Full Version: Out of Copies at Gencon?
I have been told that Fanpro ran out of copies of the 4th ed core book. Are they limiting the number of sold a day or actually ran out?
Its abit of both, they made alot, but just not nearly enough, first day was like 50, next day was 100, next day was multiple hundred(I think).
and they all sold out practically instantly.
Edited: my LE copy has additional bonus of being stained with the blood of people I stepped over to get it.
and they all sold out practically instantly.
Edited: my LE copy has additional bonus of being stained with the blood of people I stepped over to get it.
A friend went to buy a few copies (he was chosen as line monkey for the guys at the con and the rest of the group that couldnt make it) and he was 2 people away when he was told they had sold out...
I must of been right behind him, because first day I was 4 away before being sold out, about 15minutes after show opened. Next day was more copies..but Gone in about 5minutes =/.
Today was alot more copies, with a obscenely long line, as long as the convetion hall was wide.
Surprised firemarshall didn't show up.
Today was alot more copies, with a obscenely long line, as long as the convetion hall was wide.
Surprised firemarshall didn't show up.
And the guys in the booth were arrogant bastards!
They have been limiting number of LE to a single copy per person, so don't expect 1 guy to pick up enough for the group. I think they had 50 or less LE copies today.
They have been limiting number of LE to a single copy per person, so don't expect 1 guy to pick up enough for the group. I think they had 50 or less LE copies today.
Thus the "limited" part. 
Remember they only had a 1,000 to start with and they are holding back some for online and retail channel sales.
Remember they only had a 1,000 to start with and they are holding back some for online and retail channel sales.
Sorry, but I feel if you go to the con, pay $27 a day admission to get jerked around (not including other expenses like $10 a day parking, travel, motel expenses), you should get one of those thousand. To defray the overhead, you should get multiple copies if you want.
Right now, I have over a hundred bucks and several hours of my time wrapped up in trying to get a LE. I could have waited for a regular copy, but since that was all they had the first couple days, I did get one.
Since you don't seem to understand the frustration... They announced a sell time, and issued numbers. How you got a number was not explained. No number, no LE. When I asked about prepaying for one from the next shipment (tried this every day), they refused. When asked how to get a number for the next shipment, was told, "Just like today." But who knows how they distributed these numbers "today" and they refused to say.
What is frustrating is imagine if your FLGS charged $30 every day you called to see if a product was in. Same deal basically at the con. You have to pay admission just to visit the booth and get shit on.
Yes, I am becoming an unhappy customer. Sad when I had $1000 in my pocket to buy as much of their LE as I could get.
Right now, I have over a hundred bucks and several hours of my time wrapped up in trying to get a LE. I could have waited for a regular copy, but since that was all they had the first couple days, I did get one.
Since you don't seem to understand the frustration... They announced a sell time, and issued numbers. How you got a number was not explained. No number, no LE. When I asked about prepaying for one from the next shipment (tried this every day), they refused. When asked how to get a number for the next shipment, was told, "Just like today." But who knows how they distributed these numbers "today" and they refused to say.
What is frustrating is imagine if your FLGS charged $30 every day you called to see if a product was in. Same deal basically at the con. You have to pay admission just to visit the booth and get shit on.
Yes, I am becoming an unhappy customer. Sad when I had $1000 in my pocket to buy as much of their LE as I could get.
I got mine on the first day it was sold, and there was a line. I zerg-rushed the booth as soon as the exhibit hall opened, and was the 10th person or so there, so I didn't realize their print run was so low until Friday afternoon, when I went back there again with my friends and they told us it sold out within the hour. The next morning (today), my friends went at 10AM, and rushed the booth, but they didn't get a copy. Finally, they got a copy of it at 1PM, but waited in the line that was starting (spontaneously, I might add) at around noon. Ugh. It's been a genuinely frustrating experience to try to get a copy for my friends, and I feel like I got off lucky.
Still, we had a good SR3 game just after they got their copies, and while the SR4 release was the main reason we are here, we are also having a lot of fun just doing con demos and collecting bags full of swag. On another unrelated note, our group tonight was the first group to finish the Hardcore version of True Dungeon with NO player deaths!
Still, we had a good SR3 game just after they got their copies, and while the SR4 release was the main reason we are here, we are also having a lot of fun just doing con demos and collecting bags full of swag. On another unrelated note, our group tonight was the first group to finish the Hardcore version of True Dungeon with NO player deaths!
| QUOTE (tisoz) |
| Since you don't seem to understand the frustration... |
Yes, well i was getting the gist of it. Even without the gory details. I just can't do a lot about it.
| QUOTE |
| Yes, I am becoming an unhappy customer. Sad when I had $1000 in my pocket to buy as much of their LE as I could get. |
...which is exactly what they wouldn't want to have happen. They do have an entire -world- of customers to try spread these books around to. Imagine how the people here that are several hour flights, or continents away from the arbitrary location of Indy would feel if you came on here and said "Hey, i got 3 copies of the LE." When their online pre-ordered LE didn't come through they'd have a damn good idea where it was.
Also try to imagine the overwhelming of people upon people that are in your position (dropped sizable cash and time) that are bombarding Fanpro's booth. Not saying they couldn't handle it better, or that they didn't properly predict and plan for demand, but....
| QUOTE (tisoz) |
| Sorry, but I feel if you go to the con, pay $27 a day admission to get jerked around (not including other expenses like $10 a day parking, travel, motel expenses), you should get one of those thousand. |
There were more than 25,000 people at GenCon. Even if Fanpro HAD all 1000 copies of the LE printed (There were only a few hundred at GenCon, there was a complication with the printer.) and available for the show, not everyone could get even one.
While your enthusiasm is appreciated, your expectations are misguided. When you go to GenCon you're paying for a great deal more than an opportunity to buy products in a dealer room.
Is it me or does Fanpro need to get a different printer? It seems like they have nothing but problems and delays with the one they have.
I am suprised. Here up in Mass. U.S., commercial print vendors are starving for work, with many going out of business. For those that remain, they are forced to shorten turn around time, deliver faster, and decrease quality defects. I don't know if the same applies to the bindery piece (which is different than offset print.)
If any of our vendors are late or don't miss a deadline, we switch. This is made easier by technology and different formatting software (i.e. Quark, Adobe, etc..) which, the final end product, is compatible.
I wonder if their agreement with their publisher/distrubitor requires them to use certain commercial print vendors?
