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Steve Donohue
United States
Allen Park
Michigan
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There are a few designers that can definitely tip the scales for me. I typically won't buy something I have no interest in just because of the designer but if I'm on the fence or even marginally interested, having the right designer's name appear will definitely tip me towards a purchase.
Strangely, I don't think there are any designers that discourage me from a purchase when there probably ought to be some.
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Skaboy Green
United States
livonia
Michigan
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i buy very little
about all i buy is limited to what i am going to be playing
back in the day it was the same
the world was the deciding factor not who wrote it
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Matthew Taylor
United Kingdom
Chester
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Makes no difference to me at all.
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Dave Bernazzani (@rpggeek)
United States
Plainville
Massachusetts
I wish to provide legendary service to the RPG community to help grow our hobby and enrich the lives of gamers everywhere.
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I'll admit that I like certain designers as people so I'm more likely to buy their products just to support them. I suppose that's not the best reason to buy something but it's hardly the worst either!
-Dave
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Bruce McGeorge
United States
Lawrenceburg
Indiana
Hey you kids, get off my Avatar!
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If it has Chad Bowser on the cover, oh, it matters!
I don't think it matters that much to me. It is a plus if it's a designer that I dig, and a minus if it's a designer of a past product I didn't enjoy... but that's only one of the many plus and minus categories.
There are a couple of designers that I just don't like due to their personality (online and/or in person), but I've never passed on their products due to that. You can be the biggest arse in the world, but if you make a game that I think is cool I'll buy it.
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Steven Robert
United States
Altadena
California
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For me it can be a positive - if I like somebody's designs, I might pick up a product just to see how the game or adventure works, even if I don't have an interest in the genre/setting/storyline. But I can't think of a designer I dislike enough to dissuade me from a purchase just based on the name.
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Bruce McGeorge
United States
Lawrenceburg
Indiana
Hey you kids, get off my Avatar!
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wavemotion wrote: I'll admit that I like certain designers as people so I'm more likely to buy their products just to support them. I suppose that's not the best reason to buy something but it's hardly the worst either!
I've definitely done this at cons. If I'm undecided about a product, but the folks behind the booth are nice I'll likely decide to buy it.
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Chad Bowser
United States
Kernersville
North Carolina
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brumcg wrote:
I've definitely done this at cons. If I'm undecided about a product, but the folks behind the booth are nice I'll likely decide to buy it.
I've done this before too. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't. But, hey, that's what the chain of generosity is for, right?
As for considering the name(s) of the authors before I buy a product, it factors in somewhat. If I like what somebody has done before, I'm more inclined to pick up a subsequent book by them. Monte Cook, Richard Watts, Jason Morningstar, and Adam Scott Glancy are examples of just such designers.
If I've been disappointed by a product a designer wrote in the past, I won't hold it against the person. Not everything is always going to hit the high note.
There are only a handful of designers whose work I tend to avoid. And that's more a reflection on my tastes than their work.
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Val Ruza
Canada
Elmira
Ontario
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Designers's have names?
I guess that is a no for me then.
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Maurice Tousignant
Canada
Windsor
Ontario
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Not much. For Boardgames yes, RPGs not as much.
The biggest thing with me re: designers is social media. I have over 300 game designers, playtesters, publishers etc. as friends on facebook and on Twitter. Often I hear about something new through them. If someone is promoting their stuff well there is a good chance I will check it out. Seeing someone say "Hey I designed the magic system for this, I wanted something vancian but Elric based", there's a good chance I will check it out, while I would probably just have passed over it on the shelf.
EDIT: decided I should include an example. Here's a recent Facebook post from Stan! that got me to check out a Super Genius Games product that I probably would have never heard of before:
Quote: Did you know about Gamerati's "Loot!" web site, where you can get great gaming products for ridiculously low prices ... but only for one day apiece? Did you know that today's product is the Adventurer's Handbook from Super Genius Games, which you can get for half the cover price? Did you know that there's a limited number, and when they're sold out, they're GONE?
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Marshall Miller
United States
Medford
Massachusetts
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When it comes to purchasing games, I think the games speak for themselves. I would by no means purchase a game simply to have all the games by a given designer. Where the name comes in is when it comes to preorders. If a designer has previously published a bang-up game then I am so much more likely to preorder/kickstart a game sight unseen based solely on the designer's name and pitch.
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Bossko B.
England
Brierley Hill
The Black Country
BAZINGA!
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It's only recently I've really started to notice designers. Generally I just go for the game, but Rodney Thompson is one designer/writer whose work I always like.
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Eric Jome
United States
Milwaukee
Wisconsin
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After a few years of owning and running a game, I might happen to glance down at a book I've been using the whole time and for the briefest instant wonder who that person is whose name is on there.
