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Message: <blockquote data-quote="JeDiWiker" data-source="post: 4148294" data-attributes="member: 53136">The funny thing is--and I think people who respond to me lose sight of this--I think it's very possible that 4E will grow on me, and I'll eventually come to like it. Maybe not within minutes of finishing reading the Monster Manual, but eventually.The fact is that Wizards has played things so close to the chest with 4E--the considerably smaller pool of playtesters than 3E; the delayed GSL; the refusal to include industry professionals in the playtest pool, and, to a lesser extent, the freelance pool; the lack of real information on their web pages and the designers' own Gleemax blogs--that they have made it impossible for *anyone* to develop an informed opinion of the game, positive or negative.There are things I like about 4E (the reduction in the "recharge rate" of combat readiness, the additional hit points at 1st level, and so on), and things I don't (the arbitrary shuffling of the races, the aforementioned "coffee break" mechanic, etc.). Some of those things other posters agree with, some they don't. That's fine: We can agree to disagree, just as we do about Macs and PCs, Republicans and Democrats, Baptism and Catholicism, and any number of other purely preferential issues.If my original post had any message, it was not "Don't like 4E," but rather "Look at 4E with a more critical eye." I'll say it again: Wizards has not shown *any* of us enough yet to declare that 4E is indisputably superior to 3.5. Some of the features they have shown us certainly correct a lot of what is wrong with 3.5, but, 4E being an entirely new edition, it's going to have flaws that don't appear until the game has been out for a month, or three months, or a year. If I've learned anything in my 9 years of professional game design, it's that, when you go back to the drawing board, it's not just a chance to introduce more improvements--but a chance to introduce more errors.Feel free to ignore my advice. Buy 4th Edition the moment it comes out, throw away your old rulebooks, and hold parades in honor of the designers. Whatever floats your boat. I, personally, intend to approach it considerably more cautiously (much the way I did with Windows Vista, Area 51: Blacksite, and Scientology): I'll read *impartial* reviews (assuming I can find any), I'll talk to my FLGS about whether they've seen numerous returns, and I'll talk to people who have tastes similar to mine and see what *they* think of the game.And I will keep it firmly in mind that Wizards is in business to make money for Hasbro, and it is therefore in their best interests to only show us the parts about 4E they want to showcase. What lies beneath the surface, like Schrodinger's cat, has at this point an equal chance of being an unequivocal success and equal chance of being a colossal failure. Personally, I'm betting it's going to fall somewhere in between--and I'm hoping it leans more toward the success side.At any rate, I think I've said about everything I can say here. If you disagree with me, fine. If you disagree with my right to an opinion, then never sit down at a gaming table with me. But, if you want to discuss this more with me, you're more than welcome to come by my LiveJournal at jediwiker.livejournal.com; obviously, I'm there more than I'm ever here.Good luck to all of us.JD</blockquote>

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