At GAMA this year, Wizards of the Coast had a D&D Breakfast where they outlined their strategy for the future of D&D and the D&D Miniatures line.
GamingReport.com posted the slides they displayed, and later I transcribed them for ENworld readers. I’m now going to copy them to here so that I’ve got a record somewhere on my site of what they said.
I found looking at the entire presentation to be very interesting – I hope you will find it so as well.
Stage I Goal: Acquire New Players
Acquisition Marketing: Try!
* Purchase Basic Game or Starter Set
Stage I Consumer:
* Profile
– Interested in D&D (6.1 million “potential” players)
* Migration Goals:
– introduce the basic concepts of the D&D brand
– teach roleplaying concepts
– enter D&D with a playable character
* Products
– D&D Basic game
– D&D Miniatures Starter Set
– Young Reader Novels
Roleplaying: the D&D Basic Game
* The ideal product to introduce new players to roleplaying
* Gently guides new players from their expectations of a “normal” board game into D&D’s more unusual concepts
* Product content, component quality, and price point comparable to mainstream board games
* A no-compromises acquisition product
D&D Basic Game – $24.95
September 2004
10-1/2″ x 11-1/2″ x 2-1/2″ boxed set
Contents:
– two 8 page full color starter rulebooks
– 4 double-sided boardlike map tiles
– 16 miniatures
– character cards
– advanced rulebook
– dice
D&D Miniatures
* Miniatures are a brand-extension
– Provide a new way to play
– Provide RPG accessories
* D&D Miniatures will always be
– playable out of the box
– iconic D&D characters and monsters
– linked with other D&D products
* D&D Miniatures will always provide
– fast, competitive play with miniatures
– ready to use D&D monsters and characters
D&D Miniatures Starter Set
* Provides everything needed to get started
– 40-page rule book
– 16 figures
– battlegrid map
– d20
– damage counters
* Entry point for potential players
– competitive play
– familiar-looking experience
– introduces d20 rules system
Young Reader Novels
* Draw tweens into fantasy
* Readers energised by Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings films
* Mirrorstone Books – new imprint
* Knights of the Silver Dragon
– entry level, ages 8-12
– Hardy Boys meets LotR in the dungeon
* Dragonlance: the New Adventures
– ages 10-12
– recurring teenage cast of adventurers
* Knights of the Silver Dragon
– Secrets of the Spiritkeeper (August)
– Riddle in Stone (August)
– $5.99, digest size, 192 pages
– readers can become Knights themselves
* Dragonlance: the New Adventures
– Temple of the Dragonslayer (July)
– The Dying Kingdom (July)
– $5.99, digest size, 256 pages
Acquisition Marketing: Capture Tweens and Teens
* Large-scale mainstream marketing push
* Year-long PR campaign to build awareness and modify negative brand perceptions
* Turn potential players into active customers
– game demos at Worldwide D&D Game Day
– interactive web demo supported by 3 waves of print and online advertising
– over 47 million impressions
Stage II Goals: Retain and Migrate Players
In-Product Cross-Promo: Buy!
