Otaku
Active Member
You'll have to explain yourself more if you wish to convince me. What you have said isn't false, but it is a small piece of a larger picture. A good set with many good cards and a few great cards that sell for a lot of money may enjoy increased sales, but what if the rest of the set is mediocre at best?
You said it yourself, its "gambling" for such buyers. Not a smart investment, but hoping they pull the right card enough times to make a profit. In which case, they are little better off than playing a lottery. Well executed Organized Play is good for a game because it keeps it in the public's eyes. While it does turn a TCG into a superior product, it functions as a giant advertisement. Last I checked, most money in TCGs comes from casual buyers, people who don't even play the game! So even when competitive players are buying by the box full, it doesn't matter. It certainly doesn't matter when Rising Rival packs are selling for two or three times MSRP when no major retailer will charge that price! It is a nice secondary market for some determined people to try and utilize, but it isn't going to make money for the corporate side of things.
Factor in now the potential backlash: like I said, well executed OP is good. Bad OP can scare players off, and the less players the less casual people are reminded why they drop $4 for a pack of cards that will just be looked at and sit in some incomplete collection somewhere.
I know "too high" is a bit vague, but we are talking when the price is such that it really becomes a turn off. Paying a few hundred dollars for a deck of easily damaged cards is not appealing, and paying several hundred for the hope of pulling what you need is less appealing. If you're the person winning enough tournaments to break even, or at least take only a reasonable "this is my hobby" loss, that's fine. For everyone else, you become a fool.
tl;dr: Exception to the rule, dude.
You said it yourself, its "gambling" for such buyers. Not a smart investment, but hoping they pull the right card enough times to make a profit. In which case, they are little better off than playing a lottery. Well executed Organized Play is good for a game because it keeps it in the public's eyes. While it does turn a TCG into a superior product, it functions as a giant advertisement. Last I checked, most money in TCGs comes from casual buyers, people who don't even play the game! So even when competitive players are buying by the box full, it doesn't matter. It certainly doesn't matter when Rising Rival packs are selling for two or three times MSRP when no major retailer will charge that price! It is a nice secondary market for some determined people to try and utilize, but it isn't going to make money for the corporate side of things.
Factor in now the potential backlash: like I said, well executed OP is good. Bad OP can scare players off, and the less players the less casual people are reminded why they drop $4 for a pack of cards that will just be looked at and sit in some incomplete collection somewhere.
I know "too high" is a bit vague, but we are talking when the price is such that it really becomes a turn off. Paying a few hundred dollars for a deck of easily damaged cards is not appealing, and paying several hundred for the hope of pulling what you need is less appealing. If you're the person winning enough tournaments to break even, or at least take only a reasonable "this is my hobby" loss, that's fine. For everyone else, you become a fool.
tl;dr: Exception to the rule, dude.
