bad thing? Ugh.
"We focused on what we love about RPGs: An awesome sense of exploration, intense combat, a deep and non-linear story that's affected by your actions, and rich customisation of your armour, weapons and appearance...
Yes, focus on what they love about Role-Playing that has nothing to do to enhance actual role-playing.
"We had an overwhelmingly positive response to this approach, and while we'll make further adjustments to it for [the next game], we're really happy with how it's been received so far."
AAARRGH!
Why did I read this before having coffee? Why?!
[Puts on helm, raises shield and sword, and walks once more into the wild & strange "brave new world" of RPGs]
Ciao!
GW
I only get hits on this site, and links to this site...
ReplyDeleteThe net is a very unstable entity. :)
Do the search with the quotation marks now and this blog is the first hit... Mine is the second in some weird google way.
ReplyDeleteGW: I here you, but did you post this is the right topic?
ReplyDeleteI'll have to read the links, as I didn't do that.
R
Yep. Although it does resonate a little with the technostorm hitting rpgs mentioned in your next post.
ReplyDeleteCiao!
GW
Like drnuncheon, I was unsurprised and immediately thought that "rpg news" would probably get better results. Which it did.
ReplyDeleteLike Pookie said, this probably has as much to do with the fact that there really isn’t such a site as much as being a Google quirk.
Seems as if you accidentally created a Google bomb. In some sense that's encouraging, as it means enough people are reading this blog to skew search results.
ReplyDeletethe sad thing is when "RPG" is about computer games, and "table top RPG" is about true rpg
ReplyDelete