D&D 5E Kate Welch on Leaving WotC

Kate Welch left Wizards of the Coast a few days ago, on August 16th. Soon after, she talked a little about it in a live-stream.

She started work at WotC as a game designer back in February 2018, and has contributed to various products since then, such as Ghosts of Saltmarsh and Descent into Avernus, as well as being a participant in WotC's livestreams. In December 2019, her job changed to that of 'senior user experience designer'.

"I mentioned yesterday that I have some big news that I wouldn't be able to share until today.

The big news that I have to share with you today is that I ... this is difficult, but ... I quit my job at Wizards of the Coast. I no longer work at Wizards. Today was my last day. I haven't said it out loud yet so it's pretty major. I know... it's a big change. It's been scary, I have been there for almost three years, not that long, you know, as far as jobs go, and for a while there I really was having a good time. It's just not... it wasn't the right fit for me any more.

So, yeah, I don't really know what's next. I got no big plans. It's a big deal, big deal .... and I wanted to talk to you all about it because you're, as I've mentioned before, a source of great joy for me. One of the things that has been tough reckoning with this is that I've defined myself by Dungeons & Dragons for so long and I really wanted to be a part of continuing to make D&D successful and to grow it, to have some focus especially on new user experience, I think that the new user experience for Dungeons & Dragons is piss poor, and I've said that while employed and also after quitting.

But I've always wanted to be a part of getting D&D into the hands of more people and helping them understand what a life-changing game it is, and I hope I still get the chance to do that. But as of today I'm unemployed, and I also wanted to be upfront about it because I have this great fear that because Dungeons & Dragons has been part of my identity, professionally for the last three years almost, I was worried that a lot of you'll would not want to follow me any more because I'm not at Wizards, and there's definitely some glamourous aspects to being at Wizards."

She went on to talk about the future, and her hopes that she'll still be be able to work with WotC.

"I'm excited about continuing to play D&D, and hopefully Wizards will still want me to appear on their shows and stuff, we'll see, I have no idea. But one thing that I'm really excited about is that now I can play other TTRPGs. There's a policy that when you're a Wizards employee you can't stream other tabletop games. So there was a Call of Cthulhu game that we did with the C-team but we had to get very special permission for it, they were like OK but this is only a one time thing. I get it, you know, it's endorsing the competition or whatever, but I'm super excited to be able to have more freedom about the kinds of stuff that I'm getting involved with."

 

[Schmoe]

The new user comment is really wierd and IMO incorrect

Nobody goes cold into anything. You find your football team, your fondness for a certain food, TV programme and every other recreational pursuit via " an older cousin" type

Strange decision indeed

It's so discordant with everything else you hear about 5E, about how new-player friendly it is compared to other versions, about how now is the best time ever to get into the game, with all the live-streams, etc., . And then you see how 5E has picked up so many new players that it makes me wonder if there is something more specific behind her criticisms.

/shrug

Just a curious statement that runs against the 5E zeitgeist, I guess.

 

[R_J_K75]

Why D&D moved away from it is a little beyond me.

Probably trying to cram as many rules in a certain page count to maintain a specific price point for the (3) core books would be my guess. I dont see why they couldnt release a free 16-32 pg walk thru companion .pdf online to accomplish this?

 

[Hurin70]

I agree that the new user experience is not great. Part of the problem, IMHO, is that 5e is designed as a nod to nostalgia rather than a guide for new players. Each class has its own mechanics, so even after playing a Fighter you have no idea how to play a Wizard. I've run first D&D sessions for many new groups, and found that players picked up 4e a lot easier than 5e. 5e has a lot of unintuitive rules (multiclassing for example), class-specific mechanics, fuzzy explanations (e.g. stealth), and a boatload of 'GM fiat', where the rules just leave it up to the GM to figure things out. However much that might be great for grognards like you and me, it is terrible for new players, especially new GMs.

I imagine that is the sort of thing she was talking about.

 

[Eric V]

I think we're all too accustomed to D&D to understand that for most people, a game that requires you to learn the rules in 3 large hardcover books seems unusual to people as compared to a board game with a 5-page rule pamphlet (which is still too much for some people).

Especially since there are now some very good board games that offer a type of "D&D experience" without the need to buy multiple 300 page books. I mean, as experienced RPGers, we know it can't quite hit the highs of a well-run RPG campaign, but is it obviously worth the investment. Not obviously, no. Not to a new person.

As well, rules in board games don't default to "well, ask someone else at the table" for a lot of the options. Again, as long-time RPGers, we understand the principle here, but it's not intuitive to brand-new players; if a new player is running a rogue, that want to know exactly how to hide, and that's a normal desire.

As well, putting rules in natural language is great for DM stuff, but as a new player it can be confusing, especially since board games tend to be very technical to ensure consistent good game experience.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Nobody goes cold into anything.

Except for all of the people who are buying it off the shelf and then discover they need someone to teach them, a story you see on a regular basis on ENWorld and elsewhere, where people sometimes take years to play after first buying the game.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

There are 3 basic stripped down starter sets. The Starter box, the Essentials box and Rick and Morty. How many more do they need? With all the live streams, starter sets and picking up the game should easier than ever these days.

Quantity of sets is not the issue.

And "should be easier than ever" is not the same as "surveys say it is easy for complete newcomers to get started in the game without someone helping them."

Welch is a better business person than a lot of folks on this thread.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Probably just not the game for her then if shes not interested in putting in the work to learn the game.

"Oh, if you can't understand our still fairly arcane game, we don't want your money" is a really dumb attitude inside a corporation like Hasbro.

Honestly, the people who should really be worried about Welch's decision are her supervisors, who will, sooner or later, be asked why they chased away someone heavily invested in growing the brand and who thought dramatically better growth was possible.

 

[R_J_K75]

And "should be easier than ever" is not the same as "surveys say it is easy for complete newcomers to get started in the game without someone helping them."

Im not sure Im following you here. I dont really see the difference between to two other than the surveys seem to back up what I said?

 

[Wolfram stout]

Well, best to her certainly. I, like so many others, really like Ghost of Saltmarsh.

Regarding new user experiences: I keep circling back to the upcoming Adventure Begin game that is suppose to be a "Quick Entry to Dungeons & Dragons". A mid-step hybrid board game that ties directly to 5th edition is about the only thing I can think of that would help a group of total new people learn how to play D&D. No way to tell yet if this game is good at that or not.

But with everything out or coming out (Choose Your Own Adventure Books, multiple Starter Sets, new Board Games) along with the online resources, I would be at a loss to figure out what more to do.

 

[QuentinGeorge]

I'm actually surprised there isn't a Critical Role Starter Set. I think that would sell like gangbusters.