Is Now the Time to Send WOTC a Real Message?

[Nathal]

"Job security as a whole is a thing of the past. People can click to it, or we can embrace the inevitable advent of economic flexibility. There will be bad decisions made (this is one) but on the whole very few jobs will be secure as the economy involves."

I work for the old music publishing company in the united states. There are people there that have worked in my building for over 30 years (most in fact). I am 29 years old and have worked there for 2 years. After 911 we ran into hard times and saw quite a few layoffs. One man had worked with our company for 13 years (but 'worked' is the word in dispute). Job security was assured to those that worked hard, which is quite unlike the model proposed above. What is above is just plain stupid for a company. Sure, people who have been there forever and don't work ought to be fired, but anyone whose work is excellent should not fear random layoffs. To fear such a thing spells a radical change in the direction of any company carrying out such a program. Its creative genocide.

 

[Nathal]

The question is not can those guys try and make it on their own. Even if they do well I'd be surprised if they earned anything near their original salary. For most, I'd wager, its time for a new career while freelancing on the side. I could be wrong.

That does not mitigate the fact that Hasbro/WOTC does not give a damn about its fans or the creative core of the game. It's not even good business.

 

[BOZ]

i agree that it's good that the 3E rules have been established and set in place. as long as hasbro does not pull the OGL altogether, and d20 can still keep going, our hobby will continue to flourish. there's enough internet support alone to keep things going for years. even should that go down - well, should i say it? - you can play the game without new stuff. i mean, come on, there are people out there playing 1E D&D who've had the same set of books for 25 years. yeah, it would be sad to see the last vestiges of "official" D&D go, but we can really live without it. we've got all the books we need right now, and due out within the next 6 months, what else do we really need?

 

[Duncan Haldane]

Boycott?

I'm not sure if I'll boycott WotC.

I haven't bought a lot of product from WotC lately. I've just started running a new campaign set in the Scarred Lands, and haven't bought the lastest stuff for FR.

I do want to buy Call of Cthulhu D20, and probably MMII, Book of Vile Darkness, and maybe Fiend Folio. But I will definately be checking out the reviews first.

Hopefully soon we will see a heap more stuff added to the SRD, which will allow D20 producers to expand.

I also expect to see WotC taking on more freelance work.

But I expect to see some natural attritiion (or unnatural).

I was working at a business a couple of years ago that was bleeding staff. A manager and friend of mine said to me that it was because the people weren't enjoying working there. I said that I wasn't sure of that, since everyone had an excuse for why they were leaving (moving cities, etc). He responded that "when people want to leave at a bad workplace they will find an excuse to leave. When they want to stay at a good workplace they will find an excuse to say".

I expect to see this at WotC. More people will choose to leave, and are unlikely to be replaced.

I've been retrenched twice in the last 4 years. It is hard. And it's painful to sit and watch a company destroy a workplace.

Enough for now,

Duncan

 

[DonAdam]

What is above is just plain stupid for a company. Sure, people who have been there forever and don't work ought to be fired, but anyone whose work is excellent should not fear random layoffs. To fear such a thing spells a radical change in the direction of any company carrying out such a program. Its creative genocide.

You're putting words in my mouth.

I said the move to less job security in general isn't necessarily bad.

I also said that this particular move is stupid, so I agree with you there. However, with the flexible d20 market, it won't be as bad as it could have been, and we could see some positive results that we otherwise would not have.

I do think that Hasbro is about the stupidest company in the world, because they try to micromanage everything and they suck at everything. Furthermore, I think Jason Carl (Sword and Fist) still has a job while Skip and JD just got laid off.

So, one last time:

Less job security in general = not bad.

This particular move = stupid, but not as bad as everybody thinks.

 

[broghammerj]

I think your bitter resentment is misplaced. I think that Hasbro, the parent company, is the entity calling for the job cuts

I think that this is really somantics. I view the companies as one of the same, one just happens to be a subsidiary. WotC position in the corporate ladder leaves it little power. I want to weaken it further so that it's sold and rebuilt or the DND license is sold to someone who gives a damn. They can't keep releasing products and firing their best creative minds.

Yeah, that's a great thing to do to WotC. Kick them where it hurts while they're still on the ground bleeding

Lets put it simply. Maybe my hyperbole is a bit extreme but I feel like I've just set sail on the Titanic and I'm a little concerned about our Captain. I want to kick WotC around. They've certainly kicked all of us around. They are slowly fading out FR (for all you FR haters this may be a good thing), Cthulhu is getting no support, SW is going freelance, who knows what they'll do with D20 Modern. They've alienated their fans in some way with almost every product. This has to stop.

If you want to send a message, folks should write in about which designers they like the most and the least, which would at least effect who gets cut when cuts are made.

I really wish this is the way corporations would work, but lets face it. I would like a show of hands of anyone who supported the last two big layoffs. You're going to be hard pressed to find anyone. Hasbro is like that old grumpy guy who can't hear anymore and refuses to listen. All they hear is the chi-ching of coinage. They haven't heard from the fans in quite some time.
I would like to start backing a winning horse. Look at Monte's work with Malhavoc and the merging with Swords and Sorcery. Could you imagine the potential power of Monte, Skip, Grub, Reynolds etc. forming their own company. With the OGL and new 3rd party talent, WotC may only creating more competition for themselves.

 

[Kai Lord]

Are you with me?

FREEEEEEEDDDOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!

 

[EarthsShadow]

times are a changing...

I agree with much of the above. I for one would love to see all these creative minds get together, forge one company that loves us as gamers and want to create real quality work for us, and for them. What I don't understand, even after the last two years, is why in the world did Wizards sell to Hasbro in the first place???

At that moment, the future of Wizards went downhill. Their products for D&D, most of which are good quality products, have started to decline in quality. The last product of theirs that I have purchased, beyond Dragon and Dungeon (which isn't even their's anymore), was Call of Cthulu. The only book of theirs I will buy next is d20 Modern, and perhaps the BofVdarkness. As for the rest, forget it. I am still upset at Etools and the lack of support for that product, and with their recent firings, you can bet that product will not get any support from anywhere, fluid or WotC.

Hasbro has just signed the death warrant of WotC, there is no denying that. They signed it the moment they purchased the company. It's just a matter of time when D&D gets sold, or cut, by Hasbro when all they care about is the allmighty $$$ and not the customers.

WotC, you don't deserve Dungeons and Dragons anymore.

 

[Impeesa]

Support the last remains of WotC while giving the Hasbro managers a good kick in the pants (if they're smart enough to catch the connection ) - if there was anything coming out soon by the people who got fired, make extra sure to pick it up.

--Impeesa--

 

[Lizard]

Are you with me?

Why, yes. The best way to convince Hasbro that the roleplaying business can be profitable is to boycott them.

The sales figures for RPGs are so low that, if a boycott WAS succesful, Hasbro wouldn't see it as a reaction to their policies -- they'd see it as 'proof' that the RPG market was totally dead.