The wildly derided Fourth Edition of Dungeons & Dragons has rolled a critical miss as Hasbro, parent company of RPG/CCG producer Wizards Of The Coast have announced that work has begun on a Fifth Edition.
Fourth Edition was criticised for abandoning the roleplaying in favour of simplistic combat mechanics, in order to try and build a new audience for the traditional roleplaying titan in a world dominated by fantasy MMOs like World Of Warcraft, CCGs like Wizards Of The Coast’s own Magic: The Gathering, and table-top wargames like Games Workshop’s hugely popular Warhammer.
Keen to do right by the fans, Wizards Of The Coast are crowd-sourcing their playtesting of the Fifth Edition rules.
The game “is a unique entertainment experience because it’s crafted by the players at the table, and every gaming session is different,” said Liz Schuh, who directs publishing and licensing for Dungeons & Dragons, to the New York Times. “We want to take that idea of the players crafting that experience to the next level and say: ‘Help us craft the rules. Help us craft how this game is played.’
“We’re really lucky that we have such passionate fans,” Schuh said, “and we anticipate they’ll roll up their sleeves and help us in this effort.”
