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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Felicitas27" data-source="post: 6918699" data-attributes="member: 6860994">Speaking in a broader marketing sense rather than as someone who played 4e (so I don't have an personal opinion either way about 4e vs. 5e and the quality of the content) -- you've hit the nail on the head with your use of the word "predatory". I know from experience that too much of this kind of thing can and does drive consumers away from your product. And while I never worked in the gaming industry, I know a little about it. D&D is, as we know, the great-grandfather of a lot of games currently on the market, so it's a brand that needs to be handled with respect. The old "money money money money" marketing strategy is actually analogous to online so-called "F2P" games that will give interested parties a small taste of their product -- but make us pay up (sometimes big-time) if we want more. It can really cheapen a brand and it absolutely turns people off. However, depending on the goals of the game publisher, this strat can also be a money-maker. The publisher can look at the balance sheets and decide for the long term that the game is headed for the garbage bin, so they might as well wring as much cash as they can from the brand for as long as they can. They keep the game going, double-down on the "value-added" purchases that are constantly dangled even in front of those who continue to subscribe, and often keep rolling along for years.That WotC switched directions from this kind of strategy makes me think that they decided that the D&D brand has excellent long-term potential as a AAA ("Triple A") game that finally needs promotion among other giants of gaming. Their strat now is roughly analogous to a subscription-based Triple A online game such as World of Warcraft rather than a F2P game -- they are providing core content for free for all and releasing higher-quality (production-wise, anyway; you guys can debate the content quality) on a slower but regular schedule. They are allowing 3rd parties to provide services such as VTTs, just like Blizzard lets add-on developers modify the WoW UI. And I could go on.They are also reaching out to other channels such as Twitch streamers to make sure that D&D starts getting exposure to young people. This is making some people uncomfortable, but it is extremely important to the life of the game. And I think it is not a useless gesture. Online gaming is fun, but it can be very stressful for many people. Think of how many young adults have now grown up knowing nothing but the internet and console gaming. Reaching this audience goes far beyond wanting to make money. I hope I didn't step on anyone's toes with this post. This topic is kind of near to my heart.</blockquote>

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