Gleemax is Dead
- Thread starter Uzzy
- Start date
It is. And now for the DDI...
Because an ill-conceived marketing tool failed?
Right, let's ignore the actual sales data because it doesn't support your conclusion. It's better to focus on (unstated) hypothetical sales targets invented on the spot. Fact of the matter is, every new edition 'splits the market' because some gamers prefer the older system(s).
FR can wither away and D&D will still be fine. FR != D&D.
Last edited:
Brennin Magalus
First Post
If only that were true.
Three minutes could be an overlap with moderator instructions. Three hours is not. If civil discussion and respect for others' opinions isn't something you can handle, then this may not be the right place for you.
Unless one assumes, based on nothing, that various WOTC people are outright lying about 4e sales, it seems 4e can only be considered a success in terms of books sold. The question, though, is how much of the business plan is based on DDI. If the idea was "We will make a decent profit on the books; DDI is gravy!", then, it really doesn't matter what happens to DDI. OTOH, if the plan was "We will sell the books at cost; we'll make our profits on DDI", then, it becomes very important.
The fact 4e was launched before DDI was ready indicates it's seen as supplemental, not primary, income.
keterys
First Post
Speaking as the Gleemax Blogs Volunteer Community Lead... shutting down the blogs is a good and correct thing to happen. I'm not official and I don't know if my opinions ever made it anywhere, but for several months I and some others tried to make things work and ran into a lot of technical problems. But they didn't have the resources to get things where they needed to be - that's nothing to be ashamed of, I kept saying it was crazy to do Magic Online V3, D&D Insider, Gleemax Games Portal, Gleemax Blogs, a forum reorg... all at the same time. In the same three month span even.
I'm also not sure what happened with the outside company that was working on a lot of these things, but I haven't seen mention of it lately so I'd kinda assumed things went really wrong with that deal. Maybe that's just the cynic in me, though.
Anyhow, back in May (before Merric's post, though I suspect his post got a lot more attention : - ) I said dead out that they really should just put the blogs on pause, say they don't have the resources, put the resources on more important stuff (MOv3 and DDI) and that people would understand. This is something I'm sure they already knew, but it's a hard truth of realistic use of resources and I'd been hoping to discuss things at Gen Con more. Apparently there's no need.
There actually was a ton of good stuff on Gleemax blogs that unfortunately only a few people other than myself ever saw. Especially back in the beginning when the technical problems were really bad.
But, we move on. I really want to see D&DI succeed. Maybe someday the D&D Game Table will be working great and we'll see implemented the ability to port your character, adventure, screenshot, etc to your dnd blog of some sort. Maybe from Magic Online you can export your deck, tournament results, even a play by play. Those are tie ins to their core products that I'd appreciate and are a good basis to build onto for greater online offerings. Maybe that will grow from there into something more.
In the meantime, get all those resources onto the things people really want and are asking for. As Mike says, that's a good thing.
Now, Ari losing contracts on novels. That's not a good thing at all
I'm also not sure what happened with the outside company that was working on a lot of these things, but I haven't seen mention of it lately so I'd kinda assumed things went really wrong with that deal. Maybe that's just the cynic in me, though.
Anyhow, back in May (before Merric's post, though I suspect his post got a lot more attention : - ) I said dead out that they really should just put the blogs on pause, say they don't have the resources, put the resources on more important stuff (MOv3 and DDI) and that people would understand. This is something I'm sure they already knew, but it's a hard truth of realistic use of resources and I'd been hoping to discuss things at Gen Con more. Apparently there's no need.
There actually was a ton of good stuff on Gleemax blogs that unfortunately only a few people other than myself ever saw. Especially back in the beginning when the technical problems were really bad.
But, we move on. I really want to see D&DI succeed. Maybe someday the D&D Game Table will be working great and we'll see implemented the ability to port your character, adventure, screenshot, etc to your dnd blog of some sort. Maybe from Magic Online you can export your deck, tournament results, even a play by play. Those are tie ins to their core products that I'd appreciate and are a good basis to build onto for greater online offerings. Maybe that will grow from there into something more.
