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

[mamba]

True, but there's nothing good about getting invested in an game for decades and being told (over and over again it seems) that they used to care about you, but now they don't because you got old.

it’s not because you are old, it’s because what you want from the game and what young players want is not the same. The game has evolved and not everyone wants to / is keeping up with that development

 

[overgeeked]

That's the cover of a book that was for sale, Russ. What's the goal of a picture put on X, where all hope and goodness goes to die? There is a reason; I just don't know what it is. If it were Pride month or something, sure, I get it. But...why?

Representation still exists outside of the designated month of celebration.

 

[mamba]

Well maybe, but IMO, 1E players are/were a more loyal/consistent group than 5E 2024 players will be (in hindsight)

we have no way to actually measure this, if anything the declining 1e sales tell a different story

 

[overgeeked]

Well maybe, but IMO, 1E players are/were a more loyal/consistent group than 5E 2024 players will be (in hindsight)

AD&D came out in 1977-1979. Let's say 1979 for ease of use. That was 46 years ago. So in another 36 years we'll be able to check in with the 5E cohort to see if this holds water.

 

[Morrus]

it’s not because you are old, it’s because what you want from the game and what young players want is not the same. The game has evolved and not everyone wants to / is keeping up with that development

It’s not even just that. It’s not just that the game has changed (which is has). Or kids have changed (which they have). It’s that the world has changed because that’s how time works. And the trope of middle aged men whining about kids today is old, old, old. And so tiresome.

 

[Morrus]

That's the cover of a book that was for sale, Russ. What's the goal of a picture put on X, where all hope and goodness goes to die? There is a reason; I just don't know what it is. If it were Pride month or something, sure, I get it. But...why?

I don’t even understand the question. Every bit of marketing is targeted at various demographics. That’s how marketing works. Clearly, that piece wasn’t for you.

 

[BookTenTiger]

True, but there's nothing good about getting invested in an game for decades and being told (over and over again it seems) that they used to care about you, but now they don't because you got old. Like they'd really like you to shuffle off so they can continue to market to the kids without your interference.

Thanks and goodbye. It really does feel like that sometimes.

Micah I say this with complete sincerity and no ill will: I think it's time to let it go. I feel like I've seen you post this same sentiment for years now, and the reality hasn't changed. WotC will always target the audience they think will make them the most money while producing the game they choose to produce. It's not personal.

 

[MichaelSomething]

They have a ton of LGBT players and customers and many more who support the LGBT community. They're posting art reflecting their audience and folks their audience like.

Why wouldn't they post this?

Isn't the best part of TTRPGs being truly free to do whatever you want without needing it pre created by some system/designer? If my character is free to attempt whatever actions I can imagine, why wouldn't it include having relations with members of my own sex, or changing my sex, or even never wanting to have sex in the first place? Do we want Hasbro dictating the love lives of our characters like they tried with the adventuring day in 5E???

 

[Older Beholder]

Isn't the best part of TTRPGs being truly free to do whatever you want without needing it pre created by some system/designer? If my character is free to attempt whatever actions I can imagine, why wouldn't it include having relations with members of my own sex, or changing my sex, or even never wanting to have sex in the first place? Do we want Hasbro dictating the love lives of our characters like they tried with the adventuring day in 5E???

How is: ‘Your story is yours to tell’ dictating the love lives of your character? They are literally saying the opposite.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Do you complain that Saturday morning cartoons aren’t made for 50 year olds too?

Are kids not allowed the stuff you had? Everything has to be made for whatever age you are at the time? You are the only person who matters and the world must cater specifically for you, forever? You bought a book from them once, and so they now have a life debt to you like they’re a Wookiee?

I have no sympathy for this position. I’m 51. I started playing D&D when I was 11. I am not bothered in the slightest that D&D has been marketed for teenagers since the 1970s. It was marketed towards me when I was 11. It is now marketed towards other people who are 11. And it is a trivial thing, of no effort, to set the tone of your own game however you want it. It's literally no effort.

Man, 50 year-old men whining "me me me!" when children are allowed to have things is so cringey. 6-year olds think the world revolves around them; grown-ups know better. You're a big boy now. Put your big boy pants on and let the kids have their things. Y'know, like grown-ups do.

(Also “they” never cared about you, “they” don’t care about you now, “they” don’t care about the kids either; you’re clever enough to know this).

Are the products in question supposed to be "grown out of"? Are we supposed to stop playing (and buying) when we cease to be teenagers? I'm pretty sure that's the case with Saturday Morning Cartoons. Not so much with D&D. And it's the demographic they stop caring about, the one I've been a part of since I entered my 20s (long ago, and I still like RPGs), not me personally.