WOTC Get On Your Horse!

[Twowolves]

It's been stated many times, no one paid the $5000 dollars.

Not saying 3rd party publishers haven't gotten the short end of the stick (several times), but the rumor of companies paying and getting nothing are false. Several were willing, but it was never ready enough for WotC to take the money.

I must have missed where it was stated at all, much less many times, but I was under the distinct impression Necromancer Games paid up.

In any case, even if the GSL was free and came with a lolipop, it still didn't get to the 3rd party guys in time for them to have products available at 4th ed launch nor this year's Gen Con. Equally screwed.

 

[Nellisir]

I must have missed where it was stated at all, much less many times, but I was under the distinct impression Necromancer Games paid up.

Nope. 3p publishers were supposed to get an advance look at the GSL (after a NDA). If, after the advance loo, they wanted to use it early, they could pay the 5k. The advance look never happened, ergo no 5k.

On the other hand, the GSL apparently will contain terms & templates for psionics (and other stuff released over the next year?)

That's pretty cool.

 

[moritheil]

I'm pretty sure if money changed hands and nothing happened, that would be actionable.

 

[Twowolves]

Nope. 3p publishers were supposed to get an advance look at the GSL (after a NDA). If, after the advance loo, they wanted to use it early, they could pay the 5k. The advance look never happened, ergo no 5k.

Ok, so they didn't bilk anyone out of $5000, that still doesn't change the effect their empty promises and constant delays had on the 3rd party publishers.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I don't think it's empty promises so much as a mess. Even WotC folks have made it clear they're not happy with how the legal folks have mired this whole process hip-deep in mud.

 

[WhatGravitas]

Also: Whenever Scott Rouse was asked - he wasn't happy - at all. I think it's not really in the hands of the people working in the D&D department, it's got stuck somewhere in the bureaucracy behind.

Cheers, LT.

 

[Spinachcat]

No third party has been screwed. Quite the opposite actually. The fact than any GSL whatsoever is being offered at any time in the product's first year is a MEGA-boon and a tremendous blessing.

There is ZERO reason they have to do this. That fact they are doing it at all and this soon is utterly fabulous. Think about it. Does Blizzard give everyone the chance to just create WoW mods to sell? No, instead they try to crack down on any 3rd party applications. So, WotC deserves applause, not whining.

 

[Kez Darksun]

No third party has been screwed. Quite the opposite actually. The fact than any GSL whatsoever is being offered at any time in the product's first year is a MEGA-boon and a tremendous blessing.

There is ZERO reason they have to do this. That fact they are doing it at all and this soon is utterly fabulous. Think about it. Does Blizzard give everyone the chance to just create WoW mods to sell? No, instead they try to crack down on any 3rd party applications. So, WotC deserves applause, not whining.

Sorry, a step backwards as far as when 3rd party publishers will be able to produce 4th edition compatible products deserves, and will get no applause from me. Frankly, I'm astounded that especially compared with the level of 3rd party support that was available for 3rd edition at launch, you seem to feel everything is wine and roses when it comes to how WotC has gone about handling 3rd party publishers for 4th edition.

 

[Tewligan]

No third party has been screwed. Quite the opposite actually. The fact than any GSL whatsoever is being offered at any time in the product's first year is a MEGA-boon and a tremendous blessing.

There is ZERO reason they have to do this. That fact they are doing it at all and this soon is utterly fabulous. Think about it. Does Blizzard give everyone the chance to just create WoW mods to sell? No, instead they try to crack down on any 3rd party applications. So, WotC deserves applause, not whining.

Oh, please. Yeah, it's great that they'll be (as far as we know) doing this. However, what's pretty crappy is that they keep stringing publishers along with dates and promises that keep changing - if I recall correctly, at least one publisher had their schedule totally screwed with distributors because they believed WotC's promises. There's nothing applause-worthy here yet. There's the PROMISE of applause-worthy things. Until that comes to pass, though, the way they're handling things is, at best, incompetent.

 

[SSquirrel]

As close as things got to "4E will be a closed edition, now kindly piss off and get off our lawn before we sic the dogs on you", any GSL is better than no GSL. More limited than the OGL was, no one is disagreeing there.

Very late, several times over. Who knows, maybe there wouldn't be any PFRPG if the GSL had come out when it was supposed to. Then again, those publishers would have been out 5k, which they may well have made up selling new product at GenCon 2008, which can't happen now.