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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Phat Lute" data-source="post: 5445337" data-attributes="member: 84524">I was a subscriber for a while, and continued to subscribe until it was clear they weren't going to provide us with Dark Sun updates for the original tools.  Several things bothered me about the whole ordeal that took place late last summer and through the fall:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The "pee on my leg and tell me it's raining" spin about updates, and their reluctance to say that we wouldn't actually ever see the Dark Sun updates in the original DDI tools.  It was pretty easy to come to the conclusion that they relaunched a fan favorite setting that a lot of people had been waiting for, with new mechanics that may or may not have been able to be integrated into the old CB (I can think of several different approaches) right before their Essentials experiment, and then intended to bundle support for the two together in a new software package to more or less push everyone into Essentials.  I don't blame them for being in business or wanting to make money.  I do, however, dislike that they just can't be honest about it.  We know you're not our friends.  Most of us don't actually live in our parents' basements, and probably work for corporations ourselves. Many of us can interpret what we're reading without help.  Some of us can even read between the lines.  We also don't believe in the tooth fairy.</li> </ul><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">DDI is online only now.  It's not as useful to me now.  I would at least want to store my own characters and sheets locally, and view them without a connection.</li> </ul><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The Dungeon and Dragon content wasn't particularly amazing.   Look, I think I like Dungeon Tiles enough for my own personal use, but six adventures featuring different configurations of them with monster and room descriptions isn't exactly breathtaking.</li> </ul><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Support for pre-Essentials D&D seemed to be vanishing, and the rules stuff seemed unbalanced, unoriginal, or just too specific or weird to be useful.  Some of the stuff looked like it was leaning toward Essentialized versions of things I'd already paid for, and other stuff looking like it was going down the road where we'd eventually see articles like, "Orphaned Crossdressing Dwarven Pyromancers of the Nentir Vale" in terms of specificity.  I exaggerate a little.  But still.</li> </ul><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">In terms of what was being previewed for what I'll call Essentials DDI, it looked like my options and choices were being limited compared to what already existed.  This is a good parallel to actual Essentials, but in this case I'm talking about tool options: house rules, the ability to decide which rules to exclude and then share those restrictions with players, interface options, etc.</li> </ul><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Unnecessary hand-holding and simplification in use of tools.  Seriously, if someone knows what D&D is, seeks it out online, signs up for a subscription for the tools that support the tabletop game, and goes to make a character, I think it's safe to assume that they know enough about it that they don't need as much assistance in creating a character as it seems is available (and is the default to creation) in DDI now.</li> </ul><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">There are so many other things I could be spending that money on, and so many other games and sources of content and inspiration that I just couldn't see paying for something I'd be this disappointed in, especially after all the doublespeak and the feelings of being talked down to.</li> </ul></blockquote>

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