WotC WotC in a small decline as revenue drops by 16% as Hasbro shares hit a new 52-week low

[Jadeite]

There has been a huge amount of successful 3rd party supplements in recent years. And considering that some of those products easily rival WotC's recent offerings, I can imagine people preferring them to official stuff, although getting them outside Kickstarter can be an issue in some cases. We'll see if the release of One D&D affects 3PPs as much as 3.5 did.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

unless you just aren't a person who thinks of adventure ideas,

I certainly can't think them up fast enough to keep my players continuously supplied!

That would require both the writing technique and work ethic of a Barbara Cartland!

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I don’t understand what has happened with the writing of D&D adventures. In 2nd edition they were railroaded as hell but at least with strong thematic focus and narrative structure, now they are still railroaded but all over the shop narratively and done by a committee of authors. It’s like they strong a few disconnected “set pieces” and encounters together with the flimsiest of logic and call it a day (Descent into Avernus being a prime example)

I detect Chris Perkin's grubby fingers getting into most of the pies.

 

[Sorcerers Apprentice]

Dark Alliance didn't do well in reviews, but it seems to have made rhem money, based on these charts.

A video game doesn't have to be good to turn a healthy profit, that's why the video game industry is the way that it is. Being great can lead to a lot of money, but even mediocrity can cover payroll and keep the lights on.

Also, it was on Gamepass, IIRC, so Microsoft probably helped them cover costs.

A video game also doesn't need to make a profit to boost quarterly revenue. The income from the game will be concentrated in the quarter it went on sale, while the development cost will have been spread out across the previous years.

 

[Morrus]

We'll see if the release of One D&D affects 3PPs as much as 3.5 did.

It already is, at least based on anecdotal evidence.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

It already is, at least based on anecdotal evidence.

Could you expand on this? As a homebrewer-turned-freelancer just getting into the business, it would help to know what effects have happened already.

 

[Morrus]

Could you expand on this? As a homebrewer-turned-freelancer just getting into the business, it would help to know what effects have happened already.

5E-based Kickstarters appear to be underperforming a little since the 1D&D playtests started coming out, compared to similar previous projects. Nothing drastic yet, but it's starting to become noticeable. This is just anecdotal observation, though; I haven't gathered any industry-wide statistical data or anything.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

5E-based Kickstarters appear to be underperforming a little since the 1D&D playtests started coming out, compared to similar previous projects. Nothing drastic yet, but it's starting to become noticeable. This is just anecdotal observation, though; I haven't gathered any industry-wide statistical data or anything.

Thanks! Good to know.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Well, it's not good for those trying to earn a living, but it's understandable.

 

[TwoSix]

I certainly can't think them up fast enough to keep my players continuously supplied!

That would require both the writing technique and work ethic of a Barbara Cartland!

Huh. Adventure ideas are a dime a dozen to me; it's the work of making them appealing to the PCs' needs and maintaining some kind of continuity and verisimilitude with the current campaign that actually takes some work. And that's the work that published adventures don't do very well at all.