* Purchase core rules, accessories and mini boosters
Stage II Consumer
* Profile
– comfortable with roleplaying concepts
* Migration Goals
– play and purchase regularly
* Products
– RPG Core rulebooks
– roleplaying accessories
– D&D Miniatures booster packs
– novels
Roleplaying: Core Rulebooks
* The heart of D&D
– Player’s Handbook
– Dungeon Master’s Guide
– Monster Manual
* Compatible with all Third Edition supplements
Roleplaying: Accessories
* Accessories are items that aid play without increasing sophistication
* Encourage active players to make incremental purchases
– Deluxe Character Sheets and Deluxe DM Screen
– D&D Dice
– Map Folio I and Map Folio II
– Miniatures
Map Folio I
* April 2004
* $9.95
* 64 page folio with folder
* beautiful maps allow DMs to quickly illustrate movement and clarify gameplay
* Map Folio II and Map Folio 3-D to follow in 2004
Miniatures: Booster Packs
* Aimed at all D&D fans
* Provide additional game-play utility
– new creatures for competitive warbands
– RPG adventures feature creatures from sets
– battle mats and maps
– playsets and scenarios
* Collectible D&D
– exclusive iconic characters drawn from 30 years of D&D
D&D Miniatures: Giants of Legend
* July 2004
* Huge Pack ($19.99)
– 9 random, pre-painted miniatures
+ regular assortment, plus 1 Huge
* 72 Figures in set
– Huge-sized creatures
– Giants, older dragons
– Legendary characters
Novels: Forgotten Realms
* The Two Swords by R.A. Salvatore (October)
– $25.95, hardcover
– Completes the Hunter’s Blades Trilogy (The Thousand Orcs; The Lone Drow)
– The Lone Drow spent ten weeks on the NYT best-seller list
* R.A. Salvatore’s War of the Spider Queen series
– $24.95; hardcover
– Extinction by Lisa Smedman (January)
– Annihiliation by Phil Athans (July)
– Cover Art by Brom
Stage II: Retention Marketing: Driving Player Purchases
* Increase player participation in RPGA events
– miniatures retail OP program launched in January
– full summer convention season of events
– RPGA Player Rewards program
* Encourage players to become DMs
– RPGA GM-University program
– revamped Dragon and Dungeon magazines
* Turn players into brand evangelists
– worldwide “Learn to play D&D” Game Day
– bring-a-friend program
* Nine month integrated PR and ad campaign
– 3 waves of print and online advertising
– over 10 million impressions
Stage III Goal: Retain and Migrate Players
Repeat purchase behaviour: supplements and settings
Retention Marketing: Invest
Stage III Consumer:
* Profile
– plays regularly
– involved in D&D as a hobby (“lifestyle”)
* Migration Goals
– retain player
– increase purchase behaviour
* Products
– rules supplement
– campaign settings
Roleplaying: Supplements and Campaign Settings
* Supplements increase the sophistication and scope of the game
* Campaign settings and products provide a game world in which to set play
* Both promote repeat-purchase model – they encourage players to buy more stuff!
Roleplaying: Supplements
* All Supplement are now organized into series
* Series structure helps players decide “what to buy next”
* Each series has a unique (but distinctly D&D) trade dress
* Existing backlist will be made compatible with series structure in reprint
2004 Releases
– Rulesbuilder series
* Unearthed Arcana (February)
* Expanded Psionics (April)
* Planar Handbook (July)
– Hero series: Complete Divine (May)
– Race series: Races of Stone (August)
– Environment series: Frostburn (September)
– Creature series: Libris Mortis (October)
– Genre series and others
Roleplaying: Campaign Settings
* Comprehensive sourcebooks of unique worlds aimed at dedicated players
* Eberron:
– Eberron Campaign Setting (June)
– Shadows of the Last War adventure (July)
– Heavy cross-category support continues through 2004, 2005 and beyond
* Forgotten Realms
– Player’s Guide to Faerun (March)
– Serpent Kingdoms (July)
Expanded Psionics Handbook
* March 2004
* $34.95
* 224-page hardcover
* New rules for psionics and psionic characters
* Expands the usefulness of psionics and makes it easier for DMs
Monster Manual III
* September 2004
* $34.95
* 224-page hardcover
* Nearly 200 new monsters
* New easier-to-access format makes this the most useful monster supplement yet!
Eberron Campaign Setting
* June 2004
* $39.95
* 288-page hardcover
* D&D’s exciting new campaign setting, the first in more than five years
* Fully supported: three supplements to follow in 2004 alone
Retention Marketing: Celebration Events
* Origins
– D&D Timeline Exhibition debut
* Gen Con
– “Epic Level” party
– D&D-sponsored “True Dungeon”
* Worldwide “Learn to play D&D” Game Day
– POP materials and demo kits available
– Advertising and PR will draw new customers
Retention Marketing: Promote Eberron
* Sneak Peaks
– First exclusive preview at Winter Fantasy
– “Countdown to Eberron” preview articles in Dragon
– Web previews
* Pre-order promotion
– Free warforged minis for your customers
– Drives Eberron Campaign Setting sales
* Print and online advertising
– 2 waves, over summer and fall
– over 6 million impressions
Thirty Years of Adventure: A Celebration of Dungeons & Dragons
* Coffee table book releases in October 2004
– 320 pages
– will include text and short sidebars from celebrities from the gaming world and beyond
– extensive photographs and artwork throughout
* Great tool for spreading the word about D&D
For those waiting on the rest of my D&D Miniatures lists, I’ll get to them tomorrow!
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