D&D 4E Video Review of the 4E D&D Website

[PeterWeller]

So, why is this front-page material? Don't get me wrong, I'm as sure as the next guy that blogs are the new media, but having a web-cam doesn't legitimize your opinions about professionalism and quality presentation, especially when you lack either.

That being said, WoW does have a lot nicer of a web-site, but who ing expected otherwise? We're comparing a multi-billion earning computer game company's web-site to a relatively small publisher's. I'm sure if there were seven million or more people paying $15 a month for D&D, we'd see a nicer website come of it. Not only that, but WoW's web-site is much more necessary to my playing and enjoying that game than D&D's is to playing and enjoying D&D.

This comparison really has nothing to do with 4E, it isn't really news, and it's rather puerile. I'd wish we, as a site and community, wouldn't legitimize this sort of pointless internet "journalism" because it makes fools of us all.

Also, that guy's statement that WoW and D&D shared common roots made me LOL. Their common roots are Dungeons & Dragons. They don't share a common root; one is obviously the root of the other. It's substanceless statements like these that makes it hard to take seriously this sort of crap.

Now, all that being said, I don't think it's totally unfair to judge the prospects of DDI based on WotC's earlier online forays, but this blog was just asinine.

 

[Torchlyte]

I don't see any reason to watch the video, but it is echoing a sentiment that I've had for a while. The D&D Website is ridiculously hard to navigate. I can only stand it because I'm up to date and I can just click the Archive button to find new stuff.

I tried to find the D&D XP sheets the other day, and I ended up going to a fansite for the link. That's just supid - why don't they have a clear category on the main page that says "4th Edition Previews?"

 

[f33b]

I would be interested to know what the OP and other professional designer/developers think of pages like http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/ or http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/toc/cid/current (most of the content on the other side of the link is open access, so a user can prowl around a bit.)

Granted, the links above are definitely not RPG related. Rather, it's a comparison of Online Publications, which I think holds a bit of value since the WoTC site and DDI are intended to replace the deadwood Dungeon and Dragon magazines.

Some folks might note the lack of content on the home page. This is partially driven by the observation that the vast majority (~85% to 90%) of visitors arrive at article pages by some means other than the home page. For academic online journals, this usually means Google or GoogleScholar, PubMed or a similar aggregator or by a link in some story in the NYT or other major news media.

I do think WoTC could take something from these sites, specifically the ease of navigation between articles and issues, as well as ToC layout, etc.

 

[JVisgaitis]

Yes, knowing Frontpage and Dreamweaver doesn't make one a designer- or at least not a good one.

What!? You can't be a good designer if you only know Dreamweaver? How does that work? The majority of the webdesign team at Network Solutions is a bunch of people just out of college who just know Dreamweaver and among them, we have some amazing designers. I don't understand your point at all.

 

[jasonsandeman]

Honestly though....

From the poster formerly known as the_sandman - forums are not letting me post / log in


I agree with some points about the OP being a little too harsh on his critique of the WOTC. There is one thing to consider though- the content of said site will soon become subscription based.

We are left now with the assumption that what lies on the site right now will indicate what will be on the site after the subscription model takes effect. There may be a new site waiting in the wings, I do not see it though. Be that the case, it is super bad form to release the new format once the subscription takes effect, because the point of a preview is to showcase what you will be recieving once you jump aboad and take the 15$ or so hit per month.

WOTC's site has always underwhelmed me, and sure as bolts hold together an auto, I will be even more underwhelmed if I had to pay for it.

Is the OP unnecessarily harsh on the site for it's flawed design? Right now it is free. How harsh can we get when we have to pay?

 

[JVisgaitis]

The site is temporary. Although they did a quick facelift with the 4e announcement, all along they have said that this is temporary (especially the Dragon and Dungeon portions), and that the final site will premiere this spring.

I must be retarded, because I never seen anything posted like that. I've seen them say that the DDI was temporary, maybe I just didn't equate that with the main D&D website. In any case, its something that should be fixed sooner rather than later.

And while I think the WoW site looks a lot cooler, I wouldn't get on my knees for its usability. To me, the video review seemed to center more on aesthetics than actual usability. Aesthetically, WoW trumps the D&D website big time. Usability? Eh, not so much.

 

[Guild Goodknife]

I'm a big supporter of 4E and i trust WotC to make a kick ass game...but i don't have much faith in their planned online expansion. The D&D homepage as it is right now is exactly the thing they don't want: It's extremly convulted and hard as hell to navigate - especially for people new to the game!! Others said it before me but i can't stress it enough: potential new players will not get interested in the game, when the're met with such a lackluster webpage!
Another thing that blows my mind is the loggin part. I've read several statements that articles like Shelly Mazzanobles "Confession of a Full-Time Wizard" are aimed at newcomers to the game...how are they supposed to read them and get hooked when they have to register first (on gleemax!!!) to even see them???
I really, really hope that this web-site is only a temporary filler and that they have something way more user friendly and pretty for the DDI launch
WotC, take a look at the competition. Copy them if you need, but change your presentation style. Soon.

 

[Oni]

I'm on dialup and I find that I avoid WotC's website even when I would really like to go and have a look at what's new because it takes so bloody long for the page to load. When I do go there (even when I've had the opportunity to be on a highspeed connection) I find it difficult to navigate and annoyingly difficult to find what I'm looking for.

 

[Greg K]

What!? You can't be a good designer if you only know Dreamweaver? How does that work? The majority of the webdesign team at Network Solutions is a bunch of people just out of college who just know Dreamweaver and among them, we have some amazing designers. I don't understand your point at all.

Hopefully, this will clarify. Anyone can be taught to use dreamweaver. For example, every other semester, my boss and I run (well, he runs, I assist) two two hour seminars for instructors showing them how to build sites using Photoshop, Image Ready, and Dreamweaver. That does not make them designers as they have no understanding of design priciples- composition, use of color, typography, etc.

 

[Felon]

The site is random slop. I have always wondered about what the troll is doing down there myself. Why are there currently two redundant "Victory Points" articles on the front page? And why are other recent articles hidden so that I have to toggle between "Features", "Dungeon", and "Dragon" to find what I want?

It doesn't feel like it's anybody's full-time responsibility. Indeed, we've had ample evidence in the past that if something breaks on Friday evening, it won't be fixed until Monday.