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Finarvyn
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The future of D&D
« Thread Started on Jul 1, 2011, 6:07am »

Here is a doom-n-gloom blog post on the future of D&D. I'm not saying I agree or disagree with its points, but I thought it was an interesting read.

http://newbiedm.com/2011/02/28/wheres-dd-going/

And another blog, which seems to reference the first one.

http://www.myrpgame.com/2011/06/24/the-future-of-dd/

« Last Edit: Jul 1, 2011, 6:10am by Finarvyn »

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Morandir
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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #1 on Jul 1, 2011, 5:20pm »

Interesting for sure, but I always hesitate to buy into these sort of things. There seems to be speculation of a new edition of D&D, or a shift in the direction of "the brand," every time someone at WotC sneezes.

All I know is I will never buy RPG products from them again, unless they make the old material available again - not just in pdf, but as print-on-demand. I would much rather order a new copy of B10 from WotC than try to find one on eBay that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. I may be in the minority there though.

« Last Edit: Jul 1, 2011, 5:20pm by Morandir »

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #2 on Jul 1, 2011, 5:39pm »

I would likewise be interested in buying old D&D material (OD&D especially) if it was put out by Wizards of the Coast. However, I find that unfortunate.

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #3 on Jul 1, 2011, 6:56pm »

I honestly don't think it matters one bit what WOTC does. The only way they could effect the old school movement would be to re release the Rules Cyclopedia to try to steal some of the clones thunder. Anything else they do is just going to send more players to other companies products.

I think the future will look an awful lot like the present.

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #4 on Jul 2, 2011, 12:14am »

Assuming there’s no real money to be made in pen-and-paper RPGs anymore, is there a possibility that WotC would ever come to the conclusion that there is no point in developing any more editions? That it would be more profitable to do rolling reprints of their back catalog to regain maximal fan loyalty, and otherwise just focus on other parts of their business other than pen-and-paper RPGs?

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Finarvyn
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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #5 on Jul 2, 2011, 5:58am »

Jul 2, 2011, 12:14am, Falconer wrote:

it would be more profitable to do rolling reprints of their back catalog to regain maximal fan loyalty

This is the most mystifying thing to me, the fact that WotC hasn't exploited this potential gold mine.

Think about this: dozens of materials already ready to go. No R&D, no need to hire anyone to playtest. Just hire someone to do a new layout and print 'em off. POD is a neat idea, but I wonder if anyone as big as the Hasborg would ever bother with anything like that.

They might need to focus on a few product lines at a time, maybe AD&D 1E or 2E and then a ton of modules. (I'd prefer OD&D, but they might not want too many things that conflict with their own product line and AD&D 1E seems like a good fit since it's in the middle.)

The extra money brought in from re-releasing old products would make the RPG arm of WotC profitable, even if they do want to continue to develop a new product line at the same time.

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #6 on Jul 2, 2011, 6:27am »

I really feel making old products available as PDF's or even print on demand would be a fab idea.

I was amazed when they decided to pull the pdfs from rpg now etc and then not make them available direct from them. A really bad PR move in my opinion- I was very upset, thankfully i had downloaded all my goods. I also feel Insider has been a badly rolled out product- great idea and terrible game plan. I was interested until failure to deliver and monthly costs etc etc

It would be a shame if DnD becomes a dead product with only old editions being played. The IP is great but being generic in most parts it is vunerable to new alternatives.

« Last Edit: Jul 2, 2011, 6:28am by trebormills »

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #7 on Jul 2, 2011, 10:25am »

Right now old products as print-on-demand is all I would want to buy - something new and clean to replace a lot of my older, worn, yellowed materials. I look at newer games; unless I am starved (and I am on occasion) I don't find anything to buy.

The irony of gaming: people with money and little to buy...

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #8 on Jul 2, 2011, 12:29pm »

Similarly, I'm completely disinterested in a reformatting, the correction of typos, making sure the game is "complete" whatever. I've made my own little brown books and am happy with how they've turned out. I'd be willing to purchase a new set, but not if it was changed in any meaningful way.

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #9 on Jul 2, 2011, 12:51pm »

IMHO there are too many D&D editions to choose which one should be reprinted first: people would rant if they get Moldvay first and AD&D1 later or viceversa.

I just hope in a thinner and playable ruleset for 5E.

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geoffrey
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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #10 on Jul 2, 2011, 4:16pm »

I'd love for WotC to release as soon as possible a single, slender, old-school D&D rulebook. There's no reason that this rulebook couldn't be 64 pages. It would aim at being a Rosetta Stone for all editions of D&D, back to 1974. It would be very hands-off, rather like the S&W Whitebox rulebook. Basically it would say:

"Here are the skeleton rules for making a character and for combat. And here are a few spells, monsters, and magic items that have been with us since 1974. The rest is up to you. Now go imagine the hell out it, and Fight On!"

Then a one-line note saying that all of WotC's out-of-print titles are available in PDF and POD, and that referees and players might find them useful and/or inspiring for their D&D games.

And that's it. A single, 64-page rulebook, and PDFs and PODs of all their OOP stuff. Nothing else. That would be very OD&D. 8-)

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #11 on Jul 2, 2011, 8:21pm »

Relevant to the discussion, I think:

http://wondrousimaginings.blogspot.com/2....-rpg-books.html

Joe reported on a recent statement by Lisa Stevens, Paizo CEO, after she was asked:

"To be clear, though, you're saying that it's your belief that the Pathfinder brand has a higher sales volume than the D&D brand?"

Her reply:

"At this time in history, that is what I have been told by people in the hobby distribution trade, the book trade, and other avenues that both games sell their products into. If you talk to the various retailers, it is a mixed bag, with one telling you one thing and another a different story. But when you talk to the folks who sell those retailers the product that they sell, then you get a clearer picture.

And I am just talking table-top RPG business. I am not talking about board games or card games or video games or whatnot. Just books and digital copies of those books for use in playing a table-top RPG."

Interesting times.

« Last Edit: Jul 2, 2011, 8:22pm by jasmith »

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #12 on Jul 3, 2011, 6:10pm »

I'm not sure I'd read it as doom-n-gloom, except perhaps for some of the marketing people in "The Industry".

But for us hobbyist gamers it hardly matters.

After my initial feelings of frustration/alienation/disbelief with 4E, I am now actually quite pleased with the way it has all turned out.

That is (at least, as I see it); WotC/Hasbro own the D&D "Brand" and will continue to churn out whatever "Product" the market will buy. If it wasn't WotC it would have been someone else doing the same. The "Brand" is slave to corporate balance sheets.

Meanwhile, perhaps even because of this, the "Hobby" has fallen back to where it really belongs; with the hobbyists. People like us.

We don't need the "Product" to keep us gaming. We have OD&D/AD&D, and our peers for inspiration -- and our limitless imaginations and the desire to keep on gaming.

There's no "Product" anywhere that can compete with that. It's only those rare gems that are complimentary to the above that I might consider buying nowadays

Either way, the "Hobby" will survive regardless of the "Brand" so long as people have that passion.

edit: spelling

« Last Edit: Jul 4, 2011, 4:41am by waysoftheearth »

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Morandir
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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #13 on Jul 3, 2011, 7:32pm »

Hear hear!

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Re: The future of D&D
« Reply #14 on Jul 16, 2011, 10:07am »

I'm with Fin. WotC should reprint the back catalogue and retire to the Bahamas. Players locked into the 4E style wouldn't switch for old-school play so they're hardly going to be eroding their 4E market - they'd just be tapping a market that currently brings them no revenue!

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