Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling

geekwire.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

121–130 of 387 posts

Re: Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling

#121

Post by solardev »

bugglebeetle wrote: post #115
dumpsterlid wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We just need to move on from DnD to other IPs at this point, it is absurdly clear that everyone putting all their eggs in the basket with wizards of the coast and it is just a bad idea. There are plenty of fantastic alternatives, we really don’t need the DnD universe. I mean, as highly acclaimed as BG3 is, people in general seem to feel that the dev’s previous game Divinity Original Sin 2 has better combat mechanics……

> Divinity Original Sin 2 has better combat mechanics While I think the combat in 5E combat in BG3 is fairly simple by comparison, DOS2 combat was definitely not better. All combat devolved into status effect versions of “the floor is lava” and a lot of builds become unviable late game.

You didn't like the environmental interactions? I thought it was awesome how the "floor is lava" could quickly become "the air is now noxious gas / steam / full of lava elementals", how undead and the living react to elements different, etc. But it's really more that the action points system gave you a lot more tactical flexibility than the D&D "attack/cast + move" limits.

Still, though, I loved the different builds in both games :) When Original Sin first came out, I made a wine barrel build that just had an insanely strong level 1 character with telekinesis and no other skills... he could insta-kill any enemy in a single turn just by throwing 600 kg wine barrels at them. Or in BG3 how you could have a party of shovers that just throw people off cliffs.

Re: Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling

#123

Post by solardev »

dragontamer wrote: post #117
solardev wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It sounds like you don't know what to look for in Drafts. [snip] Yeah, exactly. It's that whole meta-game I have zero interest in (competitive card-picking, as opposed to competitive card-playing). Just different strokes for different folks and all that. > I'd say the main problem with Draft is the unbalanced nature of it all. [...] But if everyone at the table is of roughly the same skill level, its a great format…

> Now it's just the same set of a few hundred cards, but keep still come up with new metas without spending more money. That's called a "Cube" in Magic the Gathering. https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/feature/building-your-firs... https://mtg.fandom.com/wiki/Cube_Draft We draft Cubes from our old collections all the time, to help recycle our older cards. > That makes sense, especially in MTG where there are like 20,0…

> That's called a "Cube" in Magic the Gathering.

It wasn't super clear to me from that article, but does this mean everyone drafts from the same cube (like you combine cards and then everyone draws from them)? Or does everyone make their own cubes?

I think a difference there (vs a limited number of cards in the game, period) is being able to realistically know all the cards that can be played. There's not this surprise of "what, I didn't even know this ridiculous card exists" -- everyone's seen all the cards, dozens if not hundreds of times -- but it's up to them to create new and interesting combinations of those same cards. It's more chess-like in that way and less of an arms race.

> You don't draft booster-cards from all of MtG. A Draft is innately around the ~300ish cards of some set. Lost Caverns of Ixalan only consists of 291 cards.

Right, but that only lasts a few months, right? Or is it weeks now? Getting 291 unique cards would require many cases of cards (and thousands of dollars, probably?)... I tried that for one cycle and then stopped after realizing how expensive it gets, and how quickly too.

Re: Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling

#124

Post by Supermancho »

AndrewKemendo wrote: post #64

Prepare for the enshittification and bedbathandbeyonding of Magic the gathering. If I had to make a guess as to why, given the fact that the people they laid off were all senior leaders and the numbers are good, it would be preparing for a pump and dump. if you want to be able to pump and dump a really strong brand then you need to be able to have leaders who don’t mind burning the brands equity in order to make mone…

The enshittification already happened. The most recent incorporation of other IPs, like the upcoming Dr Who, is a series of last gasps. While sales have followed along the aging income growth of existing players, the inverse pressure of exiting players is past sustainable levels. Other forms of gamba have eroded the MTG gamba allure.

Re: Youtube - Tolarian Community College - which is very good at capturing the state of the ecosystem.

Re: Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling

#125

Post by dragontamer »

solardev wrote: post #123
dragontamer wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Now it's just the same set of a few hundred cards, but keep still come up with new metas without spending more money. That's called a "Cube" in Magic the Gathering. https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/feature/building-your-firs... https://mtg.fandom.com/wiki/Cube_Draft We draft Cubes from our old collections all the time, to help recycle our older cards. > That makes sense, especially in MTG where there are like 20,0…

> That's called a "Cube" in Magic the Gathering. It wasn't super clear to me from that article, but does this mean everyone drafts from the same cube (like you combine cards and then everyone draws from them)? Or does everyone make their own cubes? I think a difference there (vs a limited number of cards in the game, period) is being able to realistically know all the cards that can be played. There's not this surpri…

> It wasn't super clear to me from that article, but does this mean everyone drafts from the same cube (like you combine cards and then everyone draws from them)? Or does everyone make their own cubes?

