Is WOTC/Hasbro mismanaging D&D?

[Khur]

I'm willing to guess that most of the other "yes" votes actually mean the same thing.

I, for one, am in this boat. Of course, I've probably made that clear.

There is no canon.

I agree with your other points. This sig may not be referring to D&D, but if it is, then it's wrong to a certain extent. 3E could have had fewer core classes and a lot more flexibility (read: the same type of characters, potentially, but a lot more unique ones). They kept an outmoded (yet familiar) spellcasting system, which is almost entirely legacy. They kept a more abstract combat/wounding system based on 2E's Combat & Tactics. They kept a lot of stuff that they didn't need to keep to make a new D&D. But, they had good reason. The choices the game designers made kept the game familiar to older D&D players, easy enough to learn for new players, showed a bit of innovation (like skills) that did improve the game (IMO), and they created a tight rule set for tourneys. For us crusty ol' gaming dogs, a lot of the system's mechanics are so easy to decontruct, that it's pretty easy to tinker with the works and find a mode of play that anyone can enjoy. Definitely a solid job, regardless of my personal feelings on some of the legacy material.

Cheers!