One year memorial: When did HeroScape "end?"

[ZBeeblebrox]

Hasbro/WoTC Heroscape era ended the date Truth made the announcement. That was the date we were shot, stabbed...ect.

Then Samuel Brown was released and to me that was the day the new Fan era was introduced. That one small gesture by Truth, Chris, GB...ect showed that not only a self-printed card is viable, but many Scapers will go out of their way to "print" more Scape. That date signified that a project like the C3V would work in my mind, and I made a commitment to do whatever I could to bring Fanscape to the forefront. That day signified Scape's new era, and it will never die.

[Robotech Master]

It ended with the announcement.

I don't consider people still pulling it out and playing it to be "alive." For a miniatures game like HS, as opposed to a single purchase board game, I consider it to be 'alive' or 'active' if its still producing new stuff, and after that time has passed it becomes a game that people play because it is a good game and they have the rules/pieces. If a game like HS is no longer being actively developed, then its no longer being actively developed. That we play the game still means that we play the game still. No more, no less. I don't connect the two; we play because we like the game. We play because nothing says we have to stop playing. We play because we want to. Not because we feel like we're keeping it alive by doing so. Games can always be played long after their cancellation, but I don't see that as a counter to the cancellation--just means the cancellation can't stop you from enjoying what you already have.

[Onacara]

Thats the point...Heroscape IS a boardgame

[Son of Arathorn]

Look. Wizards of the Coast gave up on us. Plain and simple. I wasn't pleased when they started using D&D miniatures for Heroscape. I wasn't pleased when they changed the size of bases. I was furious when I found out that they canceled what is one of the most innovative games of our time, a game that appealed to those of all ages, a game in which one could be an architect, a warrior, a strategist, and dare I say it? A god. Now don't going thinking that I enjoy having power over little pieces of plastic. What makes this game special, what the designers put into it, is that way you can control your army, create a unique battleground, and mentally grapple with your opponent. What they obviously didn't intend to happen, what may have been a complete surprise, was the community that blossomed from such an amazing game. As Heroscape was in the prime of its commercial youth, as we had expansion after expansion, there were tournaments, there was induction of new players into a community I find to be, for lack of a better word, the nicest people in an online and real-world group. New army ideas arose, new mapping techniques were tested, and life was good. And when Wizards of the Coast announced that they were giving up on us, that they had been handed a jewel and decided to toss it, I was devastated. I was outraged. Above all, and I find this to be a strange feeling for a board game, I was depressed. Not for long, obviously, I had a life to carry on with. Then I started looking around. I started seeing custom pieces. Of both terrain and figures. With the release of Samuel Brown, with the Lost Scenarios, I thought that maybe this could carry on. And it did. As it has been said before, as it will continue to be said, a year is nothing. This is only the beginning. This is the dawn of the fan-made 'Scape. C3G, C3V, individuals who create amazing works of figures. And then there are those like liefkicker (think I'm spelling that right), who create stunning works of terrain. Anyone with half a brain can see that 'Scape is not dead. It is far too late for that. Fans got too into the game, it became too addictive. So we will carry on. We will carry on this game, this hobby, this obsession, this whatever-it-is. So if you want to get technical about it, the last breath of Heroscape as a commercial product was indeed on the day the announcement was put out. This is by no means the end of our game. It will go on.

[kolakoski]

Well met!

I reject the premise of the OP.

"Alive" is a relative term in this context. Although "new stuff" is no longer being produced by the company(ies) that "own the rights" to the game, from where I sit (as opposed to where you "consider"), Heroscape is very much "alive."

As far as I, the Gang of Four, and, I suspect, most of you are concerned, little has changed. We still "do our own thing" with the game, whether playing it "as is," or modifying it, through scenario writing, unit restrictions, custom creation, or more radical means, such as is done by the CUC and Legacy.

As far as I am concerned, even before the game was "officially discontinued" by its "owners," and now, making discussion of "open sourcing" moot, we own Heroscape in a way that cannot be reversed or superseded. We decide where, when, and how the game is played. We control its fate, its growth and its evolution. We don't need no stinkin' corporation!

[mac122]

Heroscape is out of production, not dead. Like Kolakoski, I reject the premise of the OP.

I posted this in Ollie's Heroscape isn't dead thread, and I think it's appropriate here as well.