In the meantime, get all those resources onto the things people really want and are asking for. As Mike says, that's a good thing.
Now, Ari losing contracts on novels. That's not a good thing at all
Xyxox
Hero
Given that the novel lines are supporting Magic:the Gathering and Dungeons and Dragons, it is most likely those two product lines are doing very well and are safe from any possibility of being cut.
Some of the other product lines could be on the chopping block, though.
If the end of Gleemax is the beginning of DDI getting a serious effort to completion; I'm thankful for it's demise.
If the end of Gleemax is indicitive of what will happen to DDI; I shudder.
My gaming group loves 4e, and we're all excited about the Character Builder/Visualizer. I hope WotC delivers.
If the end of Gleemax is indicitive of what will happen to DDI; I shudder.
My gaming group loves 4e, and we're all excited about the Character Builder/Visualizer. I hope WotC delivers.
renau1g
First Post
I think that 4e is a great game, not the same as 3.5e, but if it was why would we all shell out $100 for the core books?
It's a great change IMO, and I know this is edition related, but I think 3.5e is great also. My group has two campaigns, one of each edition and we like them both.
I liken them to chocolate and vanilla ice cream. I like both, but they're different flavours of something I like (ice cream
).
I never went on Gleemax, but if it was as bad as some of the posters make it out to be than it's for the best, the concept sounded great, but execution was poor.
I know I'm anxiously awaiting the DDI and am willing to give WOTC a chance (which I'm not sure why people aren't willing to as well)... didn't "New Coke" fizzle mightily? If everyone said "Well Coke is dead, they suck, etc. because a past product failed" we wouldn't have Coke Classic (my personal favourite soft drink). Everyone's in a no-lose situation with DDI, as they're at least offering a free trial (assuming that sitll holds true). If you try it and like it, then subscribe, & if you don't, then don't pay.... it seems like a no-brainer to me. If you subscribe and it doesn't end up working out & WOTC pulls the plug on it then you're out some cash, but you also received something in exchange for it by using the product for the number of months you've paid for.
I wish all fellow gamers and fans of D&D the best and hope that our hobby can continue in the face of WoW and other competitors. We can all continue playing whichever edition fits our particular group, whether it be OD&D, AD&D, 2e, 3e, 3.5e, or 4e (or whatever other editions I'm missing), but at the end of the day just have fun.
Anyways my two coppers.
It's a great change IMO, and I know this is edition related, but I think 3.5e is great also. My group has two campaigns, one of each edition and we like them both.
I liken them to chocolate and vanilla ice cream. I like both, but they're different flavours of something I like (ice cream
).I never went on Gleemax, but if it was as bad as some of the posters make it out to be than it's for the best, the concept sounded great, but execution was poor.
I know I'm anxiously awaiting the DDI and am willing to give WOTC a chance (which I'm not sure why people aren't willing to as well)... didn't "New Coke" fizzle mightily? If everyone said "Well Coke is dead, they suck, etc. because a past product failed" we wouldn't have Coke Classic (my personal favourite soft drink). Everyone's in a no-lose situation with DDI, as they're at least offering a free trial (assuming that sitll holds true). If you try it and like it, then subscribe, & if you don't, then don't pay.... it seems like a no-brainer to me. If you subscribe and it doesn't end up working out & WOTC pulls the plug on it then you're out some cash, but you also received something in exchange for it by using the product for the number of months you've paid for.
I wish all fellow gamers and fans of D&D the best and hope that our hobby can continue in the face of WoW and other competitors. We can all continue playing whichever edition fits our particular group, whether it be OD&D, AD&D, 2e, 3e, 3.5e, or 4e (or whatever other editions I'm missing), but at the end of the day just have fun.
Anyways my two coppers.
Similar Threads
Recent & Upcoming Releases
-
June 16 2026 -
June 16 2026 -
September 16 2026 
Arcana Unleashed(Dungeons & Dragons)
Rulebook featuring "high magic" options, including a host of new spells.
Replies (151) -
September 16 2026 -
October 1 2026 -
October 6 2026 -
January 1 2027