If any of our vendors are late or don't miss a deadline, we switch. This is made easier by technology and different formatting software (i.e. Quark, Adobe, etc..) which, the final end product, is compatible.
I wonder if their agreement with their publisher/distrubitor requires them to use certain commercial print vendors?
| QUOTE (blakkie) |
| They do have an entire -world- of customers to try spread these books around to. Imagine how the people here that are several hour flights, or continents away from the arbitrary location of Indy would feel if you came on here and said "Hey, i got 3 copies of the LE." |
"Hey I got 3 copies of the LE." "Who are my real friends?"
| QUOTE |
| Not saying they couldn't handle it better, or that they didn't properly predict and plan for demand, but.... |
They did handle it way better today, in my case. The exact same guys who irritated the hell out of me yesterday, were helpful and friendly today. Maybe because they new I would be happier?
To compare, I decided to kill time on Saturday while waiting for the next delivery by volunteering for the GenCon crew. They were great on Friday and I decided when I started getting the anticipated run around Saturday, this would be a nice show of appreciation on my part. As I kept getting the runaround, as in the next delivery will be on Sunday, the guy I was helping worked it out so I could volunteer for 16 hours (minimum) and get my admission refunded.
He was desperate for help in a hotel hosting mainly seminars and LARPS that was a few blocks from the convention center. Turns out Ed (?) Greenwood was getting roasted. A ticketed, free event. And there was a free buffet dinner. And they were distributing a limited edition Elminster fig. All the people at the WotC booth were telling people to go, it was free. No mention of needing a ticket or 150 room capacity. Even the WotC people showed without tickets. Ed invited friends, again no tickets. People heard about the free limited edition fig and wanted in. Of course they didn't hear you needed a ticket, just that it was free.
It was a terrible situation that got truthfully explained. If you did not have a ticket, there was no guarantee you would get in. You were welcome to queue up. People who claimed Ed invited them were put along his route so they could alert Ed to get them in. The WotC staff, generously gave up their seets and stood. We asked the hotel about actual room capacity (as far as lawful firecodes) and got many more in. We scrounged up more food than was originally planned. Of about 300 people, only 20 or so got turned away. They all seemed to understand we did everything to make the best of the bad planning and awareness. And everyone in the room seemed to have a good time. We apologized to those we turned away, and got only, "We know you did all you could " or "You let us know our chances weren't too good right off the bat," for responses.
| QUOTE (the_dunner) |
| There were more than 25,000 people at GenCon. Even if Fanpro HAD all 1000 copies of the LE printed (There were only a few hundred at GenCon, there was a complication with the printer.) and available for the show, not everyone could get even one. |
35,000, and Fanpro can wish they were all customers. The way the folks in the Fanpro booth dealt with people Friday and Saturday they did not win over too many new fans. I doubt there were more than 1000 SR fans at the con, probably half that. I would like to hear estimates of people who showed an interest in SR products at the booth.
| QUOTE (the_dunner) |
| While your enthusiasm is appreciated, your expectations are misguided. When you go to GenCon you're paying for a great deal more than an opportunity to buy products in a dealer room. |
I explained my sole purpose for attending the convention was to pick up the LE first thing Friday morning when I bought the regular edition. If I had been given some helpful information at any time after until Sunday morning, I could have adjusted my plans to save time and money. As it was, when I accepted that they were jerking people around, I did manage to change my plans and saved money, and better spent my time.
| QUOTE (tisoz @ Aug 21 2005, 06:38 AM) |
| Sorry, but I feel if you go to the con, pay $27 a day admission to get jerked around (not including other expenses like $10 a day parking, travel, motel expenses), you should get one of those thousand. To defray the overhead, you should get multiple copies if you want. |
And how would you feel if you were waiting in line for X number of hours only to get to the front of the line and realize that they were out of copies because the guy right in front of you dropped a grand and bought twenty copies? Then you'd be on here bitching because Fanpro was putting money ahead of customers and only cared about selling as many copies as they could without regard to making sure that everyone who wanted one got one.
It was unfortunately a bad sitiuation. And it was made worse by the fact that a couple of fans were somewhat vocal and/or rude with their displeasure at the situation.
I don't know exactly what happened in Tisoz's case, but I know that I "worked the line" one morning to help keep things under control (the aisles weren't really that wide, and both the guy running the "Old boxes of crappy CCG's no one wants anymore so we're selling at massive discount" booth acrossed from us and the GC staff were on our cases to keep the aisles as clear as possible. Most of the FanPro crew, at least while I was around, was doing their best to explain the sitch as best we could. Unfortunatly, most of us only knew a little information early on, asnd most of it was badly out of our control
it did end up being a bit disogranized, especially the first couple days, but a large part of that appeared to be that FanPro simply underestimated how many people were not only going to show up the first day the books were available, but every time after that. I think they expected a couple dozen die hards in line, and that tehy would have some books for at least part of the day, even with the limited amount we got the first day or two. Having 100+ people in line at their booth several days ina row caught them way off guard.
Bull
I don't know exactly what happened in Tisoz's case, but I know that I "worked the line" one morning to help keep things under control (the aisles weren't really that wide, and both the guy running the "Old boxes of crappy CCG's no one wants anymore so we're selling at massive discount" booth acrossed from us and the GC staff were on our cases to keep the aisles as clear as possible. Most of the FanPro crew, at least while I was around, was doing their best to explain the sitch as best we could. Unfortunatly, most of us only knew a little information early on, asnd most of it was badly out of our control
it did end up being a bit disogranized, especially the first couple days, but a large part of that appeared to be that FanPro simply underestimated how many people were not only going to show up the first day the books were available, but every time after that. I think they expected a couple dozen die hards in line, and that tehy would have some books for at least part of the day, even with the limited amount we got the first day or two. Having 100+ people in line at their booth several days ina row caught them way off guard.
Bull
I understand that you wanted the special "Limited Edition" to sell for the die-hard fans, but why only 1,000? Is there a chance of a second printing of the LE? I would be willing to wait for a second or third printing of the LE if that's what it takes.
I think the only real reason they did an LE at all this time is just because there's such a fondness for the SR3 one. And it's limited to 1000 because, ummm... <shrug> Probably because the SR3 one was as well. Plus that's enough copies that it's possible to get one if you really try or just get lucky, but still limited enough to be a collectors item. I doubt you'll see any sort of reprint. Printing larger runs or reprinting it sorta negates the entire point of an LE.
Plus, this time around, the LE really isn;t that big a deal, to be honest. With previuos editions, the LE versionw as hardcover, while the regular was not. That was one of the biggest draws of the LE. With the regular SR4 being hardcover, it's a little less "Special".
