r/DungeonsAndDragons • u/Old_Man_Logan_X • 26d ago

Secret Level Episode 1 Suggestion

I highly suggest watching this if you’re able. Great episode 👍

913 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

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u/The_Lost_Jedi DM 26d ago

It was amazing, though I was left wanting more, much more.

It's crazy that we don't get more fiction and shows. The movie was great, but somehow D&D gets blamed for the studio's screwups (the marketing was off, and it was released in an absolutely awful spot sandwiched between John Wick and Mario, for starters). Meanwhile Critical Role's animated series is a huge success, and people are tossing money to squeeze out more sequels from properties like Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones.

But we still can't get D&D ones.

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u/fettpett1 26d ago

Hasbro can't seem to get their heads out of their asses for any animated series not named MLP or Transformers. Magic has been in development hell for almost a decade, even if it's back on track now it should have been out 2 years ago...D&D lore is prefect for animated series even if it's an anthology one...or they do Drangonlance or Forgotten Realms

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u/The_Lost_Jedi DM 26d ago

I think the basic problem is that they've fixated way too much on trying to use media as advertisements to sell the game directly. Which, yes, on some level it's going to be, but when you expressly and openly see it only as that, it tends to fall flat.

Transformers and MLP both have had good stories told via movies/tv/comics etc, and then by the sheer fact that there is merchandise of both, more toys get sold.

WotC/Hasbro really fucked up when they killed their novels division, because that had a ton of impact in getting D&D into the public consciousness. TV/etc would do even more. Get people interested in the worlds, the places, the characters - the sales will follow.

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u/magusjosh 26d ago

I feel compelled, as a Transformers fan, to point out that no mainstream Transformers series (Rescue Bots appears to have dodged this by having big name characters only appear as cameos) - no matter how well it was doing - has lasted more than three seasons in the past 25 years, and were mostly cancelled because Michael Bay didn't want his movies competing with them. And of the last three, two were made as cheaply as possible (one even going so far as to hire only non-union voice "talents"), and the third appears to have been cancelled for...reasons...

So Hasbro can't get their head out of their collective ass for that either. Just in a different way.

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u/DifficultAd7398 25d ago

Joe Magellano was doing a live action show for Dragonlance and they pulled the plug on it. Joe released a statement and you could tell he was mad about it being cancelled

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u/fettpett1 25d ago

Yeah, ik...just shows how incompetent Hasbro is becoming

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u/DifficultAd7398 25d ago

It just sucks they can't seem to do anything good lately. Although the collab with lego has been great the DnD set is great and the DnD collectible minifigure series is awesome. Hopefully it will lead to more sets.

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u/fettpett1 25d ago

It would have been better if it was cheaper...but yeah

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u/Maduin1986 26d ago

How about a dark sun one?

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u/-DethLok- 26d ago

Or Greyhawk, there's heaps of lore in that setting as well.

But Dark Sun, with slavery and an overall 'everyone is evil' kind of feel? Not terribly mainstream media friendly.

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u/The_Lost_Jedi DM 26d ago

Arguably you could, if the setting was portrayed as something the heroes are fighting against - but WotC/Hasbro seems very hesitant to take even the slightest of risks even in terms of what they publish just as game books.

That said though, I do think they should be focusing first on the more 'mainline' and better known settings, because regular non-fans see whatever and think that's what D&D is all about, etc.

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u/-DethLok- 26d ago

Agreed, and I don't think the Book of Vile Darkness would be published today...

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u/vu1xVad0 17d ago

But Dark Sun, with slavery and an overall 'everyone is evil' kind of feel? Not terribly mainstream media friendly.

You mean like Game of Thrones? :D

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u/-DethLok- 17d ago

Well, yes, I guess! :)

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u/fettpett1 26d ago

WotC thinks it's too "problematic"

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u/Maduin1986 26d ago

Wotc and hasbro are too problematic

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u/fettpett1 26d ago

Yes, I'm just answering your question lol....