I'm out of my depth here as I don't use published settings. However, i personally like the Eberron approach and if I had the power at WotC to control these things I would do this:
- Clarify there is no cannon.
- Treat the novels as separate and their own thing. Not tied the events of the RPG
- Treat Living Realms (if there is such a thing) as its own thing. Not tied to the events of the RPG
- Set the RPG back to the beginning (is that the grey box?), say everything that came after "officially" was simply one version of the future events, not the version. Your version is "the" version. Now: go make your own!
Very good idea, but requires a pro DM, and will turn newbies of their best franchised brand don't you think?
Would be like a car dealer trying to sell you a twenty year old car without all those electronic gimmicks (you do not need) but with the option to build them in as desired.
Sure some (like me) would love that, and some would say perfectly I can configure my car with what I think is essential but 95% or so of the people would choose the modern car with all the useless gonzos.