Really my main concern with the chapter Matt would be more to describe how it influenced electronic RPGs in a profound way, moreso than providing an exhaustive list, though certainly key mentions are, um, key. None of our chapters have exhaustive lists, but they all do try to hit the important or notable, with a few fun or oddball ones thrown in.
Yes, I think you raise a fine point there, Bill. One of the main criticisms I've seen of D&D is that it's too exhaustive, mentioning too many games at the expense of the story. With VG, I'm trying to pull back from that, acknowledging that there are dozens of other sequels and knockoffs, etc., but not bothering to mention all of them. Looking back, I think D&D would have been stronger if I'd just stuck to the really important games, perhaps saving the "cataloging" for appendices or footnotes. Then again, I'm sure people would have hated on me for that, too, claiming I did shoddy research since I didn't mention X, Y, Z. It probably wouldn't be a bad idea at some future point to do another CRPG book, but really focus on telling the story from the developers' viewpoints, though of course it's notoriously difficult to get interviews. I also thought about just picking different topics for each chapter and using the games to illustrate the points; say, a chapter on party vs. single character CRPGs.
Anyway, one thing that's nice about VG is that we're more focused and have a specific audience in mind. What I try to do is think about Armchair Arcade folks and what they seem to enjoy talking and reading about, though I also try to throw in stuff for general readers who may not have played these games before.
Really my main concern with the chapter Matt would be more to describe how it influenced electronic RPGs in a profound way, moreso than providing an exhaustive list, though certainly key mentions are, um, key. None of our chapters have exhaustive lists, but they all do try to hit the important or notable, with a few fun or oddball ones thrown in.
Yes, I think you raise a fine point there, Bill. One of the main criticisms I've seen of D&D is that it's too exhaustive, mentioning too many games at the expense of the story. With VG, I'm trying to pull back from that, acknowledging that there are dozens of other sequels and knockoffs, etc., but not bothering to mention all of them. Looking back, I think D&D would have been stronger if I'd just stuck to the really important games, perhaps saving the "cataloging" for appendices or footnotes. Then again, I'm sure people would have hated on me for that, too, claiming I did shoddy research since I didn't mention X, Y, Z. It probably wouldn't be a bad idea at some future point to do another CRPG book, but really focus on telling the story from the developers' viewpoints, though of course it's notoriously difficult to get interviews. I also thought about just picking different topics for each chapter and using the games to illustrate the points; say, a chapter on party vs. single character CRPGs.
Anyway, one thing that's nice about VG is that we're more focused and have a specific audience in mind. What I try to do is think about Armchair Arcade folks and what they seem to enjoy talking and reading about, though I also try to throw in stuff for general readers who may not have played these games before.
Matt Barton, Managing Editor
Location: St. Cloud, Minnesota, USA
Email: matt@armchairarcade.com