<shrug>
Bull
Plus, this time around, the LE really isn;t that big a deal, to be honest. With previuos editions, the LE versionw as hardcover, while the regular was not. That was one of the biggest draws of the LE. With the regular SR4 being hardcover, it's a little less "Special".
<shrug>
Bull
It sounds like a good sign for the franchise though. Every disgruntled SR4 fan is another potential fan for SR3R.
I'm not disgruntled. I'm pretty gruntled right now. Just actually taking a deep breath and realizing that even if I could have made it to Gencon I might not have the LE BBB in my hands right now. Thanks for the quick answer, Bull.
One thing i really notcied is that SR43 got a LOT of attention, even from folsk who weren't interested in it. EVERYONE knew we had a big new release, and a lot of folks from other compaies that I talked to commented that there seemed to be a lot of buzz and anticipation about it.
That coupled with the overwhelming response is a very positive sign. And trust me, everyone at the Fanpro booth was irritated with the distribution porblem. At the very least, there was a LOT more money to be made
Especially sicne any direct sale at the con eliminates the distributor and game store's cut of teh profit, so it's more money tehy get to offset the costs of the con and original design costs.
Fanpro really went all out this year, or at least as all out as a smaller game company on a tight budget can. There were a TON of SR games being run, both 3rd and 4th. I ran 14 or 15 demo's myself, as I said, and had 6-7 players at the table for every one of them, plus for the majority of games had 2-6 more folks standinga roudn listening in. There were a bunch of other demo's run Sat & Sun that I didn't run. They had a bunch of tall, full color banners for SR4 and for Fanpro's game line as a whole (With SR, BT, and DE listed on them), and we even had our own "Event Room" for the games MooCow and the GMs were running.
Bull
That coupled with the overwhelming response is a very positive sign. And trust me, everyone at the Fanpro booth was irritated with the distribution porblem. At the very least, there was a LOT more money to be made
Especially sicne any direct sale at the con eliminates the distributor and game store's cut of teh profit, so it's more money tehy get to offset the costs of the con and original design costs.Fanpro really went all out this year, or at least as all out as a smaller game company on a tight budget can. There were a TON of SR games being run, both 3rd and 4th. I ran 14 or 15 demo's myself, as I said, and had 6-7 players at the table for every one of them, plus for the majority of games had 2-6 more folks standinga roudn listening in. There were a bunch of other demo's run Sat & Sun that I didn't run. They had a bunch of tall, full color banners for SR4 and for Fanpro's game line as a whole (With SR, BT, and DE listed on them), and we even had our own "Event Room" for the games MooCow and the GMs were running.
Bull
| QUOTE (apollo124) |
| I'm not disgruntled. I'm pretty gruntled right now. Just actually taking a deep breath and realizing that even if I could have made it to Gencon I might not have the LE BBB in my hands right now. Thanks for the quick answer, Bull. |
yeah. i don;t know how many copies of the LE actually made it to the con, but I'm pretty sure it was less than 250. The nice thing is that means there are that many more available online.
the BattleCorp were saying they had quite a few copies set aside for them now because of the problems we had getting them. Try on there. No guarantees, but they may have some left.
Bull
One more question, slightly off-topic. Are there going to be pics posted of the GenCon booth, lines, surroundings for those of us who couldn't make it? Like to see a little of it if we could.
Maybe? I'm not sure.
I meant to take my camera in and get pictures, but was too busy on Thursday, forgot it on Friday, and then forgot to take the battery off the charger and put it in the camera on Saturday, so i ended up pictureless
Bull
I meant to take my camera in and get pictures, but was too busy on Thursday, forgot it on Friday, and then forgot to take the battery off the charger and put it in the camera on Saturday, so i ended up pictureless
Bull
I know at least two of the people running the booth held thier cameras up and took pictures of the obscene lines with large grins on thier faces!
Here are some of my GenCon photos:
First day crowd, just before the exhibit hall opened. HUGE. - http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...oo/DSC00100.jpg
Any time there was an event giving out something limited or free swag, there were long lines, most notably at the NCSoft, WizKids, and WotC booth. Here's one of them - http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00104.jpg
The Exhibit Hall consisted mostly of people hawking their wares in various booths:
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00109.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00110.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00111.jpg
This is Bull, after finishing all of the Shadowrun Demos at the FanPro booth:
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00148.jpg
Just kidding.
There were a lot of impressive sculptures and stands at the Con, like a life-sized Spiderman hanging upside down at the VS system booth and the huge Batman sculpture. Here's one from the Blizzard booth:
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00136.jpg
The most impressive "booth" in my opinion was the Axis and Allies collectible something-thingummy (I don't know what it was) game booth, which had a huge-ass bombed-out church facade, and life-sized jeeps with mannequins in dress uniform. There's even a half-scale tank:
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00115.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00124.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00127.jpg
I have more photos, but I'll probably post them later when I'm more motivated.
First day crowd, just before the exhibit hall opened. HUGE. - http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...oo/DSC00100.jpg
Any time there was an event giving out something limited or free swag, there were long lines, most notably at the NCSoft, WizKids, and WotC booth. Here's one of them - http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00104.jpg
The Exhibit Hall consisted mostly of people hawking their wares in various booths:
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00109.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00110.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00111.jpg
This is Bull, after finishing all of the Shadowrun Demos at the FanPro booth:
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00148.jpg
Just kidding.There were a lot of impressive sculptures and stands at the Con, like a life-sized Spiderman hanging upside down at the VS system booth and the huge Batman sculpture. Here's one from the Blizzard booth:
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00136.jpg
The most impressive "booth" in my opinion was the Axis and Allies collectible something-thingummy (I don't know what it was) game booth, which had a huge-ass bombed-out church facade, and life-sized jeeps with mannequins in dress uniform. There's even a half-scale tank:
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00115.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00124.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y269/hahn...on/DSC00127.jpg
I have more photos, but I'll probably post them later when I'm more motivated.
That'd make a cool set on Flickr.
I'm sorry...but I really don't like people complaining about not getting an LE copy of the book the first day you get to the con. I got dumpped on and basically blasted out of getting to the con this year because some cheap-ass SOB didn't want to take a hand-out of money from my mom to get free admission to the con, free room and board, and free food. The only way we could go was if he went and lessened the money of the trip for us. My mom said she'd loan him some money to go, just for us to have him go. He backs out at the last minute and says no, cause he won't accept money like that.
