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The weather has been pissing me off lately. For the past few years there had been no real winter in Poland and although I felt like I missed real winter, well, it turned out, I didn’t. I am not a big fan of low temperatures and all that crap that comes along.
Anyway, this weather thing made me think about the four seasons. The four seasons in a publisher’s life.
WINTER
Winter sucks if we talk about the weather, but it is awesome at Portal Games. It is either the end of the year (if we talk about December) and that means a holiday season, great sells, our sales team is pumped out and everybody is super happy. Games sell like cookies and we know this is the month we were waiting for the whole year.
January and February are great, too. It is the beginning of the year. We have plans. We have new year’s resolutions. We know that this new year will be bigger, better and more awesome than any other year in the past. We cannot wait to share the news about our new games with the world. We cannot wait to see new artworks and first samples of new products. Everybody is excited. This year, this January we know for sure, it will be a year of First Martians and we can feel it in the air every single day. The whole company’s life revolves around the biggest release in our history.
SPRING
I love the spring season. There are longer sunshine hours, jackets go back in the wardrobe, smiles and energy are in the streets. I don’t like the spring season in the company. It is time to finish up the projects. It is the time of stress and tension. It is the moment when our creative spirits must be reined by the chains of brutal reality, strict rules of rulebooks, final cards, final components, there is no space and time to be creative. It is the time to produce. I am no longer an asset to Portal Games, I am an obstacle. I am the one who wants to change something, to update, to make it better but my production department is cold as ice.
Spring is the worst. It is only stress and tension, no fun.
SUMMER
Summer is awesome. The weather is great. The convention season is at its peak, the releases will hit the market if we aimed for Origins or Gen Con. The hype for the games is highest than ever, fans discuss the games, I am super active on social media and I love it. My company is working hard on the Essen fair, so again there is a lot of tension, scheduling, negotiations with manufacturers and finishing some files, but for me this is the moment to promote, to talk about games, give interviews, and hang out with fans.
Summer is the best.
AUTUMN
Autumn is all about Essen. The weather sucks, days are short, the rain is an everyday friend and the temperatures are low. Every year it stirs in me the love for Warhammer Role Playing Game and dark fantasy games. Every damn year.
In the company, we are at our best. The sales department is preparing for the holiday season. Same with the warehouse. The production department is preparing for Essen and for all reprints needed for the holiday season.
And the creative team? Sometimes during Autumn they have a few days off. Because all they needed to create, is already at production. They need to recharge. They need to get some fresh energy. They need to play some games.
Because Winter is coming. And all the fun will begin again…
What’s your point of view on seasons and games?
