Overview
Rick Loomis (August 24, 1946 – August 23, 2019) was an American game designer and publisher best known for founding and running the gaming company Flying Buffalo. Born in Raleigh, North Carolina, he became an influential figure in hobby gaming by helping to establish and sustain several early forms of organized play, especially play-by-mail (PBM) games and small‑press role‑playing game publishing.
Contributions and activities
Loomis is widely regarded as an early pioneer of commercial PBM games, producing and moderating multiplayer games that could be played through the postal service at a time when organized play was still emerging. Through Flying Buffalo he supported play communities, printed gaming material, and kept niche products available to players over many decades. His work combined game design, small‑press publishing, community management, and mail‑based logistics.
Notable projects and publishing
Across his career, Loomis and Flying Buffalo were associated with a range of tabletop and role‑playing products. Examples of the company’s focus include:
- Mail‑moderated multiplayer games that allowed geographically dispersed players to compete or cooperate over long play sessions.
- Support and distribution of role‑playing game material and related magazines, bringing companion products to hobbyists and conventions.
- Long‑running customer service and rule arbitration that helped sustain small games far longer than typical commercial cycles.
History and company leadership
Loomis founded Flying Buffalo to publish and manage his gaming projects and to serve as a hub for players. He managed the company for decades and remained active with the business and its community until his death in 2019. His approach emphasized direct contact with players, careful rule adjudication, and a willingness to keep unusual or niche games in print.
Legacy and recognition
Rick Loomis left a legacy as a hands‑on publisher who helped formalize play structures for early hobby gamers. By fostering play‑by‑mail systems and small‑press distribution, he influenced later forms of organized gaming and demonstrated sustainable models for niche game publishing. His death on August 23, 2019 from lymphoma in Scottsdale, Arizona was noted by many in the gaming community, who remembered him for both his creative work and his long‑term support of players and fellow creators.
Beyond specific titles, Loomis’s importance lies in the institutions he built—methods of play, channels of publication, and personal connections—that enabled hobby gaming to grow and endure through changing decades.