Why was 3:16 so successful at Gencon? What can we learn from its success?

Off the top of my head:

- The game is awesome.
- Gregor is very approachable, charismatic, and excited!
- It's an easy pitch: Starshiptroopers where you don't roll to see how much damage you do, you roll to see how many aliens you kill!
- John Harper: many people learn how to play RPGs from word of mouth rather than reading manuals. John Harper was this word of mouth. He taught us the game and then we quickly went on to teach others.
- You can play through an entire reward cycle (make characters, defeat a planet, level up) in an hour.
- Someone printed out and passed character sheets around so people can play the game immediately at the con which led to others buying the game. I have no idea where these sheets came from.
- When you roll to act, everyone rolls at the same time, coupled with the game encouraging you to be loud... drew much attention.
- People could keep playing their character game to game. Which encouraged more play, more attention.
- People quickly started competing with each other to see who could survive the most planets!
- The cover is beautiful!
- Name is distinct and memorable. Plus love the wrestling tie in... Austin 3:16 says I just kicked your ass!
- The Design Matters booth was very inviting and friendly. You got the feeling everyone was friends and having a good time rather than being desperate to sell games.
- 3:16 was one of the few games that you communicate why it was awesome in seconds in a clear and truly enthusiastic manner!
- Your level of investment in terms of tactical thinking or role playing your character is very flexible...
- It's easy to GM. There is this planet. Go there. Blow shit up. Don't come back till you blow stuff up. You get there. Shit attacks you. What do you do?
- I don't remember what it cost but it was very reasonable.

I'm sure there is much more.

Do you agree with the above?

Why do you think it was successful?

I will likely create mini case studies of games success to include in my Marketing "how to" documents at some point. No promises. But it's a fun topic!

Rock,
John

Good point! I had never even heard of 3:16 till John Harper and Matt Wilson told me about it at Gencon. When I asked what it was like, they essentially said, instead of tell you, why not show you... and we played a game. I bought it the next day!

More points:

Gregor released the game a couple weeks before GenCon, both in print and PDF formats. So people came to GenCon already excited about the game because they had read / played / posted about it during the previous couple weeks.

The cover, interior illustrations, and overall layout was very pretty.

40k fans. 'Nuff said.

Like Agon and D&D4, 3:16 scratches this hardcore competitive, explosion-loving itch that a lot of indie or "storytelling"-style roleplaying folks either 1) forgot they had or 2) are trying to suppress. But put this in front of them and they eat it up like hotcakes.

Nothing says "mainstream appeal among gamer audiences" like killing lots of aliens with big guns.

The game is relatively rules-light and easy to jump on board with. Sure, everybody loves Burning Empires, but could you play it once or flip through it in your hotel room at night and then run it the next day? Probably not. 3:16 goes zero to sixty in, uh, about 3:16, I guess.

Gregor, were you passing around character sheets? If not, who was? Everyone seemed to have them! I can't tell you how many games I won't buy if the book doesn't at least have a character sheet inside that I can photocopy!

Posted By: Jonathan Walton
Gregor released the game a couple weeks before GenCon, both in print and PDF formats. So people came to GenConalready excited about the game because they had read / played / posted about it during the previous couple weeks.

This is an important point, I think. There's a tendency to aim for a Gen Con release, but in our experience, releasing a game prior to the con (as we did with Shab-al-Hiri Roach) gives you a chance to build buzz with actual play, discussion, additional resources, etc. It also allows time for reviewers to talk about the book to an eager throng of con-goers. By the time you get to the convention, there are a lot more folks talking about the game than just the designer.

I'd been reading about 3:16 around here in the months before the con, and I was really excited to try it out when we got to Indy. After I bought it, I was so eager to play I could barely finish reading it. Big thanks to John for taking in so many worthless pukes like myself and turning them into hardened troopers!

Next time I write a marketing plan, I'm going to write "John Harper" all over it!

For my part, I had heard a bit about it online, and I just picked up a copy at the IPR booth and paid for it. My thought was, if there was ever an indie game I would have no trouble whatsoever getting my group to try, this is it. It's not that they're against indie games, so much as they're disinterested in them, whereas when I went to a friend's house and showed off my loot after the con, one of them was flipping through 3:16, laughing at the quotes, and complimenting the art, with no prompting from me at all.

John,

First, it's an easy game to get your head around from both a player and ref perspective. It will be the first thing i run from my GenCon haul because the others are still digesting.