So for all you 'unhappy customers', I have this to say. At least you got a frag'n chance at the damn book! I, most likely, have to wait till September for my books to come in, even though I pre-ordered them in July. So all of you can suck the bussiness end of my Predator, all right? You got a frag'n chance to get the book before anyone else. You didn't get it? Well, at least you got to go to the con. I didn't! Now stop your damn whining!
So for all you 'unhappy customers', I have this to say. At least you got a frag'n chance at the damn book! I, most likely, have to wait till September for my books to come in, even though I pre-ordered them in July. So all of you can suck the bussiness end of my Predator, all right? You got a frag'n chance to get the book before anyone else. You didn't get it? Well, at least you got to go to the con. I didn't! Now stop your damn whining!
Wow, someone hasn't had their soykaf yet.
Sorry...but I planned for that trip a year in advance, and then got everything finalized when I heard SR4 was coming out there. And a month before we go, the one guy craps out on us, when we've had to schedual, re-schedual, cancel, re-cancel, change people, change names...
I'm sorry, but I'm frag'n pissed at these people that got a chance at the book and cried because they don't have their shiny new LE copy to take to bed with them at night. I wanted a REGULAR copy, I and don't even get that till September. So slot off, the lot of you!
I'm sorry, but I'm frag'n pissed at these people that got a chance at the book and cried because they don't have their shiny new LE copy to take to bed with them at night. I wanted a REGULAR copy, I and don't even get that till September. So slot off, the lot of you!
Allow me to offer my personal apologies to everyone that waited in line for either the LE or the normal edition of SR4. Believe me when I say that we did everything that we could to bring as many copies of SR4 to Gencon.
I won't speak officially for Fanpro but I can say from my own experience working the booth that the demand for SR4 was immense and on a scale that was, for me, completely unanticipated. Even with more people working the booth than we've ever had we were pressed to handle the hordes of people that gathered when we actually had copies in stock.
I realize that some of you feel that the system for distrubuting the books was unclear or unfair but our goal was to make the largest numbers of book available to the most people at Gencon, thus the limiting of the number of copies sold. Even if we'd had four or five times the number of books there I'm not sure we could have met the demand.
If I was personally rude to anyone that came up to the booth then I apologize. Normally at Gencon or Origins we're able to sit and talk and take time to explain situations to people. But this time we were spread thin as it seemed like every 30 sec of so someone would come up wanting SR4. So conversations were often interrupted or cut short. Nearly all the the people working the booth put in extra hours with some of us staying in the booth nearly the entire con. Also most of us were going on very little sleep. Between the time spent running the booth, in meetings, doing outside promotions of SR4, and <gasp> actually trying to have a little fun ourselves at Gencon (yes Virginia the SR4 crew is human) we were pretty worn down. It was simply crazy.
Finally I had several people come up to me, personally (and I know that others had a similar experience) and accuse us (Fanpro) of wanting to screw our fans and that was why we didn't have enough copies. Huh? What? Run that one by me again. I know that for all of us if we could have had thousands more copies to sell to everyone there we could not have been happier. I worked long and hard on SR4, as did many others. It's just ridiculous to say that any of us wouldn't want the fruits of our labors out there in as many hands as possible. I want all gamers to have a copy of SR4. And all non-gamers. We just didn't have enough. There were people who worked long and hard both on this project and in the booth that had come from all over that didn't get a copy of the book because we decided that all the copies we had should go out to the fans that were there. And all I can say is, once again, sorry to all the people that waited in line but were unable to get a copy. It may not count for a whole lot but I hated having to say "Sorry, please check back tomorrow at 10am" hundreds to times and having to see the disappointment, anger, or frustration in the eyes of our fanbase.
Brian Cross
P.S. I'd like to extend a special thank you for all the fans who hung out around the booth and helped us out with no expectation of any kind of reward except getting to hang out and talk with us. You guys (and girls) know who you are. Thank you, it was appreciated.
I won't speak officially for Fanpro but I can say from my own experience working the booth that the demand for SR4 was immense and on a scale that was, for me, completely unanticipated. Even with more people working the booth than we've ever had we were pressed to handle the hordes of people that gathered when we actually had copies in stock.
I realize that some of you feel that the system for distrubuting the books was unclear or unfair but our goal was to make the largest numbers of book available to the most people at Gencon, thus the limiting of the number of copies sold. Even if we'd had four or five times the number of books there I'm not sure we could have met the demand.
If I was personally rude to anyone that came up to the booth then I apologize. Normally at Gencon or Origins we're able to sit and talk and take time to explain situations to people. But this time we were spread thin as it seemed like every 30 sec of so someone would come up wanting SR4. So conversations were often interrupted or cut short. Nearly all the the people working the booth put in extra hours with some of us staying in the booth nearly the entire con. Also most of us were going on very little sleep. Between the time spent running the booth, in meetings, doing outside promotions of SR4, and <gasp> actually trying to have a little fun ourselves at Gencon (yes Virginia the SR4 crew is human) we were pretty worn down. It was simply crazy.
Finally I had several people come up to me, personally (and I know that others had a similar experience) and accuse us (Fanpro) of wanting to screw our fans and that was why we didn't have enough copies. Huh? What? Run that one by me again. I know that for all of us if we could have had thousands more copies to sell to everyone there we could not have been happier. I worked long and hard on SR4, as did many others. It's just ridiculous to say that any of us wouldn't want the fruits of our labors out there in as many hands as possible. I want all gamers to have a copy of SR4. And all non-gamers. We just didn't have enough. There were people who worked long and hard both on this project and in the booth that had come from all over that didn't get a copy of the book because we decided that all the copies we had should go out to the fans that were there. And all I can say is, once again, sorry to all the people that waited in line but were unable to get a copy. It may not count for a whole lot but I hated having to say "Sorry, please check back tomorrow at 10am" hundreds to times and having to see the disappointment, anger, or frustration in the eyes of our fanbase.
Brian Cross
P.S. I'd like to extend a special thank you for all the fans who hung out around the booth and helped us out with no expectation of any kind of reward except getting to hang out and talk with us. You guys (and girls) know who you are. Thank you, it was appreciated.
I would have loved to help you out at the booth. You guys rarely get the appreciation you deserve, esspecially with the waiting, no sleep, the customers, and wanting to do things yourself. I think it's great that you had any copies down there at all. I just wish I could have been down there to help run the booth or run games or something...I hope I can do it next year when I'll have the money to get there by myself.
