So...did Dragon wow you?

[Odhanan]

This is a slow build, --- a marathon, not a sprint. WOTC is preparing for the biggest rpg launch in a decade, they don't have time to gather together material for a system on life support so that a few fanboys can relive old times. They're looking forward to the future, showing us previews and I like what i am seeing so far.

In this precise case, "seeing to the future" is wowing people about the DI. Showing Dragon articles as web enhancements given one at a time, with a layout that is all but exciting, PDFs of the same level, and so on, so forth, is not just a question of "fanboys reliving old times". It's a question of getting the marketing going, having people discussing in positive terms of the advent of the DI and 4E. Getting pumped about the new Dragon.

If as you put it it's a marathon, not a sprint, the marketing strategy should make it feel like a wild race, make it feel like a build-up in intensity with fireworks along the way so that everybody's running to the store and PayPal to get 4E rolling for them. For us.

It is NOT happening. Oh sure, the hype, the "it's all fine" or "it's gonna be so cool, you'll see", we get. But what we actually see so far doesn't impress me at all. And that's worrying me, because I love D&D.

 

[DonTadow]

In this precise case, "seeing to the future" is wowing people about the DI. Showing Dragon articles as web enhancements given one at a time, with a layout that is all but exciting, PDFs of the same level, and so on, so forth, is not just a question of "fanboys reliving old times". It's a question of getting the marketing going, having people discussing in positive terms of the advent of the DI and 4E. Getting pumped about the new Dragon.

If as you put it it's a marathon, not a sprint, the marketing strategy should make it feel like a wild race, make it feel like a build-up in intensity with fireworks along the way so that everybody's running to the store and PayPal to get 4E rolling for them. For us.

It is NOT happening. Oh sure, the hype, the "it's all fine" or "it's gonna be so cool, you'll see", we get. But what we actually see so far doesn't impress me at all. And that's worrying me, because I love D&D.

But you're only in the first couple months of the build up. I'm not sure how many marathons you've seen but the good stuff happens closer to the finishline, which in this case is launch. And the stuff they have been releasing have been awesome. Talk about fireworks, every sentence they put on their sprouts 10 threads on enworld. Enworld hasn't seen this much action on its forums since the great crash a couple years ago. The fact that we're talking about the hype is proof.

We're not getting any 4th edition material until at the very least december, maybe as late as february. Until then you're going to get the types of designer blogs and preview articles you find before a magic prerelease or a video game debut.

 

[Odhanan]

Point in fact: they've had 5 months at least to think about how to present the first Dragon articles and set up the whole thing. Five months. And that's the stuff we get. It's all about the right first impressions. Not damage control during months on end.

How many marathons I've seen. The one for Ptolus? Arcana Unearthed? Evolved? No? Third ed, then? I mean, come on: it's about wowing people. That's the sparks/fireworks I'm talking about. Not debates and blogs on the usenet. And that's not happening right now.

Don't mistake me for a WotC basher. I'm not. Far from it. Good folks at WotC want honest feedback and questions. I'm providing some.

 

[Scribble]

What didnt you like about it?

Admittedly it's been a while since I last looked at the Paizo form, and there were a few articles in various issues I did think were good... Just not enough to subscribe.

My real issue was the same issue I had with the majority of WOTC stuff as well. It was just the same stuff again and again.

 

[DonTadow]

Point in fact: they've had 5 months at least to think about how to present the first Dragon articles and set up the whole thing. Five months. And that's the stuff we get. It's all about the right first impressions. Not damage control during months on end.

How many marathons I've seen. The one for Ptolus? Arcana Unearthed? Evolved? No? Third ed, then? I mean, come on: it's about wowing people. That's the sparks/fireworks I'm talking about. Not debates and blogs on the usenet. And that's not happening right now.

Don't mistake me for a WotC basher. I'm not. Far from it. Good folks at WotC want honest feedback and questions. I'm providing some.

Ptolus, ARcana Unearthed, Evolved ..heck throw in Iron Heroes, didn't have any ...any preview material 8 months before its release. We may have seen some art work at month six and then the real push maybe at month 3 and 4 and those were designer blogs similar to what we've seen.

It sounds like what you want is more 4e material and what you're getting is what can intelligently be given while they are working on the material.

 

[Uzzy]

Not really wowed yet. The Death Knight article was alright. Dragon Horde was poor, and not what I expected. Too much in the way of pointless stats. I'm waiting for the Graz'zt article before passing a further judgement though, but it will need to be something truly special. I've no doubt the article itself will be top quality, but I'm curious as to if there will be enough difference between the article as it would have appeared in print to justify the transfer to online content. Is it going to use the advantages that being online bring, for instance?

 

[Scribble]

Not really wowed yet. The Death Knight article was alright. Dragon Horde was poor, and not what I expected. Too much in the way of pointless stats. I'm waiting for the Graz'zt article before passing a further judgement though, but it will need to be something truly special. I've no doubt the article itself will be top quality, but I'm curious as to if there will be enough difference between the article as it would have appeared in print to justify the transfer to online content. Is it going to use the advantages that being online bring, for instance?

Shrug, I'm not going to argue that the Dragon Horde article was the best thing ever, but I think it was more usefull to me then the Death Knight one... At leastw itht he dragon horde thing it saves me time stating out a horde.

 

[Uzzy]

As is commonly said on these boards, YMMV.. or something. I think it means, Your mileage may vary. I prefer articles with more lore, fluff or whatever you want to call it. Other's prefer articles with more crunch. Both have a place in Dragon.

 

[Scribble]

As is commonly said on these boards, YMMV.. or something. I think it means, Your mileage may vary. I prefer articles with more lore, fluff or whatever you want to call it. Other's prefer articles with more crunch. Both have a place in Dragon.

I won't argue that one bit. I prefer a mix of both myself. It was just a personal preference for the two articles posted.

 

[Belen]

One thing that the current Dragon proves is that they seriously need a professional publisher/editor. An online only dragon should have its own website with dynamic content. A daily blog/news section, a daily letters to the editors/reply section, articles with built-in article commentary, and tools to use the content and help promote it to your base: e-mail it to a friend, article recommendation, PDF archives of the last year of Dragon etc.

Instead, they are offering articles that serve as web enhancements and calling it Dragon magazine. They have known for a year or more that Dragon was going to be canceled, so they had the time to offer something good right out of the gate; however, like most print publishers, they do not understand online publishing. They like to talk about Web 2.0 etc, but they are starting out having to play catch up. It is a horrible position for them to place themselves in and they only further alienate the existing magazine fanbase proving that they cannot replace Paizo.

Wizards seriously needs a Director of Online Publishing or a Publisher who has worked in publishing to manage their editorial team. It would be best if they found someone outside of their industry who could bring something new to the table.

Hell, it is what I do for a living, so I see how much of a joke their efforts are when I look at my own publications.