Is WotC still the industry LEADER?

[Glyfair]

On his blog, Stan! was recently discussing the pulling of PDFs by WotC. In his entry makes an very interesting point, whether you agree or disagree with it (or even think it matters).

So I'll stay away, for the moment at least, from criticizing the specifics of this business decision. I won't make any bones about the fact that I am unhappy with it ... but I want to instead focus on a thought that I've had frequently over the past year or two. The thought is this: Wizards of the Coast is NO LONGER the "industry leader" in the hobby games business.

Let me be clear, they ARE still the most successful company in that business, probably by an order of magnitude. But they are not a LEADER anymore. They are not LEADING anyone anywhere, unless it's the shareholders of Hasbro being led to be happier with the overall bottom line.

and

Wizards is NOT an Industry Leader anymore. They are the 800 lb. gorilla that everyone has to steer clear of. They are the unstoppable juggernaut that smaller companies may trail behind, hoping to get scraps and cast offs. They are the purveyors of the most popular hobby game in the world. But they aren't LEADING anyone. Not anymore.

The funny thing is that they still seem to THINK they are. They mistake "market share" for "popularity." They mistake "influence" for "leadership." And they seem to believe that as long as they remain out front, the rest of the industry will follow them.

Maybe that last one is true. Only time will tell. But I think that the recent trend in business strategy will result in WotC making itself more or less irrelevant to the hobby games industry. They will RULE the "D&D industry" ... but their influence over other games, gamers, and game companies will wane until such time as they start ACTING like leaders again.

I recommend reading the entire entry, with his view on WotC's history through his own experiences. I find it quite interesting.

Thoughts?

 

[Glyfair]

One comment I wanted to make, as an aside:

If WotC is not the industry leader, it all started when Peter Adkison (who Stan! paints with a saint-like glow in the context of the article) sold WotC. While he certainly was doing it for the money, he at least was doing it to give everyone involved part of the money.

Still, he was partially abrogating the position of being the leader of the industry. He absolutely did when he stepped down completely.

 

[I'm A Banana]

I don't know that WotC has totally abandoned the "Adkinsonian" ideas that helped make them an "industry leader" as well as the best-selling brand in that industry, but they've severely ratcheted them back.

I like the idea of making the hobby in general better by making all the companies successful, and of that success ultimately reflecting on the #1 brand in the industry. I think it's a solid framework for expanding a niche and still gaining great profits.

I think Stan! perhaps makes too much of Hasbro's involvement, and WotC still has people with these ideas on the team. They're just no longer the people pulling the switch, so to speak.

Honestly, I gotta believe that most of the people who work on the game are as shocked and upset by this move as most of the consumers are.

WotC still has that "market leader" potential, but the more they alienate, the more likely someone is going to go around them rather than follow after them.

I will say this: I miss the minds that made the OGL happen, that saved D&D from the death throes of TSR, and that craved that sort of "if everyone wins, I win" attitude. I really wish D&D was in the hands of people who could think beyond their MBA's. I understand some of their underlings are these people, so perhaps not all hope is entirely lost.

 

[jdrakeh]

I think they're still out in front in terms of sales. That said. . .

There was a time when I felt that WotC was one of few companies who set the bar for good consumer and employee relations. There are now many companies who appear to treat consumers and employees better than WotC — and few who appear to treat these them worse.

In this regard, I agree with Stan! — I do not consider WotC to be a 'leader' in the sense that they aren't acting like a productive member of the RPG publishing community. IMO, they no longer serve as a role model for good business etiquette or good consumer and employee relations.

 

[CleverNickName]

That's a bit tricky of a question, because it can be both true and false depending on what your definition of "leader" is.

By one of the more simple definitions, a leader is someone who has followers...and Wizards of the Coast has plenty. There is the fan base, which might be dwindling of late but is still tens (hundreds?) of thousands strong. WotC fans have been quite loyal, and most of them have been quite satisfied with their products of late.

And besides the fans, there are dozens of third-party publishers who are in line behind them. WotC, for better or worse, blazed a new trail for the RPG hobby when they released the 4th Edition of their flagship game, and other companies are marching behind them in spite of the oppressive (and overdue) license.

So yes, I'd say they are the leader.

The thing is, being a leader carries no guarantee of being popular, or respected, or even successful. Sure, leaders get the biggest paychecks and the nicest furniture. But they are also held to the highest scrutiny, are given the most unrealistic expectations, and suffer the direst consequences for their actions. It's not always a good time. (Julius Caesar was a leader...)

I am disappointed with this latest move. But I can't bring myself to hate them just yet...after all, they (together with TSR) have helped bring me some of the best days of my life. I'm reserving judgment until I see where this strange mandate came from, and where it leads. (Right now, both look pretty crappy.)

 

[Treebore]

WOTC is the industry leader for whoever follows them. White Wolf is the industry leader for whoever follows them. Troll Lord Games is the industry leader for whoever follows them (this is where I fall in). Green Ronin is the leader for whoever follows them. Mongoose is the industry leader for who follows them.

The significance for WOTC is that they have the most followers in comparison to everyone else.

How long will this last? We'll see.

 

[Mark]

Some of you are confusing "a leader in the market" with "an industry leader" where the former has many customers and fans and the latter sets an example that is followed by other professionals and companies in the industry. WotC seems to be banking that the loss of the latter does not influence the loss of the former. As recently as a couple of years ago, WotC had hundreds of industry professionals and companies following their lead. That number has been drastically reduced for good or for ill, depending largely on one's perspective and what goals one considers of value.

 

[El Mahdi]

This attitude, described by Stan!, sounds eerily like the days of Lorraine Williams at TSR. I know many say that they feel like WotC is returning to the days of TSR. And then others argue just as strongly that WotC isn't acting like TSR. I agree that WotC is not going the way of TSR's lawsuit happy days. WotC is also not actively attempting to run other game companies out of the business. But I think that the reason many keep comparing the current WotC with the late TSR is because of this attitude. Whether they are following the TSR playbook exactly, or not at all, this attitude can do nothing but get them into trouble. Even if it's just to continue causing inept mistakes like they've been making for the last year or so. But, no matter how you cut it, this attitude smacks of arrogance and purposeful disconnect from their customer base. Whether the consequences of this attitude come quickly, or take years to manifest, the consequences will eventually follow. That is, unless they change this attitude.

 

[wedgeski]

This question is wrapped too much in a subjective definition of "leader" to be answerable, but for me WotC still has a few strings to its bow in this respect. Love or hate the format, Dungeon and Dragon are the industry-standard digital magazines; DDI as a whole, while not yet fulfilling all of its early promise, seems to be turning into a successful subscription experiment. The Compendium and Character Builder are quality tools which have raised the bar on what we expect from the D&D brand in future. Certainly I think they're good value for money. Wizards aren't just rolling out hardcovers any more, they're trying something new. That has to count for something.

Edit: And what do we mean when we say that people "used to follow WotC's lead and now they don't"..? How did they follow? That's probably where the answer is.

 

[Plane Sailing]

Any debates on what 'industry leader' means should be forked off into another thread, please. Let's allow conversation in this thread to focus on the issues raised by "Stan!".

Thanks