No matter what anyone says, people working GenCon have a hard and tiresome job and you should get...like a medal or something.
P.S. Don't worry too much about the people that were angry. If they go to Gen Con for just one book, they shouldn't be allowed in. It's a travesty to the gaming community, it is.
No matter what anyone says, people working GenCon have a hard and tiresome job and you should get...like a medal or something.
P.S. Don't worry too much about the people that were angry. If they go to Gen Con for just one book, they shouldn't be allowed in. It's a travesty to the gaming community, it is.
| QUOTE (CrystalBlue) |
| I'm sorry...but I really don't like people complaining about not getting an LE copy of the book the first day you get to the con. I got dumpped on and basically blasted out of getting to the con this year because some cheap-ass SOB didn't want to take a hand-out of money from my mom to get free admission to the con, free room and board, and free food. The only way we could go was if he went and lessened the money of the trip for us. My mom said she'd loan him some money to go, just for us to have him go. He backs out at the last minute and says no, cause he won't accept money like that. So for all you 'unhappy customers', I have this to say. At least you got a frag'n chance at the damn book! I, most likely, have to wait till September for my books to come in, even though I pre-ordered them in July. So all of you can suck the bussiness end of my Predator, all right? You got a frag'n chance to get the book before anyone else. You didn't get it? Well, at least you got to go to the con. I didn't! Now stop your damn whining! Sorry...but I planned for that trip a year in advance, and then got everything finalized when I heard SR4 was coming out there. And a month before we go, the one guy craps out on us, when we've had to schedual, re-schedual, cancel, re-cancel, change people, change names... I'm sorry, but I'm frag'n pissed at these people that got a chance at the book and cried because they don't have their shiny new LE copy to take to bed with them at night. I wanted a REGULAR copy, I and don't even get that till September. So slot off, the lot of you! |
If I was as cheap as you, I'd shut my fucking mouth and wait contentedly. I did pay to go, not once but 3 times before I got the LE. Not because a guy wouldn't defray my cost for attending. Get pissed at your cheapass friend. I did get some LE copies (social engineering at work) and the regular edition was easy enough to get, if I knew people wanted me to get them one, I think I could have gotten them.
Some of my previous posts were venting frustration, nothing much more. Maybe some to let guys like you know you were lucky not to have wasted your time and money. If I had known last week how it was going to play out, I would probably have waited for my FLGS to get me a copy or two.
I think The Fanpro guys liked the long lines because it generated buzz. So when they got 100 copies in, they didn't bother or want to tell the 101st person and everyone in line behind them, "Sorry, but there are not enough copies, you're wasting your time." They did this with the LE copies by issuing numbers.
Bull, I hope I was not one of the people who got rude. I know I was not happy, and that I was trying to get information that was not forthcoming. The thing is, people around me were in the same boat wanting to know the same stuff and I was feeling a bit assertive. (
) It could have come across wrong.kylleran/Brian I posted elsewhere, but I'll say it again, the people I had issue with Sat. were fine on Sunday.
| QUOTE (CrystalBlue) |
| P.S. Don't worry too much about the people that were angry. If they go to Gen Con for just one book, they shouldn't be allowed in. It's a travesty to the gaming community, it is. |
This must mean me. I almost deleted my reply when I read what preceded your PS. I'm glad I didn't.
They should be flattered that someone would pay as much or more than the price of their book just to get the opportunity to purchase their book. That they like the game they are making to the exclusion of all others.Yes, if picking up a copy was just one of many reasons I attended, I would have been less frustrated. But when it is the sole reason, it is majorly frustrating. Funny thing is, when my expectations were lowest is when I got copies.
Lets keep it civil folks. Really...
Hello Ari. I haven't seen you in a while.
Folks, Before anyone flys off the handle again, even the people who RAN the games, donated 20+ hours to make the players happy by running and writing your games, didnt get copys. Thats right. The GM team had (as of sunday night) 2 copys between it. Forget the LE, we didnt leave the convention with any copys if the game many of us will need to know for next years con.
From what I heard, the initial release of sr3 sold 1000+ copys at the convention. Even if everything HAD gone right, there was still a good chance that some people wouldent have gotten books.
From what I heard, the initial release of sr3 sold 1000+ copys at the convention. Even if everything HAD gone right, there was still a good chance that some people wouldent have gotten books.
Lindt, were you not promised to get one sent to you? I overheard that arrangement being made to guys who did know people in the booth. I am sure you will find ample copies before next years con season. If not, contact me and I'll get you one.
I picked up an extra LE to give to someone and make their day. That is one reason I was so frustrated.
The guy who sold me my BABY on ebay sold at least 5 more, all for over $150. That gave me the mistaken impression it would be possible to obtain multiple copies. Like I implied earlier, the higher my expectations, the more frustrating things were. When I had accepted I probably would not get a LE at gencon, as in no expectations, I wound up with more than one.
Go figure.
I picked up an extra LE to give to someone and make their day. That is one reason I was so frustrated.
The guy who sold me my BABY on ebay sold at least 5 more, all for over $150. That gave me the mistaken impression it would be possible to obtain multiple copies. Like I implied earlier, the higher my expectations, the more frustrating things were. When I had accepted I probably would not get a LE at gencon, as in no expectations, I wound up with more than one.
Go figure.
| QUOTE (Paul) |
| Hello Ari. I haven't seen you in a while. |
Heh... I've been around but haven't had much cause to post. Look for my activity level to rise. I'm getting ready to pick up a game again on the weekends, and I'm completely psyched about the new edition.
Now, to post somewhat on topic. 1000 copies is a reasonable run for a limited edition rpg rule book. I'd rather it were a larger number, mostly because I failed to preorder and (probably) won't be getting one now. I do think that at least half, if not three quarters, of the run should have been available at the con. Limited edition goodies are the allure of the cons (in my opinion) and can positively affect the fan base.
I'm pretty sure I would have burst into tears had I been in line and the guy in front of me put down a cool grand and bought out the last crate of limited editions. One per customer (or at least per visit to the booth) is completely fair for such a product. Standard books should have been available in any quantity however.
