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12 months ago ::
Jul 13, 2012 - 12:22PM
#11
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nothing surprises me with them anymore. you cant assume anything. yes what youre saying is rational but keep in mind, these are the nincompoops who couldnt figure out how to market the vt. they are morons, but more than that, they would sell their mother out for a thin dime. so they are unpredictable in a sense but predictable in another: they dont give a damn about 4e players and will ALWAYS screw them over in the end. ALWAYS.
You do realize that both optimism and pessimism are unrealistic and somewhat irrational, right?
i didnt think i was being pessimistic. those are plain facts imo, sterile as an auto manual.
They seem facts to you because you are being a pessimist.
More sex and gender equality and racial equality shouldn't even be an argument--it should simply be an assumption for any RPG that wants to stay relevant in the 21st century.
I could say anything in D&D is silly though, because it's a silly game and we are silly people.
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12 months ago ::
Jul 14, 2012 - 10:29PM
#12
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Date Joined:
Jun 29, 2007
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The cancellation of the VTT ruined all hope I had of a continually supported online builder.
I am very glad I've been relying on my "loaded" offline one.
-O
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12 months ago ::
Jul 16, 2012 - 5:00PM
#13
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Date Joined:
Oct 18, 2009
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How likely is the continued use of the current CB after the switch?
Less likely than a bus full of supermodels stopping at your door to argue over your affections, I'd think. I'd much rather that didn't look to be the case, but it does.
Oh, good! Dude, that happens ALL the time, to me! Makes my wife all kinds of mad!
So many PCs, so little time...
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12 months ago ::
Jul 16, 2012 - 10:28PM
#14
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This thread has been moved by VCL request. If you have any questions, please contact: Customer Service
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12 months ago ::
Jul 17, 2012 - 6:13AM
#15
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Date Joined:
Sep 25, 2005
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Optimism & pessimism may be irrational, but cynicism is based on bitter experience. Wotan screwed over 3e fans for 4e. They don't seem to be doing anything differently this time around
"Today's headlines and history's judgment are rarely the same. If you are too attentive to the former, you will most certainly not do the hard work of securing the latter." -Condoleezza Rice
"My fellow Americans... I've just signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. Bombing begins in five minutes." - Ronald Reagan
This user has been brought to you by the letters "O-R-C" and the numbers "2, 3, 4, and 6"
Resident Pithed-Off Dragon
Poon Slayer of the House of Trolls
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12 months ago ::
Jul 22, 2012 - 12:13AM
#16
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Calm down folks. The online builder is going to stay around for a while. If it is essential to your game then I would advise you make sure you wrap up your current campaigns sometime this year. It would make no sense for WotC to remove it until the launch of fifth edition.
What I expect to happen is that sometime later this year the Insider membership will either become free to all or just go away and the online tools will become free to use for a while. Then at the launch of fifth edition or shortly thereafter they will simply be gone. The "Online" component of DDI is a big turn-off to many of the fans that aren't playing the current game. I fully expect that there will be no comparable character builder for fifth edition at the time of the game launch. For the "old school feel" marketing element and just because it will be cheaper for them it makes total sense to not have the builder. They didn't have the builder at the launch of 4E and they are still missing many of the promised elements of DDI that we have all paid for during the entire run of fourth edition. It may be pessimism but DDI has largely failed for WotC and for us, the customers. I will miss the Compendium more-so than the builder.
Once it becomes free to use it will be a lot easier for them to throw it out. Expect it.
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12 months ago ::
Jul 22, 2012 - 5:28PM
#17
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I haven't paid a penny for missing features. I've paid for things that are there, that I use all the time.
Further, the statement that DDI has been a failure is a controversial statement. Please back it up with proof or retract.
More sex and gender equality and racial equality shouldn't even be an argument--it should simply be an assumption for any RPG that wants to stay relevant in the 21st century.
I could say anything in D&D is silly though, because it's a silly game and we are silly people.
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12 months ago ::
Jul 22, 2012 - 8:37PM
#18
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Date Joined:
May 12, 2009
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DDi could be an even better money making machine if they want to.
Keep the current offering. Add new Tools for 5E in DDi.
You keep your current customers wether they play 5E or not, all while gaining new 5E customers.
Sales increase and everyone is happy.
Who'd want to drop a $200K/month revenue ? I doubt operational cost render DDi not profitable. I could be wrong but i think they will keep DDi running.
Yan
Montréal, Canada
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12 months ago ::
Jul 22, 2012 - 10:28PM
#19
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Yeah, seriously. Even if we assume that there's fewer people with DDI subs than are in the DDI community group, say, 50k, and that all of them are being frugal and doing a year at a time for 80/year, that's $4,000,000 a year.
If we consider the fact that many are probably doing 3 months at a time, and a few are even paying month to month, and that the numbers were almost certainly higher than they are before 5e was announced, then the idea that DDI isn't profitable is completely absurd.
I rather doubt we'll see a lack of online tools and services for 5e.
Hell, I think they've even said that they're going to be doing some kind of digital stuff, but haven't decided what it's all going to look like yet.
More sex and gender equality and racial equality shouldn't even be an argument--it should simply be an assumption for any RPG that wants to stay relevant in the 21st century.
I could say anything in D&D is silly though, because it's a silly game and we are silly people.
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11 months ago ::
Aug 08, 2012 - 3:01PM
#20
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Date Joined:
Dec 17, 2005
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It would be absolutely moronic for WotC to fully eliminate the 4E DDI support. Regardless of what people think, it IS a profitable, or necessary to keep total profits high. In the Hay-day of 3.5, D&D was worth just 30 million a year. Since that time, we have seen a marked decline in sales with Pathfinder swooping in taking a lot of potential business away from WotC. WotC needs a way to make good, honest, consistent money in a revenue stream that does not involve selling books. DDI is perfect for that! You rope people into paying X amount of money every month. It may not be much on an individual basis but over the course of the year, it really adds up. Bare bones, WotC is probably making 3 million a year off the DDI after you factor in full time tech/employee salaries and Freelancer fees (the main staff has to write content for the DDI, so their salaries are covered else where). 3 million a year could easily cover the loses WotC has seen to Paizo (especially once you factor in all the cuts the D&D staff has seen over the last few years).
There's no way WotC is going to abandon that revenue stream on the off chance a horde of new people will join up for the 5E content. I fully expect WotC to maintain the 4E tools as they stand today and grant access to them if you are a DDI subscriber. The only difference is that the links to the tools will be shoved off in some odd corner of the web site, far away from where the 5E players' prying eyes. That's not the worst thing in the world, really.
What this solution allows is for WotC to continue to tap the old revenue stream of 4E players while forcing them to pay for all the new 5E content. Not a bad plan, is it?
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