I've known it for a while, but it's just been announced that Asmodee are looking at taking on Z Man, and speaking as an independent buyer of games (not with any of my convention heads on), I have to say that this didn't fill me with a great sense of joy.
Why not...?
Because when you're a larger company, you have to ensure that you can pay all the staff that you have, and that in turn means that you have to (to some extent) ensure that every product you put out there is something that will sell, and that, in turn means that some of the more abstract things tend to go by the wayside.
Now understand me in where I'm coming from, Asmodee have an excellent track record for good games with excellent production values, their acquisition of Fantasy Flight did nothing to diminish that, and certainly in going for Z Man, they are continuing to go for quality products, and nothing in that worries me.
What I don't want to happen is the same thing that happened to the entire VW line of cars when they'd bought out everyone else...
You couldn't tell the difference anymore...
There's nothing wrong with VW cars (alright, emissions, I know...) but when you look at the various stables that have been subsumed into the brand, and what they started off looking like, when you look at them now, you get the impression that they're all the same thing with a different badge.
There are other cars to be sure, faster, more efficient, better engines, better electrics, cheaper..., but when you see most cars these days, they'll come from one of the VW stables, and while it'll have a different badge, slightly different trim, it'll be the same thing under the bonnet...
And that's what I fear most...
Z Man have been one of my favourite publishers for a long time, good production values and interesting ideas, but many of the games that have come out don't have expandable potential, so it's only the base set and that's all you need to play it for ever. Games that I've had fantastic fun with, like Arabian Nights and Blueprints, that have everything that I want to play in the single box, that don't need expansions, and probably only appeal to a far more limited demographic than games like X wing or Netrunner, but aren't in the cheap and cheerful section like other Asmodee staples such as Dobble...
Time will tell, and I like to think that in wanting to buy out Z Man, Asmodee have recognised the unique way of doing games that makes Z Man special, choosing to buy it to add that distinctiveness to their own (yes, those words were chosen on purpose...) rather than wanting it to remove the element that Z Man bring to the table to lower the number of options that people have to play with.
I could be wrong...
I hope I'm not...
There's space enough in the world for all types of games to be played without competition with each other, and just as there are millions who enjoy the competitive nature of games, so there are those who just enjoy games.
I fall into the latter category.
I play games because I enjoy the social element of it, I've been in the Magic world championships, I've played Netrunner for years, and while it's still enjoyable, it's not the same game you play against friends around the table, when you'll forgive each other a slight lapse because you're all just enjoying the game. I have no inclination to go get the latest superships (and having seen all the lists for the recent nationals, I know which ones they are) to play at the top level, and I have no interest in seeing what comes out next to beat the previous combinations.
So it's my hope that Z Man will still be producing the awesome one shots in years to come, whatever name they go by...
But we'll see...