D&D General Why Enworld should liberate D&D from Hasbro

[môrgondír]

[snip]
I know marketers would love to take credit for big changes in a customer base, but I suspect it's a lot of things.

In my experience, both of those things ('marketers will take credit' & 'it's multiple factors') are usually the case.

 

[Zardnaar]

If the perception was that the game being sold (i.e. the product) was at one time, or at varying times in its history, deliberately exclusionary, then is it currently the case that the new branding/artwork/marketing has made significant inroads to mitigating that perception?

Has the perception 'moved forward' (implicitly or explicitly) along a mutli-step path: 'You're not welcome here' -> 'You're not unwelcome here' -> 'You are welcome here' -- presumably capturing a larger market share with each step due to the change(s) in messaging/marketing?

My experience its changed the demographics in terms of variety. Less sausage party.

Its more about class based though essentially being middle class or better though. Ymmv.

 

[billd91]

If the perception was that the game being sold (i.e. the product) was at one time, or at varying times in its history, deliberately exclusionary, then is it currently the case that the new branding/artwork/marketing has made significant inroads to mitigating that perception?

Has the perception 'moved forward' (implicitly or explicitly) along a mutli-step path: 'You're not welcome here' -> 'You're not unwelcome here' -> 'You are welcome here' -- presumably capturing a larger market share with each step due to the change(s) in messaging/marketing?

I'm not entirely sure I'd ever say that the game was deliberately exclusionary - as in intending to exclude people based on characteristics they can't control. As an example: While sexism is evident in some of Gygax's commentaries outside the game and it has some notoriously sexist elements (such as strength caps on female characters), I don't think most of it reads as intending to exclude women. Rather, it makes no effort to reach beyond a core market that's predictably male, white, cisgendered, heterosexual, interested in wargames/fantasy/scifi, and so on. In no small part, I suspect that was because that was the easy path - that's who most of the initial players were, who most of the designers and writers were, who most of the artists were...

Tossing that kind of image and being inclusive has taken effort and intention. And it seems to be working.

 

[Staffan]

Hawt. Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder. Along with dark moon abbey.

Now that's a deep cut.

 

[Zardnaar]

Now that's a deep cut.

You liked it?.

 

[Distracted DM]

I'm not sure either tbh.

I suspect its whales. Might be a small % overall but wouldn't ve surprised if the GenX whale spends x10 over a newbie or more.

Looks at my 40 odd 5E hardcovers.

Younger players are aware of some older stuff via YouTube. Darksun comes to mind (D&Ds forbidden setting YouTube thumbnail). WotC not reprinting it kinda raised its profile lol.

They dont give a crap about keeps on borderlands or islands that may be dreadful.

You know it's true, I think as laymen we might underestimate whales (hi I'm a whale). I briefly worked for a video company that made online free to play (with micro transactions) Facebook gambling games.. the vast majority of their revenue was whales.

 

[Zardnaar]

You know it's true, I think as laymen we might underestimate whales (hi I'm a whale). I briefly worked for a video company that made online free to play (with micro transactions) Facebook gambling games.. the vast majority of their revenue was whales.

Im aware of it. Milk that 3%.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

You know it's true, I think as laymen we might underestimate whales (hi I'm a whale). I briefly worked for a video company that made online free to play (with micro transactions) Facebook gambling games.. the vast majority of their revenue was whales.

I play Hearthstone. Every time they add a $100 bundle with some exclusive cosmetic to the store, I scoff at the idea, and then run into someone with that cosmetic in the next 72 hours.

 

[MichaelSomething]

I don't know if the marketing is responsible for it, or if it's Critical Role, or Vampire: The Masquerade, or something else, but the RPG scene is extremely popular with young people, LGBT people and -- to a greater extent than it's ever been -- people of color.

I know marketers would love to take credit for big changes in a customer base, but I suspect it's a lot of things.

It was always there. You (or they) just couldn't see it until now.

 

[Umbran]

Posting in social media about your dislike/hatred for WoTC/Hasbro/5E serves no purpose.

But it does - it is a signifier of identity. It is a flag for folks to see, and either engage, or disengage.