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Review Roundup: Tasha's Cauldron of Everything
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<blockquote data-quote="Alzrius" data-source="post: 8178448" data-attributes="member: 8461"><p>That wasn't "the axe," in terms of the worst thing possible happening. The axe was, as Dancey described it, being...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>But what's more notable is what he says next:</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>And that's essentially what 5E was working with when it started. While the picture seems rosier now, it's no coincidence that the early 5E adventures were put out by other companies under contract while WotC worked with a virtual skeleton crew. It was only after 5E blew up, due largely to external factors such as being a part of the smash-hit <em>Stranger Things</em> and "actual play" becoming huge (mostly Critical Role, but also Acquisitions Inc., etc.), that D&D's fortunes really started to rise. (Which isn't to say that 5E wasn't initially well-received when it came out in 2014; it was. It just wasn't the cultural touchstone those would make it).</p><p></p><p>In other words, what happened after 4E imploded was the "best case" scenario for what happened when they didn't hit core brand status; a major reduction in staff as the D&D team regrouped and tried again, rather than being put on ice for a decade or more. Given how things have turned around since then, my guess is that we're seeing something similar to what Dancey described regarding the pitch for the DDI, except instead of an online character-builder, rules-repository, and VTT, it's a blitz of multimedia licensing, one that ideally will lead to sustainable revenue streams (i.e. the TV series goes for multiple seasons, the movie kicks off a "cinematic universe," etc.), with the end result being that D&D hits "core brand" status in terms of what it can pull in on an annual basis.</p><p></p><p>If those efforts fail, it may be another cycle of reduction followed by a new edition, or it might be D&D being mothballed this time. We'll just have to wait and see (and, of course, hope that it doesn't fail).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Alzrius, post: 8178448, member: 8461"] That wasn't "the axe," in terms of the worst thing possible happening. The axe was, as Dancey described it, being... But what's more notable is what he says next: And that's essentially what 5E was working with when it started. While the picture seems rosier now, it's no coincidence that the early 5E adventures were put out by other companies under contract while WotC worked with a virtual skeleton crew. It was only after 5E blew up, due largely to external factors such as being a part of the smash-hit [I]Stranger Things[/I] and "actual play" becoming huge (mostly Critical Role, but also Acquisitions Inc., etc.), that D&D's fortunes really started to rise. (Which isn't to say that 5E wasn't initially well-received when it came out in 2014; it was. It just wasn't the cultural touchstone those would make it). In other words, what happened after 4E imploded was the "best case" scenario for what happened when they didn't hit core brand status; a major reduction in staff as the D&D team regrouped and tried again, rather than being put on ice for a decade or more. Given how things have turned around since then, my guess is that we're seeing something similar to what Dancey described regarding the pitch for the DDI, except instead of an online character-builder, rules-repository, and VTT, it's a blitz of multimedia licensing, one that ideally will lead to sustainable revenue streams (i.e. the TV series goes for multiple seasons, the movie kicks off a "cinematic universe," etc.), with the end result being that D&D hits "core brand" status in terms of what it can pull in on an annual basis. If those efforts fail, it may be another cycle of reduction followed by a new edition, or it might be D&D being mothballed this time. We'll just have to wait and see (and, of course, hope that it doesn't fail). [/QUOTE]
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