D&D General WotC Continues D&D's Advance To Digital First Brand

It's been apparent for some time that Dungeons & Dragons is moving towards a digital-first brand, centered around D&D Beyond, accompanied by a larger a shift into IP and lifestyle property.

D&D has had cartoons, toys, comics, and so on for decades, so this is not new, but the focus on these IP-based licenses appears to be gowing.

In Hasbro's latest earnings call, CEO Chris Cocks notes that the company -- by which he is referring to Hasbro, WotC, and their digital studio teams -- "delighted more than 1 billion kids, families and fans, secured partnerships that further underwrite future growth, advanced our evolution to a digital-first play and IP company and delivered record profits for our shareholders."

As we enter 2026, we view playing to Win and more importantly, the execution behind it by our Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast and digital studio teams as a clear success. Despite market volatility and a shift in consumer environment, we returned this company to growth in a meaningful way. We delighted more than 1 billion kids, families and fans, secured partnerships that further underwrite future growth, advanced our evolution to a digital-first play and IP company and delivered record profits for our shareholders.

As previously mentioned, this isn't really new information, but it is informative to see it clearly laid out by Hasbro's CEO. In the last couple of years, the company has had massive success with Baldur's Gate 3, and critical (if not commercial) success with the movie Honor Amongst Thieves. At least two D&D TV shows are currently in development--one from HBO as a sequel to Baldur's Gate 3, and another from Netflix, also set in the Forgotten Realms. In the eanrings call, Cocks notes that they have "top-tier creative partners across more than 60 active entertainment projects."

Digital sales currently make up 60% of D&D's revenue. With digital-exclusive expansions being sold on D&D Beyond, a robust virtual tabletop integration, and the bringing in of the larger third-party D&D content creators as partnered content, D&D's move towards digital-first is well underway. While there is no indication that the physical books will go away, they are slowly becoming secondary or collector's items rather than the primary product.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I guess for me, that's only an issue if the tools required for play are inaccessible in some form; if everyone can be reasonably assumed to have access to a computer then there's no reason to require a computer for play.

Presumably you mean no reason not to use a computer?

But that doesn't really follow, because just because someone "has access to" a computer of some kind doesn't mean that they have one which is appropriate for use at the table. In fact I would say, in my experience, it's a fairly small percentage of people who own tablets and laptops which are simultaneously large enough and functional enough to make good, practical tools at the table. Whilst it's not difficult to get one, it is, realistically, a few hundred dollars on top of everything else.

You absolutely cannot use a phone or small tablet for stuff like this. They also seem to be expecting that literally every player and the DM all bring a laptop or tablet and use that to actually play, I guess just sitting around the table staring at it.

That's interesting because it's a very different direction-of-travel to virtually all non-D&D RPGs, and it's identical to the much-criticised direction of travel of 4E D&D. Indeed it's the exact 4E vision that, when discussed, caused so much anger here on ENworld. Including from some of the same people who seem positive about this, I think.

Otherwise the bounds of play should be expanded to encompass reasonable expenditure of resources at the time of publication, rather than using antique tools as a form of ritual.

Using extremely loaded language in this seemingly disingenuous way is an awful way to make an argument, and shows a real apparent contempt for the reader, in my opinion.

Do you think people are too stupid to notice how incredibly loaded and biased words like "antique" and "ritual" are? Good lord. It'd be one thing if there was a wink and a bit of irony here, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

There's nothing "antique" about wipe-clean battlemats or the like, nor is "a form of ritual" to want to play RPGs the way most recent non-D&D RPGs play. What you're failing to show here is what we actually gain from this. Instead there's a high-handed dismissal of anyone who doesn't think this is great as a implied luddite or worse, some form of a cultist.

What's funny is, if we had digital tableclothes and so on, which y'know, probably aren't decades away, the "what do you gain" case might be fairly easily made. But we don't. So this aggressive move to digital seems barely less premature now than it did in 2008 (indeed technology hasn't move on terribly far since about 2008 generally speaking, whereas from say 1990 to 2008 - the same 18 year period - saw gigantic changes - the tablets and laptops, we use aren't even fundamentally different to 2008 ones).

