D&D 5E Pre-Order DLC comes to D&D with D&D Beyond and Xanathar's Guide to Everything pre-order

[Jester David]

I get what your saying - and I think your comparison of these feats to Dragon is apt - but I just wanna comment on this: I have never considered the Dragon content as "official."

Which is amusing give, during the TSR and early WotC days, it was written by the same people as the books. And how during the Paizo days it has "100% Official Content" on ever single cover.

 

[Morrus]

Also, I didn't say anything about a person or group of people being stupid, immensely or otherwise, so please don't twist what I said into an attack against anyone's person.

Wait, what? You know your post is right up there, right?

 

[Gardens & Goblins]

Aye, Kickstater is not of itself 'stupid'. It does take a certain amount of responsibility to engage with. Sadly, a fair few seem to not understand the role of an investor, and the risks it takes.

Back to the OP -- for the folks aok with it. Other than securing sales, what reason is their to offer pre-order bonuses? It is a known, tried and tested, marketing strategy with a body of study surrounding its practice. It's not a mystery, we know how its intended to work and why it can work, namely manufacturing scarcity, sunken cost and fear of loss.

I totally get that any company wants to secure sales - and there are many ways to do so. Some, however, are little more manipulative - and scummy - than others. This is one of them.

And of course, it's not the end of the world - but it can be the start of a trend, though arguably, we've already seen it with, 'limited edition' and 'collectors edition' strategies. I'm not a fan of those either, obviously

I'm a firm believer that, while a company is welcome to try every trick in the book to pump that bottom line, treating customers with a little more respect can go a long way. Be nice with your manipulation, and yes, manipulation can be a good thing. Make your customers feel special, valued - understood. Don't resort to cheap marketing tricks. Granted, the former requires a little more effort, which can bite into those bottom lines, at least in the short term. But in the long term, you are rewarded with genuine, lasting loyalty - which translates to a vigorous sales. This is business practice that is actually good for the hobby.

What you don't want to do is adopt a sales strategy that already has a poor reputation through the games industry. That's just a great way to alienate a fair few folks, and for what?

 

[MechaPilot]

Wait, what? You know your post is right up there, right?

It sure is. And I quoted it below as well.

If you're going to put your money down sight-unseen, you deserve a risk premium, maybe even an equity interest (depending on how much you're putting down): that's how investment works. Kickstarter says, "No, no, ignore all that sound business and financial decision-making. Have this promise of some cheap shiny toys instead; a promise that may be delayed or even go unfulfilled." And we're expected to think that's okay. It's not. Being expected to buy into something sight-unseen is never okay, especially if those who don't throw money at a product of indeterminable quality are then denied game content, or have to pay extra for it, because they won't just throw money at anything bearing the D&D logo.

TL;DR, Kickstarter may be helpful for some smaller projects or enterprises, but Kickstarter is immensely stupid; as is paying for something before you see the quality of it, that's why tipping is done at the end of the meal instead of before you sit down to eat.

I said Kickstarter is immensely stupid. Kickstarter is not a person.

I said that paying for a thing before you see the quality of it is immensely stupid. That's an act, not a person. People who are otherwise smart can and do say and or do immensely stupid things. People aren't perfect, myself absolutely included in that, and most especially when we get in a hurry or have our emotions riled up we can say and do stupid and irrational things. Just as I'm sure you may feel what I said about Kickstater was immensely stupid, that doesn't automatically mean you think I'm immensely stupid.

So yes, in this whole discussion I have never once referred to a person or group of persons as immensely stupid and would appreciate not being painted as if I had.

 

[Satyrn]

Which is amusing give, during the TSR and early WotC days, it was written by the same people as the books. And how during the Paizo days it has "100% Official Content" on ever single cover.

I guess I rather ignored that.

 

[Satyrn]

Although it could also be that I feel that just because the company declares something as "official" holds no weight for me when the content looks like it's mostly a spitballing of ideas to see what sticks.

Dragon really seems to me to be like the current Unearthed Arcana stuff on a larger scale.

 

[Morrus]

Pre-Order DLC comes to D&D with D&D Beyond and Xanathar's Guide to Everything pre-order

It sure is. And I quoted it below as well.



I said Kickstarter is immensely stupid. Kickstarter is not a person.

I said that paying for a thing before you see the quality of it is immensely stupid. That's an act, not a person. People who are otherwise smart can and do say and or do immensely stupid things. People aren't perfect, myself absolutely included in that, and most especially when we get in a hurry or have our emotions riled up we can say and do stupid and irrational things. Just as I'm sure you may feel what I said about Kickstater was immensely stupid, that doesn't automatically mean you think I'm immensely stupid.

So yes, in this whole discussion I have never once referred to a person or group of persons as immensely stupid and would appreciate not being painted as if I had.

Oh, c’mon. You must think *I’m* stupid, too. Kickstarter is a company, which consists of people, and you called them immensely stupid. This semantic argument isn’t flying, nor the righteous indignation.

Incidentally, don’t ever order food at a pub in the UK! You have to order and pay at the bar in advance. Immensely stupid, I know.

 

[MechaPilot]

Oh, c’mon. You must think *I’m* stupid, too.

Not at all. I may disagree with some of the things that you've said now and again, but I don't think you're stupid.

Look, this is your house. I come here to converse about D&D, and to get new ideas from other peoples experiences and homebrew creations, not to be a jerk to anyone. If you feel I've said something inappropriate, then I apologize for what I said.

 

[Ovinomancer]

Because it's officially licences, it feels more "official" than most other 3rd Party books.

A little like the Lost Tales of Myth Drannor or Cloud Giant's Bargain or Ghosts of Dragonspear Castle. But moreso as it's crunch and not an adventure, and support for races that are unlikely to get official support.

The extra feats from Curse are officially licensed? I don't think that's correct. Well, correct in the summer that Curse has a license, but those feats could be dropped under the OGL, unless they contain WotC IP. But that's just for the names used, not the feat mechanics. Again, if that trips your bug, how did you make it through 3e?

 

[ddaley]

...

I said Kickstarter is immensely stupid. Kickstarter is not a person.

I said that paying for a thing before you see the quality of it is immensely stupid...

I guess I keep doing something that is immensely stupid... over and over. But, somehow, I keep getting fantastic products as a result. And, I get to feel good about helping to bring said fantastic product to market.

I guess you don't order from dmsguild or drivethrurpg? You only get to see a little snippet of the product before purchasing it. Most kickstarter projects offer more of a view into the eventual product.