If Hasbro Pulls the Plug....

[Mark CMG]

I saw some 4E books at the local Borders just before they shut down. The Half Price Bookstores in the Chicagoland area always have 4E and every edition in stock, in various forms, though the ones I see the most are th 3.0E (rarely 3.5E) PH and DMG, as well as many 4E including several PHs and DMGs and MMS, plus many of the other supplements pop up regularly. Also, I see 1E PHs, DMGs, and those Survival Guides fairly often. I get around to five of the six Half Price Books every month or so.

 

[was]

I don't think Hasbro would ever just pull the plug. They might decide to sell it sometime in the future, but they won't just end it. The brand name still has value and it still makes money, even if it's not as much as they'd like.

 

[William Ronald]

That theory would certainly be tested.

I don't think Hasbro would ever just pull the plug. They might decide to sell it sometime in the future, but they won't just end it. The brand name still has value and it still makes money, even if it's not as much as they'd like.

They could decide that the role playing game is not generating enough money and just license out the rights to video games and maybe make an occassional board game. As for selling it, they held on to Jem and the Holograms for over two decades before reviving it for a film in 2010. I see Hasbro selling Dungeons and Dragons as the least likely option -- they could always make a little money from licensing, board games, and drag out a new edition if they thought it would be profitable.

 

[GreyLord]

It probably won't happen immediately. The first thing is to put it with the board game and general game market, which would marginalize it, but not kill it. Marginalize doesn't mean kill or get rid of necessarily...so that's a misunderstanding there. It means much less manpower and a lot less resources spent on it.

If it were "retired" for a while...I guess the assumption would hold...but in that scenario depending on fan response it could also be farmed out to another bidder (aka such as has been done with some of the other AH/WotC games such as Titan, Nexus Ops, Fortress America, and others?).

Clarification: Farmed out also doesn't mean sell, it means give them the license to print it for a while.

 

[Stormonu]

It won't affect me; I've plenty of other money-wasters to keep me busy for the foreseeable future.

My guess is the most likely occurrence is that D&D will be given perhaps another year to turn the profit Hasbro wants, then it will be stuffed into the archives for about 10 years, to be brought back out to see if it will sell then. In the meantime, I'd expect a few D&D video games, mostly based on FR titles.

 

[ShinHakkaider]

It wouldnt affect me at all. I've pretty much stopped supporting D&D since 2008 so if it went away? Meh.

I'd still have Pathfinder and Hero System and M&M so...

 

[Viking Bastard]

I'd make a 4e clone and throw away all the fiddly bits.

I'd start a thread or five here to get people to help me do it.

 

[frankthedm]

...but, just to be on the safe side, get yourself a hat made of bacon.* And freeze it.

* I recommend getting it made in the shape of a beret, flat driving cap, or a military folding hat (a.k.a. a Garrison or Wedge cap).

I'd say this one...
Behold the Skyrim Bacon Helmet!

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Too hard to store in the freezer.

Other hats might still work. A tam, perhaps (though it would be funnier made of ham), or maybe a visor.

A bacon yarmulke would be flat out wrong, though.

 

[Philotomy Jurament]

What will folks do if Hasbro pulls the plug on D&D?

As far as I'm concerned, the plug has been pulled on D&D for years, now. The cessation of new products under the D&D trademark wouldn't affect my gaming at all.