John Cleese playing the part of Lancelot playing the part of WotC
Eric idle playing the part of Concord (?) playing the part of Heroscape.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmrLsJUtxG4
The pertinent part starts at 0:53, but the whole clip is just too funny to miss.

Heroscape isn't "dead" it's just waiting for WotC/Hasbro.

[Cyborgs Gaming]

The options on this poll are really bad because there isn't one for "it hasn't died yet". I'm forced to not select any of the options because they are all false in my view.

[nate the dawg]

Originally Posted by UtahScott

One year ago, HeroScape was stopped in its tracks. Some have been more stubborn in accepting the game's death, yet the grave still lies before us. Problem is, what date should be etched in stone as the final cry of the official game?

Well, in terms of the game's 'last breath', I'd say it was Samuel Brown...the last official army card released. But, c'mon, it's not like everyone has stopped playing Heroscape or anything. The game lives as long as it has players; that's why even HeroQuest is alive and well in my home!

[kolakoski]

Well met!

After the "official" announcement, I had this to say:

As One Door Closes . . .

Posted November 4th, 2010 at 02:44 PM by kolakoski
Updated November 16th, 2010 at 03:08 PM by kolakoski
The image of Death charging across a field on his spectral steed would strike fear into the heart of almost any man. The appearance of the Death card has a similar effect on most people, though it really should not. Whether you like it or not, Death is one of the most powerful cards in the Tarot. Humans naturally fear the unknown, and so Death is our greatest fear since it is the greatest unknown. The majority of us are unaware that our mind and spirit die all the time, constantly shedding old beliefs and acquiring new ones. It has been said many times by many readers: the Death card is not a card of death - it is a card of transformation. ~ James Rioux

And so it begins. A new era for Heroscape. The King is dead; long live the King!

*************************************************

Condolences to everyone.

While many of us are feeling pain, shock, outrage, etc., in the wake of the "announcement", on the site, on the phone, and face to face, we have already begun to discuss where we go from here - the future of Heroscape.

Even here, in our small corner of the Heroscape universe, the Gang of Four has entered into a microcosmic version of that greater discussion. We, too, have decided to carry on as before, except that we will now be more proactive as concerns the evolution of the game. We, too, must find consensus for a process that is satisfying to each of us, yet acceptable to all of us.

We have been content, for the most part, to accept the "official" version of the game as definitive, even while each of us has yearned for the game to evolve in other/different directions, and dealt with that yearning in disparate ways, through the tweaking of existing units, customization, rants to WotC and/or the community at large, or some combination of all of the above. Not to mention the Valhalla Society.

We are now presented with the opportunity to determine what Heroscape is, and will become, for ourselves. I look forward to participating in that process, both here, among the Gang of Four, and through discussion on the site.

Personally, although I have been playing less often of late, because of my recent training leading up to my promotion to Sandan (third degree Black Belt) in Kenshikai Karate, and my new responsibilities, and the increased intensity of training required to continue at this level (given that I am 60 years old), will undoubtedly require more of a commitment, and result in even less time to play Heroscape, I intend to be more active in terms of scenario creation and/or the tweaking of existing units (borrowing liberally from the community - see Competitive Unit Congress' Tagawa Samurai Archer tweak ), within the auspices of the Valhalla Society, and within the Gang of Four in general. I view the tweaking of existing units ("polishing the mirror") to be the way to go in the near term to evolve the game in a way that includes the most members of the community, as we already have the figures. Even within this narrow focus, I do not expect a consensus any time soon, let alone in the broader area of growing the game with "new" units. In the meantime, I, and the Gang of Four, will tweak and test and customize to our hearts' content, and urge you all to do the same.

Respect

[Skeletor]

Heroscape has just begun!!!

[Prometheus]

It could be said that heroscape ended when DnDscape began...

But I shall stand on the opposite end of the spectrum. Heroscape is still quite alive. As for the statement that it is not generating new material, you must merely look to the C3V, C3G, and various other heroscape designers to know this is not true.

[GnKoichi]

I'm not sure of the date of this, but in my mind Heroscape ended when they announced the new, smaller bases. Messing with that proved to me that Wizards had no idea how to handle the product, and I knew that the game would be cancelled soon thereafter.