Then we just go back to playing.
Applies to all forms of game, art, and pretty much everything else in life.
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Brian Cooksey
United States
Nashville
Tennessee
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It matters a lot to me. I won't pass on a game that's by someone I've never heard of but a designer's track record is definitely a factor in whether I'll buy an RPG.
I can't think of any designers whose work I avoid but there are several who have written things that have been exactly the sorts of games or supplements I like that the name on the cover will often jump out at me before the title does.
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Dave Terhune
United States
Colorado Springs
Colorado
This is a blatant example of frivolous spending.
I spent 100 geek gold and all I got was this lousy overtext.
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If I'm on the fence about buying something, a name I recognize as someone whose work I like will tip me toward the "purchase" decision, but it rarely goes the other way. If I want something, the names on the cover usually don't matter much, if at all.
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Erik Berry
United States
Ellicott City
Maryland
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GilvanBlight wrote: Not much. For Boardgames yes, RPGs not as much.
Agreed. Though if I really like someone's stuff, there's more of a chance that I'll seek them out and find other things that they've done or look forward to the next item they're working on.
Doesn't really hold true in the reverse though. Something would have to be absolutely awful for me to take notice of who did it and avoid that person's work in the future. So far, it hasn't happened.
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Eric Jome
United States
Milwaukee
Wisconsin
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I'm reminded of a question I've been asked about music many times;
"How can you listen to that stuff? The guy who performs it is such an ass!"
"Umm... The song is good. What do I care who performs it or what they do?"
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Steven Robert
United States
Altadena
California
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cosine wrote: I'm reminded of a question I've been asked about music many times;
"How can you listen to that stuff? The guy who performs it is such an ass!"
"Umm... The song is good. What do I care who performs it or what they do?"
For me, it's more of a question of:
"Oh, a new Terry Pratchett novel! I've liked his in the past, I think I'll get this one!"
Not a question of personality, but of track record. And that does matter to me, though usually only in the positive direction.
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DMSamuel
United States
Ithaca
New York
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It doesn't matter that much to me, though I do have an excellent memory for names, I rarely look at who specifically wrote something before I buy it. As you can see from my last review, where I stated:
Sam's Recent Review wrote: ...picked up on a whim after only paging through it briefly at the store. As it turns out, the author of this little book is none other than Keith Baker, the mind behind Eberron. I didn’t even look at who wrote it until I started to read it later.
I rarely notice who wrote something or worked on something until it is actually in my hands at home and I am reading it.
I care more about presentation, organization, whether or not I will likely use the book, and how much it costs than I do about who actually wrote it.
If I am absolutely on the fence about something I may decide to buy it after looking at the author list, but that's not common at all for me.
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Rod Batten
Canada
St. John's
Newfoundland
Civilized men are more discourteous than savages because they know they can be impolite without having their skulls split, as a general thing. --R.E.Howard
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For my part, I rely more on testimonials, public or private. If I really like the presentation and utility of the material I'm more likely to seek information about the designer's other products. This is more likely for products I've used for an extended period of time.
If a product is something I'm inclined to find useful or interesting, the designer's name might be a prod to purchase the item. But just the name alone wouldn't be enough.
Everyone has their 'off days' or pushes out a product too quickly due to economic necessity sometimes.
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Peter
United States
Carol Stream
Illinois
See I told You
You'll Get Over It
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I honestly don't even notice the designers unless I enter an item onto RPGG. The only time a designer makes a difference to me, is if it is a product designed by a friend of mine.
The RPG in question and the contents of the product are the criteria for my decisions.
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Eric M. Aldrich I
United States
California
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Ever since Cyborg Commando, nil.
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I don't think it matters once I'm contemplating purchase, but certain names will get me looking at a game I'd otherwise not have any interest in.
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Kevin H.
United States
Crescent City
California
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vestige wrote: For me, it's more of a question of:
"Oh, a new Terry Pratchett novel! I've liked his in the past, I think I'll get this one!"
Not a question of personality, but of track record. And that does matter to me, though usually only in the positive direction.
Me too. I also biased towards books by authors whose previous books I liked, albums by musicians whose previous albums I liked, etc.
I am also inclined to thumb posts by people whose previous posts I liked, so it's not foolproof.
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Andrés Santiago Pérez-Bergquist
United States
Mountain View
California
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A lot. I'll likely buy something by Rebecca Borgstrom / Jenna Moran or Greg Stolze pretty much sight-unseen, and will at least pay attention to something by John Wick, while there are some designers whose works I'm highly disinclined to read given my feelings on their past works or the attitudes they display in public. This matters much more for single-author works than for collaborations put out by companies with an ever-revolving set of people contributing to the game line.
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