#7: Comic Con 2006: The Gaming Markets

[RPGnet Columns]

http://www.rpg.net/columns/oneshot/oneshot7.phtml

Summary:

A look at SDC Comic-Con 2006, the marketing hype, and the gaming presence.

Go to the column (http://www.rpg.net/columns/oneshot/oneshot7.phtml) for more information.

[red_bee]

Snakes on a Train.

I've gotta mention that to a friend of mine that owns a game store. A super-cool cross-marketing idea potentially being wasted!!

Excellent article!

[neko ewen]

Somehow, I completely missed the WotC booth, yet found Itesser Ink. :D

[Iceberg3k]

I think that this is a symptom of a larger problem, and probably the reason that RPGs, despite being 30 years old, have not moved more deeply into the mainstream: RPG publishers seem to see their product as being fundamentally different from other media products. Even tie-in RPGs seem to have this problem. Worse, they seem to have the idea that games can sell solely by word of mouth, without much (if anything) in the way of advertising.

I think that a good, sustained ad campaign mounted in national publications could do a lot to raise the visibility of RPGs and raise public interest in games. Especially with so many people now engaged in some form or another of role-playing.

It really shouldn't take all that much. Just a commitment to the premise that us geeks really aren't all that much different from anybody else. Sure, it'll slaughter a few sacred cows, but it'll be worth it in the end.

[countrysamurai]

Gaming or the lack thereof at the ComicCon has always baffled me. That's not to say there isn't gaming there -- they have a 24 hour gaming suite at a neighboring hotel and there are ALWAYS games going on there. They also have a lot of CCG and miniture tournaments on the mez level. There are also lots of RPGs to join in the open gaming area on the mez level. I went there only one day this year and saw 3 D&D games running along with a Vampire and a Mage game. It looked like an Exhalted game was also starting.
But the gaming companies are hardly ever there. There is one game store retailer on the floor and he seems to do a pretty good business. I remember a few years ago when D&D 3.5 came out a retailer sold cases and cases of the books. My friend stood in line for an hour so he could get his copies there. But other than one retail store, Wizards and a couple others, there was nobody there.
Green Ronin used to come. I can understand with their recent theft why they weren't there this year.
I would guess that with 120,000 people that are there, about 30 to 40,000 are gamers. That's as many as attend GenCon. But gaming companies don't come to ComicCon because they don't have a captive audience like they do at GenCon. Plus, they are so close together, many companies have to chose to make the trip to one or the other.