Pathfinder 1E Paizo no longer publishing Dungeon and Dragon

[Thurbane]

Rereading what I posted, I see that it looks really snarky. It wasn't meant to. :/

I'm sorry, but, all this wailing and gnashing of teeth is becoming a bit much. Yes, they yoinked the licenses. Yes, we are all gutted. Howzabout a smidgeon of restraint before blowing a gasket? It's been 2 days. Let's see what WoTC has to say and then lynch them.

You can't argue, though, that the PR side of things has been handled rather abysmally by WotC...

 

[PaulofCthulhu]

The latest podcast of Pulp Gamer: Inside Track (#18) has an interview with Paizo's Phil Lacefield Jr. (Sales Manager) about the loss of Dungeon and Dragon.

If nothing else, the "loss of a monthly 31 year-old friend" is a big psychological blow. (To clarify the bit in quotes is from the show, the 'psychological blow' is just my feeling.)

Usually more people read a magazine than buy it. So selling 50,000 copies should have some multiplier attached.

Paul

 

[Vigilance]

You can't argue, though, that the PR side of things has been handled rather abysmally by WotC...

Really?

What could they have said?

I mean... look at how those statements from folks who worked on those magazines for years and/or got their start as professionals there, and how they were dissected and attacked.

 

[Truth Seeker]

Go to the Wotc Forum, in Future Releases...see the reaction is greater there.

Wow! This thread is only about 2 days old and has nearly 1,200 responses. I guess it shows how strongly people feel about this. I know how sad it has made me.

Olaf the Stout

 

[Friadoc]

Really?

What could they have said?

I mean... look at how those statements from folks who worked on those magazines for years and/or got their start as professionals there, and how they were dissected and attacked.

For me, I think the WotC professionals' comments were sincere and probably would not have been torn into had WotC made the post the day before.

My thought is that whomever the power that be, the one, or ones, who made the call that under estimated the potential reaction and felt the post could wait a day, dropped the ball.

At least, I think, things would have been calmer with more out of WotC than 24 hours of silence.

While it may not be the case, it definately implied a lack of connection with the community, the fans whom they affected with the pulling of the license from something familiar to be replaced, or turned into something, at the moment, unfamiliar.

Tearing to Mohan and crews comments, I think, is a bit too much, as no one likes someone else saying why they said something, or how they felt, or what they meant, since you're the one saying it and, thusly, the one who knows.

But, after 24 hours of lamenting, venting, ranting, and raving, well, the mob isn't always logical, is it?

They're moving into the 'brave new world' of on-line media, they need to get use to it's annoyingly alacritous reaction time.

My personal theory is that they don't have the community/sites presence that they use to, as others have said, and thusly they didn't get some friendlies into play when the messages were first put out.

They've done it before, like Eric said, with the layoffs and other things, but not anymore. Or, at least, not this time.

 

[Truth Seeker]

This almost made me cry....thank you for bringing it home.

Dragon Magazine is not just a magazine, it's an institution. That is why so many people talk in terms of being punched in the gut, or in shock, or feel terrible loss. It's not just a magazine, it's a fundamental part of the hobby.
They are halting the magazine for short term profit. But this means long term loss, for it will be all but impossible to restart the institution of Dragon Magazine. Look at your history: institutions take a lot of work to set up, and they do not easily crumble afterwards. But once crumbled, they stay crumbled.
The institution had a lot of beneficial effects other than bringing new crunch and fluff to the reader. Need I really go into all the beneficial effects Dragon has had? Those benefits to the hobby will be lost permanently, as the institution crumbles.

Edena_of_Neith

 

[freebfrost]

Really?

What could they have said?

I mean... look at how those statements from folks who worked on those magazines for years and/or got their start as professionals there, and how they were dissected and attacked.

It's not only about what was said, but when it was said - after the fact. I'm pretty sure WotC knew what Paizo's big announcement was, and should have coordinated their PR to coincide. To do otherwise in business screams that WotC:

• Didn't expect to have to deal with a huge backlash.
• Is incompetent, marketing-wise.
• Didn't really care what Paizo's timing was.

None of those scenarios make me feel good about WotC.

 

[Olaf the Stout]

Go to the Wotc Forum, in Future Releases...see the reaction is greater there.

I could only find a thread with almost 600 responses in the Future Releases forum. This one currently is about twice that size.

I imagine the WotC site would get a lot more traffic than EN World so I would have expected their thread to be much bigger.

Olaf the Stout

 

[Thurbane]

Really?

What could they have said?

I mean... look at how those statements from folks who worked on those magazines for years and/or got their start as professionals there, and how they were dissected and attacked.

They could have had a preview of the online content ready to display, and done a LOT more to assay the fears of their consumer base than what they have done.

If, in my job, I did anything like this to our customer base, it would be regarded as an outright disaster. They have frightened, angered and alienated a significant portion of their consumers through simple lack of information - coming off as either disinterest or disdain.

Anouncing you have cancelled something, remaining mute for 24 hours, and then posting some "warm remembrance" quotes from a handful of staff members, AND not having any meaningful information at hand for what is to be the replacement is sloppy marrketing and PR, in my opinion (and business experience).

The way Paizo have handled things is infinitely better...

 

[Truth Seeker]

Yeah, just check that...you are right.

I could only find a thread with almost 600 responses in the Future Releases forum. This one currently is about twice that size.

I imagine the WotC site would get a lot more traffic than EN World so I would have expected their thread to be much bigger.

Olaf the Stout