WOTC, Scott, Where in the World is the GSL

[trancejeremy]

Every post I've seen by WotC employees has hinted that the legal issues are the delay. My guess is that WotC/Hasbro wants the license to be a very specific way, which means when the lawyers say "This doesn't fit what you wanted," the WotC team has to rewrite that part, and the lawyers have to start over again to determine how the change affects the rest of the GSL now.

In other words, they're stuck in an infinite lawyer loop.

Plus, imagine what things will be like further down the road - 5th edition. What if it's even more restrictive or there is no GSL/OGL at all? Paizo would really be in trouble then. This way they can salvage some of their consumer base at the very least.

 

[mhensley]

I agree with the OP. WotC should be ashamed at the delay.

Paizo's move was somewhat forced upon them yet, despite that, I fear it was a very poor choice for their company and a very regrettable day for the gaming industry.

Not sure what else to say. Sorta surprised and saddened in equal measure.

W.P.

QFT

How much splintering can D&D withstand?

 

[Henry]

Ryan Dancey and Peter Adkison did have an advantage in that they had the Open Software license to use as a master example for the OGL, as well as probably about one to two years of lead time in lawyer-talks to get it drafted.

 

[Khairn]

There seems to be little doubt that Paizo's decision ensures a significant fracture in the D&D market, at least in the short term. This also provides a home and support into 2009 for those gamers who were not excited about the switch to 4E.

I admit my crystal ball has many cracks in it but I wonder if in a year from now we'll look back and say this event was the Healing Surge that breathed new life into 3E? Or maybe this will be remembered as just another jarring pothole along the rocky road that the launch of 4E has taken. Just a little mindless speculation.

 

[JoeGKushner]

For me, the whole point of being a Phase 1 publisher was being there at launch (the GenCon where 4e will be released).

Once the GSL delays made that impossible, being Phase 1 didn't seem so meaningful.

I've heard a few publishers say that.

I think WoTC will have to offer some more carrots like extneding the exlcusitivity to next Gen Con if they want people to fork over a large sum of money for the "exclusive" privilege of missing this year's Gen Con.

 

[Mouseferatu]

There seems to be little doubt that Paizo's decision ensures a significant fracture in the D&D market, at least in the short term.

Depends on what you mean by "significant."

If you mean "big enough to support a company as small as Paizo," yeah, probably.

If you mean "big enough to be noticed as more than a statistical glitch by a company the size of WotC," probably not.

 

[mach1.9pants]

Depends on what you mean by "significant."

If you mean "big enough to support a company as small as Paizo," yeah, probably.

If you mean "big enough to be noticed as more than a statistical glitch by a company the size of WotC," probably not.

I don't know anything about this, does anyone? I mean numbers of books sold? predicted numbers for 4E? How much is the (currently 13% pro/unsure 4E to PR on the admittedly not exhaustive poll) now opting for PF RPG than 4E going to effect WotC?

 

[Dragonblade]

I posted this in General, but I'll post it here too:

If you think that Paizo is a competitor to WotC, you're fooling yourself. The majority of Paizo's customers will come from the anti-4e minority who were never really going to 4e anyway, and the rest of their customers will come from cannibalizing customers from C&C, True20, Arcana Evolved, Conan d20, and other D&D clones.

Paizo will probably do quite alright for themselves. I expect them to dominate the d20 OGL market, although Crafty Games upcoming Fantasy Craft may have something to say about that.

But seriously impacting WotC's business? I don't think so. Thats like saying a high school football team can play in the NFL. WotC has the name, the marketing power, and the brand on their side. Plus I have played 4e and I know it rocks. The problem with Pathfinder is I have played 3.5 and I know it doesn't.

 

[breschau]

As for lost customers, as things stand now Paizo may end up inheriting the base of people who want to stick with 3.5. Even if that's 10% of the total, it's a huge win for them.

What? Are you serious? What percent of the total 3.5 adventures market do you think Paizo has now? The only way they come out ahead is if they don't lose customers or gain them.

Check the poll about this. One-hundred votes that are pro 4E, fifteen that could be pro Pathfinder. Most people really liked the Pathfinder adventures. With Paizo not doing 4E, all the players that switch will be lost to Paizo. Unless the vast majority of 3.x players stick to their guns and all switch to Pathfinder, this is a losing proposition for them.

164 votes, 60-some percent going to 4E. Use that figure for the number of customers Paizo will lose. That's a severe hit to profits, not a gain.

 

[Orcus]

Up until today, Paizo wasn't a competitor for WotC, but rather a complimentary business partner - quite simply, the adventure paths helped sell WotC hardbacks, both before and after the transition from Dungeon to Pathfinder. And while WotC didn't cause themselves real harm with the delay of the GSL, they have lost an opportunity to line up another partner to help create the killer app package that will drive 4e sales.

It is impossible to disagree with this.

However, please make sure that you understand that, while Wizards "lost an opportunity to line up another partner to help create the killer app package that will drive 4e sales," there is no hostility between the parties. I've talked to Erik. I've talked to Wizards. I want to make sure that no one thinks this is Paizo vs. Wizards. It isnt. Its two version of D&D, one that Paizo has decided to support for various reasons, and not exclusively I might add. Dont make this Paizo vs. Wizards. And just like when I do 4E products it isnt Necro vs. Paizo, or other 3E guys. At the top level of this, everyone here is friendly with one another and gets along great.