WotC Why WotC SHOULD Make A New Setting

[MichaelSomething]

if anyone can afford to experiment it is the guys with the 50% profit margin and the most sales by an order of magnitude or so.

That they aren’t shows that they are risk averse more than it shows an inability to, they simply do not need to given their position in the market

4th Edition proves otherwise.

 

[Reynard]

4th Edition proves otherwise.

That was almost 20 years ago.

 

[W'rkncacnter]

That was almost 20 years ago.

jesus christ, that was almost 20 years ago...

 

[nyvinter]

They very much could allow for experimentation by the current group at WatC and try new settings, One here and there while they still publishes Forgotten Realms and all the rest wouldn't be that noticeable in the spreadsheets. They're not going to because they're also the same company that layoff people at Christmas to give the boardroom members new boat loafers. But the could.

 

[mamba]

4th Edition proves otherwise.

yes, back then they did, maybe without realizing it. I assume the result of that changed their perspective on quite a few things though.

Also, back then they had neither the 50% profit margin nor the huge sales numbers.
As always, necessity is the mother of invention. As long as they manage to maintain their current position I am not expecting innovations from them, once sales tank, that will change again, same as every other time

 

[Corinnguard]

When WoTC did a setting fan-made contest in the beginning of the century where Keith Baker's EBERRON won, the 2nd place was also pretty good apparently IIRC.

So, what was the 2nd place setting all about? curious

 

[Paul Farquhar]

A chance they didn't think that way back when or else we would have never get EBERRON so i'm really glad we did get it released.

It’s not a case of what they “thought”. It was a case of the commercial reality being different.

At that time they needed a new setting because their attempt to revive Greyhawk had flopped and the game was moribund. They needed a completion because with bare bones staff they didn’t have the personnel or the market research to do it themselves.