And as for validity of viewpoints, since ICE is the company that publishes these products, that makes ICE's viewpoint more valid than anybody else's viewpoint when it comes to ICE's own products.
It may be more valid, but it isn't more relivant as it is the consumers view that is more relevant.
Sorry, but in this case no. ICE produces what amounts to guidebooks, not works of artistic expression. And that means you cannot attempt to apply the same points of reasoning as you would to a novel or movie.
for example Stanley Kubricks A Clockwork Orange was intended and in his view point was an ironic joke about society, however those watching it viewed it as glorifying violence, Stanley Kubrick produced the film, it was his joke, so his opinion is more valid? No when he saw how people reacted to the film he took on board those opinions and banned the film himself, as he saw how it was perceived as a more relevant viewpoint than his.
Right, a novel or movie being compared to an rpg? An artistic expression against a collection of rules and advice? Sorry, but this analogy just cannot be used as it is comparing apples and bananas.
In regards to the comment about Campaign Law being essential for new GMs......
Looking at this realistically RM never has been, nor is, a gateway game. That means that most RM GMs came to RM from other games, and actually have GMing experience before them.
As RMX shows it can be and is a gateway game, and is marketed as such, and has been played as such for nearly 3 decades.
Pardon? RMX is an attempt,
less than a year old, to create a version of RM that could be used as a gateway game. Whether or not that attempt is successful remains to be seen and most likely won't be seen for several years. However, RMX was not and is not considered as a "core" RMC product either.
Nor has RMX been around for nearly 3 decades as your comment seems to imply.
I also don't think that Rolemaster has been marketed or used/played as a gateway game, ever. Let alone for nearly 3 decades.
When I say gateway game, I mean a game that leads people to roleplaying. A gamer's first game. This means that MERP could have been considered a gateway game, but Rolemaster wouldn't be, and couldn't be. Only time will tell if RMX might possibly be considered as a gateway game.
As for the rest, I don't get why there is such a desire to not have a GM oriented books as part of core, it makes sence, but as you say it is your company, so what makes sence to me with my half of the info may not make sence to you with your half of the info.
But at the end of the day it is the fans and how they view something that counts most, and their spending on these products that means most, so let's see when it comes out how people see it, after all it isn't available yet.
As I said above, each fan will determine what is and is not important to them. Just because
fan x considers a GM book to be important that does not mean that
fans a thru w will consider it important.
I also stated above, ICE's definition as to what ICE considers to be a core product:
Core == Those products that are absolutely required in order to play the game
No conditional statements in there, no qualifications, no hemming or hawing. Core is what it is, period, end of story.
This is not a subjective evaluation like you are trying to make it. It is a simple, hard point of fact, nothing else. Without the
core books, you cannot play RMC as it was designed to be played (i.e. a fantasy rpg with magic, monsters, and combat).
I already agreed that different products will have a different importance to different games, but I also don't agree with labeling any product as "key" as that comes across, IMO, as a transparent way of trying to say/imply something is core when it isn't.
