Post-SDCC Q&A with Philip Reed of Battlegrip.com
TOYSREVIL had a wee Q&A with Philip Reed (who runs Battlegrip.com) about his experiences at, and impressions of the recent San Diego Comic-Con:
TOYSREVIL: How was SDCC this year for you? Compared to last year's? And/or before that?
PHILIP REED: This year at SDCC our company -- Steve Jackson Games -- ran in-booth demos, something we haven't really attempted at previous SDCCs. I noticed a significant increase in sales at the booth and overall had more opportunities to chat with fans than I have in previous years.
PHILIP REED: As to the rest of the con, I heard several people mention that they felt the lines were just too much to deal with. More than one person told me they were thinking this would be their last year because they no longer wanted to stand in the lines. Others told me that the freebies weren't as cool as they had been previous years.
TOYSREVIL: What were you there for? For pleasure or for work?
PHILIP REED: I was at the convention primarily for work. During the day I am Philip Reed, Chief Operating Officer of Steve Jackson Games. We publish Munchkin, Zombie Dice, GURPS, and several other games.
At the booth I taught games, answered questions, and autographed games. But it was the outside of the booth meetings that were a big reason for me to be at the show. We announced a Munchkin booster for the web series "The Guild" and we also released our Munchkin Conan the Barbarian booster (based on the new movie) at the show.
[Philip reviewed RealXNibbler (Hooded) here]
PHILIP REED: When not working, though, I snapped pics and chatted with artists and designers. My pics are up at my toy and art blog, battlegrip.com, for anyone who wants a peek at how I spend my free time.
TOYSREVIL: What was your favorite part of SDCC this year? And your least favorite?
PHILIP REED: My favorite part of SDCC this year was breakfast with Matt Doughty (Onell Design) and Jesse Moore (Callgrim). I ate way too much food and always enjoy chatting about marketing and manufacturing with Matt and Jesse.
PHILIP REED: My least favorite part of the show was not having the time to get a good look at everything. Being at SDCC for work meant that responsibilities came first, and most days that left me with only an hour or two to walk the show floor. I had a great time at the con, but one of these years I'm going to arrange my schedule so that I get one free day to see the exhibit hall.
TOYSREVIL: What do you think of the diversity and spread this year? Also has this year's offerings met your expectations?
PHILIP REED: The diversity and spread? Not sure I understand the question, but in terms of product and people variety this felt to me like other years at SDCC. It was a mix of collectibles, exclusives, new releases, and one-off oddities -- and the products were about the same as past years, too.
I do wish that there were fewer "exclusives," though, because all those do is lead to disappointed fans and extremely happy scalpers.
[All SDCC-images posted here are of Philip's coverage of the event, viewable via www.battlegrip.com]
TOYSREVIL: How was SDCC this year for you? Compared to last year's? And/or before that?
PHILIP REED: This year at SDCC our company -- Steve Jackson Games -- ran in-booth demos, something we haven't really attempted at previous SDCCs. I noticed a significant increase in sales at the booth and overall had more opportunities to chat with fans than I have in previous years.
PHILIP REED: As to the rest of the con, I heard several people mention that they felt the lines were just too much to deal with. More than one person told me they were thinking this would be their last year because they no longer wanted to stand in the lines. Others told me that the freebies weren't as cool as they had been previous years.
TOYSREVIL: What were you there for? For pleasure or for work?
PHILIP REED: I was at the convention primarily for work. During the day I am Philip Reed, Chief Operating Officer of Steve Jackson Games. We publish Munchkin, Zombie Dice, GURPS, and several other games.
At the booth I taught games, answered questions, and autographed games. But it was the outside of the booth meetings that were a big reason for me to be at the show. We announced a Munchkin booster for the web series "The Guild" and we also released our Munchkin Conan the Barbarian booster (based on the new movie) at the show.
[Philip reviewed RealXNibbler (Hooded) here]
PHILIP REED: When not working, though, I snapped pics and chatted with artists and designers. My pics are up at my toy and art blog, battlegrip.com, for anyone who wants a peek at how I spend my free time.
TOYSREVIL: What was your favorite part of SDCC this year? And your least favorite?
PHILIP REED: My favorite part of SDCC this year was breakfast with Matt Doughty (Onell Design) and Jesse Moore (Callgrim). I ate way too much food and always enjoy chatting about marketing and manufacturing with Matt and Jesse.
PHILIP REED: My least favorite part of the show was not having the time to get a good look at everything. Being at SDCC for work meant that responsibilities came first, and most days that left me with only an hour or two to walk the show floor. I had a great time at the con, but one of these years I'm going to arrange my schedule so that I get one free day to see the exhibit hall.
TOYSREVIL: What do you think of the diversity and spread this year? Also has this year's offerings met your expectations?
PHILIP REED: The diversity and spread? Not sure I understand the question, but in terms of product and people variety this felt to me like other years at SDCC. It was a mix of collectibles, exclusives, new releases, and one-off oddities -- and the products were about the same as past years, too.
I do wish that there were fewer "exclusives," though, because all those do is lead to disappointed fans and extremely happy scalpers.
[All SDCC-images posted here are of Philip's coverage of the event, viewable via www.battlegrip.com]