 

[TheSword]

I'm sorry but in terms of "best of both worlds", are you referring to this 140€ bundle of maps and DM Screen that doesn't contain the original 50-55€ book?

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As I said in my post I’m referring to the £35 hardback Forgotten Realms book I bought with the full color poster map. A £10 Whiz Kids blister pack or those more flush than me the £300 Beadle and Grimm set. Whatever your price range we’re in a better position than we were before.

I don’t see any evidence that digital development and expansion is weakening the physical asset. In fact I think it’s the opposite.

 

[Johnsy]

You absolutely cannot use a phone or small tablet for stuff like this. They also seem to be expecting that literally every player and the DM all bring a laptop or tablet and use that to actually play, I guess just sitting around the table staring at it.

I agree with you. The other thing I’d add about digital tools is that their presence begins to influence the experience of playing. If everyone is looking at their laptop it significantly reduces the level of face to face interaction. I remember when I saw the promos for sigil and feeling horrified at everyone sat staring at their screens. I recall some psychological research that showed the moment a screen is turned on in a room, the quality of social interaction nosedives.

I have absolutely no problem with groups who want to play this way - do what works for you. But I do have an issue with people saying it has no effect on the way the game is played, as it absolutely does. And I definitely have a concern if the system moves in the direction of this becoming a requirement. Like you drew attention to, it’s kinda patronising to be called old fashioned for having an opinion in this. In my own experience I prefer mostly analogue, with a few DM digital tools now and then.

 

[TwoSix]

My only concern with the digital tools is that I'm a maximalist for homebrew when it comes to D&D; any default tool that isn't easily amenable to manual editing of the available options isn't something I want to use in my game.

I want tables that are excited to look at new options from the book I just got on Kickstarter, not ones that say "But how do I select that option on my electronic character builder?"

 

[TheSword]

I agree with you. The other thing I’d add about digital tools is that their presence begins to influence the experience of playing. If everyone is looking at their laptop it significantly reduces the level of face to face interaction. I remember when I saw the promos for sigil and feeling horrified at everyone sat staring at their screens. I recall some psychological research that showed the moment a screen is turned on in a room, the quality of social interaction nosedives.

I have absolutely no problem with groups who want to play this way - do what works for you. But I do have an issue with people saying it has no effect on the way the game is played, as it absolutely does. And I definitely have a concern if the system moves in the direction of this becoming a requirement. Like you drew attention to, it’s kinda patronising to be called old fashioned for having an opinion in this. In my own experience I prefer mostly analogue, with a few DM digital tools now and then.

I would love to understand what physical resource is no longer available which would indicate that online play is a requirement? If it’s just the question of online play resources (music, art, maps, accessing rules efc) outcompeting physical play do you not think the benefits of physical play you describe should compete on their own merits if they are as positive as you believe.

I play and enjoy both by the way. But am increasingly finding that VTT play is just more fun for a wide range of reasons that I won’t bore folks with now.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I agree with you. The other thing I’d add about digital tools is that their presence begins to influence the experience of playing. If everyone is looking at their laptop it significantly reduces the level of face to face interaction. I remember when I saw the promos for sigil and feeling horrified at everyone sat staring at their screens. I recall some psychological research that showed the moment a screen is turned on in a room, the quality of social interaction nosedives.

I have absolutely no problem with groups who want to play this way - do what works for you. But I do have an issue with people saying it has no effect on the way the game is played, as it absolutely does. And I definitely have a concern if the system moves in the direction of this becoming a requirement. Like you drew attention to, it’s kinda patronising to be called old fashioned for having an option in this. In my own experience I prefer mostly analogue, with a few DM digital tools.

I think a lot of it has to do with most of the screens being used for games being multi-functional. Like, it's fine to effectively keep your character sheet on your phone, but if you're also rolling dice on it, no-one else can see, which makes things less fun, and almost certainly you're getting pinged with social media, sensationalistic news updates, text messages and so on, the entire time.

