Dislike 4E? You can write off 5E

[Reigan]

5e will be 100% digital and come with a free iPad.

 

[Piratecat]

This may be 100% true. Here is a look at WotC's edition track record when it comes to editions.

• 1997, WotC purchased TSR and began work on 3E
• 2000, WotC released 3E
• 200?, WotC starts work on 3.5 (I can't source it right now, but word has it that Monte Cook confirmed 3.5 development began in 2000).
• 2003, WotC released 3.5
• 2005, according to the Psion preview article on DDI (Dragon 377, page 6), WotC began/was working on 4E
• 2008, WotC released 4E

What this record shows is that a new edition takes about 3 years to develop in WotCs hands. If you assume a 201X data, the start date was 201X - 3.

WotC has not gone more then 5 years between edition changes (03-08 being the longest).

Here's my conversation with Greg Leeds and Bill Slaviscek about this. I asked "What is the realistic lifespan for an edition?"

From my notes, in slightly compressed form:

They don’t know. 1e = 12 years. 2e = 13 years. 3e = 8 years. Talk about a '10 year cycle', but they really don’t know. They’d love to keep it going forever, but that’s not viable. Expecting to find ways to refresh without going to a new edition. One of the reasons for the move to 4th was to make it more accessible for digital help. They’re committed to 4e for the foreseeable future. While there’s a perception this isn't the case, they’re also committed to people who play older editions, or to say it better “we’re committed to Dungeons and Dragons” and to expanding its connection to people beyond just digital, roleplaying, and novels.​

This seems to be born out in some of the new rules mechanics, such as psionic augmentation and the upcoming Dark Sun concept of templates (a little like 2e kits.) They're trying to stretch the system more.

 

[Lord Xtheth]

I wouldn't mind seeing a "revised 4e" maybe. A new PHB1 with all the errata built in, with maybe some PHB 2 or even 3 rules stuffed in for easy access.
Change the orriginal classes just a little bit to have the flexability and power flavor of classes like monk or psion.

Nothing so much as to warrant a new eddition, but just a clarification and update with everything they learned over the past couple of years.

 

[Shazman]

Not to pick it out, but it's totally possible that WotC's president has a different idea of "thinking about 5e" than R&D. R&D, as Wyatt's interview noted, needs to think about things so far down the road that they might not even be feasible. Wyatt points out that it's sort of his job in R&D to think ahead of everyone else in the company.

The President of WotC, meanwhile, might mean that they're not even going to start thinking about 5e on a "real development and preparation" level for years. Which is fair. Wyatt should be thinking about things that haven't pinged Leed's radar yet. That's his job.

IIRC, weren't we told maybe a year before the 4e announcement that 4e wansn't on the horizon? Maybe I'm miss-remembering, but regardless, even if Leeds isn't thinking about 5e on any sort of level, Wyatt clearly is, though maybe on a purely hypothetical level only in response to specific questions, having nothing whatsoever to do with the things that are actually in active development.

Actually, it was about six months prior to 4E's announcement. It was either deception via corporate doublespeak, or the release of 4E was suddenly moved up by about a year.

 

[ggroy]

We will see an announcement for 5E before the end of 2011, possibly late 2010.

This is just a feeling and in no way based on any sort of facts whatsoever. I'm just using the force on this one.

The X-Files force?

 

[Windjammer]

Actually, it was about six months prior to 4E's announcement. It was either deception via corporate doublespeak, or the release of 4E was suddenly moved up by about a year.

Yep. See a (sort of) twitter from the Q&A with WotC at D&D Experience in February 2007:

Most of the questions are regarding miniatures.

The 4th Edition Question gets a lot of laughter.

"I'm surprised it took this long for someone to ask that"

"Its going to come at some point. It's a long ways away. You'll get an announcement when that happens, but it's a long ways away. We have a lot of good stuff coming out through 2008"

That answer was given by then (as now) Creative Director of D&D, Chris Perkins.

 

[ggroy]

Personally, since 4e reminded me of 2e (which I skipped), and 3e reminded me of 1e (which I liked), I'm hoping 5e is more akin to 3e.... though I'm betting it will be an entirely different beastie.

Easy way to do that would be to retrofit 3E/3.5E with an underlying 4E engine chassis (ie. level/2 adjustment, etc ...), and cleaning up high level play.

 

[hexgrid]

"Its going to come at some point. It's a long ways away. You'll get an announcement when that happens, but it's a long ways away. We have a lot of good stuff coming out through 2008"

This was considered a denial of 4e? In retrospect, it sounds like a pretty big hint that 4e was coming in 2008.

 

[Alaxk Knight of Galt]

Here's my conversation with Greg Leeds and Bill Slaviscek about this. I asked "What is the realistic lifespan for an edition?"

From my notes, in slightly compressed form:

They don’t know. 1e = 12 years. 2e = 13 years. 3e = 8 years. Talk about a '10 year cycle', but they really don’t know. They’d love to keep it going forever, but that’s not viable. Expecting to find ways to refresh without going to a new edition. One of the reasons for the move to 4th was to make it more accessible for digital help. They’re committed to 4e for the foreseeable future. While there’s a perception this isn't the case, they’re also committed to people who play older editions, or to say it better “we’re committed to Dungeons and Dragons” and to expanding its connection to people beyond just digital, roleplaying, and novels.​

This seems to be born out in some of the new rules mechanics, such as psionic augmentation and the upcoming Dark Sun concept of templates (a little like 2e kits.) They're trying to stretch the system more.

I appreciate this response, a couple of points

1. Saying 3E's lifespan was 8 years is deceptive. 3.5 was a new edition of the game, not a minor once over to update the rules. It came out in 2003 and lasted until 2008.

2. We do have another WotC RPG to judge edition releases by: Star Wars. Like DnD, Star Wars has a maximum gap of 5 years between editions.

• 2000: Star Wars d20
• 2002: Star Wars Revised Core Rule Book
• 2007: Star Wars Saga Edition

3. WotC handled the 4E announcement in `07 very poorly. At the beginning of the year, it was announced that 4E was a long way off. In August of `07, 4E was announced. Obviously it was in development in at the beginning of`07. WotC probably had a time frame of when they wanted to release it. Why the false statement about when to expect the next edition? If the company would mislead it's consumers in `07 about new editions, will it mislead it's consumers about new editions again in `09 and `10?

For my buck, past publication of new editions is the indicator of when the next edition will be released. As shown, a WotC edition of DnD takes about three years to develop. 4E was released in `08. Draw from that what conclusions you will.

Edit: Thanks for posting the Feb `07 announcement, saves me some trouble sourcing that quote

 

[bagger245]

Wow, SW Saga is only 3 years?