Fair point, but I wasn't trying to be rude or vent any feelings I have on the situation. I think a tough question is certainly reasonable and valid.
Let's see if I can't have a whack at re-phrasing it so we get something other than "yes of course we are industry leaders!" in response:
Question
Do you think that other game companies are following the example of Wizards of the Coast as they did during the height of d20, or do you think that companies are more interested in finding their own paths? How do you view D&D's role as the primary brand in a much broader market? Do you think that other companies should follow the example of WotC, or is your opinion more thatn WotC should do things that no othe company can (or should be allowed easily) to do?
For my milage, I'm really most interested in an answer to my previous Question 3. I really want to know if this "tight control"/"we're not sharing"/"Brand Identity"/"Shut 'em down!" thing is the forward direction for D&D/Wizards, and why they think this is the best idea. I personally think it's a pretty alienating, insular course that reverses some of the greatest good done during the 3e era, and, if it is a forward direction, it hasn't been given much attention other than what we can glean from the GSL about controlling their own IP (which I don't think is a wise move in several ways, though obviously it is a move they are entitled to make). The "Adkinsonian" ideal that 3e was released under saw D&D as a shepherd of an industry, but the 4e direction seems to see D&D as just a strong brand name, interested in its own profit, and preferably not the profit of others.
I'd like to see a more detailed explanation of the thought process behind this direction, assuming it is a direction and not just a conjunction of things that happen to align and seem to point in a direction (but are really motivated by other things).
It's related to the "industry leader" thing in that the more insular and self-protective WotC becomes, the harder it is for them to lead an industry rather than just making money themselves. And I think part of what 3e and the OGL taught me is that I am interested in supporting companies that want to support the hobby as a whole, rather than just their own book sales and brand identity. It seems a more natural fit for a niche-y, gearheaded, creative, and interesting (not to mention "influenced primarily by Public Domain things") game. Bringing things in-house and exerting control like the GSL does kind of runs on the opposite track from that.
I guess that's kind of a tangent, so probably ignore it, but still: I really want to know if they're going to keep it up, and give them a chance to have that strategy make sense to me if they are. Can we expect similar moves in the future? Cuz if so, maybe my gaming dollar stops going to WotC even in part like it does now.
