New RPG Award

[Jonas Richter]

Below, I'll detail my observations and thoughts regarding the creation
of a new award (I'm not involved with it). I am curious to hear about
other experiences with creating and establishing awards, successes and
failures. Also, I'm curious to hear about your thoughts regarding the
possible influence such awards may or may not have.

A few days ago, a new German RPG award
(http://www.deutscher-rollenspielpreis.de/) was handed out for the first
time. I've written a short summary at RPGGeek.com:
http://rpggeek.com/blogpost/31291/winners-of-german-rpg-award-announced

Although the name of the award (Deutscher Rollenspielpreis, DRP) harkens
back to a previous award (Deutscher Rollenspiele Preis, DRSP), there is
no connection. The previous award chose winners by public/ fan voting
(surveys included with fanzines, perhaps online voting, too) and existed
from 2000-2005.

The new award is organized by the two people who initiated and run
Gratisrollenspieltag, too (equivalent to the international Free RPG
Day). They have pulled together a jury of five people (partly industry
insiders, partly experienced, well-established community members). To
keep things manageable, self-nomination by publishers was limited to two
categories (core rules and supplements), for products which needed to be
released between April 1, 2013 and March 31, 2014, and "physically
available" (so no PDFs). German translations of foreign products were
allowed.

I cannot say how many publisher sent in candidates during March 2014. In
May, the jury published their shortlist, with three nominations for each
of the two categories.
http://www.deutscher-rollenspielpreis.de/2014/05/19/shotlist-fuer-den-drp-2014/

The Shortlist was interesting because of the variety included. For the
category of core rules, the jury listed a gamebook, the two-volume core
rules of the 5th edition of the oldest German RPG, and the booklet for a
free (creative commons) indie RPG. For supplements, a scenario for a
Victorian investigation RPG, a Savage Worlds setting, and a new German
fantasy setting made the shortlist. Das Schwarze Auge, which has the
biggest market share, was notably absent, as were others of the big
players (Shadowrun, Cthulhu, Pathfinder). It is possible that the
publishers did not participate, of course. Regardless, the shortlist
showcased diversity on the market.

Winners were announced on Germany's largest RPG convention (Nordcon in
Hamburg, with about 2,700 attendees). It is hard to estimate the success
of the new award at this point, of course, but my overall impression is
positive and hopeful. Of course, some vocal members of online RPG
communities criticized the award. Main points were the fact that the
community had no opportunity to vote, and that there were too many
limitations on submissions/ too few categories.

It'll be interesting to see how the award (and its acceptance by
publishers and community) will develop in the future.

Do you know of similar initiatives? What's your experience with and
impression of RPG awards in general?

Jonas