#RPGChat Archive 19 April 2012: Leveling Up a Game Company

#RPGChat Archive 19 April 2012: Leveling Up a Game Company

Apr 19

The topic for the 4-19 RPGchat was leveling up a game company and our special guest was Fred Hicks of Evil Hat Productions.

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Tweets of Note:

@d20Blonde
Welcome to this very special episode of #RPGchat featuring the illustrious @fredhicks.

@d20Blonde
To get the ball rolling, I’d love to know, @fredhicks, how’d you get into this game company gig, anyway?

@fredhicks
How’d we get into this game company gig? Sort of by accident. Like I said, we shared our hacks and it turned out folks liked them

@fredhicks
One of those hacks we decided to treat it like a thing, make it pretty, post it up for all to see. We called it ‘Fate’.

@fredhicks
Fate got some attention and some awards. That caught the attention of @arcaedia, who’s @longshotauthor‘s agent.

explaining where the Dresden Files RPG got its start:

@fredhicks
Funny you should ask that, @d20blonde. Because it turned out I know Jim Butcher from way back. And his agent said to him…

@fredhicks
“Folks are asking about doing a Dresden Files RPG. Don’t you know some award winning RPG designing friends you could give it to?”

@fredhicks
So the day I got that call from him, it sorta started the whole thing, the decision to go commercial. Opportunity.

@fredhicks
Heh. We published the @dresdenfiles RPG in 2010. When did we get the rights? End of 2005. Loooong road

one of the REAL secrets of life revealed:

@fredhicks
Hm, @shiftyginger I’d probably say knowing the right people. Connections = everything better. Doesn’t have to be games. It’s life.#rpgchat

asking about the SotC gamebook cover:

@TheUniverseGM
@fredhicks How did Spirit of the Century come about? What about that Gorilla in the biplane?

@fredhicks
. @TheUniverseGM The cover of SOTC is totally from a game that wasn’t SOTC at all, but the story stuck with me. Grey Ghost is…

@fredhicks
. @TheUniverseGM SOTC, tho, was a side-effect of dresden. It was a “stealthy” public test-drive of Fate 3.0 before we pubbed DFRPG

Dealing with Kickstarter

@CUnderkoffler
@fredhicks, how do you feel to have so many irons in the fire now, with kickstarters & boardgames and etc.?

@fredhicks
Kickstarter’s a game changer, but the main thing it’s done is taken the preorder thing we’ve been doing forever and adding shwag

I think he means that games are supposed to be a hobby:

@mandarific
@fredhicks Is it easy to lose track of the fact that RPGs are games/supposed to be work once it becomes a job?

@fredhicks
@mandarific Very easy. You have to make your peace with that. If you don’t enjoy business, it’s a bad thing to do to your hobby.

the biggest thing he has learned:

@fredhicks
Biggest lesson learned in going pro? Set deadlines. And don’t tell the public a release date until the damn thing ships

and a related question, that sparked a good exchange:

‏ @AccessibleGames
@fredhicks What do you find works for you in regards to setting deadlinse? Calendar? Spreadhseet?

@fredhicks
What works best for deadline? Talking clearly about it. Telling everyone involved. Setting milestones. Sticking to it. Adaptation.

@Zelgadas
@AccessibleGames The tools are interchangeable. What matters is your dedication to the deadline. Do what you say you will.

@fredhicks
Listen to @Zelgadas. He’s a crackerjack writer, and very good at hitting deadlines, and answers his email. Be @Zelgadas

@Zelgadas
@clarkvalentine Absolutely. Missing a deadline isn’t always the end of the world, but not telling people you will can be

@Zelgadas
And going along with what @fredhicks said, answer your emails. Also, answer your emails. And if you can’t, ANSWER YOUR EMAILS.

a comment about other games by Evil Hat brought out the story behind Don’t Rest Your Head:

@CUnderkoffler
Don’t neglect EHP’s dedication to helping publish non-FATE games they find interesting. Seriously.

@BlogWellDone
@CUnderkoffler How do you think that helps? Portfolio diversification? More authors?

@fredhicks
@BlogWellDone I think it can be dangerous to come off as a one-note performer. People expect that note.

@fredhicks
Don’t Rest Your Head was the result of a nightmare fused with an NPR story about military sleep deprivation drugs

@fredhicks
I’d love to do some more “thin” games like Don’t Rest Your Head. Not that we’re currently on track for them in 2012, but I want

about Twitter and Social Media:

@fredhicks
Social media is a big part of marketing for EHP. Keeps us accessible, transparent, friendly, engaged, and spoken of. Last bit = key

bits of note from Fred and others:

‏ @Zelgadas
@Save_vs_DM Yes. Writing is way more collaborative than people realize. The writers can’t do it alone

@chronicler101
RT @Zelgadas: RT @clarkvalentine: @MDGandy Editors and layout people are the unsung heroes of this hobby

@Fantasticmaps
@Save_vs_DM Agreed. Best to do what you love first, and the money is usually an added bonus. Though sometimes it works out nicely.

how does he classify himself as a developer:

@d20Blonde
@fredhicks RE: to being a game developer: How do you conceptualize yourself?

@fredhicks
I’m a game publisher these days, not so much a game developer. I keep the dev side awake and lively, but in commenting & concepting

@Zelgadas
@Alpharalpha Fred’s job is to be a magnet for crazy talented people who all want to do cool things for him. And he’s good at it

and what is on the plate for Evil Hat coming up:

@d20Blonde
Are you at liberty to discuss what’s on Evil Hat’s plate for the near (and not so near), @fredhicks?

@fredhicks
That list I posted in December:http://www.deadlyfredly.com/2011/12/state-of-the-hat-2012/

As always the full archive of the chat in spreadsheet form is here.

Alpharalpha