4 ms·

I’m all for powering up the consumerist engines but they keep making really generically bad enthusiast collectibles like ‘the wand of orcus.’ They keep just mis

I’m all for powering up the consumerist engines but they keep making really generically bad enthusiast collectibles like ‘the wand of orcus.’ They keep just missing the demographic of the lucrative rich middle aged adult looking for escape.

whitemary 4y ago
> They keep just missing the demographic of the lucrative rich middle aged adult looking for escape. I'm curious. What is this group more interested in? Exotic vacations?
- antiterra 4y ago
  More immersive escape. The skull wand replica idea is fine but an adult needs to be able to mentally role play that it’s a real thing. Think adults who go to Disneyland regularly or pay for the Star Wars resort thing.
- nerdponx 4y ago
  I think there is a fundamental monetization problem in that D&D players in my experience tend to be people who broadly gravitate towards anti-consumerist and anti-corporate tendencies in general. I think this is somewhat inherent in the design of D&D, which puts a high emphasis on low tech, imagination, and DIY. The game itself is not much more than a set of basic mechanics and rules, all of which are negotiable to some extent, or can be easily modified to suit various gameplay needs. It's basically a more organized version of telling stories around the campfire. Trying to monetize something like that with movies and restrictive content licenses, given the kinds of people who are drawn to it especially in the 2020s, seems like a fundamentally doomed effort. You can sell new campaigns and sourcebooks, rulebooks for new editions, dice, software subscriptions for VTTs and platforms like D&D Beyond, and branded merchandise like posters, t-shirts, Funko Pop dolls, etc. That seems like a good enough situation to me, but I expect that there are few enough dedicated players, and fewer still who are likely to be repeat customers, that a large corporation like Hasbro might it feel like it's an unsatisfactory revenue source. Personally I think they would do much better by just trying to sell more D&D related stuff, but there are apparently some real knuckleheads working at Hasbro who have no idea how to market to this audience.
  - starkparker 4y ago
    The fundamental monetization problem of the TTRP is pretty well understood, even by Hasbro. 80% of the audience are players and have little to no reason to buy more than the Player's Handbook. 20% of the audience are DMs who drive most of the sourcebook and accessory revenue. They've explicitly said to monetize they have to find better ways to exploit players on the same level as DMs.
  - wrp 4y ago
    When D&D took off in the in 1970s, they published novels set in the D&D world, which made them a lot of money. Their problem with the novels was that they refused to pay their top talent enough to keep them. Interesting article: Why is There No New D&D Fiction Being Published? (https://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2020/06/leaving-money-on-table-why-is-there-no.html https://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2020/06/leaving-money-on-ta...)
- Waterluvian 4y ago
  A Wand of Orcus that actually works.
- cjalmeida 4y ago
  I’d guess piña coladas, getting caught in the rain, champagne, making love at midnight in the dunes of the cape, and bars called O'Malley
- htag 4y ago
  I am in that demographic and have spent hundreds of dollars on official D&D stuff (maybe $600?). I'm into five digits when you look at my entire expenditure on table top gaming. I generally enjoy books and accessories for playing the game. I would consider paying extra for things like first edition books or limited run artwork. I am particularly drawn to anything rich in lore. I've spent easily twice that amount on third-party D&D related activities. Dice sets. Hiring artist to create visual representations of my personal characters. Buying Table Top Simulator. Going to D&D events. Bribing a DM with food/beer. That being said, the majority of the value I get from D&D are fan made given and shared for free. Custom campaigns my friends have ran. Stories about campaigns we tell each other. Bouncing around ideas for settings or NPCs. Artwork that gets passed around the internet. Min-Max and theory crafting builds that are posted in places like reddit. Without this I would have very minimal interest in D&D.
- ohgodplsno 4y ago
  LEGO doesn't sell their $500 kits to children: they go to 30 somethings with a shitload of money to blow. Harry Potter merch, wands go to a devoted fanbase, but most of the really expensive items go to 30 somethings with lots of money to blow. WotC put in minimum effort in printing a plastic wand of orcus in a sweatshop, barely puts anything cool with it, and wonders why it doesn't sell.

