The acquisition of the Dungeons & Dragons brand by Wizards of the Coast (WOTC) from TSR, and then later by Hasbro of WOTC, cast the fate of the game in stark relief as larger toy companies decided the future of the tabletop role-playing game. As unofficial reports of toy rivals Hasbro and Mattel swirl in the press, what would happen to the tabletop role-playing game?
[h=3]Mattel Met D&D First[/h]Before Hasbro came along, Mattel had a long history of working with then-owner of D&D, TSR. The results of that partnership produced two electronic games and later two video games.
Mattel created the lauded, if somewhat primitive by today's standards, Dungeons & Dragons Computer Labyrinth Game in 1980. It featured all the D&D staples: a dungeon, a dragon, and two adventurers dumb enough to try to steal its treasure. Mattel's electronic board game hit all the beats of D&D without having a game master, including miniatures, a tactical map, and a crude mapping mechanic developed by listening to sounds as the warriors bumped into walls exploring the dungeon. You can read more about how the roots of the game in my previous article.
A year later Mattel released the Dungeons & Dragons Computer Fantasy Game, which despite its title was actually a portable handheld electronic game modeled after Hunt the Wumpus. Hunt the Wumpus was a seek-and-find game that became the standard for many maze games in the 80s. The Computer Fantasy Game had similar game play but switched the Wumpus to a dragon.
Mattel's influence went beyond board games. The company produced two Intellivision games with the ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS brand (TSR required the company list the D&D name in all caps). The first was Cloudy Mountain in 1982:
The description doesn't do the game justice. Cloudy Mountain featured a trio of adventurers trekking across outdoor terrain including rivers, forests, gates, and small mountains. The mountains contained dungeons which used fog of war to shroud the maze, an innovation in video games at the time. The adventurer was armed with a bow to fight off rats, bats, blobs, spiders, giant snakes, demons, and dragons.
Treasure of Tarmin was released in 1983. It kept the dungeon but got rid of the dragon:
Treasure of Tarmin was a three-dimensional dungeon crawl and equipped the adventurer with just a bow against a wide variety of monsters ranging from the staples in Cloudy Mountain to giants, giant ants, dwarves, giant scorpions, alligators, ghouls, wraiths, and of course minotaurs.
Despite rumors that Mattel might purchase TSR, Mattel's interest in the D&D brand -- and likely its licensing deal -- cooled. But Mattel wasn't done with the appeal of tabletop role-playing games. Mattel experimented with a D&D-style board game in the early 90s called Dark World. The American Edition brims with all kinds of miniatures, terrain, and yes even includes an "evil lord" who controls the dungeon:
Although it was made in the 90s, Dark World wouldn't be out of place alongside Fantasy Flight's highly produced hybrid board/role-playing games.
[h=3]The Child Becomes the Parent[/h]It's no doubt with a whiff of irony that Hasbro and Mattel are once again in talks -- they were in talks 20 years ago, but back then it was Mattel approaching Hasbro:
So how do the two companies stack up?
Mattel is larger than Hasbro, but the smaller company is catching up. According to Bloomberg, Hasbro approached Mattel late last year about combining their companies. Why now?
Hasbro is doing better than ever, thanks to its transmedia strategy (Hasbro now calls this its "brand blueprint") that mimics the highly successful Marvel approach of turning brands into multimedia franchises:
Mattel, on the other hand, is struggling to catch up with a similar strategy:
The two companies align along gender in the toy aisles, with Mattel's dominance of girl toys like Barbie and Hasbro's dominance of boy toys like Transformers and G.I. Joe. That's starting to change thanks to the reinvigoration of Hasbro's My Little Pony. And oh yeah, Hasbro has the Star Wars and Marvel licenses, which spike in sales with the release of each new movie.
Even if the two companies agree to join forces, the gulf between their customers may be too wide:
Disney's decision to switch to Hasbro for both Marvel and the Disney princess lines have also trigger rumors of an acquisition.
[h=3]So What Happens to D&D?[/h]Mattel's history with D&D is unlikely to manifest in much for the tabletop role-playing game. Hasbro's interest in Mattel likely stems from dominating "the other side of the toy aisle" in capturing the coveted girl's toy market.
It's certainly possible that Wizards of the Coast could be given more of Mattel's strategic board game properties similar to Dark World and "D&D"-ize them. Hasbro has shown some interest in expanding the reach of Wizard of the Coast's fantasy tabletop games with the Magic: The Gathering board game. Of Mattel's properties most likely to be complementary to a role-playing game or board game/RPG-hybrid, Masters of the Universe (He-Man), the DC Comics Universe, Avatar, and Ghostbusters seem likely candidates.
