D&D publisher Hasbro backtracks on license changes that angered fans

After a week of backlash over proposed changes to the licensing agreement, Wizards of the Coast, the Hasbro-owned publisher of the influential Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) role-playing game, decided to put its gameplay mechanics into the hands of the public.

On Thursday, the company announced that it will release the “core mechanics of D&D” through a Creative Commons License. That’s “we give everyone the core mechanics. Forever.” WRITES Kyle Brink, the executive director of Dungeons and Dragonsin a post on Thursday, calling it a “decision we cannot change.”

It’s a pivot for Wizards of the Coast that follows backlash over potential changes to the company’s “Open Gaming License,” the agreement that allows third parties to use the company’s rules and even creative content in their own products.

For decades, companies have been able to use Wizards property for free, creating their own games that, at times, outsold the original product. But in early January, fans saw a leaked version in an updated agreement, which suggests that the Wizards want to regain control of the assets based on Dungeons and Dragons.

Fans and creators complained, with some tabletop game publishers swearing off Wizards of the Coast and D&D forever, likely forcing Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast to hastily withdraw Thursday.

Hasbro did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

What is an Open Game License?

Dungeons and Dragons is a tabletop role-playing game first published in 1974. The game allows players to create their own characters, in custom adventures designed according to the D&D ruleset and using a common set of settings, quests, and monsters. The game is considered to have sparked modern gaming, both inspiring other tabletop games and influencing the development of role-playing games.

Wizards of the Coast bought the original developers of D&D in 1997. The publisher itself was bought by Hasbro two years later. The company is also known for its trading card games: it makes Magic: the Gathering and was the original Western publisher of Pokémon trading card game.

In 2000, Wizards of the Coast released the “Open Game License,” which allowed third parties to use elements from the game, such as gameplay mechanics or creative content, in their own products.

With OGL, Wizards of the Coast presents itself as a supporter of innovation and creativity—while also ensuring that the company’s core product remains at the center of the tabletop gaming community. Austin Walker, IP director at studio Possibility Space and host of the tabletop gaming podcast Table friends, spoke to Washington Post that while many of the core concepts of D&D are not copyrightable, the OGL allows Wizards to “take a lot of creative energy” into the tabletop game.

What has changed?

Wizards of the Coast has spent much of the past six months preparing for its latest game iteration, titled “One D&D.” But while the company may be hoping that players will be more interested in changes to the game, people are more interested in changes to how the game can be licensed by the creators.

The leaked version of the new OGL, reported by io9suggests that Wizards of the Coast wants to regain control over third-party use of its property. The drafted agreement would void all previous agreements, requiring publishers to renegotiate with Wizards of the Coast to continue selling their products. This really limits what creators can do, restricting them more to tabletop games than to other media like videos or video games. All creators must register their works with Wizards of the Coast, and grant them an “irrevocable” license to their creations. And, finally, the most successful creators should pay royalties.

Independent publishers, already worried about Wizards of the Coast, said they would remove Wizards of the Coast entirely. Last Thursday, Paizo, which produced the successful Pathfinder games via OGL, SAYS it has “no interest whatsoever” in the new agreement.

However, Paizo said that it will develop a new license that would be “open, perpetual, and irrevocable,” which would “undoubtedly keep alive the spirit of the Open Game License.”

Fans too threatened boycott the upcoming movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor the Thieves, distributed by Paramount and based on the D&D property. The film is scheduled to release on March 31.

‘We beat 1’

As the backlash spread, Wizards of the Coast tried to do damage control.

On January 14, Wizards of the Coast said it did not properly explain the reason for the changes. “It’s clear from the reaction that we rolled a 1,” Brink wrote in a statementwhich refers to the dice rolls used to determine success or failure in tabletop games.

But fans remain unhappy with the Wizards’ half-hearted acceptance of responsibility. “You will hear people say that they won, and we lost because hearing your voices forced us to change our plans. Those people are only half right. They won—and so did we.” Brink WRITES.

When that failed to quell fan anger, the company’s tone became more apologetic. “Forgive us. We made a mistake,” Brink wrote on Wednesday, apologized for being “annoying to the creators” and “being quiet for too long.” Brink promised that the company would be more transparent about potential changes, and promised that the new license would not include royalty payments or affect ownership.

The new draft agreement, released Thursdayhas backtracked on numerous fan complaints, including royalty payments, financial reporting, and revoking permissions for already approved content.

‘Killing the golden goose’

Both Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro are facing a tougher economic environment. In October, Hasbro CUT OFF its full-year earnings forecast for 2022, predicting flat or even slightly negative earnings growth, citing a decline in consumer spending fueled by higher inflation. The company generated $1.68 billion in revenue in the most recent quarter, a 15% reduction year-to-year.

Wizards of the Coast reportedly canceled several video game projects based on its properties, including some based on Dungeons and Dragons, in early January.

Fans of other Wizards properties are unhappy with the publisher’s business decisions. Magic: the Gathering Players complained that the company was printing too many new cards. Fans were particularly unhappy with the company’s “30th Anniversary” set, which sold for a fortune a whopping $1000.

In late November, Bank of America down Hasbro to “underperform”, citing complaints from fans that the company overprinted cards. Bank of America warned the company was “killing the golden goose”, and suggested shares could fall by as much as a third. (Cynthia Williams, president of Wizards of the Coast, later said during a UBS event that there is no evidence that it is reprinting the cards, and that the high price of the cards in the primary and secondary markets is instead proof that the company is not meeting demand ).

Prices of trading cards rotating during the COVID pandemic, due to increased interest from stuck-at-home players and speculators hoping to make a return from rare cards. The Pokémon Company is printing nine billion cards by 2021 to lower sky high price.

Hasbro shares fell 4.1% on Thursday. The toy company’s shares are down 37.3% over the past year.



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