All good except trying to persuade distributors and retailers to carry a book full of material people could buy via PDF before the printed version ever hit the shelves Sad
I'd probably suggest doing it the opposite way around - in 32-page books the size of "Rune of Chaos", then a big compilation PDF (with index/search facilities) once they're all out. Or even forget the PDF and go for an interactive atlas CD/DVD.... Very Happy Or forget the printed versions and do the PDFs with the interactive atlas disc once they're all done... Stores would be more likely to want to carry something with "added value" over the downloadable versions.
I think Ptolus changes this equation.
My explanation here will enlighten those asking my use of the word "ptolusian" for the Atlas I mentioned earlier. Ptolus is a mammoth, deluxe sourcebook put out by Monte Cook describing the fantasy city he's been running for years with the D&D Third Edition rules. It describes the world of Praemal, the city of Ptolus, what's under and above it, and provides loads of advice for running urban campaigns, high level campaigns and so on, so forth.
What really makes Ptolus special is the quality of production of the book. Here's the link to
its FAQ to know more about it.
Fact is, Ptolus was released as both the physical sourcebook, and the various parts of the book as nine separate PDFs. A few of the PDFs released
before the book was on the shelves, and further, the book was released
only through hobby retailers.
Ptolus is a huge marketing success. There are two reasons for this. The first is that the marketing of the book was absolutely exemplary. There was an announcement made a whole year before the release of the book. There was a website with weekly updates up to the release of the book. Loads of goodies for people pre-ordering the book. A program of monthly payments for those who pre-ordered. The Delver's Guild website only accessible to the people who pre-ordered being updated monthly also. There was a particular attention given to the retailer, with pre-order deals and offers.
The success of the marketing was due to the steady fan base that trusted the project and made it a success.
The second reason for the huge success of Ptolus, that's the special quality of the book. A deluxe realization, great paper, bookmarks embeded in the book, mindboggling cross-references and organization of the book. Because the volume was
special, people wanted it.
In conclusion, what that kind of product needs to work out is to be special in its physical realization and the contents its carries, to have a fan base ready to trust the project, and to have the attention it deserves through a well-planned marketing.
The end result of all this was that people were having opinions about Ptolus and talked about it. What gamers talk about gathers the passions. And when it gathers the passion, the retailers become aware that this product shouldn't be ignored.
Let's compare that with Glorantha and RuneQuest.
Do Glorantha and RuneQuest have a steady fan base ready to invest in such a project? I would say there is, looking at the success RuneQuest and Glorantha enjoy at the moment on one hand, and on the few (and non-demonstrative on their own, we agree) people who said they'd be
really excited about such a product.
Does Gloranthan material have the means to represent something special as far as the contents are concerned? Well, I truly believe it does, yes.
Which leaves us with the two main components which would rest on Mongoose's shoulders: the physical realization of the book itself, its organizational and textual quality, and the management of a proper marketing campaign for such a product.
All these things are possible. How do I know that? Because it's been done by Malhavoc Press.
Another important thing to understand as well, I think, is that PDFs and physical books are not in the same ball park and do not usually represent a nuisance to one another in terms of sales. These are two different media with different types of publics. Many people investing in physical books wouldn't invest in PDFs, and many people buying PDFs do so because they don't have the money to buy physical books. There is also a noticeable proportion of PDF clients who actually buy the physical book and then invest in the PDF because they want to be able to reproduce parts of the books for their players.
That too, Ptolus, and a large number of PDF products before it, have demonstrated, in my opinion.
So really, I think the project is feasible and could be a huge business success if done right.
)...I think this idea has merit.
