I've gathered a few folks in my DMs, but I'm in the process of writing something to submit to PG related to WotC. It'll cover MtG and DnD and maybe Pokemon, but I feel like MtG is going to be at the core of everything. Would greatly appreciate any input and relevant links. I'm trying to develop a timeline. The theme of the article will tracking how WotC went from this amazing industry that was incredible fun and enjoyment to eventually devolving into woke slop.
As of right now, I've set a focal point where I believe one could calculate a downward trajectory:
Triumph of Ferocity.
The complaint was that the card was sexist, like the new playmat, and showed disrespect for women in general and so on.
The complaint came amidst an influx of "new players."
We also know, around this time, video games and focused marketing were trying to break new ground among a new generation.
The claim was that the above image of Garruk choking Liliana had "triggered" people.
Elaine Chase, the Brand Director for Magic: The Gathering tweeted this in response:
"Regarding Triumph of Ferocity: Wizards and I apologize for the upsetting situation related to card imagery. In light of the community conversation it can clearly be viewed in a way that is in direct opposition the brand image we strive to maintain. This was absolutely not our intent, but intentions don’t override the real emotional reactions our fans have. While the bigger story provides context, individual cards are seen in isolation. That is the standard each card needs to live up to. In hindsight this story point could have been depicted in a less real-world related and emotionally charged way. We will take this as a learning opportunity and strive to do better in the future."
I don't know if this was archived. I cannot find the original tweet.
At any rate note at the end there the "...strive to do better..."
They're basically apologizing for nothing.
Now, from what I've gathered, this controversy also eventually led to the firing of one
Brady Dummermuth.
I don't know if this was archived. I cannot find the original post.
This also led to a major retcon of the characters and backstories known as 'Magic Origins'.
Although all the characters had major retcons, the most sited and controversial is a character named
Nissa Revane who was created as far back as 2009 as part of an elf deck:
Her conception was "a villainous...hardcore, staunch xenophobic person..." that would run an elf deck. Originally, Nissa was an elf-supremist, who had a 'my shit don't stink attitude'. The story elements made sense. Elves throughout fantasy history are usually hoity-toity assholes--even the ones in Tolkien's
The Lord of the Rings.
But all that was changed because they wanted a character who would "reflect our current values and blah blah blah..."
Note, this was back in
2015.
Other people I'm researching based on information from
@PaladinBoo are Terese Nielson, former MTG artist and one of their best who as fired by WotC due to her pro-Trump and "gender critical" beliefs. Boo also tells me Nielson is a lesbian which is noteworthy because of WotC's insistence that they value "diversity" despite the fact that fired her for wrong think.
Boo also has mentioned OGL, Pinkertons and AI Art. These are three thing are a lot of contention with players and their employees like Matthew Mercer.
Also,
@Syaoran Li has provided some input as well:
If I were to determine what the peak was in terms of raw sales and cultural relevance for D&D under WOTC's watch, I'd say it was the early days of 5e and a lot of their current presence is coasting off of that. This was in the mid-2010's (2014-2016), right when 5th Edition came out. 5th Edition had an open development and WOTC went out of their way to get feedback from their fans. And a lot of people liked it at first, even old-school guys who dropped off after TSR died. But there's a reason for that.
That's because D&D 4th Edition was a massive flop. 4e officially ended in 2014 but IIRC, the last actual 4e supplements came out in early 2012, right before the open playtests for 5e began. The history of D&D 4e is a whole clusterfuck in and of itself and is definitely worth mentioning in a thread. A lot of the drama surrounding 4e and its launch in the late 2000's was eerily similar to the current drama today.
Being a DnD nerd myself and having grown up with it, I agree with Syaoran Li about DnD under WOTC was at its best with 3e3.5.
Pathfinder 1e, the only RPG to ever consistently outsell D&D for a period of time was originally conceived as a retro-clone of D&D 3.5 for all the people who were pissed off over 4th Edition's changes.
Another friend of mine has made particular assessments about Mtg here which I plan on researching:
Being unfamiliar with the MtG scene, I've had to do a little dive into it and figure out what WotC have been doing to the community.
Related video:
These "premium stores" mentioned around 10:00 are probably another rabbit hole I'll have to dive into.
Also
relevant:
I'd appreciate all input. And source your stuff if you can; it'll probably go into the article if it's worthwhile.
