Here's what Dragon and Dungeon gave their lives for

Posts: 4542 · Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 9:18 am

jasonw1239 wrote:

Here is a sample of Hasbro's "way of thinking". Monopoly - the movie...

http://www.nypost.com/seven/06172007/news/nationalnews/dice_roll_on_mo nopoly_film_nationalnews_christine_field.htm

And of course the advice from their consultants:

"Casting agency William Morris told the company that it would take sexy stars to make the unlikely film a worldwide hit."

"Everyone has played Monopoly in one version or another so, hopefully, they would be curious about how it translates to the screen,"

This tells me that if they have a product in their catalog, they do not care what core fans think.
Like all good multi-nationals the bottom line is wringing every penny from the husk this fiscal period, collecting your bonus and moving on... Evil or Very Mad

It doesn't sound like they even have a story....and they are simply floating names of stars out there to see if there is any interest. In my experience, putting the cart before the horse in movie making leads to abyssmal failure. We should all pray horrific failure on this project, anything that could possilbly lead to Hasbro losing buckets of money and therefore perhaps divesting itself of the D&D brand should be commended....

Mike B.

Posts: 3999 · Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 10:41 am

Badmike wrote:

In my experience, putting the cart before the horse in movie making leads to abyssmal failure.

Mike B.

Like, for instance, casting a Wayans brother in a fantasy movie? Mad

Posts: 318 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 12:57 am

No, casting Rosie O'Donnell to replace Bob Barker as host of "The Price Is Right!" Twisted Evil

Posts: 17 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 1:52 pm

Meh. Gleemax is just another in a series of WotC initiatives targeted at a demographic I'm no longer part of.

EDIT: Let's try this again....

Anyway, except for the some of the new OSRIC product and some of RJK's stuff, I've completely given up on the idea of buying new product for D&D, so this really is no big deal to me anyway. Let 4e in all it's digital WoW-wannabee glory come and go, who cares? If I get tired of AD&D and B/X D&D, I'll go play RQ2 or Classic Traveller, or MA/GW. Couldn't care less if WotC ever produces another D&D product in any form.

I think one of the biggest shames is the way Wizbro handled the AH catalog. WTF? I mean, really?

Posts: 1200 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:01 pm

Hasbro - WOTC press release

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=ne ws_view&newsId=20070611005678&newsLang=en

Quote:

In addition to the Advisory Board’s industry thought leaders, to kick off the launch celebration, WotC is making an Open Casting Call to select a few players to sit on the Advisory Board, ensuring the hobby and tabletop gamers and fans are represented on the board. The selection process will be a reality TV style contest run through Gleemax.com over the course of the summer. Bringing player members onto the Advisory Board reinforces WotC’s long-standing tradition of engaging with its consumers to ensure their thoughts, opinions and voices are heard.

Sounds like something out of a Dilbert strip... "industry thought leaders".

Posts: 1117 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:06 pm

Quote:

The selection process will be a reality TV style contest run through Gleemax.com over the course of the summer.

You know, whenever I think that this idea has hit bottom, WotC announces that they've found a new shovel... Rolling Eyes

Posts: 2616 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:19 pm

I had planned on taking a few days off from all forums/gaming sites/search portals, etc., but ... I'm sorry, I just can't not comment on this:

WotC geniuses wrote:

The selection process will be a reality TV style contest run through Gleemax.com over the course of the summer.

Actually, I'm not sure that I should add a comment ... nothing I could say here would be funnier than the sentence quoted above. It's just taking the concept of "stupid" to previously unknown planes of existence.

And let's not forget that every single initiative that WotC has launched, barring one, has resulted in failure (often in spectacular fashion). They caught lightning in a bottle with Magic:TG ... and here we all are 13 or so years later paying the price.

Posts: 1200 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:28 pm

Hey X if you think that's funny, get a load of Hasbro's PR firm home page.

http://foghornpr.com/

Laughing

Posts: 17 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:31 pm

jasonw1239 wrote:

Hey X if you think that's funny, get a load of Hasbro's PR firm home page.

http://foghornpr.com/

Laughing

Well, that certainly explains some of the stupider market campaigns put forth by Sun Microsystems....

Posts: 1200 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:31 pm

Hasbro press release from today listing their "core brands".

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=ne ws_view&newsId=20070619005856&newsLang=en

Quote:

HPG, the licensing division of Hasbro, Inc., (NYSE:HAS), translates one of the industry’s richest portfolios of brands into a world of fun and excitement for children and adults globally. Through a host of publishing, digital media, lifestyle and entertainment platforms, HPG is able to surround fans worldwide with consumer products that expand Hasbro’s core brands, such as TRANSFORMERS, LITTLEST PET SHOP, MY LITTLE PONY, MONOPOLY, G.I. JOE, TONKA and PLAYSKOOL.

No mention of any of their role playing products or even MTG. It seems that to them D&D has become a footnote in their catalog.

