Dungeons & Dragons is back in the news again thanks to Xanathar's Guide to Everything ranked on several best-seller lists. This isn't a first for D&D -- several D&D books were best-sellers when they launched -- but it is remarkable for an edition that's now several years old.
[h=3]This Sounds Familiar...[/h]D&D is no stranger to best-seller lists. ICv2 reported back in 2014 on the success of the Fifth Edition Player's Handbook:
One year later, Morrus reported that two of the three core rule books for Fifth Edition were still on the New York Times' best-sellers list for Games and Activities:
A check today shows both books are STILL on the list two years later, with each slipping by just one rank. Which brings us to Xanathar's Guide to Everything.
[h=3]The Eye Sees All[/h]The wily beholder decided to outshine its predecessors by reaching #1 on Publisher's Weekly's hardcover non-fiction list and the #1 on the Wall Street Journal's non-fiction list. Xanathar's Guide is also #12 on USA Today's best-selling books and #12 on Amazon's Top 20 Most Sold Non-Fiction Books.
This is remarkable for a number of reasons, not the least of which being that Xanathar's Guide won these accolades late in D&D's publishing cycle. Xanathar's rankings seem indicative of the game's overall success, but there are other factors to consider as well. Scott Thorne at ICv2 posits what's different about Xanathar's Guide that's making it so successful. It has a lot to do with why the Player's Handbook hit best-selling lists but the Dungeon Master's Guide didn't -- player content:
The pent-up demand for the Xanathar's is evident in Amazon's designation of the book as Most Anticipated, which means that there were more pre-orders for Xanathar's than any other book released that week on the Most Sold Nonfiction Chart.
The other factor is deep discounts, with the book selling as much as 50 percent off the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) in some cases.
[h=3]What's a Best-Seller Anyway?[/h]To understand the success of D&D in the larger marketplace, it's important to put these numbers in context.
The Wall Street Journal's list reflects nationwide sales of hardcover books during the week ended last Saturday (note the number of bookstores listed that are now out of business):
Amazon's Most Sold list includes:
Publisher's Weekly list uses NPD BookScan. USA TODAY's Best-Selling Books list:
Given that D&D is a book-driven medium, it's understandable that it will do better than video game books in best-selling lists dedicated to games. But Xanathar's ranking in non-fiction is a significant achievement, outpacing advice books, cookbooks, and a biography of Elon Musk. It's also the fastest-selling D&D book in the game's history, indicative of a turning point in the popularity of the game itself.
Mike "Talien" Tresca is a freelance game columnist, author, communicator, and a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to http://amazon.com. You can follow him at Patreon.
[h=3]This Sounds Familiar...[/h]D&D is no stranger to best-seller lists. ICv2 reported back in 2014 on the success of the Fifth Edition Player's Handbook:
It’s a screenshot worth framing and hanging, at least if you work for Wizards of the Coast. For the second day in a row, the Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook is topping not only Amazon’s Science Fiction & Fantasy category, but is #1 overall in book sales, beating out such other essential back-to-school fare as The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Disorders, 5th Edition, and To Kill a Mockingbird.
One year later, Morrus reported that two of the three core rule books for Fifth Edition were still on the New York Times' best-sellers list for Games and Activities:
It's been year since D&D 5th Edition hit our store shelves (if we're counting the Starter Set); or since August 2014 since the Player's Handbook released. The D&D 5th Edition Monster Manual is hanging in at #7 on the "Games & Activities" bestsellers list at the New York Times, while the Player's Handbook is #3.
A check today shows both books are STILL on the list two years later, with each slipping by just one rank. Which brings us to Xanathar's Guide to Everything.
[h=3]The Eye Sees All[/h]The wily beholder decided to outshine its predecessors by reaching #1 on Publisher's Weekly's hardcover non-fiction list and the #1 on the Wall Street Journal's non-fiction list. Xanathar's Guide is also #12 on USA Today's best-selling books and #12 on Amazon's Top 20 Most Sold Non-Fiction Books.
This is remarkable for a number of reasons, not the least of which being that Xanathar's Guide won these accolades late in D&D's publishing cycle. Xanathar's rankings seem indicative of the game's overall success, but there are other factors to consider as well. Scott Thorne at ICv2 posits what's different about Xanathar's Guide that's making it so successful. It has a lot to do with why the Player's Handbook hit best-selling lists but the Dungeon Master's Guide didn't -- player content:
While WotC has released a number of Dungeons & Dragons hardbacks over the last few years since the release of D&D 5th Edition, this is only the third one that offers much material for the player...for every DM, there are somewhere in the neighborhood of two to eight players, meaning a market two to eight times as large for player-focused materials as there is for DM-focused ones. WotC has a huge untapped market out there for D&D player-targeted books and Xanathar’s Guide is the first "official" (yes, there are a lot of third party materials targeted at players but I have found that both D&D and Pathfinder players usually prefer to purchase and use the "official" materials released by the respective companies) player-oriented book released by WotC in almost two years.
The other factor is deep discounts, with the book selling as much as 50 percent off the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) in some cases.
[h=3]What's a Best-Seller Anyway?[/h]To understand the success of D&D in the larger marketplace, it's important to put these numbers in context.
The Wall Street Journal's list reflects nationwide sales of hardcover books during the week ended last Saturday (note the number of bookstores listed that are now out of business):
...at more than 2,500 B. Dalton, Barnes & Noble, Bookland, Books-a-Million, Books & Co., Bookstar, Bookstop, Borders, Brentano's, Coles, Coopersmith, Crown, Doubleday, Scribners, Super Crown and Waldenbooks stores, as well as sales from online retailers barnesandnoble.com and Amazon.com.
Amazon's Most Sold list includes:
...copies sold and pre-ordered through Amazon.com, Audible.com, Amazon Books stores, and books read through the their digital subscription program -- determined by a percentage read of a free reading sample.
Publisher's Weekly list uses NPD BookScan. USA TODAY's Best-Selling Books list:
...ranks the 150 top-selling titles each week based on an analysis of sales from U.S. booksellers. Contributors represent a variety of outlets: bookstore chains, independent bookstores, mass merchandisers and online retailers.
Given that D&D is a book-driven medium, it's understandable that it will do better than video game books in best-selling lists dedicated to games. But Xanathar's ranking in non-fiction is a significant achievement, outpacing advice books, cookbooks, and a biography of Elon Musk. It's also the fastest-selling D&D book in the game's history, indicative of a turning point in the popularity of the game itself.
Mike "Talien" Tresca is a freelance game columnist, author, communicator, and a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to http://amazon.com. You can follow him at Patreon.