It was inexpensive enough to pick up on the fly and take a risk on it. I went to the con with a shopping list. I found myself returning to NYC with a handful of additional books that were impulse buys. And all of that stuff stacks up cash wise. I would have very much liked to pick up Clint and Amy's game but $40 was too much in addition to a bunch of other $20ish dollar books. (did i mention how great i thought Clint and Amy are? i'm still kicking myself over that decision.)

I'm pretty sure that Gregor could sell vegan condoms to omivorous Catholics based on his salesmanship and winsome way. However, I'd made my purchases on Saturday afternoon before i'd had a chance to have a drink with him and the other DM folk.

It definitely mattered that i'd heard about it a bit either here or at the Forge in the month or so before going. I didn't follow it, but knew that it was ascendant.

The main reason i picked it up was that Matt Wilson wouldn't shut up about how much fun it was. I can't tell you how many sales the IPR booth made on 3:16 based on Matt running the register just after having played it. I didn't check the final IPR numbers but i think it's safe to say that 3:16 and Zombie Cinema were the run away hits that weren't Evil Hat products (SotC and Don't Rest Your Head sold steadily).

3:16 is just so fun, I was practically compelled to spread the word and run it non-stop at the show.

Much credit goes to Ben Robbins for getting the PDF at launch, digesting it, and running it immediately for me (twice) at GoPlayNW Jr.. His sessions were really fun, taught me the game, and inspired me to run with it. So the early release / pre-GenCon run up definitely had a big impact.

Interestingly, I asked this very question of some of my IPR boothmates at around, say, 2:00 PM on Saturday. We came up with a lot of the smae reasons.

Posted By: Double KingIt was inexpensive enough to pick up on the fly and take a risk on it. I went to the con with a shopping list. I found myself returning to NYC with a handful of additional books that were impulse buys. And all of that stuff stacks up cash wise. I would have very much liked to pick up Clint and Amy's game but $40 was too much in addition to a bunch of other $20ish dollar books.

QFT. I actually had a lot more interest in Empire of Dust than 3:16 (which should be read as an endorsement of EoD as opposed to some dig at 3:16). Problem is, I knew I probably wouldn't end up playing either of them. In the end, I picked up 3:16 and not EoD on the force of price point alone. I figured I could at least read through 3:16 and get some enjoyment and design ideas out of it.

And part of it was, simply, to see what all the fuss was about. Once the pump gets primed....

Posted By: John HarperMuch credit goes to Ben Robbins for getting the PDF at launch, digesting it, and running it immediately for me (twice) at GoPlayNW Jr.. His sessions were really fun, taught me the game, and inspired me to run with it. So the early release / pre-GenCon run up definitely had a big impact.

John's just trying to stay on my good side so I don't unleash the power of my Gregor-signature:



Seriously though: smart, well-known GM showing up at the con having already played the game and excited to play + willing to run it over and over and over again + he's a neutral third-party, not the designer + accessible theme and easy rules? I'd call that a recipe for success.

Gregor, that is a really pretty cover. Let's have our books fight!

I think that pre-GenCon buzz may be key to getting a solid initial launch. I had Fae Noir out at DexCon last year and being reviewed (unevenly) by Chris Richeson and others, but people still picked it up very well. This year, with CandyCreeps, which to my mind should have been flying out the door at only $13 per copy and much better production values, not to mention a fun demo we just couldn't get people looking at it.
That and I think it may have drowned among the sea of other 9X6 sort of pastel-covered IPR books.

Posted By: edheil

I just felt compelled to make a 3:16 mixtape.

Very cool! Nice selection!

Proper 3:16 music should be nonstop speed/death metal, however, I really don't have any of that, so I gathered a whimsical collection of martial music that I do have.

Amen to that! I'm reaching for my Bolt Thrower (Those Once Loyal), Motorhead (Death or Glory) and Metallica (Disposable Heroes). Actually, I can't think of a better album that fits the theme of 3:16 than Those Once Loyal - Bolt Thrower's latest and final album (really the best they've ever done)

I managed to resist including either Yes's "Starship Trooper" or Sarah Brightman's "I Fell In Love with a Starship Trooper."

Thank you for resisting! ;-)

If I remember correctly Bolt Thrower have been connected to WH40K forever, so... well, we're coming full circle :)

Posted By: edheilI managed to resist including either Yes's "Starship Trooper"

"Starship Trooper" is great! but not, however, very evocative of "kill everything in the universe".