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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mercurius" data-source="post: 7714504" data-attributes="member: 59082">It seems like there are two separate, but related issues raised in the article: One, whether or not complex or simple games are good entry points for new players, in today's context, andTwo, how to expand a game financially.Those may not be the exact points raised by the article, but I think they are two related issues that can be teased out.As for the first, I am reminded of something I heard once, that that there is a difference between complex and complicated. The latter is like a nest of wires underneath your desk - it is messy and, hopefully, will eventually be done away with by advancing technologies. Complexity is different, though. The organic systems of nature are complex, but not complicated. They work together, seamlessly, organically. In a way,a complex game system would be one that isn't as much complicated (messy, with lots of fiddly bits) but one that can handle complex situations, through being tightly designed.As for the second, the basic problem remains the same: you have two general types of D&D players: serious/hardcore ones, who tend to DM and buy tons of stuff, and casual players, who only buy what is necessary - maybe a PHB (and perhaps not even that), a set of dice, and perhaps a miniature. There isn't a lot in-between, just degrees of the former: serious-to-hardcore gamers (and consumers). TSR and WotC have tried different ways to get casual players to buy more, mainly through player options books, the complete handbooks of 2E days, etc. But the problem is that these invariably complicate the game, and lead to edition bloat.Now WotC has taken a quite different approach to 5E: less is more. The idea has been to produce so few books, that the serious-to-hardcore gamers buy everything. There is probably less of a spectrum than before, and most of us DM types will buy everything that comes out because it is less daunting investment. Think about it: Three books per year is $150 (and that's MSRP, not Amazon), which ends up being about $12 a month. This is affordable to just about everyone, even 12-year old kids. Now I don't think that WotC necessarily thought, "What is the most we could publish that every serious player would buy everything of?" I think it was more about finding that tipping point, where they weren't going to glut the market, and they could keep a small enough staff to keep overhead low. But back to the article, I think there is a middle ground where a company (WotC) can be financially successful without making the game overly complicated. In fact, WotC is doing it right now. Their secret? Less is more: produce fewer books, but sell more of them. And don't glut the market or system with countless splats! They've got the right formula, but I think they're also eventually going to need to tweak it, expand just a bit - diversify the approach. This is why it makes sense to do a rules expansion now, or within the next year. One major rules expansion is easy enough to integrate into the game and diversify but not over-complicate. People can say, "Do you play just core rules or advanced?" Or "Do you use Unveiled Esoterica or not?" (Or whatever it will be called). I think WotC is playing it very smart by being conservative, but at the same time they should be wary of things getting stale and should be prepared to diversify their approach, throw in a rules expansion or theme book (e.g. planes), a new setting, etc.</blockquote>

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