What if... WotC hadn't bought TSR?

[frankthedm]

Sean wasn't kidding.

Hasbro was very seriously interested in TSR. We were all terrified of that eventuality because we knew that they'd be buying us simply for the intellectual property and the trademarks to use in other entertainment venues. Pretty well substantiated rumor had it that they would just fire all the employees and take the goods. Somewhat like what they did with Avalon Hill.

The reason that they didn't do this immediately when they bought WotC was because WotC was making a lot of money on their own (unlike TSR) in addition to having valuable properties.

Now, I don't know all the ins and outs of what's going on with Hasbro now (the management is indeed somewhat different), but one can imagine what one possible outcome when WotC stops making "enough" money and simply becomes a bag full of valuable properties might be.

Perhaps something Like a D&D collectable minis game? Or maybe they'll put out revised core books every couple of years after sales slump for the previous set...oh sure the intelligent people will use the older stuff, but as long as they can find a market of fools to keep buying revised books they won't care what they do to the real fans.

I will really feel sorry for those gamers who will still be at Hasbro / wotc, in those dark days to come, as they see their pride and joy be butchered and have the choice of being an accomplice to the atrocity or loose their jobs in a very cold economy.

 

[Alcamtar]

I think the D&D name would live on, but it might not amount to much. Possibly different editions would get sold to different customers, and sold older editions would see print again.

Most likely, I think we'd have something like 3E, only it would be called "Ars Magica v6" or "SenZar II" or something. If D&D died, another fantasy game would fill the vacuum. Actually D&D did die, and a new fantasy game (d20) was written to replace it, and also took its name.

I think the resurgence in RPGs would have happened anyway; I strongly suspect it is a cyclic business, and has more to do with the economy and societal/audience changes than d20.

The SRD would have happened anyway because "open source" is a broad movement, but instead of being tied to d20 we'd have multiple competing SRDs.

As for D&D I don't think there'd be much change. D&D is dead and would have been dead either way. To me 3E is a new game in the tradition of D&D, but new games are a dime a dozen. 3E succeeded primarily because it had the D&D name.

At least that's my opinion.
Mike

 

[Balsamic Dragon]

My guess?

If TSR had gone into bankruptcy, Black Isle (i.e. Interplay) would have tried to buy the D&D rights to preserve the future viability of the Baldur's Gate series. Not being a publishing company, they would have either wanted to license out the rights to the publishing side of the game or get someone else to buy it out of bankruptcy that would give them an exclusive license for the games.

So Black Isle would be putting out probably even more D&D games (to take advantage of their license). Someone would publish a revised edition of D&D that would trim the rules down to what could easily be implemented in a computer game. Black Isle would also license the rights to a D&D card game to compete with WOTC's Magic (WOTC didn't do this because they would have been cutting into their own fantasy CCG market).

The d20 OGL concept would probably never have happened. Instead of D&D being based in publishing the tabletop game, it would become much more multi-media. If the new edition of the game caught on, a massively multiplayer game would not be far behind. New players to the game would be much more interested in building online modules ala Neverwinter Nights than the low tech tabletop method. The game would also be aimed at a much younger market (the CCG card game / video game market) and the rules would be simplified.

The adult roleplaying audience would not come back to D&D, and instead the emerging Swashbulker, Pulp, Anime and Science Fiction genre games would have greater popularity than they have (having been hit halfway through their stride by the OGL and forced to abandon their own systems to convert to OGL).

It's a theory. Of course, I'm happier the way things worked out. The only thing I'd like from this alternate future is that Master Tools would have been a real killer app

Balsamic Dragon