Posts: 17 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:37 pm

jasonw1239 wrote:

It seems that to them D&D has become a footnote in their catalog.

What do you mean "become"? It was simply along for the ride when they bought WotC for the Pokemon CCG.

Posts: 2616 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:41 pm

jasonw1239 wrote:

No mention of any of their role playing products or even MTG. It seems that to them D&D has become a footnote in their catalog.

Honestly, I understand this one a little bit better. We might think that 3e/d20 has taken over the world, but the reality is that it's a niche product (role-playing) within a niche part of Hasborg's operation (games). I would guess that the sales figures for their most popular toy lines would dwarf anything ever seen in the history of gaming, Magic:TG included.

Posts: 2338 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 4:06 pm

Xaxaxe wrote:

I would guess that the sales figures for their most popular toy lines would dwarf anything ever seen in the history of gaming, Magic:TG included.

Exactly, do you think they are going to sell more player's handbooks or transformers this summer? I would be really curious to what the numbers are though.

Posts: 2635 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 10:21 pm

Xaxaxe wrote:

And let's not forget that every single initiative that WotC has launched, barring one, has resulted in failure (often in spectacular fashion).

Thanks for explaining it in a way that true roleplayers can understand -- they lost initiative. Again. Laughing

Posts: 3999 · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 11:36 pm

Xaxaxe wrote:

I had planned on taking a few days off from all forums/gaming sites/search portals, etc., but ... I'm sorry, I just can't not comment on this:

Actually, I'm not sure that I should add a comment ... nothing I could say here would be funnier than the sentence quoted above. It's just taking the concept of "stupid" to previously unknown planes of existence.

And let's not forget that every single initiative that WotC has launched, barring one, has resulted in failure (often in spectacular fashion). They caught lightning in a bottle with Magic:TG ... and here we all are 13 or so years later paying the price.

Actually, you're also paying the price for Pokemon.

Posts: 2616 · Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 7:41 pm

FormCritic wrote:

Actually, you're also paying the price for Pokemon.

Sure, but I find Magic much more galling. That was a WotC product that, I swear to all that is holy, struck gold more due its timing than its greatness as a game. I honestly think a lot of RGPers and general gamers were just bored silly with D&D and the other options available in 1994.

Anyway, don't get me started on that ... Smile

Pokemon, while putting a lot of money in Wizards' pockets, was not their design; it was an extremely successful Japanese game long before it ever hit these shores. All Wizards had to do was not mess up a free lunch.

I still say that WotC has not launched a single successful property since Magic:TG. But I can name 15 failures off the top of my head.

Oh, and ... uh ... let's see ... Gleemax sucks! Smile

Posts: 272 · Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 10:23 pm

I used to report Pokemon auctions that were posted in the D&D category. Small world.

Posts: 1291 · Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 1:05 am

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RPGA-Promotional-Gleemax-Brain-Wizards-of-the-Co ast_W0QQitemZ150132871928QQihZ005QQcategoryZ44111QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

everyone should have one! (seemingly wotc don't Very Happy

)

Posts: 2130 · Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 1:11 am

Xaxaxe wrote:

Sure, but I find Magic much more galling. That was a WotC product that, I swear to all that is holy, struck gold more due its timing than its greatness as a game. I honestly think a lot of RGPers and general gamers were just bored silly with D&D and the other options available in 1994.

Anyway, don't get me started on that ... Smile

Pokemon, while putting a lot of money in Wizards' pockets, was not their design; it was an extremely successful Japanese game long before it ever hit these shores. All Wizards had to do was not mess up a free lunch.

I still say that WotC has not launched a single successful property since Magic:TG. But I can name 15 failures off the top of my head.

Oh, and ... uh ... let's see ... Gleemax sucks! Smile

I do not want to mess up a great WotC (Hasbo) bashing but they have released some very successful games. D&D mini's for one, Star Wars mini's for another and the new Avalon Hill Board games are very popular as well.

Let us remember that they saved the D&D brand from insolvency, carried on with Gencon, kept publishing Dungeon and Dragon for a few years, pulled ASL out of the gutter and probably a few other things as well. Not all things are negative about them Smile

Gleemax is still a very stupid idea so far Very Happy

Posts: 102 · Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 1:32 pm

Blackmoor wrote:

I do not want to mess up a great WotC (Hasbo) bashing but they have released some very successful games. D&D mini's for one, Star Wars mini's for another and the new Avalon Hill Board games are very popular as well.

Let us remember that they saved the D&D brand from insolvency, carried on with Gencon, kept publishing Dungeon and Dragon for a few years, pulled ASL out of the gutter and probably a few other things as well. Not all things are negative about them Smile

Gleemax is still a very stupid idea so far Very Happy

All true, but I have a feeling that the gamers at WotC are marginalized in favor of the folks with the marketing degrees. TSR, for all its faults, was run by gamers, which, while not good from a business aspect, ensured that their products were actually useful for the game.

I guess what they really need is the balance between the two.