I have a crummy Chromebook I use which doesn't have any of that, just has my notes and a rules PDF on it most of the time, and it's so clunky I can't even really use it to look stuff up easily, but it does do a good job of not being distracting in the way other screens often are.

 

[Argyle King]

I guess for me, that's only an issue if the tools required for play are inaccessible in some form; if everyone can be reasonably assumed to have access to a computer then there's no reason not to require a computer for play. Otherwise the bounds of play should be expanded to encompass reasonable expenditure of resources at the time of publication, rather than using antique tools as a form of ritual.

And, to a degree, I also don't feel it's a loss if the materials to play older editions of D&D are still available. No one is taking a paper-based 5th edition away, and if a theoretical 6e requires a computer to play, that's not really a loss.

Anecdotally, I know more than a few people who enjoy D&D because it's one of the few experiences left that put them in a room with other people and away from being surrounded by screens and algorithms.

So, for at least some portion of the audience, it's not that they don't have access to a smart phone, it's that they don't want to play D&D with a smart phone.

Perhaps the future for those folks is an experience that features a different rpg.

I'm not in any way surprised that D&D is becoming more digital. That is in line with what Cocks had previously expressed. In contemporary culture, it has been normalized to sell licensed access to a (usually digital) product rather than sell ownership of a tangible product.

 

[Johnsy]

I would love to understand what physical resource is no longer available which would indicate that online play is a requirement? If it’s just the question of online play resources (music, art, maps, accessing rules efc) outcompeting physical play do you not think the benefits of physical play you describe should compete on their own merits if they are as positive as you believe.

I play and enjoy both by the way. But am increasingly finding that VTT play is just more fun for a wide range of reasons that I won’t bore folks with now.

I don’t know there are any physical resources that are no longer available that require online or digital play. I was more expressing a concern that things do move this way, that’s all.

Just a quick comment re the merits of online and digital tools vs in person and analogue. I’m really not trying to say one is inherently better than the other, as it’s relative to what works best for you and your group. I have a preference and reasons for this, but I’m genuinely open to other opinions. For instance you say you find VTT more fun. That’s great, I’m interested what makes it more fun for you. If it’s more fun for you, then it’s more fun.

I just don’t want a d&d that mandates a digital interface. Thankfully we aren’t there, and people can choose what works for them. I hope it stays that way.

 

[Blue]

I literally do not leave my house without a computer in my pocket that's like 100,000 times more powerful than the computers that put men on the moon.


I'd say the number of people in the D&D demographic that do not own a smartphone is miniscule. Back in the 70s, it was reasonable to assume that the average D&D player had pencils and paper, and the game was designed with access to those tools in mind. 50 years hence, the average player has access to fantastical digital technology; shouldn't the game be played with that?

A smartphone that opens up big enough to use as a battlemap for in-person play? Plus display your personal character sheet and allows you to look up things in the books at the same time? Wow, you must have large (and deep) pockets.

I think you're confusing compute power as the only thing needed to bring usable technology to the gaming table.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

That is in line with what Cocks had previously expressed. In contemporary culture, it has been normalized to sell licensed access to a (usually digital) product rather than sell ownership of a tangible product.

And let's be clear - this has been WotC/Hasbro's goal since 2008.

The disastrous "We want to make D&D like WoW" interview in 2008 wasn't a WotC guy expressing the idea that he wanted D&D to be an MMO, or play like an MMO, even though people misrepresented or misunderstood the out-of-context quote to mean that.

Rather, in context, what he meant was "We want to make you pay a subscription to play D&D".

Is that better? I think it might actually be worse, but it was less offensive and sensationalistic than "D&D IS WOW NOW!!!!" was in 2008, so people ignored that.

But I do think it's worth remembering that the real ultimate goal of all this "make it digital" stuff is not convenience or modernity. It's not even just normal profits. It's subscription-based profits specifically. It's the consumer doesn't really own anything, they need to keep paying us, specifically. And it's not a recent change of direction, it's a long-term goal since at least 2008, which is nearly 20 years ago (appallingly).