Confidence in WotC

Piratecat

Sesquipedalian

• Jul 10, 2012

• #21

Right now they seem to me to be doing everything right:

- They're creating a new edition of D&D aimed at attracting more people, with varying complexity depending on campaign style.

- They've opened this edition up for open playtest a good year and a half before the game will be done, so they can incorporate feedback.

- They're reprinting old editions and making edition-agnostic books in the mean time to keep continuing sales.

- They're dumping failed projects like the VTT instead of throwing good money after bad.

I'm really in favor of this strategy. It's what I'd do in their stead.

That said, their digital design team has an abysmal record, and they really need to sell PDFs.

 

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Ahnehnois

First Post

• Jul 10, 2012

• #22

I don't have much confidence in the D&D brand.

To be fair, people have pointed out several positive steps they've taken, which is definitely better than the course they've been on with the game rules, supporting material, advertising, and business strategy with the current edition, a course which certainly would have killed the brand and already has taken it in that direction. But I'm not seeing 5e as the revelation it needs to be, and WotC has done many, many things wrong, and they haven't cleaned house or reinvented themselves that I can see.

I hope the hobby of tabletop rpgs doesn't go the way of WotC. If the hobby as a whole can dissociate from the brand name, it'll be a good thing for everyone and everything (including D&D).

 

Mark CMG

Creative Mountain Games

• Jul 10, 2012

• #23

I voted "Mostly Confident" as I see them trying many things and not getting in a rut with things they don't think are working for them or their customer base. While they might not be able to actively support older editions of the game, I wouldn't be too quick to think they are going to drop the 4E sections of the DDI when they switch full force to 5E. I think they have learned their lessons from dropping PDFs and are showing some goodwill with 1E and 3.5E re-releases coming up. Also, they've done a great job making sure D&D is in the public eye with mainstream product placement and name dropping in television and magazines over the decade since WotC has owned the brand. They could do better with movies and video games but at least they keep trying. The board gaming efforts have been a real highlight! I think it is fair to say that when you set aside the hype and PR stumbles they make, and look primarily at what they have actually accomplished in a little over a decade, they've come a long, long way and put out a lot of really great products. They might not always go in the direction I would personally choose for D&D but they do it with great enthusiasm and proliferation.

 

BlueBlackRed

Explorer

• Jul 10, 2012

• #24

I've watched D&D get worse and worse from the moment Hasbro bought WotC.
No confidence at all.

 

Last edited: Jul 10, 2012

DaveMage

Slumbering in Tsar

• Jul 10, 2012

• #25

No confidence with regard to D&D. (They do a *fantastic* job with Magic, though.)

With regard to D&D:

They terminate staff seemingly at the drop of a hat.

They do not deliver on promises (see the 4E promises at GenCon 2007 - talk about a cascade of failure).

4E has ultimately failed.


That said, I *do* think they have quality in their designers, but the business side of WotC (with regard to D&D) is a disaster and they seem to have very little clue how to market to their non-4E-fan constituents. The reprints are (possibly) a good start, but without the back catalogue of PDFs, well, they are blowing what might be their best opportunity of all.

 

Stormonu

Legend

• Jul 10, 2012

• #26

Mark CMG said:

I wouldn't be too quick to think they are going to drop the 4E sections of the DDI when they switch full force to 5E.

Click to expand...

Actually, considering how they pulled support pre-4E for e-tools and the offhand comment in the recent art article how supposedly working on the 1E books was "against the normal rules" by supporting a previous edition, I firmly believe they will kill support for 4E-based DDI within 6 months of 5E's release, if they don't axe it in prep for a 5E DDI "preview".

And I don't expect them to give more than a few hours warning before they throw the switch.

 

H

Harlock

First Post

• Jul 10, 2012

• #27

Stormonu said:

And I don't expect them to give more than a few hours warning before they throw the switch.

Click to expand...

That's harsh. I don't even play 4e and I would be angry if they went about it this way.

 

Mark CMG

Creative Mountain Games

• Jul 10, 2012

• #28

Stormonu said:

Actually, considering how they pulled support pre-4E for e-tools and the offhand comment in the recent art article how supposedly working on the 1E books was "against the normal rules" by supporting a previous edition, I firmly believe they will kill support for 4E-based DDI within 6 months of 5E's release, if they don't axe it in prep for a 5E DDI "preview".

And I don't expect them to give more than a few hours warning before they throw the switch.

Click to expand...

Well, bookmark this thread and, if it happens, I'll eat my words and offer up a prize from CMG offerings to you for being right. Hopefully it won't happen and I am of a mind that they have learned that it is bad policy to disenfranchise players of past editions. We will see.

 

Stormonu

Legend

• Jul 10, 2012

• #29

Harlock said:

That's harsh. I don't even play 4e and I would be angry if they went about it this way.

Click to expand...

Yeah, you're right... they have gotten better - they did send out a notification that the 30th would be the end of the VTT beta, and I think they gave a week's warning on the character creator shift.

I guess I'm still simmering on how they pulled the PDFs - as I recall, they went down before a notification went out, and they had to get the vendor to make them available again for a short time so we'd have a chance to acquire and/or download the ones we bought (luckily, I'd already retrieved and made backups of the ones I'd purchased).

Still, I do expect they will drop 4E DDI support a month or two prior to 5E's release - with an offer of a 5E DDI preview for those with prepaid months remaining. Er, assuming they can have it up and running on time, for once.

 

Yora

Legend

• Jul 10, 2012

• #30

DaveMage said:

That said, I *do* think they have quality in their designers, but the business side of WotC (with regard to D&D) is a disaster and they seem to have very little clue how to market to their non-4E-fan constituents.

Click to expand...

But aren't they the company in the business that is estimated to make by far the greatest profits?