Hearing about the issues with the books does make me less upset about not making it this year though. I was all set for my very first con, but then I found out about a promotion that would require my presence at work through the month. My only real reason for going was to pick up the book and meet a few of the folks that frequent these forums. *shrug*
| QUOTE (Aristotle) |
| Now, to post somewhat on topic. 1000 copies is a reasonable run for a limited edition rpg rule book. I'd rather it were a larger number, mostly because I failed to preorder and (probably) won't be getting one now. I do think that at least half, if not three quarters, of the run should have been available at the con. Limited edition goodies are the allure of the cons (in my opinion) and can positively affect the fan base. I'm pretty sure I would have burst into tears had I been in line and the guy in front of me put down a cool grand and bought out the last crate of limited editions. One per customer (or at least per visit to the booth) is completely fair for such a product. Standard books should have been available in any quantity however. Hearing about the issues with the books does make me less upset about not making it this year though. I was all set for my very first con, but then I found out about a promotion that would require my presence at work through the month. My only real reason for going was to pick up the book and meet a few of the folks that frequent these forums. *shrug* |
It appears we had the same motivation and expectations.
No way would I have bought every last book. If I did buy 20 LE and heard the guy behind me start weaping because I had unknowingly gotten the last copies, I would have returned them or sold most of them for the same $50 to the waiting people.
Off topic a bit:
[ Spoiler ]
You know what it was...it was that @$$hat in the Kimono that was trying to keep people in line... its all his fault I didn't get my LE copy of the book. If I ever see him at a con again I'm gonna beat him senseless. I have no sympathy for that guy after this GenCon weekend...
| QUOTE (Caine Hazen) |
| You know what it was...it was that @$$hat in the Kimono that was trying to keep people in line... its all his fault I didn't get my LE copy of the book. If I ever see him at a con again I'm gonna beat him senseless. I have no sympathy for that guy after this GenCon weekend... |
Ummm... Weren't you an asshole? And wearing a Kimono?
The lines were /long/ at GenCon 2005.
Thursday at 8am I stood outside the door to the Exhibition Hall. At 10am, I flowed into the Exhibition Hall and moved quickly towards the FanPro booth. No books in due to the binder issue. The people were really nice to me as a huge rush of people came up behind. They suggested checking back periodically. So, I ran to Sovereign Press for Holy Order of the Stars an lo and behold, they had the same issue.
Friday came about and I repeated the process. 8am and 10am. At 10am I hit the booth and though they had the normal hardcover, they didn't have the limited edition. I was disappointed, but understood. Line at 10am was immense, reaching from the booth all the way back to the front wall of the exhibit hall. Each time the people in the booth explained what happened to people who showed up all day. I stopped by several times to buy a T-shirt here and a book there.
Saturday, 8am and 10am again. 1pm was suggested. We formed a huge line, which wrapped around the booth and towards the end of the hall near the Artist section. They announced that they were splitting the line into two. One for the hardback and one for the Limited edition. The line split and quickly reformed. The limited edition line went from the artist signing area / demonstration table area, around the corner, all the way along the FanPro booth where it wrapped around 180 degrees and stretched back to the demonstration table. People started to cut in line. I suggested that they write numbers on a piece of paper once it became apparent that they had a limited number of books so that at least those who weren't getting the book wouldn't have to wait around too long. 33 pieces of paper and numbers were given out, stopping just in front of me and a young lady that I was rooming with and two 20/early 30 guys. 33 numbers on little slips of paper.
The front of the line that didn't get a number, the two guys took off and so did some of the people behind me. A young man with blond hair was the one giving out the numbers to the people. The line for the hardback normal books was very long as well. As I was waiting to get my normal book signed, someone (#4 on the paper) couldn't get the book for some reason so they went to the people who were still waiting in the line/near the line and offered it to the next person. This was the young lady I was with. She gave up the ticket to me and I got a limited edition. The people at the FanPro booth kept explaining the problem to people who showed up and from what I saw were trying to be extremely helpful to people. I heard one kid, who had the SR4 Limited Edition book in hand and was getting it signed, ask his buddy what the book was all about as he had no clue. Kind of irksome, that kid. Guess he's one of the individuals who put the item up on Ebay already(76 dollars as of now). They recommended the website to pre-order and as near as I can tell, it worked up until sunday evening.
Saturday night we finished up the Shadowrun 3 Tournament. Team Gamma finished the last mission at 2:30am sunday morning.
Sunday, I didn't stand in line again. I was too tired. We had participated in that tournament for over 24 hours of pure RP and Shadowrunning goodness. 1pm came and people filed into the SR tournament room. Other people had the Limited edition and I didn't recognize them from the 32 others who got the book in that first shipment. Team Gamma won the tournament and the six of us got a copy of the Limited Edition SR4 Main Book as well as another book, a novel by Steve Kenson. That got me the second Limited edition book, which has at this time been sent to the young lady who gave up her copy to me.
Now, throughout all this, the people at the FanPro booth were both civil and as helpful as possible. They were a bit thinned out, even though there were a lot of them in the both, as people were constantly showing up and asking questions. Me, personally, I just wanted to thank the Booth-folks for all the work they did and the help the provided. Seriously, accusing them of trying to piss off people on purpose is a little paranoid and low-class people. They could have easily have made a /ton/ of money by selling books to hundreds of fans. There were at least 200 people in many of the lines. They lost out, we lost out, but it definitely isn't their fault.
Hopefully people grabbed the book off the internet website if they wanted it. If not, it'll be out shortly.
Anyhow, after several days of the tournament and waiting in line, I find myself appreciative of their presence at the booth.
Thursday at 8am I stood outside the door to the Exhibition Hall. At 10am, I flowed into the Exhibition Hall and moved quickly towards the FanPro booth. No books in due to the binder issue. The people were really nice to me as a huge rush of people came up behind. They suggested checking back periodically. So, I ran to Sovereign Press for Holy Order of the Stars an lo and behold, they had the same issue.
Friday came about and I repeated the process. 8am and 10am. At 10am I hit the booth and though they had the normal hardcover, they didn't have the limited edition. I was disappointed, but understood. Line at 10am was immense, reaching from the booth all the way back to the front wall of the exhibit hall. Each time the people in the booth explained what happened to people who showed up all day. I stopped by several times to buy a T-shirt here and a book there.
Saturday, 8am and 10am again. 1pm was suggested. We formed a huge line, which wrapped around the booth and towards the end of the hall near the Artist section. They announced that they were splitting the line into two. One for the hardback and one for the Limited edition. The line split and quickly reformed. The limited edition line went from the artist signing area / demonstration table area, around the corner, all the way along the FanPro booth where it wrapped around 180 degrees and stretched back to the demonstration table. People started to cut in line. I suggested that they write numbers on a piece of paper once it became apparent that they had a limited number of books so that at least those who weren't getting the book wouldn't have to wait around too long. 33 pieces of paper and numbers were given out, stopping just in front of me and a young lady that I was rooming with and two 20/early 30 guys. 33 numbers on little slips of paper.