None of this matters if Hasbro loses interest in Mattel, but there are signs that the business is definitely considering acquisitions. Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner had this to say on a recent earnings call:
The Investment Doctor at Seeking Alpha crunched the numbers on the feasibility of an acquisition. His conclusion:
If Hasbro believes that any of Mattel's properties might help enhance their "brand blueprint," an acquisition might not be so far-fetched after all.
Mike "Talien" Tresca is a freelance game columnist, author, and communicator. You can follow him at Patreon.
[h=3]Mattel Met D&D First[/h]Before Hasbro came along, Mattel had a long history of working with then-owner of D&D, TSR. The results of that partnership produced two electronic games and later two video games.
Mattel created the lauded, if somewhat primitive by today's standards, Dungeons & Dragons Computer Labyrinth Game in 1980. It featured all the D&D staples: a dungeon, a dragon, and two adventurers dumb enough to try to steal its treasure. Mattel's electronic board game hit all the beats of D&D without having a game master, including miniatures, a tactical map, and a crude mapping mechanic developed by listening to sounds as the warriors bumped into walls exploring the dungeon. You can read more about how the roots of the game in my previous article.
A year later Mattel released the Dungeons & Dragons Computer Fantasy Game, which despite its title was actually a portable handheld electronic game modeled after Hunt the Wumpus. Hunt the Wumpus was a seek-and-find game that became the standard for many maze games in the 80s. The Computer Fantasy Game had similar game play but switched the Wumpus to a dragon.
Mattel's influence went beyond board games. The company produced two Intellivision games with the ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS brand (TSR required the company list the D&D name in all caps). The first was Cloudy Mountain in 1982:
Take the wrong turn and you'll soon be staring at the biggest, meanest and most clever dragon you've ever imagined. You start out in a maze. But, this is no ordinary maze. It's revealed to you only a few feet at a time as you enter each new uncharted corridor. The maze scrolls: up, down, right and left. You don't know when it's going to take a turn -- for the worse. That dangerous dragon could be between you and the treasure that you must find. Along your way you'll find a variety of objects to help you avoid the dragon.
The description doesn't do the game justice. Cloudy Mountain featured a trio of adventurers trekking across outdoor terrain including rivers, forests, gates, and small mountains. The mountains contained dungeons which used fog of war to shroud the maze, an innovation in video games at the time. The adventurer was armed with a bow to fight off rats, bats, blobs, spiders, giant snakes, demons, and dragons.
Treasure of Tarmin was released in 1983. It kept the dungeon but got rid of the dragon:
You've found the secret map to the underground lair of the dreaded Minotaur. You can go in, but you'll never come out unless you slay the Minotaur and claim his Tarmin treasure. As you make your way through the hallways and chambers, monsters wield their conventional or spiritual weapons. You must gather the proper defenses along the way. But use them sparingly, the Minotaur looms closer!
Treasure of Tarmin was a three-dimensional dungeon crawl and equipped the adventurer with just a bow against a wide variety of monsters ranging from the staples in Cloudy Mountain to giants, giant ants, dwarves, giant scorpions, alligators, ghouls, wraiths, and of course minotaurs.
Despite rumors that Mattel might purchase TSR, Mattel's interest in the D&D brand -- and likely its licensing deal -- cooled. But Mattel wasn't done with the appeal of tabletop role-playing games. Mattel experimented with a D&D-style board game in the early 90s called Dark World. The American Edition brims with all kinds of miniatures, terrain, and yes even includes an "evil lord" who controls the dungeon:
Along the lines of HeroQuest comes a much more heavily produced game called Dark World. One player is the evil lord who controls the dungeon in which the rest of the players move their characters from room to room, fighting monsters and gaining treasure. Real working treasure chests with magic weapons inside and the figures even get to put their new weapons in their character's hands.
Although it was made in the 90s, Dark World wouldn't be out of place alongside Fantasy Flight's highly produced hybrid board/role-playing games.
[h=3]The Child Becomes the Parent[/h]It's no doubt with a whiff of irony that Hasbro and Mattel are once again in talks -- they were in talks 20 years ago, but back then it was Mattel approaching Hasbro:
Industry analysts noted that rumors of a Mattel-Hasbro marriage have surfaced repeatedly and then faded in the 20 years since Hasbro resisted a formal $5.2-billion purchase bid from El Segundo-based Mattel. Hasbro, based in Pawtucket, R.I., contended at that time that a deal might be blocked by federal regulators on antitrust grounds, and Mattel abandoned its offer in early 1996.
