D&D 5E So what exactly is Wizards working on?

Sailor Moon

Banned

Banned

• Mar 11, 2015

• #1

Well we have received the 25 page PDF from Princes of the Apocalypse and while it has a few good pieces, more than half is just spells, which looks as if not a lot of effort was actually needed to create or convert them from previous editions.

So basically we got 10 pages, and that's stretching it a bit in my opinion, of actual crunch. I could understand the small size if they had a rather full release schedule lined up, but they don't.

What exactly are the designers doing? I mean even a team of 8 "professional" designers should be doing more than what we are seeing at the moment.

 

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delericho

Legend

• Mar 11, 2015

• #2

Oh, they're not working on anything. They've built thrones out of all the money they've made from the 5e Core Rulebooks, and now they watch the carnage on messageboards from that lofty position.

Yeah, I don't actually know.

 

wedgeski

Adventurer

• Mar 11, 2015

• #3

[MENTION=6776331]Sailor Moon[/MENTION] SURELY you can think of a more constructive thread to start than this...again?

 

Zardnaar

Legend

• Mar 11, 2015

• #4

One would expect 2-3 books a year form 8 designers. May or June would seem reasonable.

 

The Mirrorball Man

Aventurier

• Mar 11, 2015

• #5

Video games, boardgames, t-shirts, mugs, posters, funny hats, etc.

 

U

Uchawi

First Post

• Mar 11, 2015

• #6

Maybe the thread would be better served by stating what you want them to do. I want an options books for martial classes that introduces maneuvers from the early playtest. I also want a mechanism put in place so more adventures are released, even if the mechanism is to entice third parties to create them.

 

77IM

Explorer!!!

Supporter

• Mar 11, 2015

• #7

First, just to clarify, Wizards's designers didn't write the Elemental Evil stuff; Sasquatch Game Studios did. Wizards's designers mostly oversee 3rd-party contractors now. In theory this means the small number of designers can produce more products than if they worked on the products directly. (otherwise they'd just do everything in-house.)

Anyway, marketing-wise, right now they want everyone focussed on their new hotness, Princes of the Apocalypse. Talk about it, gripe about it, go out and buy it. So it makes sense to me that Wizards doesn't want to announce any new products right now that might take attention and discussion away from Princes. Once the enthusiasm for Princes starts to wane, that's when they'll announce the next big thing and start building hype for it.

 

R

Reynard

Legend

• Mar 11, 2015

• #8

77IM said:

First, just to clarify, Wizards's designers didn't write the Elemental Evil stuff; Sasquatch Game Studios did. Wizards's designers mostly oversee 3rd-party contractors now. In theory this means the small number of designers can produce more products than if they worked on the products directly. (otherwise they'd just do everything in-house.)

Anyway, marketing-wise, right now they want everyone focussed on their new hotness, Princes of the Apocalypse. Talk about it, gripe about it, go out and buy it. So it makes sense to me that Wizards doesn't want to announce any new products right now that might take attention and discussion away from Princes. Once the enthusiasm for Princes starts to wane, that's when they'll announce the next big thing and start building hype for it.

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I don't understand the logic here. The fact that (for ex) I know Occult Adventures is coming in July for Pathfinder doesn't figure into my decision about whether to buy The Pathfinder Strategy Guide this month. I am going to evaluate both of those on their own merits and in context of my gaming budget individually. The same goes for, say, whether I would buy Iron Gods AP is unrelated to the fact that knowing the next AP is Giant Slayers.

(By the way, I am not going to buy any of those things, because I generally don't by PF books any more, but that's neither here nor there.)

I don't think the lack of info on upcoming products has anything at all to do with trying to focus customer attention on the current release, I think it has to do with Mearls and Co. trying to avoid another cancelled project backlash. There appears to be some uncertainty coming from the top and Mearls' infamous "You can't cancel a product that wasn't announced" tweet says volumes regarding how he is being forced to deal with the situation. Maybe they don't have confidence in their subcontractors. Maybe Hasbro has a very short lead on whether they are going to greenlight something to go to press. Maybe he is just tired of us nerds asking him questions about stuff. Whatever the case, this feels like a company trying to avoid riling their fans.

 

77IM

Explorer!!!

Supporter

• Mar 11, 2015

• #9

Reynard, I agree with you, in the sense that I try to make purchase decisions rationally and consciously. But marketers usually target irrational, emotional, subconscious thought processes. Right now, Wizards doesn't want a new product announcement "competing" with the current offering. (I'm guessing; and I would love to be proven wrong. Preferably with the announcement of a psionics book. ) If the purpose of a product announcement is to generate hype, why do it when you already have a lot of hype?

You also make good points about cancelation and managing contractors. Overall it looks like there's very little incentive for them to announce anything right now.

 

DaveMage

Slumbering in Tsar

• Mar 11, 2015

• #10

I'm guessing they are working on this year's Gen Con release. Something like the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting or Monster Manual 2.