D&D 5E Wanting more content doesn't always equate to wanting tons of splat options so please stop.

[JonnyP71]

Why change the course?

Because one person on a forum keeps saying they should.

Again.

And again...

And again...


/s

 

[Parmandur]

Because one person on a forum keeps saying they should.

Again.

And again...

And again...


/s

Yes, definitely a course of action that will bring change.

 

[Sacrosanct]

AL is very popular in Portland, Oregon (where I live). My store is absolutely not the exception. We get tons of new players every week. And sometimes those new players need PHBs...

Yeah, the FLGS I go to in Beaverton (next to Portland for you non Oregonians) is always packed. There are never enough tables lol. Of course, it's a great ownership and staff there, which I'm sure helps.

 

[AaronOfBarbaria]

I am pleasantly surprised by the number of Oregonians here, being an ex-Oregonian myself.

Glad to hear your FLGS are seemingly doing well, too (as in, I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one with a FLGS that seems to be doing well).

 

[Tony Vargas]

Ok. How's this for a thought?

In 3e era, the hobby market was about 30 million.

There were never solid figures, but probably closer to 20-25 from what industry insiders occassionally went out on a limb to guess in public, and that more or less stable for decades after the 80s fad went bust.

In 2013, that had dropped to 13 million. Now, we're back to 30 million again. Pretty much all on the back of 5e.

You don't even have to bring 'e's into it. In 2012, D&D went on hiatus. In 2013, the market had dropped to 13 million. In 2014 D&D came back and RPGs bobbed right up into the 20s again.

In the mean time, boardgames had enjoyed an explosion in popularity, and, y'know, game shops were AL gets played tend to sell boardgames, too, so there's been a level of added exposure that's relatively new. And, the market has continued to grow since 2014, it's now /over/ 30 million - very likely bigger than it's been since the highs of the fad years (not close to those highs, inflation-adjusted, nor in terms of units moved, sure, but better than it's been in decades).

That's quite the success story.

 

[Maxperson]

Ok. How's this for a thought?

In 3e era, the hobby market was about 30 million. In 2013, that had dropped to 13 million. Now, we're back to 30 million again. Pretty much all on the back of 5e.

Thing is, 3e kept the market at 30 million with a hundred different books and a staff of about 50.

5e makes the same money with 8 books and a staff of about 15.

Hrm, make the same money with half the staff and one tenth the products? Why on earth would anyone mess with that formula?

See, over two years in and core books are STILL selling very strongly with no signs of slowdown. Why change the course? What's in it for WotC?

You're assuming things. The assumption that as many core 5e books have sold as the combined books sold by 3e is far from proven fact. You may have more players playing the game, but that doesn't equate to the same amount of money.

 

[Hussar]

You're assuming things. The assumption that as many core 5e books have sold as the combined books sold by 3e is far from proven fact. You may have more players playing the game, but that doesn't equate to the same amount of money.

Hrm. Where is my math wrong?

2000's and the RPG market is in the neighbourhood of 30 million. 2016 and the market is again in the 30 million neighbourhood. Note we can quibble over the exact figures but those are close enough.

2000's era DND achieves sales like that with dozens of books and a staff of around 40 ish. 2016 DND achieves that with a staff of 15 ish and, well, now, nine books.

How do you explain the massive growth of the rpg market if it isn't sales of those nine books?

Note when they say market size, that's a per year number, not a total.

 

[Maxperson]

Hrm. Where is my math wrong?

2000's and the RPG market is in the neighbourhood of 30 million. 2016 and the market is again in the 30 million neighbourhood. Note we can quibble over the exact figures but those are close enough.

2000's era DND achieves sales like that with dozens of books and a staff of around 40 ish. 2016 DND achieves that with a staff of 15 ish and, well, now, nine books.

How do you explain the massive growth of the rpg market if it isn't sales of those nine books?

Note when they say market size, that's a per year number, not a total.

Where you go wrong is in assuming that 30 million = identical sales. It doesn't. Of those 30 million 5e players, only DMs really need the MM and DMG. Some players will buy them, but you only need one book each per 4-5 players. With all the splat books in 3e, players had a lot more to spend money on.

 

[Shasarak]

Hrm. Where is my math wrong?

How do you explain the massive growth of the rpg market if it isn't sales of those nine books?

Because the sales really come from three books.

It is no secret that core makes the most money, everything else is just sweet sweet DnD gravy on top.

 

[delericho]

2000's era DND achieves sales like that with dozens of books and a staff of around 40 ish. 2016 DND achieves that with a staff of 15 ish and, well, now, nine books.

Nitpick: Eleven books, plus the Starter Set. Unless you're not counting SKT and VGtM?