D&D 5E Am I no longer WoTC's target audience?

[Ovinomancer]

I don't agree with his premise but yours is silly as well. Obviously parents buy stuff for their kids. I'd venture to guess most starter sets are not bought by the people who end up receiving them, for example.

Parents buy for kids things that kids repeatedly ask them for because marketing is aimed heavily at the kids. This isn't the case for D&D. Sure, there's a market for this demo, but it isn't a major one.

The give the game away for free: the real money is in merchandising, which is a long game of building up customer loyalty. See also, the heavy emphasis the past few years on D&D children's books.

Sure, you won't get a loan for it, that's why it is part of the investment portfolio of a multi-billion dollar corporation that hopes to monetize the IP in the end.

What merchandising? Where are the money making product lines that aren't books?

18-25 year olds are the gold standard for getting people locked into using a particular product. Because they will eventually have spending money.

Sure, but it's not the core market for 5e at the moment. That's mostly post-school adults.

 

[TwoSix]

You forgot Medicare Advantage insurance plans. True, you have to not only be over 40, but also in the more leet over 65 demographic, but come September/October, I have to be very diligent about emptying my mailbox every day (mostly straight into the recycle bin).

Something to look forward to!

 

[ad_hoc]

I haven't bought a book since Xanathar's.

I don't need more adventure paths right now and the new rules and campaign stuff just hasn't interested me.

And that's okay. 5e is still by far my favourite edition and one I could see playing for many years to come.

About demographics; keep in mind that most 5e players have never played a previous edition.

Hobby gamers are no longer the majority. This is something I see time and again on boards, usually when talking about release schedule but also about releases in general. That WotC will regret not catering to hobby gamers. Sometimes they throw in that Pathfinder will eat up their customers.

I think many people outside of hobby gaming don't realize just how huge (relatively speaking) D&D is now.

 

[Ovinomancer]

I haven't bought a book since Xanathar's.

I don't need more adventure paths right now and the new rules and campaign stuff just hasn't interested me.

And that's okay. 5e is still by far my favourite edition and one I could see playing for many years to come.

About demographics; keep in mind that most 5e players have never played a previous edition.

Hobby gamers are no longer the majority. This is something I see time and again on boards, usually when talking about release schedule but also about releases in general. That WotC will regret not catering to hobby gamers. Sometimes they throw in that Pathfinder will eat up their customers.

I think many people outside of hobby gaming don't realize just how huge (relatively speaking) D&D is now.

All gamers are hobby gamers, because gaming is a hobby. Maybe a better word for your point (which I don't disagree with, btw).

 

[Xenonnonex]

If you choose not to buy new products but are still playing the game, congrats... you get to save your money and WotC's still completely happy for you. Why anyone would think that's a bad thing is beyond me.

"Because they must cater specifically to me. And they must continually make products to make me happy."

 

[Parmandur]

What merchandising? Where are the money making product lines that aren't books?

T-shirts, plushies. Their advertising for that is allover the place.

 

[hawkeyefan]

My daughter got me the D&D version of Clue for Christmas.

There’s plenty of merchandise associated with D&D in one way or another. It’s definitely nothing like Marvel or Star Wars and the like, but it’s out there.

I honestly think nostalgia and the sense of having a past is an important part of their brand and their marketing.

It’s just that....probably for the first time in a log time....they also market with the sense of having a future.

Some of the people who are in the past group will resent any focus on the future group because of some perceived reduction in attention it’ll net them.

 

[M.L. Martin]

What is it that you do not like about it?

I'm too attached to the 2nd Edition setting, and the changes and additions felt gratuitous (e.g., dusk elves and Mordenkainen), contrived (Madam Eva as Strahd's half-sister), and/or overly bleak (large numbers of soulless Barovians), and a read through suggested little worth mining.

 

[Tony Vargas]

I've been gaming since high school, like many people here, and high school for me was around the late 80s.
I've decided that I'm no longer WoTC's target audience. .

You are no longer D&Ds only target audience.
(WotC has long had other audiences for their other lines, of course.)

 

[Anoth]

The primary audiences for a luxury hobby are the ones with little to no disposable income? Interesting business model; not sure you could get a loan for that, though.

How much disposable income do their parents have?