A cube is 360 (total) cards that you tell all your friends about. Some of these cards are repeats (ex: 4x Elite Vanguards).

You bring those cards, you shuffle them up, deal out 15-to-each-person, and then start drafting (pretending this random-deal of 15 is "like a booster pack").

> There's not this surprise of "what, I didn't even know this ridiculous card exists" -- everyone's seen all the cards, dozens if not hundreds of times -- but it's up to them to create new and interesting combinations of those same cards. It's more chess-like in that way and less of an arms race.

Then keep to the same cube. Make everyone in your group know what cards are in the cube, ask questions about those cards before playing.

-----------

The "owner" of the Cube is responsible for "balance patches" (Hmmm... Red is too strong. I'll replace some of these powerful Red cards with weaker ones). So its not completely static. But the general plan is to build a set that your group can "recycle" and grow to become experts in.

--------

> Right, but that only lasts a few months, right? Or is it weeks now? Getting 291 unique cards would require many cases of cards (and thousands of dollars, probably?)... I tried that for one cycle and then stopped after realizing how expensive it gets, and how quickly too.

You... look at the cards before entering a draft. Ex: https://www.magicspoiler.com/mtg-set/the-lost-caverns-of-ixa...

All of this information is published ahead of time. Some, more competitive, players even playtest / draft when the spoilers are released long before the Pre-release. Using computer software to emulate a draft.

The only money you put down in each draft is the 3x Booster Packs per draft (or if you're in an official event, the entry fee which also includes a bit extra for the prize-packs)

Draft-players don't "collect" the cards. You usually sell the cards after the draft.

Re: Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling

#126

Post by typon »

solardev wrote: post #109
DonHopkins wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's like Oracle buying Sun. We just need to move on from Java to other languages at this point.

If you ever want another huge, ancient labyrinth of a language that also kinda sorta runs everywhere, the Javascript world welcomes you with open tentaces! Here we're controlled by an evil older than Oracle itself (Microsoft and Typescript), with upgrades and crossgrades and cross compilers that deliver astounding 15% improvements in performance in exchange for a mere few animal sacrifices and a lifetime of misery. I…

Looking forward to the day Amazon buys Rust

Re: Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling

#128

Post by DylanSp »

prakhar897 wrote: post #120

thinly related but i could really use some advice. There's a board game called "quoridor" that I've been playing a lot lately. I found 2 platforms where u can play this online, major one being BGA (boardgamearena). It was kinda sad to see a game on par with chess in terms of simplicity and strategy, being lumped into the same group as kids games. So, I started building a platform for it myself in my free time. Still…

With the disclaimer that I'm not a lawyer and this isn't legal advice:

- Game mechanics generally can't be copyrighted. If you had a platform for playing "Prakhar's Game" that had the exact same rules as Quoridor, you'd be in the clear.

- Specific pieces of art related to the game would definitely be copyrighted. Copying the exact box art of some commercially-released version of Quoridor would be an issue.

- I think the issue to be concerned about would be whether you can use the name (which would be trademarked, not copyrighted). A quick search turned up a page from the US Patent and Trademark Office [1] showing that it's still held by Gigamic. I'd probably look for sources on that 1997 "release to the world" to see if you can find more details; looking around Gigamic's site might also turn up something.

EDIT: BGA definitely isn't just for kid's games, incidentally. Something like Ark Nova or Agricola is a long ways from Battleship or Candy Land or what not.

[1] https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=75334527&caseSearchType=U...

Re: Hasbro laying off Wizards of the Coast staff is baffling

#129

Post by jimbob45 »

bsdpufferfish wrote: post #101
jimbob45 wrote: post #91

Getting laid off has got to be the single highest trigger of suicide. Maybe breakups or child loss are higher but it’s at least top 3. Watching companies perform layoffs on thousands of employees just for their stock price to temporarily bump is really disgusting. I’d like to see some legislation that significantly penalizes companies engaging in layoffs. They should be a last resort, not a well-worn tool.

Accept that your job can disappear at anytime and for any reason, no matter how loyal you are. Your sense of security should come from your confidence in getting work if needed.

That’s definitely the advice I give to friends and family. Waiting around for the government to solve layoffs is not a viable strategy to keep you and your family out of the soup kitchen.

Publicly, though, I’m happy to advocate for layoffs to end or at least for companies to stop treating them like a fun tool.

Post reply on HN