The front of the line that didn't get a number, the two guys took off and so did some of the people behind me. A young man with blond hair was the one giving out the numbers to the people. The line for the hardback normal books was very long as well. As I was waiting to get my normal book signed, someone (#4 on the paper) couldn't get the book for some reason so they went to the people who were still waiting in the line/near the line and offered it to the next person. This was the young lady I was with. She gave up the ticket to me and I got a limited edition. The people at the FanPro booth kept explaining the problem to people who showed up and from what I saw were trying to be extremely helpful to people. I heard one kid, who had the SR4 Limited Edition book in hand and was getting it signed, ask his buddy what the book was all about as he had no clue. Kind of irksome, that kid. Guess he's one of the individuals who put the item up on Ebay already(76 dollars as of now). They recommended the website to pre-order and as near as I can tell, it worked up until sunday evening.
Saturday night we finished up the Shadowrun 3 Tournament. Team Gamma finished the last mission at 2:30am sunday morning.
Sunday, I didn't stand in line again. I was too tired. We had participated in that tournament for over 24 hours of pure RP and Shadowrunning goodness. 1pm came and people filed into the SR tournament room. Other people had the Limited edition and I didn't recognize them from the 32 others who got the book in that first shipment. Team Gamma won the tournament and the six of us got a copy of the Limited Edition SR4 Main Book as well as another book, a novel by Steve Kenson. That got me the second Limited edition book, which has at this time been sent to the young lady who gave up her copy to me.
Now, throughout all this, the people at the FanPro booth were both civil and as helpful as possible. They were a bit thinned out, even though there were a lot of them in the both, as people were constantly showing up and asking questions. Me, personally, I just wanted to thank the Booth-folks for all the work they did and the help the provided. Seriously, accusing them of trying to piss off people on purpose is a little paranoid and low-class people. They could have easily have made a /ton/ of money by selling books to hundreds of fans. There were at least 200 people in many of the lines. They lost out, we lost out, but it definitely isn't their fault.
Hopefully people grabbed the book off the internet website if they wanted it. If not, it'll be out shortly.
Anyhow, after several days of the tournament and waiting in line, I find myself appreciative of their presence at the booth.
| QUOTE (hyb) |
| Friday came about and I repeated the process. 8am and 10am. At 10am I hit the booth and though they had the normal hardcover, they didn't have the limited edition. I was disappointed, but understood. Line at 10am was immense, reaching from the booth all the way back to the front wall of the exhibit hall. Each time the people in the booth explained what happened to people who showed up all day. |
I couldn't get an explanation at that time. I just got a try again tomorrow, which I was trying to find out if I was going to waste another $27 admission, $10 parking, 3 hour drive.
| QUOTE (hyb) |
| The limited edition line went from the artist signing area / demonstration table area, around the corner, all the way along the FanPro booth where it wrapped around 180 degrees and stretched back to the demonstration table. People started to cut in line. |
I don't know if they were intentionally cutting in line, because when they got me out of the regular edition line and I got around there, you couldn't tell where the line was much less where the end was. I was the guy who asked which way the line was going and where the end was, then got in line followed by a few people who had followed me as I tracked down the end. I might add, no one in the booth helped in any way at this time. It was fellow gamers.
| QUOTE (hyb) |
| I suggested that they write numbers on a piece of paper once it became apparent that they had a limited number of books so that at least those who weren't getting the book wouldn't have to wait around too long. <snip> 33 numbers on little slips of paper. <snip> A young man with blond hair was the one giving out the numbers to the people. |
This blond haired guy was the one who seemed to be the LE line manager. He was also the one who I got frustrated with, because his answers, when prodded from him, made little sense and answered nothing. When I tried to find out what the future held, as in any more shipments planned for that day or the next, I had a very difficult time getting anyone to answer. The people in the booth acted quite excited about the whole mess and unconcerned about helping anyone not handing them money at the moment.
The reason people may have gotten angrier was the way they seemed to exploit the situation. The line for the regular edition was way longer than the LE. No numbers or line estimates were made to tell people at the back that they wer SOL. They did loudly announce a countdown to start sales, after a PA announcement that shadowrun 4th edition had arrived. (At that point, anyone who hadn't been waiting in line for some time had no chance of getting a copy.)
| QUOTE (hyb) |
| The people at the FanPro booth kept explaining the problem to people who showed up and from what I saw were trying to be extremely helpful to people. |
Must have been after I left and they decided to check for answers to my questions, or you think hearing the same thing they had said for 2 days was helpful?
| QUOTE (hyb) |
| I heard one kid, who had the SR4 Limited Edition book in hand and was getting it signed, ask his buddy what the book was all about as he had no clue. Kind of irksome, that kid. Guess he's one of the individuals who put the item up on Ebay already(76 dollars as of now). |
When that kid was getting the book, I was behind him, where the line had doubled back. It urked me somewhat, too.
This is when blondy was relaying to me that he had already explained what was going on, however, he didn't explain what was going on, or any future info to those of us way back in the line. And seemed upset that we had the gall to ask. I asked those around me if his answers made any sense and no one said they did.
Body language of the people in the booth said they were basking in the situation, and they would not even be bothered to answer a person not handing them money.
As I said earlier, Sunday blondy and everyone else seemed a whole lot nicer and were actually more helpful, maybe as helpful to me finally, as they had been to hyb.
| QUOTE (hyb) |
| They were a bit thinned out, even though there were a lot of them in the booth |
I didn't notice the thinned, maybe disorganized. Maybe the non-shadowrun guys made it seem like they had more help than they in fact had.
I...just can't believe that some of you actually went to the largest gaming convention to buy a $35 book...and then leave. You people make me sick to call myself a gamer. What was it? That you don't like any other game? That you couldn't have a good time otherwise? You got to do something I was hoping on for a year, you spend all that money and time to get there, and you whine your little ass off because you didn't get your book the moment you ask for it? And that's it? No gaming, no events, no participation, not even looking at booths. You just stood in a line, grumbled cause they didn't give you the book, and left.
Where the frag do you think you get off? That's a convention I would have killed my own mom for to get the chance to go, and you throw it in the mud like it's just another drop in the hat for you? You get mad cause they made you pay to get through the front door. You got mad cause you didn't get your book. And you got mad that you wasted your time and money because you could have cared less about the greatest gaming convention in the whole damn world!
