5E Rises But Still Trails Pathinder For Online Games

The Orr Group, the folks who make the popular ENnie-winning Roll20 virtual tabletop application, has released a new set of figures relating to which games are being played on their service. Last time, Pathfinder had a massive lead; in Quarter 4 2014 D&D 5E has increased its share from 16% to 24% of players, but Pathfinder has managed to hang on to that lead, remaining at about 43% of players.

Of course, you can spin stats to prove any conclusion you wish (for example, you could say that D&D games of all editions have 45% of the total, giving that brand a clear lead, if not specifically 5E), so we should be cautious about proclaiming anything definitive.

Fantasy Grounds also released stats last quarter (you can see both Roll20 and FG's stats for last quarter here), so it will be interesting to see what they have to say. Plus a new ICv2 report is due soonish.

Conversely, EN World's hot games chart, which tracks traffic on over a thousand sites and forums, gives D&D 5E 48% of web discussion. So it's clearly a hot topic!

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[Grainger]

Yes, the question of whether active players are counted is crucial. Assuming it's counting people signed up to games, and not people who have actually played in games, then in my own games, depending on how it's counted, most of the players might be omitted! Of the six players (including me, the DM) across both my games, only two, three or or four of them are counted.

This means that anywhere between two and five out of six players are not counted, bringing the 5e average down considerably!

I don't think we can assume that this sort of distortion balances out between 5e and Pathfinder, as the way everyone uses Roll20 is potentially so different. The bottom line is that we don't really know what the figures mean, but we probably can't take them at face value.

 

[Orange Mage]

You could make a case for grouping Pathfinder and D&D 3.5E together (since they are essentially the same system), for a total of 40% of games.

 

[sidonunspa]

you want to know why you see this?

because D&D's living campaign is store only... IF it was more accessible to the player base you would see the @$%!$@ played out of it.

I have said it once, and I will say it again.... making adventures league store only is a HUGE tactical error

 

[doctorhook]

Nothing beats a face-to-face table top gaming experience ;-)
Long Live D&D!!!

I use Roll20 on a big screen TV during my tabletop sessions. Long live D&D!

 

[sidonunspa]

Nothing beats a face-to-face table top gaming experience ;-)
Long Live D&D!!!

for a lot of players it's not an option.. I know a group of old friends all over the US that play together, and have for years... they only play at the same table at GenCon.

the more people play, in every way.. the better it is for the game

 

[PinkRose]

I count 6,100 for Pathfinder and 12,000 for D&D.

 

[Lee Singleton]

you want to know why you see this?

because D&D's living campaign is store only... IF it was more accessible to the player base you would see the @$%!$@ played out of it.

I have said it once, and I will say it again.... making adventures league store only is a HUGE tactical error

Yet interestingly for Wizards this is a tactic that has worked for Magic, so I'm not sure if it even is a tactical error. The logic that they would use if you want to follow the chain properly through is very persuasive. Especially for the many roles that D&D has to fit in.

 

[sidonunspa]

Yet interestingly for Wizards this is a tactic that has worked for Magic, so I'm not sure if it even is a tactical error. The logic that they would use if you want to follow the chain properly through is very persuasive. Especially for the many roles that D&D has to fit in.

Magic and D&D are two very different monsters.

Magic Friday's have tournaments with rewards, people trade cards, and play sealed deck rounds (getting more cards in the process).

There is a distinct advantage to playing magic in a room full of people. The DM and the players need to shout, getting to and from your seats may be a chore, and most stores share D&D night with other games (my local store runs L5R and YoGioH on the same night).

Comparing one to the other is like apples to oranges

The opposite is true for a D&D game, you are not there to trade anything, their are no real prizes which are valued in real currency. Also playing D&D in a crowded environment forces players and the gm to tell... not good

 

[Queer Venger]

for a lot of players it's not an option.. I know a group of old friends all over the US that play together, and have for years... they only play at the same table at GenCon.

the more people play, in every way.. the better it is for the game

believe me, I know that a face to face game is becoming the rarity and not the common place. And for some folks it the only way to play. Beleive me, Im for any form of play as long as people are playing D&D.

I just wanted to chime in so us old fashioned coots could get counted ;-)

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

I wonder if the ease with which old school D&D is run without a battlemap and minis means that 5E is not yet as big a deal on this VTT as the rest of the buzz online would seem to suggest?

I know I am just running my 5E game on Skype and not bothering with anything more complicated that posting cut sections of the map as the PCs explore.

Of course, now I am trying to work out to run 4E the same way....