WotC Is Mike Mearls still in WotC?

[beancounter]

Wait, you're saying he was removed because of ageism? WTF? Got anything to support that ridiculous claim other than "D&D Beyond"?

It makes good business sense. If they are trying to appeal to a younger audience, then having host that that younger audience can relate to, increases the appeal of the game/community to that younger audience.

 

[Fifth Element]

I remember just a few years ago, the various hosts were mostly middle aged men. Now it seems like the various hosts are all under 30.

You know WotC has owned D&D Beyond for like 6 months right?

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

I remember just a few years ago, the various hosts were mostly middle aged men. Now it seems like the various hosts are all under 30.

A lot of the people that worked for D&D Beyond moved on to work for different companies (IIRC, this happened before WotC bought the site, too).

Todd Kenreck works for WotC now. James Haeck has started writing for D&D books, official and 3rd party.

It makes good business sense. If they are trying to appeal to a younger audience, then having host that that younger audience can relate to, increases the appeal of the game/community to that younger audience.

So, baseless speculation accusing people of ageism.

To bring up a counterpoint more valid than your general waving at "D&D Beyond", James Wyatt wasn't working for the D&D side of WotC until the Planeshift articles got popular. He moved back to the D&D side of things and has been involved in at least 4 official books since 2018 (Theros, Ravnica, Ravenloft, Fizban's). And Wyatt is older than Mearls, so clearly, according to your "logic", if they were trying to appeal to a younger audience they wouldn't have moved James Wyatt back to the D&D side of WotC. Not to mention that Chris Perkins and Jeremy Crawford are middle-aged or older, too.

 

[beancounter]

You know WotC has owned D&D Beyond for like 6 months right?

Yes. My point was that the "faces" of D&D seem to be getting younger.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Yes. My point was that the "faces" of D&D seem to be getting younger.

. . . Crawford and Perkins have not gone anywhere.

 

[Fifth Element]

Yes. My point was that the "faces" of D&D seem to be getting younger.

My point was that unless this (A) is actually happening, rather than "seeming" to happen, and (B) happened within the last 6 months, then laying it at the feet of some presumed goal by WotC is a non-starter.

 

[beancounter]

Yep, the host/faces of D&D sure have a lot of grey in their hair...

 

[GMforPowergamers]

I remember just a few years ago, the various hosts were mostly middle aged men. Now it seems like the various hosts are all under 30.

I mean years move on... people move on.

I would expect that like in a call center or office, the people in the jobs when you are 20 and they are 40 will be promoted, or retire by the time you are 45 (making them 65) and the people to replace them in general on average wont be 65 they will be 20ish... as you get older the people you work with (In my experience) will almost always get younger.

in my own life I remember the days I was always 'the kid' in the office or meeting, and now adays I look at coworkers and wonder if they are being driven to work by there parents... heck, about 7-8 years ago I took an extra job in retail (never again!!) for Christmas season and the two layers of boss ahead of me where both technicly young enough to be my son and daughter... one of my co workers (also seasonal) looked older then me (not sure of her age, I wasn't asking) and said "Look, I'm not getting yelled at for 2 minutes over on my break from a kid out of school for 3 years" and the manager corrected her that he graduated from high school 5 years ago and I had to bit my tounge not to laugh.

in my current employment (I have been here about 3 years it was precovid) I work with a boss about my age maybe a little younger, 2 women about half to 2/3 my age, a woman a few years older then me (who is looking toward retirement) and 2 kids in there late teens early 20s... my boss's boss and her boss are both about my age maybe a bit younger or older...

10 years ago some of these people COULDN'T have jobs and I know that the people who are in pictures of the team back then (only 1 remaining staff from then guess who) all look to have been my age or older... there was no grand consparicy, they just got older and left and those that came in were younger.

 

[beancounter]

10 years ago some of these people COULDN'T have jobs and I know that the people who are in pictures of the team back then (only 1 remaining staff from then guess who) all look to have been my age or older... there was no grand conspiracy, they just got older and left and those that came in were younger.

I wasn't implying a grand conspiracy. I think it's common knowledge that WoTC is trying to appeal to a younger audience, so it makes sense to replace those "moving on" with younger people.

I've lived long enough to have seen companies slowly edge out older workers. And on the other end (the hiring process), older workers are often filtered out for consideration.

 

[Fifth Element]

Yep, the host/faces of D&D sure have a lot of grey in their hair...

Was Mike Mearls, or another D&D designer, ever a host?

Were the hosts a year ago any different than they are now? If not, then claiming it's some plan by WotC is untenable because they're only owned D&D Beyond for 6 months.