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Message: <blockquote data-quote="pemerton" data-source="post: 6349326" data-attributes="member: 42582">I don't think your last sentence is very accurate: <a href="https://medium.com/@increment/the-ambush-at-sheridan-springs-3a29d07f6836" target="_blank">How Gary Gygax Lost Control of Dungeons & Dragons</a>.Why did Williams seek control of TSR? Shortly after she came on board back in April, the relationship between Gygax and Williams began to sour. The financial situation of the company continued to deteriorate, and Williams did not approve of the company’s handling of the Blumes.And Gygax was not immune from making bad business decisions:A more curious acquisition was the Greenfield Needlewomen company, a craft firm that produced needleworking products. Gygax at the time justified the purchase internally by explaining that “we had been seeking likely acquisitions outside of gaming,” and that “crafts is a larger field than hobbies.” TSR predicted that the needlework company would contribute about a fifth of its gross income moving forward. . . . By June 1983, it became clear that the business was not growing as expected . . . The purchase of Greenfield Needlewomen had failed to deliver its promised returns, so TSR was forced to write off the acquisition—and as a consequence, to post its first loss.I think, though, that it's just unrealistic to want a game published on the sort of commercial scale, and at the level of quality, that D&D is published, but with the values, commitment and expectations of return of an artisan or hobbyist.An analogy that works for me at least: it can't both be the case that you (and me, and all the other posters on this board) visit every exciting and interesting place in the world, and that those places be untainted/uncorrupted by commercial tourism.</blockquote>

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