D&D 5E Are we at, or close, to peak D&D? Again?

[fearsomepirate]

As someone who has never really been able to understand any published adventure I've read, and who has been frustrated in every published adventure I've ever played, I am inclined to disagree. The amount of work needed to make a published adventure make enough sense to me that I could run it is vastly more than the amount of work I do prepping homebrew adventures. Obviously just talking about my experiences, others' are almost certainly different, YMMV, offer void where prohibited by law.

I personally find published material saves me enormous amounts of prep time. In fact, I don't really do a lot of prep at all.

 

[prabe]

I personally find published material saves me enormous amounts of prep time. In fact, I don't really do a lot of prep at all.

To be clear: I think that is a genuinely good thing.

 

[TheSword]

I read somewhere that most of their current money is coming from licensing video games, rather than selling minis. Although I'd be interested in more up-to-date breakdowns, since Age of Sigmar has been out log enough that players are probably starting to look past the lore changes and actually check out the game.

Which makes sense - video games are just as good at leveraging the IP and a lot easier to get people into.

Licensing has definitely contributed. Total Warhammer has been very successful. Though Dawn of War 3 was a flop. TW has been out for 6 years now though and doesn’t explain the continued expansive growth.

Clever choice of quality products, excellent starter sets and stand alone board games, a decent online community, and bringing back popular out of print fan favourites has driven growth. As well as using trusted third parties to publish Ip you aren’t interested in (TW and WFRP)

... Hmmm who does that sound like?

 

[MGibster]

I mean, they couldn't sell the books they were printing for 2e, not enough to cover costs. They apparently simply stiffed their printer, too, and thought that would just work forever. Honestly, from what I've read, it sounds like Lorraine Williams was running a bust-out operation. After the WotC buyout, they got the operation profitable within a year, though.

The unsold books we're talking about in this case were novels rather than game books. Though I honestly don't know how well AD&D was selling in 1996. That's about the time I stopped playing.

 

[MGibster]

I read somewhere that most of their current money is coming from licensing video games, rather than selling minis. Although I'd be interested in more up-to-date breakdowns, since Age of Sigmar has been out log enough that players are probably starting to look past the lore changes and actually check out the game.

I was one of those people who were a little upset that they shut down the Old World in favor of Age of Sigmar. But you know what? I was never going to buy Warhammer Fantasy so who cares what I thought about the Old World? And now I actually own Age of Sigmar models.

 

[darjr]

The unsold books we're talking about in this case were novels rather than game books. Though I honestly don't know how well AD&D was selling in 1996. That's about the time I stopped playing.

There was a warehouse stocked with AD&D 1e books when WotC bought them. Just sitting there costing them rent.

 

[payn]

Also the seasonal nature of the WoTC and Paizo adventures builds on a sense of community and a shared narrative, not unlike a popular tv show. That’s no accident.

This. Its a lot of fun discussing experiences with published adventures and others experiences with them as well. Thats a context you dont have when discussing homebrewed campaigns.

 

[S'mon]

This. Its a lot of fun discussing experiences with published adventures and others experiences with them as well. Thats a context you dont have when discussing homebrewed campaigns.

I think published settings can get that too, especially the more detailed & idiosyncratic ones.

 

[Stormonu]

I personally find published material saves me enormous amounts of prep time. In fact, I don't really do a lot of prep at all.

Same here. If it hadn’t been for pre-built adventures, I wouldn’t have picked up Pathfinder or 5E, as my time to do D&D prep (and desire) has been cut to nearly nil. Prior to 3E, I used to spend the majority of my time building adventure content and the like for my game. I feel too swamped with my current life to be able to put in that sort of effort any more - though I did surprise myself by cranking out a two-session adventure here recently - but it took me two weeks to put together what in the past I could do overnight.

 

[Parmandur]

Looking at the age distribution circle: it's so even - I can't think of any other entertainment product I'd expect t look like that. That's surprising.

The "Four Quadrants" model (Younger Men, Older Men, Younger Women, Older Women) is what dominates Hollywood thinking, and when it succeeds (like with Marvel), it succeeds big.