So how do the two companies stack up?
Mattel posted revenue of $5.7 billion in 2015. The company employs 31,000 people, including about 2,000 at its El Segundo headquarters...Hasbro is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter and full-year 2016 results Monday. Last year, it had revenue of $4.3 billion. The company employs 5,100 worldwide.
Mattel is larger than Hasbro, but the smaller company is catching up. According to Bloomberg, Hasbro approached Mattel late last year about combining their companies. Why now?
Hasbro is doing better than ever, thanks to its transmedia strategy (Hasbro now calls this its "brand blueprint") that mimics the highly successful Marvel approach of turning brands into multimedia franchises:
...the successes have been huge and the company is currently in development on Ouija 2; a My Little Pony animated movie at Lionsgate; Transformers 5; G.I. Joe 3; a movie version of the board game Hungry Hungry Hippos; an animated adaptation of the Tonka brand at Sony and Happy Madison; a movie based on the card game Magic: The Gathering; a Play-Doh movie at 20th Century Fox; and Beyblade at Paramount. Plus, Lionsgate is still working on a movie version of the board game Monopoly, and Warner Bros wants to bring Dungeons & Dragons to the big screen.
Mattel, on the other hand, is struggling to catch up with a similar strategy:
After suffering eight straight quarters of revenue declines, Mattel this week posted higher revenue and net income for the fourth quarter of last year, thanks to rising sales in core brands including Barbie and Hot Wheels...Mattel was dealt a blow when it lost the doll licenses to Disney's hit film “Frozen” and Princess properties, which brought in more than $300 million for Mattel, analysts said. Hasbro won those licenses starting this year.
The two companies align along gender in the toy aisles, with Mattel's dominance of girl toys like Barbie and Hasbro's dominance of boy toys like Transformers and G.I. Joe. That's starting to change thanks to the reinvigoration of Hasbro's My Little Pony. And oh yeah, Hasbro has the Star Wars and Marvel licenses, which spike in sales with the release of each new movie.
Even if the two companies agree to join forces, the gulf between their customers may be too wide:
Another conflict could arise, this one among superheroes. Mattel has the main toy rights to DC Comics (Superman and Batman), owned by Warner Bros., and Hasbro has Marvel (The Avengers), a Disney property. If Hasbro and Mattel were to merge, the brands’ owners might start wondering who would be getting the most resources and best designers, McGowan said.
Disney's decision to switch to Hasbro for both Marvel and the Disney princess lines have also trigger rumors of an acquisition.
[h=3]So What Happens to D&D?[/h]Mattel's history with D&D is unlikely to manifest in much for the tabletop role-playing game. Hasbro's interest in Mattel likely stems from dominating "the other side of the toy aisle" in capturing the coveted girl's toy market.
It's certainly possible that Wizards of the Coast could be given more of Mattel's strategic board game properties similar to Dark World and "D&D"-ize them. Hasbro has shown some interest in expanding the reach of Wizard of the Coast's fantasy tabletop games with the Magic: The Gathering board game. Of Mattel's properties most likely to be complementary to a role-playing game or board game/RPG-hybrid, Masters of the Universe (He-Man), the DC Comics Universe, Avatar, and Ghostbusters seem likely candidates.
None of this matters if Hasbro loses interest in Mattel, but there are signs that the business is definitely considering acquisitions. Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner had this to say on a recent earnings call:
We are focused on executing our brand blueprint strategy. We obviously have looked from time to time at opportunities to help us round that out to build our capabilities and we’ve spent the last 10 years doing that...So we think we are well positioned from a brand standpoint, but we do remain open to add on acquisitions that would help to enhance the strategic platform that we are running our brand blueprint strategy.
The Investment Doctor at Seeking Alpha crunched the numbers on the feasibility of an acquisition. His conclusion:
After deducting the existing net debt, Hasbro could and should be able to spend $1.4B on acquisitions without having to hurt its balance sheet too much. After all, these new acquisitions will very likely immediately start to contribute to Hasbro's cash flows and EBITDA, and the net debt/EBITDA ratio after a $1.5B acquisition would very likely fall to less than 2 again within two years.
If Hasbro believes that any of Mattel's properties might help enhance their "brand blueprint," an acquisition might not be so far-fetched after all.
Mike "Talien" Tresca is a freelance game columnist, author, and communicator. You can follow him at Patreon.
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