What Should Dragon Do?

[Alzrius]

I think it goes without saying at this point that thus far, the e-Dragon experiment has failed (the e-Dungeon experiment, I'd say has had limited success, at most). The real question is why.

If it's because of a focus on 4E that has pushed e-Dragon to the backburner, then (I suppose) there's room to say it'll get better after 4E launches (though that's quite a wait). If it's due to staffing, then that's probably not going to improve without more people on hand. And if it's a combination of reasons, well...that doesn't bode well.

I think things will get better, but as for when, and how much better, I'm not that optimistic - in light of the great job Paizo was doing, e-Dragon's faults are magnified, and so far it's doing very poorly (we don't even have a PDF of the first issue yet).

 

[Lancelot]

I was willing to give both a go, but at this stage they need to do something pretty radical to even get me to read it for *free*. As a long-term subscriber to both print versions, that really hurts to admit. I mean no offense to those who are submitting the content (many of whom visit this board) - I salute your contribution to the hobby. But the whole e-format is making it difficult for me to appreciate your hard work.

Dragon -
1) The art has always been a selling point for me; it's just not the same when it's a tiny JPG on a web page, compared to a glossy hard copy. Yeah, I can print it out, but...
2) It's a pain in the neck to print out, and I'm never satisfied with the quality. The lack of a consolidated version makes it seem like scattered fragments. I've never much liked loose-leaf binders and scrap-booking.
3) I bought Dragon to give me something to read in the car while I'm waiting for my significant other to finish her shopping; hard to do that with a laptop.
4) I miss the comics, I miss the letters to the editor, I miss the editorial.

Dungeon -
1) I hate, Hate, HATE the Dungeon Delve format (tactical maps, or whatever you call them); all of the new modules use it, and it's just so worthless to me, compared to what Paizo is doing with Pathfinder. It makes the module incredibly difficult to read and absorb (flicking back and forth in the document), it's a huge space-waster, and it emphasizes combat over story.
2) I miss adventure paths. If you don't use adventure paths, it's not hard to split an AP into usable chunks for your own campaign. It's much harder to take it the other way (cobble together multiple pieces that have radically different themes into a cohesive whole).
3) I miss the comics, I miss the editorial.
4) ...did I mention how much I hate the Dungeon Delve format?

 

[Olaf the Stout]

Getting a PDF version of the first issue out would be a good start. Considering that we are almost halfway through December and we still haven't seen it they are more than a little late. Not exactly a great start. They would have been better off delaying the release for another month or two or letting Paizo have the license for a couple more months than the less than half-hearted attempt they have given us so far.

They need to make a schedule and stick to it. If this is meant to be replacing the regular Dragon magazine then they also need a lot more content than we've currently seen.

Olaf the Stout