I've often wondered why the hell wasn't Aquelarre published in the
United States, since it seems to me enough of a great game to have a
fighting chance in the US market. More so speaking about a market
that's at least partially breaking up - you can just look at the way
Wizards of the Coast or White Wolf have been losing their essentially
monopolistic hold to other companies like, for example, Paizoo. Besides,
it's a wider market, with more resonance and an acquisition rate much
higher than that of Spain.
All of this comes to mind when I read this review of the game at DriveThruRPG.com, which I quote for ease of reading:
Let
me first say that I have wanted this book for many years after playing a
demo of it back in 1991. I was enthralled by it's incredible level of
detail, character generation system, ease of play and spectacular
attention to religious thought of the medieval church and demonology.
This game is probably the best gaming product I can barely read.
The
PDF version is gloriously illustrated, the woodcuts and colors are
magnificent. The overall layout of the book is very well done, and for
non Spanish speakers this is a blessing; if you try to run a game of
Aquelarre you will need to be able to find the information you want
quickly. There is a lot of old Spanish terminology in the book- it helps
if you know a Spanish scholar or someone very used to the terms used.
The
system runs of off a simple percentile system a la BRP. The rules are
very easy to use- translating them might be more difficult.
The pdf
is expensive. The book is entirely in Spanish and is password protected
so you cant copy and paste into a translator for quick translation. Is
the price worth it? I say yes. A little work on your part will yield a
lot of satisfaction, and you get a Spanish lesson to boot.
NSR EDICIONES! PLEASE MAKE THIS AVAILABLE IN ENGLISH!
NSR EDICIONES! ¡Haga por favor este libro disponible en inglés! ¡Le mendigo!
The
best part's the ending, this guy's doubtlessly desperate. But as you
can read, he doesn't have the slightest uncertainty about the game's
quality. The thing is, he isn't the only US gamer who wonders about
Aquelarre, for proof you can take this link to the RPGsite forums and
this one to the Steve Jackson Games forums. I'm not claiming that
profitability will be guaranteed in as competitive a market as the US,
but there's enough of a market to be worth the try anyway. Why aren't
all the publishers diving at it then? Well, for starters it's not a walk
through the park. If you don't think so, look at the game's review on
this issue of Dragon Magazine. Page 38, more accurately.
Publishers
tend to think, upon seeing articles like the last one, that Aquelarre
perhaps isn't the kind of product that would have the best release in
the US, and also maybe too complex in terms of setting and too
disconnected from the local mindset. In my opinion there are more
upsides than downs to a stateside release of Aquelarre, since what
should concern a company isn't who won't buy, but who will. Besides, the
US are a continent-sized country with a population of 315,000,000 who
don't share the same idiosyncrasies, given the diversity of states.
Someone
will wonder what's up with this philippic and what does it matter for
local RPG gamers whether it be or not translated into English. Well, if
it succeeds in the English-speaking markets the publisher will rake in
more revenue, and a bigger volume and variety of publications will start
to be profitable. And I think that's better for us all than looking at
publishers shut down, one after another. So from here, I encourage
Nosolorol Ediciones to jump across the pool and do the USA, as in doing
so, we all win.
Translation by Enrique E. Corrales
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