Rich Gain of Jester's Playhouse in Northfield, New Jersey read the recent review for the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (see "Review of 'Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay'") and Christian Petersen's response to the review (see "Christian Petersen, CEO of Fantasy Flight Games, on WFRP Review") and had this to say:

I would like to respond to Bill Bodden's review and Chris Petersen's response, but only in regard to the game.  I was able to preview the game and run it in my store.  I approached the game with some reservations as the concept was more like a boardgame and less like a RPG.  I have run all editions of the Warhammer Fantasy RPG and have GM'd many other RPGs for over 25 years.  What Fantasy Flight did with this new edition is take RPG's in a completely new direction that has made many traditional RPG players nervous and apprehensive.  I was one until I ran my first session.  The game is simply brilliant!  The mechanics of the game take the rules out of RPG's and allow players to really get into character and role-play.  After running a day full of demos, both my players and I could not wait to transfer their current 2nd Edition characters to the new system.  We did so and have been playing the new system for 3 weeks.  

I think one of the overlooked portions in the review by Bill is the excellent GM advice in the set.  For both the experienced GM and the beginner, the GM book is a wealth of info, even if you never plan to run WHFRG (though $100 for this alone is a little too much).  As a GM I feel like I have more time to focus on the story and less on the mechanics because the dice handle that for me.  I agree with Bill that the RPG market is flat, but making RPG's that are just regurgitations of on-line RPG's or that are a collection of rules with no substance is not the solution.  

What Fantasy Flight has done is make a RPG that gives players a totally different experience than on-line play and that is what the adventure gaming industry needs.  What are online games anyway except mods of 80's pen and paper role-playing games?  My players are eager for the release of new material for WHFRPG and have done something that game players are loath to do and actually pre-order the upcoming material, I just want to see what's next in the line, so I can take more pre-orders.  The price point of $99 seems high, but as Chris points out most RPG's are at least that much of a buy-in.  Fantasy Flight has already set the bar high for RPG's with their $60 core books, but Dark Heresy is my second best-selling RPG.  Players want quality and content and will pay for it.  Retailers should stock this game and support it.

The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.