D&D General Hey, are we all cool with having to buy the same book twice, or what?

[Eyes of Nine]

Yeah, I'm not on D&D Beyond and that doesn't bother me. It's a cool service, no doubt, I've just never felt the need. Even the thought of moving online doesn't change that. I own all the books I need for 5E already and I'm not re-buying them to get access to DDB. It's a choice. It's cool that so many people get so much use and enjoyment out of it though.

Ditto. And it does seem that DNDB provides value beyond just pdfs.

 

[MostlyHarmless42]

That's fine, so don't buy it. DnDBeyond is doing very healthy business with those who do like it though.



It's not WOTC.

It's not WOTC.

It's not WOTC.

Hello, is this thing on? DnDBeyond is not run by WOTC. It's run by Curse LLC, which is a subsidiary of Fandom, Inc. , and it used to be a subsidiary of Twitch. It's not a WOTC company. It's not a Hasbro company. Different company entirely.

Yes, Curse, a complete snake of a company with history cyber security issues, a tract record of questionable business practices, and a reputation that should frankly concern more people. I repeat my previous statement, I trust shady websites that post illegal pdfs or wiki frameworks WAY more than I do the "official sources".

 

[FlyingChihuahua]

Yes, Curse, a complete snake of a company with history cyber security issues, a tract record of questionable business practices, and a reputation that should frankly concern more people. I repeat my previous statement, I trust shady websites that post illegal pdfs or wiki frameworks WAY more than I do the "official sources".

k, then don't use them.

 

[MostlyHarmless42]

k, then don't use them.

I don't. For the reasons I've stated across several posts now. But when someone asks me on an internet forum a question regarding if dndbeyond is a good product or not I shall give them my opinions and reasons why I do not think it is (which is, just fyi the point of an internet forum).

I also gave Curse the same opinions back when the product was in beta for feedback while they were still making it, and to WoTC my opinions regarding their choice to partner with a company such as them. Sadly either enough people felt otherwise [or more likely the scent of potential profit and corporate dealings] that my opinions fell upon deaf ears.

And judging by this thread and the numerous ones like it that filled the boards back during its development phases, my opinion, even if still a minority of the d&d fanbase was not unshared by others.

To the person who brought up us being past corporate cynicism, I could have a long and lengthy discussion about the inherent evils of corporate influence and unfettered capitalism in general, but suffice it to say that would be quite off topic and [sadly] scare off or bore most people and likely just get this thread locked, so I shall leave that particular tangent aside.

 

[Mistwell]

Yes, Curse, a complete snake of a company with history cyber security issues, a tract record of questionable business practices, and a reputation that should frankly concern more people. I repeat my previous statement, I trust shady websites that post illegal pdfs or wiki frameworks WAY more than I do the "official sources".

You: "WoTC's track record on digital services"
Me: "It's not WOTC."
You: Total lack of acknowledgment about what just happened, a complete shift to an entirely different topic, pretends everything is just peachy with that.

Everything is not peachy with that MostlyHarmless42. I don't have faith in your position or knowledge if you're willing to do that in that manner, where you just pivot and replace a name and continue on as if there is nothing meaningful in your claim about WOTC being disproven.

 

[Oofta]

You: "WoTC's track record on digital services"
Me: "It's not WOTC."
You: Total lack of acknowledgment about what just happened, a complete shift to an entirely different topic, pretends everything is just peachy with that.

Everything is not peachy with that MostlyHarmless42. I don't have faith in your position or knowledge if you're willing to do that in that manner, where you just pivot and replace a name and continue on as if there is nothing meaningful in your claim about WOTC being disproven.

Hey now. He's repeatedly stated that all corporations are evil hucksters who probably purchased your soul because you didn't read the fine print when you accepted their terms of use.

But no need to go into detail because our evil overlords are watching. Much better to go onto the deep web and download an illegal pdf copy via torrent.

Personally I welcome our corporate overlord [please be gentle with my soul!] and am willing to pay for products that I use. Even if that money does go to a corporation. Vive le capitalisme!

 

[eyeheartawk]

Hey now. He's repeatedly stated that all corporations are evil hucksters who probably purchased your soul because you didn't read the fine print when you accepted their terms of use.

But no need to go into detail because our evil overlords are watching. Much better to go onto the deep web and download an illegal pdf copy via torrent.

Personally I welcome our corporate overlord [please be gentle with my soul!] and am willing to pay for products that I use. Even if that money does go to a corporation. Vive le capitalisme!

1st page of Google search results = dark web now.

 

[Viking Bastard]

I was a bit annoyed at how long I had to wait to get the core books in a digital format, but was happy to pay for it when it finally came.

 

[teitan]

It's been three years since D&D Beyond launched and I see many people, here and elsewhere, gladly pay for the physical copy of a release and then again for the virtual copy.

There are companies 1/100th the size of WotC that will gladly provide a virtual copy of the physical book you bought for free, and have been doing it for years (Not to mention they're generally normal PDFs that aren't tied to a service).

My question is this: is the consensus that this is fine and normal and the other publishers are wrong or should we be banging a drum about how this is a anti-consumer practice?

It’s why I don’t use DnDBeyond. I kinda resent the idea.

 

[Randomthoughts]

My question is this: is the consensus that this is fine and normal and the other publishers are wrong or should we be banging a drum about how this is a anti-consumer practice?

I much prefer a physical copy for games I anticipate I will actually run/play but only get pdfs for more casual games. I do consider when purchasing a game whether there is a pdf/hard-copy bundle. But that was pre-COVID when I was not even remotely interested in online gaming.

Now? I will be more discerning and will probably just purchase an online copy (whether on DDB or through a virtual table top). I might also buy a hard copy but only if it's a game I've played on heavy rotation (which I haven't experienced for years tbh).