TSR, WotC and Electronic Support: a loveless marriage

[JoeGKushner]

I'll disagree with you on this. I actually haven't seen such quality in the Dungeon adventures (since WotC took it back from Paizo) as I've seen recently. Can't comment too much on Dragon, I read it less, but the Dungeon stuff has been much better.

In your opinion, in the last five months, what have been the best four Epic tier adventuers Dungeon has put out.

 

[JoeGKushner]

My point isn't that there is no demand, but rather that there isn't going to be much more demand for e.g. iPads unless the economic situation is going to improve for people with low disposable incomes (and the desire to buy one). Those who could afford an iPad have probably already bought one.

I don't disagree with your other points.

I know people with no jobs that have cell phones and X-Box 360 so people will find the money for the 'kewl' factor. Especially when the price poitns creep down and the utility creeps up.

In addition, isn't WoTC going to WANT to sell these tools to people who have money?

"Man, I wish we could make some products that poor people could afford if only they weren't so poor!"

 

[Echohawk]

In your opinion, in the last five months, what have been the best four Epic tier adventuers Dungeon has put out.

Sheesh, talk about a deliberately loaded question. I'm sure you are well aware that there have not been four epic tier adventures in Dungeon in the last five months. While the lack of epic tier support might be worthy of criticism, it doesn't really say much about the quality of the other content in Dungeon magazine. If it did, then we should reasonably conclude that the entire print run of Dungeon was poor quality, because there were only two or three epic level adventures ever published.

 

[Hussar]

This is my experience as well. That included some articles that looked really interesting but were painful to browse (the font is too small for full screen to be an option with any reasonable computer monitor).

Doing both PDF and HTML options wouldn't be tha hard, would it?

I'd just like to chime in here with this too.

PDF is an absolutely terrible format. I LOATHE pdf with the power of a sun. I read a lot on my Ipod Touch now. To the point where I almost never buy a dead tree product anymore (I think I've bought exactly one novel this year in paper). You can't read a pdf worth a damn on my Ipod touch.

I don't want pretty borders.

I don't want pretty pictures.

I DO want to be able to stuff the file on my Ipod, turn on Stanza or Goodreader and read it.

Please, please, please, for the love of god, put electronic versions of magazines out in ONE COLUMN FORMAT!!!!

At least give subscribers the choice.

Thus endeth the rant.

 

[UngainlyTitan]

I'd just like to chime in here with this too.

PDF is an absolutely terrible format. I LOATHE pdf with the power of a sun. I read a lot on my Ipod Touch now. To the point where I almost never buy a dead tree product anymore (I think I've bought exactly one novel this year in paper). You can't read a pdf worth a damn on my Ipod touch.

I don't want pretty borders.

I don't want pretty pictures.

I DO want to be able to stuff the file on my Ipod, turn on Stanza or Goodreader and read it.

Please, please, please, for the love of god, put electronic versions of magazines out in ONE COLUMN FORMAT!!!!

At least give subscribers the choice.

Thus endeth the rant.

Seconded though in my case its an iphone but thesame applies.

 

[falcarrion]

One column would be the best. Even though I have an Ipad, I would push for the one column. Three columns is readable on the Ipad in landscape, two would be better , but one would be best. With my I touch one column is the only way to go.

 

[JoeGKushner]

Sheesh, talk about a deliberately loaded question. I'm sure you are well aware that there have not been four epic tier adventures in Dungeon in the last five months. While the lack of epic tier support might be worthy of criticism, it doesn't really say much about the quality of the other content in Dungeon magazine. If it did, then we should reasonably conclude that the entire print run of Dungeon was poor quality, because there were only two or three epic level adventures ever published.

You got me. It was a loaded example of how the value of the magazine is highly variable depending on your needs. They've been ramming the Dungeon part full of low level adventurers for a looooong time now and need to kick it up if they're going to support all levels of play. I don't want it to be like Pathfinder that claims to have fixed D&D and still doesn't do their own AP's past 15th level.

 

[Vael]

... I went back to the index I keep of Dungeon Adventures. I found, ignoring the Scales of War adventure path, there have been only 3 epic tier adventures: The Ziggurat Beyond Time (DUN159), The Sand King's Daughter (DUN160) and Winter of the Witch (DUN162). That means the last stand alone Dungeon adventure was pre-MM2, when a lot of epic tier monsters were lacking punch.

 

[Echohawk]

You got me. It was a loaded example of how the value of the magazine is highly variable depending on your needs. They've been ramming the Dungeon part full of low level adventurers for a looooong time now and need to kick it up if they're going to support all levels of play. I don't want it to be like Pathfinder that claims to have fixed D&D and still doesn't do their own AP's past 15th level.

Heh heh. I certainly can't disagree with that! And it isn't just epic tier that could use some more support; there haven't been terribly many paragon tier adventures (outside of the Scales of War adventure path) compared to the number of heroic tier adventures.

Still, that's not something linked only to the online versions of Dungeon. A quick look through the index in the final print edition of the magazine shows that support for high-level play has always been somewhat limited. The exception to this was during the 3.5 era, and then only because the Adventure Path adventures pushed up the average. My guess is that WotC has a fairly good understanding of the demand from their audience, and that there is simply a lot more demand for low-level adventures then there is for high-level adventures. (I'd also hypothesize that they get more low-level adventure submissions.)

 

[JoeGKushner]

at the same thing though, 'cause, meet effect'.

How does WoTC expect people to get into the upper tiers of game play when their own support for it is so sloppy?

Look at all this cool stuff you might one day be able to do, but hey, we're not going to ever support that so you better hope your GM has some chops.