Ugh, Again.

And so, another era in D&D ends.

I’m not sure what exactly to think about this.  I understand that print media is not what it once was.  I understand that Dungeon and Dragon may not have been the most profitable aspects of the business, but they are one of the oldest.  I understand that the game is going to go on regardless.

I also understand that WotC hasn’t said they’re dropping the magazines forever.  Really, all this announcement says is that Paizo’s license to publish them has ceased.  WotC’s statement implies that content for these magazines may move into some online form, although it could just refer to the content on the Wizards’ D&D pages.  And, Paizo is going to start putting out Pathfinder, which smells a lot like a revamped Dungeon magazine, and should meet expectations, content-wise. 

People everywhere are freaking out.

I guess this is the double-edged sword about the OGL and 3E;  ultimately, WotC can bring as much as they want back into their fold, and do with it what they want.  Ceasing publication of the longest-running D&D magazines may be a misstep.  Time will tell.  I, for one, haven’t subscribed to Dragon or Dungeon, but I intend to subscribe to Pathfinder on principle.

One comforting piece of truth is that Peter bought GenCon, rather than licensing it.  As long as it remains profitable, we’ll still have the oldest of the D&D institutions.