Wizards of the Coast and Golden Age of Fantasy

[Celebrim]

You're really reaching with this statement. No, let me rephrase that, you're wrong. Plenty of non fantasy movies are successful. Just because the movie doesn't reach 200 mil in gross doesn't necessarily mean that it's a flop.

I don't think anyone said what was a flop or not, or even that sales and popularity necessarily indicated high quality or that the reverse indicated low quality.

But the point remains that almost the entire list of the Top 30 gross sellers is fantasy in some fashion. So clearly fantasy is taking a very important role in our current culture.

 

[Frostmarrow]

You are saying the stuff Wizards is creating today has a better shot at becoming blockbusters in say five to ten years time than anyone else's? I guess you are right. Wizards is a leading fantasy creator in the world today. My guess is fantasy will move to the TV next. It's already there with Lost, Supernatural, Heroes, and so on. But more fantasy of our flavour might make it there soon. Wouldn't that be cool? I hear Lucas is planning 100 episodes of Star Wars. Now, if only HBO would buy the rights for Dragonlance. May I drool here please?

 

[JRR_Talking]

On My Big Fat Wish List:

Pirates of the Carribean --

Plastic mini range.......now....please.

 

[Steel_Wind]

Plastic mini range.......now....please.

Why buy the cow when the milk is free?

The problem with the whole Pirates otC setting is that the myths, imagery, setting and almost everything other than the name Jack Sparrow and the particular look to Davey Jones is not something that Disney owns.

It's too deeply rooted in popular myth, legend and the fantahistory of the Age of Sail and the Spanish Main.

If you want minis of ships and monsters in the Pirates otC setting - - look no further than to WizKids Pirates Constructible game. They've been trading on the PotC brand's success without having to pay for it for quite a while now - and the next " Pirates! at Oceans' Edge" expansion for the Pirates! game due out in a month or two (i.e., "World's End") demonstrates the problem with protecting this IP and exploiting it via licensing.

As for the RPG setting - The Pirates! RPG is out this summer.

 

[The Hound]

After reading the first few posts I am off on a thought tangent here...That is, how can WOC capitalize on the popularity of fantasy to expand awareness of and the market for D&D? In the discussions about Dragon's and Dungeon's demise I heard the following figures bandied about: a) There are about 5 million people who play role playing games on at least a monthly basis (not sure if that is worldwide or just in the US) and b) The circulation for the magazines is around 50,000 or so each. There are a few other mags out there, but they have much smaller circulation.

Which begs some questions:...

If the two premier magazines for the hobby have such miniscule circulation compared to the base, how does WOC reach the other 4,950,000 regular players NOW to make them aware of the new stuff they bring out? And more importantly, how can WOC and others reach the tens (hundreds?) of millions of other people who enjoy fantasy movies/TV/literature and who therefore might be interested in trying out fantasy role playing? It seems like TV advertising is in order on the right shows (like they did for the sci fi D&D movie, and of course the movie itself was advertising), maybe lobby advertising in theaters, in game advertising in MMORPGs, advertising inserts in console and PC game packages, ads in magazines devoted to Harry Potter and other fantasy TV shows and movies, and anywhere else that attracts the attention of fantasy enthusiasts but is outside the current narrow world of game related publications and stores.

 

[JohnSnow]

You are saying the stuff Wizards is creating today has a better shot at becoming blockbusters in say five to ten years time than anyone else's? I guess you are right. Wizards is a leading fantasy creator in the world today. My guess is fantasy will move to the TV next. It's already there with Lost, Supernatural, Heroes, and so on. But more fantasy of our flavour might make it there soon. Wouldn't that be cool? I hear Lucas is planning 100 episodes of Star Wars. Now, if only HBO would buy the rights for Dragonlance. May I drool here please?

As I understand it, HBO has optioned the rights to A Song of Ice and Fire. Whether anything will come of that remains to be seen.

 

[Thomas Percy]

how can WOC and others reach the tens (hundreds?) of millions of other people who enjoy fantasy movies/TV/literature and who therefore might be interested in trying out fantasy role playing?

It's impossible, because D&D game is too difficult entertainment for masses. It's not impossible for nearly anyone to play, but I think 99/100 people don't have time and patience to play. A movie is 1-3 hours of entertainment prepared for you - you don't need to do anything, but pay, watch and forget. Book is similiar, but it's entertainment for one day. But D&D demnds you to do something, so 99/100 never won't bother themselves with it.

Does it means WotC and we all (as players and especially DMs) are leading force of this Golden Age of Fantasy?

 

[Nifft]

Sorry, but this has been well documented in various froups*. The golden age of fantasy is 12. (As opposed to the golden age of Sci-Fi, which is 14.)

Cheers, -- N

*) r.a.sf.w, I'm looking at you.

 

[Reynard]

I am guessing that the Dragonlance animated film is an attempt to link WotC, D&D and the "golden age of fantasy". Personally, I would love to see someone license out DL, FR or even Eberron for a serious minded live action or animated series to run in syndication. If Battlestar Gallactica can pull it off, so can a fantasy series.

 

[blargney the second]

It just means that Joseph Campbell was onto something.