whitemary 4y ago

> They keep just missing the demographic of the lucrative rich middle aged adult looking for escape. I'm curious. What is this group more interested in? Exotic vacations?

antiterra 4y ago
More immersive escape. The skull wand replica idea is fine but an adult needs to be able to mentally role play that it’s a real thing. Think adults who go to Disneyland regularly or pay for the Star Wars resort thing.
nerdponx 4y ago
I think there is a fundamental monetization problem in that D&D players in my experience tend to be people who broadly gravitate towards anti-consumerist and anti-corporate tendencies in general. I think this is somewhat inherent in the design of D&D, which puts a high emphasis on low tech, imagination, and DIY. The game itself is not much more than a set of basic mechanics and rules, all of which are negotiable to some extent, or can be easily modified to suit various gameplay needs. It's basically a more organized version of telling stories around the campfire. Trying to monetize something like that with movies and restrictive content licenses, given the kinds of people who are drawn to it especially in the 2020s, seems like a fundamentally doomed effort. You can sell new campaigns and sourcebooks, rulebooks for new editions, dice, software subscriptions for VTTs and platforms like D&D Beyond, and branded merchandise like posters, t-shirts, Funko Pop dolls, etc. That seems like a good enough situation to me, but I expect that there are few enough dedicated players, and fewer still who are likely to be repeat customers, that a large corporation like Hasbro might it feel like it's an unsatisfactory revenue source. Personally I think they would do much better by just trying to sell more D&D related stuff, but there are apparently some real knuckleheads working at Hasbro who have no idea how to market to this audience.
- starkparker 4y ago
  The fundamental monetization problem of the TTRP is pretty well understood, even by Hasbro. 80% of the audience are players and have little to no reason to buy more than the Player's Handbook. 20% of the audience are DMs who drive most of the sourcebook and accessory revenue. They've explicitly said to monetize they have to find better ways to exploit players on the same level as DMs.
- wrp 4y ago
  When D&D took off in the in 1970s, they published novels set in the D&D world, which made them a lot of money. Their problem with the novels was that they refused to pay their top talent enough to keep them. Interesting article: Why is There No New D&D Fiction Being Published? (https://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2020/06/leaving-money-on-table-why-is-there-no.html https://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2020/06/leaving-money-on-ta...)
Waterluvian 4y ago
A Wand of Orcus that actually works.
cjalmeida 4y ago
I’d guess piña coladas, getting caught in the rain, champagne, making love at midnight in the dunes of the cape, and bars called O'Malley
htag 4y ago
I am in that demographic and have spent hundreds of dollars on official D&D stuff (maybe $600?). I'm into five digits when you look at my entire expenditure on table top gaming. I generally enjoy books and accessories for playing the game. I would consider paying extra for things like first edition books or limited run artwork. I am particularly drawn to anything rich in lore. I've spent easily twice that amount on third-party D&D related activities. Dice sets. Hiring artist to create visual representations of my personal characters. Buying Table Top Simulator. Going to D&D events. Bribing a DM with food/beer. That being said, the majority of the value I get from D&D are fan made given and shared for free. Custom campaigns my friends have ran. Stories about campaigns we tell each other. Bouncing around ideas for settings or NPCs. Artwork that gets passed around the internet. Min-Max and theory crafting builds that are posted in places like reddit. Without this I would have very minimal interest in D&D.
ohgodplsno 4y ago
LEGO doesn't sell their $500 kits to children: they go to 30 somethings with a shitload of money to blow. Harry Potter merch, wands go to a devoted fanbase, but most of the really expensive items go to 30 somethings with lots of money to blow. WotC put in minimum effort in printing a plastic wand of orcus in a sweatshop, barely puts anything cool with it, and wonders why it doesn't sell.