Dungeons & Dragons Announces Arcana Unleashed, New Magic-Themed Sourcebook at $49.99 Price Point

[Maxperson]

Some Lego kits have basically become 3-dimensional puzzles that allow you to build things like the USS Enterprise-D or an Imperial Star Destroyer. They're no longer just for kids or teens.

Yes, I know. I know several adults who are big into Lego. My point, though, is that it's hilarious that they stop at 99. What is it about 100 that makes someone unable to safely do Lego that someone who is 99 can reliably do? Why not just put 4+?

Ditto for D&D. The books, The Book of Vile Darkness and The Book of Exalted Deeds for 3e were explicitly made for adults because of their mature content. They even came with a warning on the cover.

Yes, and if you look at the stats above you see that the 30+ age range is 45% of the customer base. You can't make a product and ignore that. You have to take them into consideration.

Even the document @Parmandur showed doesn't really contradict that. It has 18-24 as the primary audience, with 13-16 & 25+ being secondary. I guess if you're 17 you can't play What's not being said, though, is what primary and secondary mean. It could be a 55/45 split. Or 60/40. Or even 51/49. Secondary doesn't mean that those age groups aren't given a lot of weight when designing.

 

[Reynard]

OK, but when their internal documents state the target audience is teens and twenty-somethings, that makes ans their target audience is teens and twenty-somethings. And they have not been shy about saying that over the years.

Point is, they are not aiming a new book in 2026, after the new PHB has been out and selling for a couple years, at people with 2014 books primarily: the primary audience is people born between ~2002 and ~2014 at this point.

You Said

There is massive and continuous evidence from 1973 on that the game is aimed at 12 year olds:

and then immediately changed the goal posts to "teens and 20 somethings."

 

[Misanthrope Prime]

OK, but when their internal documents state the target audience is teens and twenty-somethings, that makes ans their target audience is teens and twenty-somethings. And they have not been shy about saying that over the years.

Point is, they are not aiming a new book in 2026, after the new PHB has been out and selling for a couple years, at people with 2014 books primarily: the primary audience is people born between ~2002 and ~2014 at this point.

I think the issue here is that "12 year olds" and "teens and early 20s" are actually pretty different demographics. You're going to market something entirely different to a 12 year old than a 17 year old.

 

[bedir than]

OK, but when their internal documents state the target audience is teens and twenty-somethings, that makes ans their target audience is teens and twenty-somethings. And they have not been shy about saying that over the years.

Point is, they are not aiming a new book in 2026, after the new PHB has been out and selling for a couple years, at people with 2014 books primarily: the primary audience is people born between ~2002 and ~2014 at this point.

Teens and twenty somethings is not the "12 year olds" you are claiming.

 

[TerraDave]

Right, thst image is part of the evidence for the point, that teens and 20 somethings are who they aim the game at. They have been open about it over the years, the age is on the game box and everything and various internal documents have come out, but a sample:

View attachment 431064
View attachment 431063

D&D General Thread 'D&D 3E Style Guide Peeks Behind The Scenes'

Sep 1, 2021

Alex Kammer of Gamehole fame, the convention and the wonderful museum of every TSR D&D product and game room also has a copy of the D&D 3.0 Style Guide!

Interesting parts include the 3 million active monthly players, the primary and secondary target audiences, the list of "do's and don'ts" and cursing!

The primary audience was college students ages 18-24, with a secondary audience of young people form 13-16 and adults 25+.

"Dos and Don'ts" include "do show monsters as fearsome, evil creatures. They're not misunderstood--they're EVIL!", and "don't show the game being played by...

• darjr
• Replies: 51
• Forum: *Dungeons & Dragons

• 
• 
• 

As others have responded 20 and 12 are different numbers, as it turns out. 14 or 15 seems more likely—for a starter set or PHB— with the big spending, and time playing, really starting in college.

But what got me was the 3 million for 3.0. That would have seemed high at the time. Now it’s more like 15 to 20 million.

 

[Parmandur]

You Said

and then immediately changed the goal posts to "teens and 20 somethings."

Right, 12-24.their target market. Technically what I originally said with tongue only partly in cheek is that new books are being aimed at people who were wearing diaper sin 2014.bit of you want me to be more precise, it is people who were between infancy and elementary school aged.

They don't expect new players to have a 2014 PHB after they have been pushing the 2024 books to new players for a couple years.

 

[Parmandur]

I think the issue here is that "12 year olds" and "teens and early 20s" are actually pretty different demographics. You're going to market something entirely different to a 12 year old than a 17 year old.

Teens and twenty somethings is not the "12 year olds" you are claiming.

As others have responded 20 and 12 are different numbers, as it turns out. 14 or 15 seems more likely—for a starter set or PHB— with the big spending, and time playing, really starting in college.

But what got me was the 3 million for 3.0. That would have seemed high at the time. Now it’s more like 15 to 20 million.

To all of these...yes, 12-24 is a coherent marketing block.

 

[Corinnguard]

They don't expect new players to have a 2014 PHB after they have been pushing the 2024 books to new players for a couple years.

While this is true, they're probably joining groups who do have access to and might still be using the 2014 books.

 

[Parmandur]

While this is true, they're probably joining groups who do have access to and might still be using the 2014 books.

Yeah, but refreshing the other four magical school Wizard Traditions is a lot less repetive information than many here probably imagine. For folks who started in the past two years...itnis new to them.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

We seem to be "nu-uh"-ing multiple things that are all true.

They are marketing the game to 12-24 yo AND they still care about the demos that skew higher than that (many of whom will happily buy this book).

There's a reason that they are carefully including new material and updates and artwork and variant cover gimmicks and so on - they want to hit as many folks with as many reasons to buy it as possible.

That some of their choices might turn some folks off is unavoidable.