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Message: <blockquote data-quote="jsaving" data-source="post: 6294634" data-attributes="member: 16726">The OGL wasn't just a "good" idea -- it was a truly innovative idea whose benefits continue to be felt today.  It produced a thriving third-party adventure market that in turn positively impacted sales of the core books, helping both WotC and third-party producers make more money than they otherwise would have done.  Also, as Ryan Dancey explained in the early days of 3e, the OGL helped gamers feel more secure about investing in 3e products because they knew there would be continued third-party support for it even if WotC tried to make them move to a new edition they viewed as unsatisfactory.  I think there are two key mistakes people make when forming a negative assessment of the OGL.  One is that it enabled third-party developers to grow too strong, culminating in one particular third-party rivaling WotC itself.  The other is that it fractured the D&D community by enabling 3e grognards to cling to their ruleset long after its expiration date.  What these analyses miss is that these are both features rather than bugs, so to speak.  The OGL was always intended to give gamers the ultimate fail-safe in the event that a new edition didn't suit their needs, and was always intended to create a thriving third-party marketplace to drive the network effects that would keep WotC itself strong.  I like 4e and use it for one of my campaigns, but think its "closed" business model is an under-appreciated explanation for why it hasn't garnered greater acceptance across the gaming community.  My hope is that 5e will incorporate 4e's best ideas, bring back much of what worked from editions past, and introduce a new OGL to help recreate the vibrant D&D environment that most of us still remember and many of us wish would return.  I don't know if this would "unite" everybody behind a single edition -- it may be too late for that -- but it would be a great step in the right direction.</blockquote>

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