Waiting leads to too many thoughts

I wanted to talk to you about upcoming releases, but since I'm still waiting for them, I've decided to distract you with an 'introspective' thought... To be honest, after reading some very stimulating posts here, I realized two things: the first is that we often need to start with the basics, and the second is that the KUP Manifesto is still missing (otherwise, you wouldn't read this post).

The first reading I quote is the following one (namely its first part):

A Marketing Hot Take, 20 Slimy Adventures, and the Lure of Abracadabra

The starting point of my thoughts is the same issue raised by the authors:

What I can do is ask questions to figure out if we’re at least creating something that people genuinely want to play.

As a starting point, that's great! I dive into the reading and find myself among the 'last in the world' category with zero budget and no support: the solution seems to be to define a game that is a product. I have some difficulties with this: the first is that, not being a professional, I don't really know how to think in terms of a product; the second is that, not being a marketing expert, I don't really know how to think in terms of product target; the third is that, not being a great communicator, I don't really know how to address the first two points or any other point...

But then I think about it and come to my own conclusion: I'm not here to sell, I don't want to sell, and even less to sell a product. A product, according to marketing standards, must have a target audience, and I'm not trying to target my RPG to an audience. The marketing theory to place the product with the technique of "Ah, it's like X but with Y and Z" is useful for those who have actually taken X and added a piece of Y and a piece of Z... at the moment, I don't have an audience and a product, and I don't know if that will ever happen. I think this because, beyond all my limitations, I don't want to define an audience just to sell a product (which I don’t have).

It's in this context that the second post I want to mention comes in help:

Exploring Overworld Exploration

From this reading, it becomes clear that a game is not just a product but something more. Just as D&D is seen as:

The high-fantasy epic 'avengers team' story

I would like (and I use the conditional) to convey an idea. This is very different: I'm not interested in revenues, I'm not interested in 'stealing market shares,' I would like my idea to reach tables where 'recoverable' GMs and players can realize that the current role-playing game is nothing more than a paper video game. The so-called mainstream in the RPG industry is (more or less) slowly destroying any glimpse of creativity and intellectual freedom: people play RPGs to have Diablo-like sessions with paper, pencils, and miniatures (and note, I used Diablo, not even a bad term). Some of the essential factors of an RPG are no longer used: the ability to define a character's morality and stay true to it, even when facing moral crossroads, the beauty of acting according to 'out of the box' criteria like sacrificing your PC for the greater good, the realism of having a 'human' character with some standout traits but also some flaws that could be their downfall.

With this, I'm not pointing to a type of system (simulationist, gamist, or... I can't remember the third type, sorry, I didn't prepare enough). My proposal is based on an RPG I designed specifically to highlight something that the mainstream wants to eliminate. In that sense it's not important that my game is used, what is important is that we return to playing in ways different from today's standards: if you want, throw away my rules! ...or rather, don't even buy them! What is important is that you find the right way to sit around a table and have fun role-playing a character, not just maximizing the build to take down the next level's boss.

What more can I tell you about this? Fun is subjective, if everyone experiences it by following the mainstream, I've lost from the start. The real point is that many think they're having fun by following the mainstream, but I'm not convinced that is real fun (just like I don't believe that spending hours on social media watching or listening to people play is fun). It's enough for me to find someone besides me who thinks this way, and even if they don't play according to the KUP, that's fine... I say this with my heart on my sleeve, I have no other goals! Use creativity and seek the true fun of RPGs! (or buy my game... mmmuuuahahahhh!)