Evenglare
Adventurer
I've been reading the various topics on these boards and I saw one topic about how the developers don't come here much anymore or at least if they do, they lurk and keep their involvement minimal. I certainly can understand why. Most of the topics on this board are complaining. I'll own up to my fair share of them. I just want to try and bring this to the attention of everyone. I love the game. I love all editions of D&D, I started back in 2000 when I was in high school and I bought my first 3e books. I had no idea what kind of impact that would have on my life. Looking back it was probably one of the most influential decisions I have ever made. I'm sure many of you have a similar story be it from OD&D, AD&D, 2nd edition, 3rd, 3.5, 4e or maybe even 5e!
I absolutely love all RPGs in general. I'm sure most of you have a special section in your heart that belongs to D&D though, for whatever reason. This leads me into why I wanted to post this topic. We love D&D, and that love can be fierce. I'd wager that the overwhelming amount of perceived negativity in these topics come from a good place. We feel like D&D is a part of us, at least I do. It's not just a brand or a commodity that we can just passively throw away at some point. It's very close to us which brings to light the topics. I (and I hope most of you) want to see D&D do well. We want to keep the game alive. When we see fumbles or missteps relating to the brand we voice our opinions because it affects us and the whole industry as a whole.
We want to see D&D doing well and we want D&D to be the very best it can possibly be. One of my more recent topics is about why wizards is so terrible at offering digital support. Though it may seem like I'm trying to draw negativity out of the users, I assure you I am not. Maybe the closest analogy to this is being a parent who sees their child making the same mistakes over and over, in which case we want to draw attention to this and FIX the problem we believe is occurring. People argue over Mountain Dwarf Wizards, 15 minute work days, shortcomings of the Ranger Beastmaster class. All of these things are important to us because D&D is important to us. I'd be much more worried if the game WASN'T being talked about and just fading into obscurity.
There's also something else at play here and on every other forum like this. It's called a vocal minority and it's just about impossible to get around. People post on forums like these because they want to bring attention to something they might not find agreeable. This spurs some passionate posts from the users. In all likely hood these are, in the grand scheme of things, small problems compared to the amount of fans that exist. No one comes to message boards to simply praise games. It's just a fact these days. Those kinds of posts drop quickly off the boards because there's no spur for discussion, the most common reply would be something like "I like the game too". You can't really build off of that. It doesn't necessarily help the game in any meaningful way.
It is a shame that the praise posts go away quickly, this means that IF the devs come here they are not likely to see them. So I just wanted to say that I love D&D5e (and the others). I can't speak for everyone but, personally, my topics do come from the fact that I have such an intense bond with the game. So even if it sounds like I'm bashing Wizards for being stupid, this is not my intention. I post because I'm frustrated with their business decisions (PDFs) and want to know the cause of those decisions because I want to help in whatever way I can or at least just understand the reasoning.
In conclusion, D&D team you did a fantastic job with 5e. I can honestly say it's one of the best RPGs that has been produced so far. Keep up the great work, and know that even if the fanbase seems to be constantly crapping on the game and the company it's not because we hate the game but quite the opposite (I assume most other users feel the same).
I absolutely love all RPGs in general. I'm sure most of you have a special section in your heart that belongs to D&D though, for whatever reason. This leads me into why I wanted to post this topic. We love D&D, and that love can be fierce. I'd wager that the overwhelming amount of perceived negativity in these topics come from a good place. We feel like D&D is a part of us, at least I do. It's not just a brand or a commodity that we can just passively throw away at some point. It's very close to us which brings to light the topics. I (and I hope most of you) want to see D&D do well. We want to keep the game alive. When we see fumbles or missteps relating to the brand we voice our opinions because it affects us and the whole industry as a whole.
We want to see D&D doing well and we want D&D to be the very best it can possibly be. One of my more recent topics is about why wizards is so terrible at offering digital support. Though it may seem like I'm trying to draw negativity out of the users, I assure you I am not. Maybe the closest analogy to this is being a parent who sees their child making the same mistakes over and over, in which case we want to draw attention to this and FIX the problem we believe is occurring. People argue over Mountain Dwarf Wizards, 15 minute work days, shortcomings of the Ranger Beastmaster class. All of these things are important to us because D&D is important to us. I'd be much more worried if the game WASN'T being talked about and just fading into obscurity.
There's also something else at play here and on every other forum like this. It's called a vocal minority and it's just about impossible to get around. People post on forums like these because they want to bring attention to something they might not find agreeable. This spurs some passionate posts from the users. In all likely hood these are, in the grand scheme of things, small problems compared to the amount of fans that exist. No one comes to message boards to simply praise games. It's just a fact these days. Those kinds of posts drop quickly off the boards because there's no spur for discussion, the most common reply would be something like "I like the game too". You can't really build off of that. It doesn't necessarily help the game in any meaningful way.
It is a shame that the praise posts go away quickly, this means that IF the devs come here they are not likely to see them. So I just wanted to say that I love D&D5e (and the others). I can't speak for everyone but, personally, my topics do come from the fact that I have such an intense bond with the game. So even if it sounds like I'm bashing Wizards for being stupid, this is not my intention. I post because I'm frustrated with their business decisions (PDFs) and want to know the cause of those decisions because I want to help in whatever way I can or at least just understand the reasoning.
In conclusion, D&D team you did a fantastic job with 5e. I can honestly say it's one of the best RPGs that has been produced so far. Keep up the great work, and know that even if the fanbase seems to be constantly crapping on the game and the company it's not because we hate the game but quite the opposite (I assume most other users feel the same).