How Cool Are Some Game Designers

Listen,

Sometimes around here it seems like people, who even though they are enthusiasts, talk shit about our hobby. It's stupid, a waste of time, this that or the other.

But let me tell you something. This hobby and MOST of the people involved with it are straight up awesome.

For example, I'm trying to learn Empire of the Sun and I had a question regarding a somewhat unclear rule. I put up a post on BGG and within an hour...an HOUR...the dude who designed the game posts a reply and clears up my confusion...about a game that came out 9 years ago!

How freakin' cool is that? Stop! I'll tell you...it's pretty freakin' cool.

In what other hobby are the creators and the consumers so directly connected? Stop! I'll tell you...no other hobby. Don't believe me? Post a question about some video game in an on-line forum and see how long it takes the dude who made it to get back to you. You're gonna be waiting a long time.

So here's to you Mark Herman for being a cool dude and if you are at WBC I'll buy you a beer.

He's always at WBC and a good dude. Usually he's running EoTS or For the People tourney but he's always a good guy to talk to or have a beer with.

We should go introduce ourselves and tell him about the summer challenge. I'm sure he'd be happy his game has been selected for a dust off.

Two words: MATT FANTASTIC

Case closed.

i needs to learn and play my copy of ETOS. Herman is the man.

In a similar circumstance, Mark Herman offered to *teach* me the game at WBC between tourney rounds. I posted a thread on BGG looking for someone who might want to do a skype/vassal combo approach to PBEM so I could learn how to play the game. Mark popped in and piped up with that offer. Unfortunately, it was one of the years I couldn't make it up to PA at all. But it did result in me vowing to buy whatever the hell games Mark Herman decided to publish from that point forward. Pretty much kept to that promise, too.

Only got to play EoTS once. I enjoyed the hell out of it but I'd need to be taught the game all over again--and definitely "taught" because it's yet another in my long list of games that made no sense to me when reading through the rules. I couldn't visualize how any single turn [particularly the *first* one] would play in practice.

On a related note, Ed Beach (Here I Stand, Virgin Queen, a shitload of Great Campaigns of the ACW games) is a real good dude, too.

I know he gets a bit flack at times, but I met Carl Paradis a few years ago. He was kind enough to give me a copy of Combat Commander + Med expansion and his No Retreat - The Russian Front game, free of charge. His one condition, that I play a game of Combat Commander with him at some point in the future (still in progress). I spoke with him for about an hour or so, he's a pretty knowledgeable guy and is passionate about games in general.

You are making me reminisce about the time I met Steve Jackson at BA-con (the first pork themed gaming convention).
He sat with me in one of the suites off the lobby and taught me how to play Ogre and even let me use a Mark Vi ogre in our game. Later, I was waiting in the rain for a cab. He took off his raincoat and held over both our heads to help me stay dry. Then he did that cool move I have only seen in movies. He lit 2 cigarettes and gave me one. When the cab arrived he threw the raincoat in the puddle by the curb and my feet stayed dry. Of course, he jumped in the cab with me so we could finish our conversation. He said my hotel was on his way so it was "no problemo". He actually used those exact words. He took my address and said he was gonna send me Munchkin and 27 of the expansions, but that I had to promise to ONLY play it with him. My response? No problemo Steverino. He likes it when I call him that.

So cool.