From: Charles Ryan <[c--e] at [vt.edu]>
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: A question to/about gaming companies
Date: 29 Jan 1994 18:21:33 GMT

In article <[1994 Jan 26 161910 93] at [unislc.slc.unisys.com]> Steve Spencer,
[s t v] at [unislc.slc.unisys.com] writes:

>	So does anyone know of companies that will look at new stuff? Do 
>they have E-mail accounts? HELP ME! I've been trying to show this around
>for two years!! And only one comapny has even looked at it!

Obviously, I can only speak for my own company, but I think many others
share similar points of veiw.

The basic problem is, we're not really in the market for new games. How
can a game company not be in the market for a new game? Well, try selling
a new car design to Chrysler. Chrysler has its own projects, most of
which have been in the works for years. They've already decided on this
year's budget, and have probably allocated personnel and financial
resources even farther ahead. They know nothing about your
qualifications--or more importantly, your dedication to the long-term
commitment that a new line requires. Your proposal may have a few new
gizmos or good ideas, but Chrysler has to consider all of the marketting
and support efforts that must go along with it.

That analogy works for game companies, but there!s even more to it. If
you send a proposal in with several revolutionary concepts, and it just
so happens that we've included a few similar ideas in an upcoming
release, we risk a lawsuit if you think we stole your ideas. For that
reason alone, many mainstream game companies will return unsolicited
submissions unopened. And finally, there is the fact that the game market
is nearly glutted, and doesn't have room enough for all of >our< great
ideas, let alone those that arrive unexpected in the mail.

Is there nothing you can do? In the short term, probably not. But here's
some advice. First, package your game as a proposal, not just a
manuscript. Include a cover letter with a strong hook, make the whole
package look good, and above all else stress a strong and unique concept.
No RPG can sell without an identifiable and engaging background
concept--if you can't communicate that in a brief proposal there's no
reason to believe that you will in a finished game. Second, get yourself
published elsewhere. That means writing for other game systems. No game
company is going to trust the birth of a new line to someone who's skills
and dedication are unknown. The more big projects you can get under your
belt--especially work for the companies you want to target--the better
your chances that they will even consider your game. And lastly, keep up
with the industry. Know what's out there, so you aren't duplicating old
technology. Go to Origins and GenCon and maybe even the GAMA trade show,
and talk to the editors and presidents of the game companies. Stay on top
of industry news, so you know what will be coming out in the next six
months or a year.

I hate to sound discouraging, but I don't think highly of your chances.
I've been in the industry for several years, and I can't think off the
top of my head of >any< game company that has picked up and published an
unsolicited game system (I could be wrong there, though--I'm not privy to
the internal workings of every company). The best course of action, as
you've already heard, is to get your foot in the door by writing. With
any luck, you'll land a few projects that let you write some rules, like
a ship-design system for an SF game, or a campaign or world book for
GURPS or TORG. Then you'll get a chance perhaps to work some of your
ideas into an existing game. And if your RPG is really that good, you may
be able to revive it a couple of years down the road, when you've got the
ear of a few game companies.

Charles Ryan
Chameleon Eclectic
[c--e] at [vt.edu]