D&D (2024) Motley Fool Prediction: New Dungeons & Dragons Edition Won't Help Hasbro Much

[Von Corellon]

Financial and Market advisors, Motley Fool predict - New Dungeons & Dragons Edition Won't Help Hasbro Much

KEY POINTS​

• Ten years after publishing Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Hasbro unveiled its newest update of the core rules at Gen Con last week.
• Three thousand initial copies of the new Player's Handbook (2024) sold out quickly.
• Despite the initial success, history suggests the new edition won't have a huge impact on Hasbro's revenues...or profits.

Motley Fool Prediction

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

The future is full of variables and it is difficult to say what will happen.

Maybe there are lockdowns again because of a new epidemic and then people will be at home with too much free time.

I don't know enough the company to judge but my opinion is D&D is earning brand-power and now it should enjoy its best age.

Other point is we know nothing about the future titles after MM in 2025.

 

[aco175]

It seems the PHB will sell more than the DMG and MM, so 3rd and 4th quarter this year should be ok but there are other variables as well. Some people might wait until all the books are out or only buy pdf or subscription, or even just use the SRD if they update it.

The crunchy side of me says, who cares. While I want them to be successful enough to continue to make D&D stuff, I do not have stock in them and if they are scared, maybe they make better products.

 

[mellored]

I expect the new books will sell a little better than the old books. Which is a little bit more profit.

But I agree with them it won't make Hasbro stock holders rich overnight.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

It is to keep the edition alive. Sadly it has some balance problems right out of the gate and is disappointing in that regard.

Seems like the release of the digital team that braces themself with finding such obvious errors was right after all.

 

[Osgood]

I'm about as far from a stock market expert as it gets--I put a chunk of my paycheck in my 401k, check in on it a few times a year, and otherwise forget about it--but I think sites like these are for people looking to invest some money to make a big profit quickly... who aren't savvy enough to have an actual financial planner. From that perspective, yeah, I think this is pretty much spot on, anyone who plans on investing in Hasbro thinking the new D&D release is going to be like investing in Apple right before they released the first iPhone will be disappointed.

I figure the new books will do quite nicely for them, probably well enough to boost earnings for a couple of quarters, but it's not going to change the business in any fundamental way. D&D was always secondary to Magic. The rest of the business is still struggling is major ways. The top level executives are still making foolish and desperate decisions. So no, one product line isn't going to suddenly turn the company around.

 

[Aldarc]

I don't think that WotC is banking on the new edition per se. I think that they are banking on the digital ecosystem and licensing that they do around that new edition.

 

[Minigiant]

5.5e PHB will sell like gangbusters but that's it

But that's not for the reason why this article says.

 

[KYRON45]

The holy trinity of Stranger Things+Covid+Critical Role will be hard to recreate.
Sometimes things just happen.

 

[Oofta]

D&D is already small potatoes compared to MtG, the real money is in licensing and potentially more hit video games like BG3. That doesn't really say anything about whether or not it will be successful for the TTRPG market, just that there's not that much money in the TTRPG market.