The Business: The Mecha Game Problem, Again, Is Expectation Management

Before I get to the point, here's something to look forward to.

New rpg just arrived pic.twitter.com/HLZAm9HZSL

— Jeffro Johnson (@JohnsonJeffro) December 5, 2022

I have no idea what to expect. This should be a good time.

Okay, the point: one of the difficulties in RPG design is expectation management. As I mentioned a few days ago, BattleTech's problem was and is one of a mismatch of expectations; those coming into a mecha game from mecha media expect media media experiences, and BattleTech delivers the experience of being the crew of Yamato or Enterprise.

Meanwhile, Dream Pod 9's Heavy Gear and Jovian Chronicles delivers the experience of (respectively) Armored Trooper VOTOMS and Mobile Suit Gundam because the rules of those games replicate the media experience.

Summary: Opposed Rolls. Roll d6 equal to Skill. Count highest result; if 2+ dice roll 6, add +1 to the total after the first 6. If Attacker > Defender, attack hits.

Take the difference--"Margin of Success"--and multiply it by the damage number of the attack form; compare this to target's Damage Thresholds to lightly, heavily, or totally destroy the target. If lesser damage also reaches a given threshold, then the target is out of the fight.

You can see now the difference that game design makes. HG/JC's combat procedure replicates the Save Or Die nature of the source material, where BT does not.

A similar discord between source and rules is why Palladium's attempts at Robotech have always fallen short, as combat therein is likewise Save Or Die in the source material and the DP9 system--Silhouette--would likewise be a better fit for it and its sources (Macross, Southern Cross, MOSPEADA).

While Catalyst has made useful changes, they still have that expectation problem and it is--sadly--tied to the legacy designs taken from Dougram (which is Save Or Die combat) and Crusher Joe (ditto) as well as Macross.

Palladium has not. There will be no substantive change so long as Kevin remains in control of the company.

There is one common complaint made about Silhouette: Lethality.

"It's a death spiral. Once you get hit, your ability to keep going drops and makes you more likely to get hit again, until you're done."

That's A Feature, Not A Bug

As any mecha game worth a damn builds off a solid wargame foundation, one should not complain when you screw up (or get screwed by others) and a fight goes against you. When you wargame, sometimes you lose and your man gets got.

RPGs are extended wargames. Getting got is always on the table.

If the rules produce the expected result, the manuals communicate this to the user, and the marketing communicates this to the prospect, then you have a winning game and business. Fuck this up and, well, you have what we've got in this niche.

Learn to establish, communicate, and manage those expectations already. The first IP that does this trifecta competently will explode with success.