Dungeons, Dragons, and Demographics

[Hunter In Darkness]

30 started in 91 with 2ed..i wanted to like 4e but it just dosnt look like it'll be something i would play for my d&d games.oh and yes that poll took some reading lol

 

[Hairfoot]

oh and yes that poll took some reading lol

But thank you for doing so. Next time I'll include height, weight, and number of dependents. Frankly, I'd be interested to see the results!

 

[Hussar]

Really?

Yes.

Think of cars. If I told you that 70% of Ford owners are looking forward to buying the latest model Ford, would that be good or bad for Ford?

If I told you that 70% of computer owners are looking forward to buying the latest CPU in the spring, would that be good or bad?

If I told you that 70% of PS2 owners were looking forward to buying a PS3, would that be good or bad?

The BIGGEST influx of cash is the core 3 books. I'm thinking that there's a fair number of people on that poll like me who own the core 3 and probably don't buy a whole lot of books every year. With a new edition, that's at least a PHB for 70% of your market. Plus a DMG and PHB for a fair chunk as well. That's GINORMOUS.

 

[Wolfspider]

As people age, they become more set in their ways. See this study, for example:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2459/is_n1_v27/ai_21113302

"...it has been found that increasing age, although associated with a wide inter-individual variation in lifestyle, was associated with a decreased intra-individual variation. That is, older individuals appear to become more `set in their ways'."

For what it is worth, I am 38, started with 1e (AD&D, then bought basic set, then back to AD&D, skipped 2e, picked back up at 3e), and I am looking forward to 4e.

Good for you that you buck the trend then.

Not like those people who can't let go of the past.

 

[Wolfspider]

Yes.

Think of cars. If I told you that 70% of Ford owners are looking forward to buying the latest model Ford, would that be good or bad for Ford?

If I told you that 70% of computer owners are looking forward to buying the latest CPU in the spring, would that be good or bad?

If I told you that 70% of PS2 owners were looking forward to buying a PS3, would that be good or bad?

The BIGGEST influx of cash is the core 3 books. I'm thinking that there's a fair number of people on that poll like me who own the core 3 and probably don't buy a whole lot of books every year. With a new edition, that's at least a PHB for 70% of your market. Plus a DMG and PHB for a fair chunk as well. That's GINORMOUS.

Seems like a 30% loss to me....

Sure, 70% is better than 50%, but 70% means that roughly 1/3 of customers won't be coming back. And that doesn't sound good. At least not to pessimistic me.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I voted in the last category, but in actuality, I'm not entirely displeased with the look of 4Ed. Heck, I've already pre-ordered my Core 3.

It is more accurate to say that I'm less enthusiastic about 4Ed than any of the previous updates- 3.X is my favorite incarnation of the game so far.

Some stuff looks really good. Some of what I read as upcoming changes are seemingly extrapolated from later books that I didn't find all that good.

 

[Warbringer]

70% of rabid frothing fans who take the time to post and comment on a fan focused website intend like the sound of the new product. 30% of said rabid frothing fans don't.

As to the other 99% of DnD players who don't give a hoot about posting; who knows.

Also, there is no mention of intent vs like. Generally, intent is over represented, easy really as there is no cost. Good news for WoTC is that similar posts early after news release had this likes at about 50-55%, so direction is good.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Unless I misread the poll result, I find it interesting that more people welcome 4Ed than fear it in each age category!

 

[Hairfoot]

Unless I misread the poll result, I find it interesting that more people welcome 4Ed than fear it in each age category!

The passage of previous editions has lulled us into a sense of false security and paved the way for World of Wardungeons & anime wuxia.


Whoa! Joke! Joke!

Dear god, I hope so, anyway.

 

[Hussar]

Seems like a 30% loss to me....

Sure, 70% is better than 50%, but 70% means that roughly 1/3 of customers won't be coming back. And that doesn't sound good. At least not to pessimistic me.

The problem is, those 1/3 probably aren't making much money for you anyway. They aren't going to buy the new edition (let's assume) so, how many books can you actually sell to them anymore? It's diminishing returns to try to cater to the 1/3. EVERYONE will buy a PHB who wants to play 4e. Not everyone will buy the Complete Adventurer (to give an example). And, we see this quite clearly. Every book that comes out sells less and less each year.

Yup, you lose 1/3 of your current customers, to sell to 100% of the other two thirds.