| Post/Author/DateTime | Post |
|---|---|
| #1AaronOfBarbariaOct 21, 2008 3:36:16 | So I notice this product, a Goodman Games adventure module, and take a look. First - Cover art that perpetuates the stereotype of sexist portrayal of women in role-playing games. Second - A whole text box explaining why "Master Dungeons" are so much better than other dungeons that includes very arrogant language, for a sample "Some explorers perish in pit traps while other found fiefdoms. What sets them apart? Master Dungeons: heroes are chiseled from the challenges they face, and those who conquer Master Dungeons rise to be kings." Third - not a single encounter with an experience total that makes sense. Multiple "1st level" encounters with only 200 experience total worth of monster/traps. A "2nd level" encounter that with a 500 experience total (which is exactly a level 1 encounter - could just be a typo) and various other encounters that are either a) way easy or b) claiming an incorrect encounter level to start with. Overall I guess I'm just throwing a tantrum about products that make themselves out to be better (not just different) than products made by the same company whose game they are supposed to be used with... and at the same time expressing disappointment in the quality of the module - Goodman Games has done much better in the past. |
| #2AndronOct 21, 2008 11:22:54 | I have always thought that Goodman Games produced a most excellent product. They attempt to recapture "the good old days" with the look, feel, and text of their written adventures, especially with their dungeon crawl classics. I have never thought once that they were anything but grateful to their customers. Goodman Games is one of the very few 3rd party publishers i will purchase anything from. Of course I have not looked at this particular adventure you are talking about. I did recently purchase their Points of Light supplient and found it to be very helpful. |
| #3_jayne_cobb_Oct 21, 2008 11:46:15 | First - Cover art that perpetuates the stereotype of sexist portrayal of women in role-playing games. Looks like vintage 1e/2e D&D artwork to me. Second - A whole text box explaining why "Master Dungeons" are so much better than other dungeons that includes very arrogant language, for a sample "Some explorers perish in pit traps while other found fiefdoms. What sets them apart? Master Dungeons: heroes are chiseled from the challenges they face, and those who conquer Master Dungeons rise to be kings." Standard marketing fluff. What's the big deal? Third - not a single encounter with an experience total that makes sense. This could be problematic. Overall I guess I'm just throwing a tantrum about products that make themselves out to be better (not just different) than products made by the same company whose game they are supposed to be used with... and at the same time expressing disappointment in the quality of the module - Goodman Games has done much better in the past. Since when did building yourself up become a bad thing? |
| #4The_White_SorcererOct 21, 2008 12:04:25 | The XP values seem to be per PC. |
| #5AaronOfBarbariaOct 21, 2008 19:33:16 | The XP values seem to be per PC. No they don't - because that would make every encounter even more wrong about what encounter level it is: 200xp being listed as a 1st level encounter implies each of the 5 characters the adventure is built for gets 40xp - each character getting 200xp implies a 5th level encounter, which is a massive difference. Standard marketing fluff. What's the big deal? It's a pet peeve really. I just feel that if your product requires the use of someone else's system to function that you are not allowed to make it sound as though you feel you are better at making products for that system than they are without sounding a little dumb for it. Looks like vintage 1e/2e artwork to me. You are right about that, because it very much does. There are a number of people that would say that is a problem though... in this case I agree, but only because the picture does not seem to actually depict anyone from the adventure - no NPC that I have seen is described in a way that fits the art, so it is only there as "bait." Since when did building yourself up become a bad thing? I just feel that building yourself up does not require comments that directly imply that other products are bad. I guess since that is the easy way to do it though, that there's no avoiding it. I would just like to see products claim things that are basically "our product is totally awesome," and not "our product isn't lame like other people's" |
| #6BloodsoulOct 21, 2008 19:49:48 | So I look up this so called "offensive" artwork and I have to ask.. is that Courtney Love? What has been seen can not be unseen. |
| #7The_White_SorcererOct 21, 2008 22:33:49 | No they don't - because that would make every encounter even more wrong about what encounter level it is: 200xp being listed as a 1st level encounter implies each of the 5 characters the adventure is built for gets 40xp - each character getting 200xp implies a 5th level encounter, which is a massive difference. Yeah, seems like I had a brain fart. The XP totals are mostly correct, though. The only error I found was Area 1-2, which is missing 25 points worth of monsters. All of the encounter levels also seem to be correct, except for Area 1-4A, which should be EL 1 instead of 2 (propably just a typo). So all in all, not too bad. |
| #8solikOct 21, 2008 22:54:11 | Looks to me like you're completely misreading that sample text you provided. There's nothing there hinting at Master Dungeons being better than other products; rather, it's saying that heroes who conquer dungeons (these in particular, since it's what they're offering) are true heroes, while those who don't simply perish. I like the coverart. It's fantastic sexy. It's only sexist if they put a male standing next to her who is realistic sexy -- fully/mostly concealed in realistic armor garb. Which I admit they probably did inside the book. |