WotC WotC to power other IPs with D&D and M:TG

In Hasbro’s recent conference call, a few things were mentioned. Using D&D and Magic ‘play systems’ to power other IPs via their ‘Universes Beyond’ initiatives Using D&D Beyond as a hub Other physical and digital tie-ins The Universes Beyond initiative has been running since early 2021 for Magic: The Gathering, and initially featured a The Walking Dead expansion (grandfathered in from 2020)...

In Hasbro’s recent conference call, a few things were mentioned.
  • Using D&D and Magic ‘play systems’ to power other IPs via their ‘Universes Beyond’ initiatives
  • Using D&D Beyond as a hub
  • Other physical and digital tie-ins
The Universes Beyond initiative has been running since early 2021 for Magic: The Gathering, and initially featured a The Walking Dead expansion (grandfathered in from 2020), and a Stranger Things set (2020). 2022 will see Warhammer 40K, Fortnite, and Street Fighter; and a Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle Earth set is going out in 2023.

In addition, properties like Godzilla and Dracula have featured as MtG sets, but not as part of the Universes Beyond initiative; and in 2019 there was a My Little Pony crossover. There have also, of course, been D&D/MtG crossovers in both directions.

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Wizards of the Coast and Digital Gaming segment President Cynthia Williams said:“You'll see us continue to expand the number of formats and reach new customer segments by expanding our Universes Beyond initiatives, which brings IP from outside of Magic into the Magic play system, We've talked a lot about universes beyond in Magic, which is this concept of thinking about Magic as a play system and bringing in outside brands or outside IP into that play system. We see potential for that with D&D as well."

She also talked about other tie-ins: "And then we see a lot of e-commerce and direct opportunities working in partnership with our Hasbro Pulse team to have physical digital tie-ins that are unique to the platform".

Hasbro’s Chris Cocks mentioned the recent D&D Beyond acquisition: “And then we’ll add on top of that the 50th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons in 2024, where that entertainment, consumer products, and gaming momentum will continue. So, we see a lot of growth vectors and a lot of lifts for D&D with the D&D Beyond platform being central to that.”

IcV2 has a good summary.

 

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teitan

Legend
Well, on Star Wars... it's like printing money, who wouldn't want the license? I get their strategy is all over the place, but it's hard to imagine anyone saying "no" to it.

I very much agree on Harry Potter, it's in rough straits. But again, the business folks may think it means money. I still don't think this is a great match for D&D anyway though.

I think Pokemon is a tough sell for many dimensions, mechanically and from a business perspective.
Star Wars isn’t the property it once was, the sequels kind of tanked a lot of its inherent value. The TV shows keep it going and are restoring some faith in it but they have a big hole to dig out of after Last Jedi, Solo and Rise of Skywalker, as decent as they were and as much money as the two sequels made, didn’t hold up and Solo never gained post Theatrical legs. Too bad as it was probably second only to Rogue One as the next Star Wars movie since Sith came out.
 

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Tales and Chronicles

Jewel of the North, formerly know as vincegetorix
The thing I love about this news is that it is one of the best way for us to gain access to 5e-compatible-ish content to insert into our regular fantasy D&D.

They could go class-less for a Walking Dead game or give us the some variation of regular D&D classes, such as a scholar or a spell-less ranger that I could add to a Faerun game if I dont care much for spellcasting rangers, for example.

Also, count me in for the hype on an hypothetical 5e Legend of Zelda or Worlds of Final Fantasy.
 

Urriak Uruk

Gaming is fun, and fun is for everyone
Star Wars isn’t the property it once was, the sequels kind of tanked a lot of its inherent value. The TV shows keep it going and are restoring some faith in it but they have a big hole to dig out of after Last Jedi, Solo and Rise of Skywalker, as decent as they were and as much money as the two sequels made, didn’t hold up and Solo never gained post Theatrical legs. Too bad as it was probably second only to Rogue One as the next Star Wars movie since Sith came out.

The last Star Wars movie made a billion dollars.
 






vecna00

Speculation Specialist Wizard
The new (TM) Spelljammer could be something closer to Star Frontiers, even if only in minor ways. And I only even have this thought process because of the Nautiloid ship In Rime of the Frostmaiden.

I mean, the Illithid gnomes had laser pistols. Not a huge amount of evidence, but it could be a small hint.

As for a D&D version of Universes Beyond, I'm here for it if it's for stuff I like! And I'd be ok with it if it's for stuff I don't.
 


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