HeroQuest 25th

[Jerry Hawthorne]

I've been looking over the 25th stuff. Looks like a bunch of great additions. I think most people aren't aware of these efforts. I want to shine the light on this kind of long term fan involvement. I just bought a new mint copy of HQ with mint copies of the first 2 expansions. These will replace my tattered copy from 1990. To think we have stayed fans for so many years.

[Sjeng]

Yup, it's that good ^^

I've been reposting my blog reports over at BGG, and the reception there was amazing! Lots of likes/thumbs, and nice replies too. Oh, and I did a review of M&M too, which also got received quite well!

[Daedalus]

Hey guys, I have been asked to write an article about HeroQuest in observance of its 25th anniversary. Basically, it is a round table discussion by modern game designers, reminiscing about the impact of HeroQuest on the boardgame industry.

I tried PMing drathe to see if there is anything special I can include from the Heroquest community, and I want to direct attention to the fan sites that still support the game. As some of you know, I have been a fan of HeroQuest for many many years, and was an active member of Agin's Inn. My passion for all things Heroquest lead me to my professional involvement with Hasbro, and was my inspiration for creating Mice & Mystics.

If there is anything you guys can think of that would benefit the HeroQuest community, please let me know.

Glad to hear the news, thanks for posting. I think it's worth mentioning our international involvement. Recently the Japanese rules have been successfully translated. The Quest Book is underway, to be followed by the cards. I think Champion of the Empire is worthy of mention. Our English localization (begun at Old Scratch) of ghan's French expansion is mostly complete, though there is some finalizing still in process. The Brazilian Hero Quest has some magazine publications that were discovered, though drathe is still working on Google-transtlating that. Also, though not part of the Inn, there was a French fan who made a slick Beastman Quest Pack.

One thing I wish would be discussed would be the chance that the Dwarf and Wizard Quest Packs would see release. The 4-ups were made, and being G-bob from Old Scratch you probably know who has them. If some of the old Heroscape crew are there, ask if the 25th anniversary petition swings any weight with Hasbro's decision process. The petition stirred up a hornets' nest of controversy with the Spanish remake. If Hasbro would licence the DQP and WQP work officially, I'm sure there would be strong support.

[Goblin-King]

One thing I wish would be discussed would be the chance that the Dwarf and Wizard Quest Packs would see release. The 4-ups were made, and being G-bob from Old Scratch you probably know who has them. If some of the old Heroscape crew are there, ask if the 25th anniversary petition swings any weight with Hasbro's decision process. The petition stirred up a hornets' nest of controversy with the Spanish remake. If Hasbro would licence the DQP and WQP work officially, I'm sure there would be strong support.

THIS! I won't use the word "demand", but we demand to finally see a release of DQP and WQP!
A kickstarter would be funded within the hour!

[HeroQuestFrance]

You've been asked to write an article...
You're professionally involved with hasbro...
1 + 1
Is this connected and is this maybe something like a part of market research?

Nope about an Hasbro's hope if you were thinking about this.

[Jerry Hawthorne]

Hey guys, I have been asked to write an article about HeroQuest in observance of its 25th anniversary. Basically, it is a round table discussion by modern game designers, reminiscing about the impact of HeroQuest on the boardgame industry.

I tried PMing drathe to see if there is anything special I can include from the Heroquest community, and I want to direct attention to the fan sites that still support the game. As some of you know, I have been a fan of HeroQuest for many many years, and was an active member of Agin's Inn. My passion for all things Heroquest lead me to my professional involvement with Hasbro, and was my inspiration for creating Mice & Mystics.

If there is anything you guys can think of that would benefit the HeroQuest community, please let me know.

Glad to hear the news, thanks for posting. I think it's worth mentioning our international involvement. Recently the Japanese rules have been successfully translated. The Quest Book is underway, to be followed by the cards. I think Champion of the Empire is worthy of mention. Our English localization (begun at Old Scratch) of ghan's French expansion is mostly complete, though there is some finalizing still in process. The Brazilian Hero Quest has some magazine publications that were discovered, though drathe is still working on Google-transtlating that. Also, though not part of the Inn, there was a French fan who made a slick Beastman Quest Pack.

Yes! This is very good to show the loyal nature and creative spirit of the Heroquest community.

One thing I wish would be discussed would be the chance that the Dwarf and Wizard Quest Packs would see release. The 4-ups were made, and being G-bob from Old Scratch you probably know who has them. If some of the old Heroscape crew are there, ask if the 25th anniversary petition swings any weight with Hasbro's decision process. The petition stirred up a hornets' nest of controversy with the Spanish remake. If Hasbro would licence the DQP and WQP work officially, I'm sure there would be strong support.

I know a lot about this, but I don't think this article will impact those kinds of decisions at Hasbro. I will use this space here to give you all my opinion:

The HQ 25th kickstarter was a scam by a company that was looking for a KS money grab. Pure and simple.

Just because something funds quickly and even overfunds, doesn't mean that Hasbro would see it as profitable. Even if Hasbro does see it as a viable product, doesn't mean that the retail outlets will agree. The big box retailers basically tell Hasbro what they want on the shelves. Their vast sales data can reliably predict sales performance and Hasbro needs TONS of sales to make games worhwhile. In the years that Heroquest was on the market, it was consistently out performed by RISK, Scrabble, Monopoly, Battleship and Sorry. These are the facts.

Selling expansions to a game that is out of print would never fly with Hasbro or the big retailers. They also do not use 3-ups anymore as far as I know. I've visited the plastics portion of the Hasbro compound. They sculpt in exact scale these days. The fact that those 3-ups are in the hands of fan insiders is an indicator of their confidence in these products.

If Heroquest was released today, the game would cost around $80. Oil prices and the resulting spike in plastics makes these kinds of games very expensive. Big retailers will not carry games that cost more than $40. I know because I have retailers interested in M&M but the price is too high. Heroquest would need to be produced by the Hasbro hobby subsidiary WOTC, and they will NOT do anything that competes with their beloved D&D.

That's my take on it.

[gootchute]

Their vast sales data can reliably predict sales performance and Hasbro needs TONS of sales to make games worhwhile. In the years that Heroquest was on the market, it was consistently out performed by RISK, Scrabble, Monopoly, Battleship and Sorry. These are the facts.

Selling expansions to a game that is out of print would never fly with Hasbro or the big retailers. They also do not use 3-ups anymore as far as I know. I've visited the plastics portion of the Hasbro compound. They sculpt in exact scale these days. The fact that those 3-ups are in the hands of fan insiders is an indicator of their confidence in these products.

If Heroquest was released today, the game would cost around $80. Oil prices and the resulting spike in plastics makes these kinds of games very expensive. Big retailers will not carry games that cost more than $40. I know because I have retailers interested in M&M but the price is too high. Heroquest would need to be produced by the Hasbro hobby subsidiary WOTC, and they will NOT do anything that competes with their beloved D&D.

That's my take on it.

This is the reality we try to ignore on a daily basis as we continue thinking about, and creating expansions for our beloved game! As far as we are I am concerned the legal quagmire of 4 competing companies would ruin any legitimate attempt to resurrect the game, and I am just fine with that. We keep it alive.

Edit: congratulations for all your success with Mice and Mystics by the way! Maybe you could make a stand alone expansion/starter with a $40 price point to get more exposure...

[knightkrawler]

The HQ 25th kickstarter was a scam by a company that was looking for a KS money grab. Pure and simple.

[Sjeng]

*like*
Jerry, exactly what most of us think.

[sajungzak]

The HQ 25th kickstarter was a scam by a company that was looking for a KS money grab. Pure and simple.