Please...do me a favor and never set foot in Indy again.
Where the frag do you think you get off? That's a convention I would have killed my own mom for to get the chance to go, and you throw it in the mud like it's just another drop in the hat for you? You get mad cause they made you pay to get through the front door. You got mad cause you didn't get your book. And you got mad that you wasted your time and money because you could have cared less about the greatest gaming convention in the whole damn world!
Please...do me a favor and never set foot in Indy again.
I got several copies of the book.
Kill your mom, send me proof of the deed, I'll take you and pay your way if/when you are released from prison. If I die before then, I will provide for the event in my will.
Kill your mom, send me proof of the deed, I'll take you and pay your way if/when you are released from prison. If I die before then, I will provide for the event in my will.
| QUOTE (tisoz) |
| I got several copies of the book. Kill your mom, send me proof of the deed, I'll take you and pay your way if/when you are released from prison. If I die before then, I will provide for the event in my will. |
Wonder who will be in prison the longest; the payed killer or the contractor of the killing?
You don't get it, you selfish little...
I'm done now. Obviously, you care about nothing but yourself and your our gratification. I'm sorry you couldn't wait just like the thousands of others that didn't get to go to the con and get a book. I wanted to have fun and maybe pick up a book. You could have cared less. If they would have hand-delivered your copy, you would have sat at home and waited. You're a selfish, arrogant little child.
I'm done now. Obviously, you care about nothing but yourself and your our gratification. I'm sorry you couldn't wait just like the thousands of others that didn't get to go to the con and get a book. I wanted to have fun and maybe pick up a book. You could have cared less. If they would have hand-delivered your copy, you would have sat at home and waited. You're a selfish, arrogant little child.
| QUOTE (CrystalBlue) |
| You don't get it, you selfish little... |
Keep in mind that he has taken a good deal of time here to post answers to questions. No justification, just something to temper your judgement with.
Dude, why do you even care? What he did with his own time and own money has absolutely no impact on you. If you hadn't read his experience on the forum, if he never posted it, then you would have been in the same boat, same situation. It's like being angry at your next door neighbor for winning the lottery. He didn't do anything wrong. And there were many of us who did the whole Con experience, and had a wonderful time (Our group survived the Hardcore True Dungeon, after all, and apparently we were the only whole group to survive it intact throughout the weekend). Realize also that it takes even more money to do many of the non-seminar events, and maybe that's not something that folks necessarily would want to do.
What I can't believe is why tisoz didn't stick around the Exhibit Hall for the free swag. It seemed that every 3rd booth was offering something free, if you wandered around enough. NCSoft was throwing out free games and HeroClix and t-shirts at noon and 2PM for very elementary Comic Book trivia questions. At the Wizards of the Coast booth, all you had to do was finish their demos, and then you get a chance for a free prize. There was a booth in the back that gave 10 free d6s (which is what I used for my subsequent scheduled SR game) just for sitting down for 5 minutes to demo their game.
What I can't believe is why tisoz didn't stick around the Exhibit Hall for the free swag. It seemed that every 3rd booth was offering something free, if you wandered around enough. NCSoft was throwing out free games and HeroClix and t-shirts at noon and 2PM for very elementary Comic Book trivia questions. At the Wizards of the Coast booth, all you had to do was finish their demos, and then you get a chance for a free prize. There was a booth in the back that gave 10 free d6s (which is what I used for my subsequent scheduled SR game) just for sitting down for 5 minutes to demo their game.
| QUOTE (CrystalBlue) |
| You don't get it, you selfish little... I'm done now. Obviously, you care about nothing but yourself and your our gratification. I'm sorry you couldn't wait just like the thousands of others that didn't get to go to the con and get a book. I wanted to have fun and maybe pick up a book. You could have cared less. If they would have hand-delivered your copy, you would have sat at home and waited. You're a selfish, arrogant little child. |
I should warn you as you don´t seem to be aware... It looks an awfull lot like you´re about to bring down that glass house on top of you with all the rocks you´re throwing.
| QUOTE (mintcar @ Aug 23 2005, 06:29 AM) | ||
Wonder who will be in prison the longest; the payed killer or the contractor of the killing? |
D'oh!
| QUOTE (CrystalBlue) |
| You don't get it, you selfish little... I'm done now. Obviously, you care about nothing but yourself and your our gratification. I'm sorry you couldn't wait just like the thousands of others that didn't get to go to the con and get a book. I wanted to have fun and maybe pick up a book. You could have cared less. If they would have hand-delivered your copy, you would have sat at home and waited. You're a selfish, arrogant little child. |
At least I didn't blame my mommy for not giving me the money to go.
| QUOTE (hahnsoo) |
| What I can't believe is why tisoz didn't stick around the Exhibit Hall for the free swag. It seemed that every 3rd booth was offering something free, if you wandered around enough. NCSoft was throwing out free games and HeroClix and t-shirts at noon and 2PM for very elementary Comic Book trivia questions. At the Wizards of the Coast booth, all you had to do was finish their demos, and then you get a chance for a free prize. There was a booth in the back that gave 10 free d6s (which is what I used for my subsequent scheduled SR game) just for sitting down for 5 minutes to demo their game. |
The first day, I immediately went to the GC people and asked if I could trade my admittance pass for the next days pass, which they were very nice to do. I was kind of surprised they agreed without any begging as ther were numerous No Refund signs around. On the way home I decided if I got the runaround again on my quest, I would volunteer to help the GC staff.
That possibility became reality the next morning, and I started volunteering at 10:30. The guy I worked with the most was great and was planning on how I could get my admittance refunded by working. As it turned out, I needed to return Sunday and by volunteering all Sat, and much of Sunday, I qualified for an admittance refund, $52.
My boss was great. I think he talked me into going next year - this was the first gaming convention I ever went to. He also bought or told me where to get free meals. I met a lot of gamers working the Embassy Suites lobby. Met Mike Stackpole, Tracy Hickman (didn't mention my gender mistake), Ed Greenwood, got a limited edition Elminster fig, hit on a lot of cute girls, and had a great time.
I did wander about some, got Jolly Blackburn to autograph a 100th edition KoDT, and got some swag. Other volunteers also shared swag with us, though I gave away most of it because I collect enough stuff I am interested in without collecting stuff I haven't interest in.
So, I made the best, for me, of a bad situation. If I had gotten a bit better information, I could have probably adjusted even better, but I'm happy enough with the way things played out.
And thanks for making me feel so young.
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