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Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Piratecat" data-source="post: 5427184" data-attributes="member: 2">I'll theorize, pulling all this information from my butt. I have no data to back any of it up, it's doubtlessly riddled with holes in logic, and it's worth exactly what you're paying for it - zilch!  But it's fun to consider.Given:- Recent releases (Essentials, Red Box) are targeted to new gamers or disaffected older gamers.- Pathfinder is selling roughly what 4e is according to one report (rumor?) I heard. If the size of the RPG "pie" is equal to what it is during 3e (almost certainly not the case; 4e has brought some people into the hobby for the first time, and some people have dropped out), then WotC D&D sales are about half of what they used to be.- D&D is expensive, manpower-heavy and slow to produce. WotC pays good money to freelancers and has good salaries for employees; they work years ahead of schedule, making it hard to predict market trends. D&D employs a relatively large amount of people relative to its sales size compared to other brands at WotC and Hasbro.- The DDI delays, cuts and errors match a pattern of not enough manpower to deliver expected results in the anticipated time. Changes in schedule have the net result of trying to free peoples' time by reducing work that does not directly produce income (such as no longer compiling the web articles.)To me, that spells trouble. It indicates that the D&D line is under-performing and is trying to do more with less. I'm not sure what to say about that, other than I don't believe that WotC would sell the D&D brand - not with DDO doing well and both a movie and another major computer game on the way. My guess is that in a worst case scenario they maintain the brand until they can revitalize it.Huh. I just depressed myself. I play 4e and love it, but to me this is definitely the low rumbling of distant thunder.</blockquote>

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