How Bad Is the New Wizards D&D 4e Game System License?

Well, I wrote about its flaws. But don’t take my word for it. Many every respected game designer/indie game companies are looking at this and seeing a barrel of suck pointed right at them.

Sean K. Reynolds is pretty direct about how sad and restrictive it is.

Highmoon Media says it sucks and won’t be using it.

Postmortem Studios sees a lot of problems with it and has a cartoon equating it to … Well, you’re going to have to go see for yourself, but think “anal.”

Paizo Publishing is very happy they decided to jump ship early.

Wolfgang Baur notes that the GSL is “terrible” for Kobold Quarterly

Green Ronin is debating what to do, but is clearly disappointed in the friendliness of the GSL. [Update: They rejected it.]

Kenzer & Co is going to avoid 4e.

Mongoose Publishing plans on some 4e support, but the inability to publish any 4e articles in their Signs & Portents magazine is a wrinkle.

Post more statements from game designers/companies in the Comments section as you run across them!

10 responses to “How Bad Is the New Wizards D&D 4e Game System License?

  1. Monte Cook called it a “slap in the face” in his on LiveJournal.

  2. My favourite part of the whole thing is their ability to see something you’ve created, yoink that idea and base a book around it and then tell you to stop making your version of it and destroy all the existing copies on the basis that they have a product that it competes with.

    I can definately see it happening where a 3pp product, by sheer coincidence (or by what WotC says is pure coincidence) is similar to a WotC product and gets out the door first. Suddenly, Wotc releases their version and orders yours destroyed and existing copies pulled off the shelf before you can recoup your production and printing costs. So now WotC has a selling product and you have a great deal of debt to pay off and possibly a ruined company.

    You’d have to be insanely self destructive to even consider siging the GSL…

  3. Pingback: Evilhell.Net » After ruining D&D, WotC gives OGL devs the finger

  4. Sad. There were a few d20 products which weren even fit for circulation on internet fan sites, but most of the stuff was very good.

    Scarred Lands, Midnight, Monte’s stuff – some of the best D&D books I own are from 3rd party publishers. They are really screwing it up big time ..

    Read my 4E critique at
    http://www.evilhell.net/?p=635

    Join the “4E sucks” group on facebook
    http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=51821815523

  5. Deep 7 says no to the GSL (see James S’s post): http://ogrecave.com/2008/06/17/dd-4e-gsl-surfaces/

  6. Heyoka Studios (http://heyokastudios.blogspot.com/) has decided to forgo 4e and go Pathfinder for their system.

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  8. Pingback: Forked Thread: 4E 3rd party support VS. other games - EN World D&D / RPG News

  9. Pingback: Wizards Releases Revised GSL - Is It Better? « Geek Related

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