D&D General The new Book "Game Wizards: A history of D&D" from the D&D historian Jon Peterson

[Parmandur]

!

Really shows the difference between revenue and profit: at peak revenue, they had started losing money.

 

[Parmandur]

That is fascinating. I knew sales took off around the Dallas Eggbert III incident, but the discrepancy between revenue and profit is staggering.

That's actually a really common small business mistake: "if we spend X, we make Y profit, if we increase X we will profit even more!" Not how it works.

 

[darjr]

Also, counter to the lessons FROM TSR adventures sold well. Really well. At least for a while.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

So many mistakes were made, and it was only that D&D was lightning-in-a-bottle that they stayed afloat as long as they did.

That's actually a really common small business mistake: "if we spend X, we make Y profit, if we increase X we will profit even more!" Not how it works.

 

[Parmandur]

Also, counter to the lessons FROM TSR adventures sold well. Really well. At least for a while.

I'll believe that they were not selling well by 2E, when WotC purchased TSR.

 

[darjr]

I'll believe that they were not selling well by 2E, when WotC purchased TSR.

Yea, I think that’s wha convinced them. But I think it was taken as more a fact of the ay things are than more of a circumstancial issue. But what do I know.

 

[Parmandur]

Yea, I think that’s wha convinced them. But I think it was taken as more a fact of the ay things are than more of a circumstancial issue. But what do I know.

Ryan Dancey was certainly no slouch, but he didn't necessarily come to absolute, objective conclusions for all time in his analysis.

 

[darjr]

Ryan Dancey was certainly no slouch, but he didn't necessarily come to absolute, objective conclusions for all time in his analysis.

Well no. But I I remember correctly it did seem to become a solid rule of thumb.

 

[Parmandur]

Well no. But I I remember correctly it did seem to become a solid rule of thumb.

Yes, and perhaps a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy.

 

[darjr]

Yes, and perhaps a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy.

And who knows, it was probably absolutely true for the time. Cause now that I think about it, adventures were still kinda new back then, and Paizo and now WotC have made their own luck with adventures. They've done things that were not being done then.