Pubblicato il 19/11/2025
When a tabletop game becomes the unchallenged leader in a market, it’s usually good news for the entire industry. In competitive video games like Street Fighter in fighting games, the success of a major title lifts the entire category. But in the world of tabletop role-playing games, the situation is completely different: D&D’s dominance is seen as potentially harmful to other systems.
This contradiction is at the heart of a fascinating discussion in the RPG community: why doesn’t D&D’s success help other games the way it works in other hobbies?
The TTRPG community often talks about D&D as a “killer”,not a catalyst, for the industry. While in fighting games Street Fighter’s success brings new players to the entire genre, the opposite happens with D&D. When WotC faces difficulties, other games like Pathfinder in the 4th edition years, or Vampire the Masquerade in the ’90s, see growth.
Why this difference?
The answer lies in D&D’s very nature as a “lifestyle brand” managed by Hasbro. Unlike fighting games, where players actively try multiple titles in parallel, TTRPGs require much greater investment:
These factors create a psychological barrier that makes it difficult to switch to a new system.
WotC doesn’t just create a good game: it actively works to keep players exclusively within the D&D ecosystem.
Subtle marketing
The 5th edition DMG dedicates space to alternative rules to transform D&D into virtually any genre (eldritch horror, sci-fi, gritty horror). These options, however, are often incomplete and contradictory to the base design. The underlying message is clear: “Why learn a new game when you can homebrew D&D?”
The brand effect
D&D has become synonymous with TTRPG in popular language. Many players don’t even know other systems exist. The brand is so dominant that players see alternatives as “D&D alternatives” rather than as systems with completely different gaming philosophies.
An interesting aspect: while indie publishers are proud to list influences in their books as a sign of humility and transparency, WotC rarely acknowledges other works that inspired D&D. This intentional isolation makes players less aware of what the rest of the market has to offer.
D&D functions as a “gateway” to TTRPGs, but it’s a very particular gateway. Here’s what happens:
Pipeline statistics
A Paizo executive has publicly confirmed that his company relies on the D&D pipeline to recruit new Pathfinder players. The ratio? Likely between 10-20% of D&D players who eventually try other systems.
The Filter problem
D&D is a game focused on tactical combat and high-crunch character building. If a new player doesn’t love this philosophy, they don’t just abandon D&D. They abandon TTRPGs completely. Narrative driven systems like PbtA, Fate, or historical games like Call of Cthulhu offer radically different experiences, but the potential player never reaches them.
Many indie designers agree: D&D’s success over the past 10 years has brought global interest to TTRPGs, but it has also concentrated the market excessively.
Three structural reasons
1. Asymmetric time commitment
Switching from Street Fighter to Mortal Kombat is easy. Switching from a D&D campaign to Call of Cthulhu means renegotiating with your entire group.
2. Market consolidation
In the fighting game sector, the market is more distributed: Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Tekken share the pie. In TTRPGs: D&D controls roughly 90% of the wholesale market. This is incomparable to anything in competitive gaming.
3. Social vs. mechanical nature
Fighting games: gameplay speaks for itself in minutes. TTRPGs: the game is inseparable from the human group playing it. Once a D&D group forms, leaving it means finding new people. It’s easier to homebrew D&D poorly than to start from scratch with Mothership or Alien.
Surprisingly, most indie designers don’t hate D&D. Here’s what they really think:
The Upside
The Downside
The 1990s: Vampire the Masquerade explodes
D&D was declining. White Wolf was growing enormously. But the overall TTRPG market wasn’t growing: it was recycling.
The 4th edition crisis (2008-2012)
Paizo filled the void with Pathfinder. D&D players didn’t “discover” new systems. They migrated to Pathfinder, which is essentially “modified D&D”. The total number of TTRPG players? It didn’t increase significantly.
The Truth: When D&D suffers, the market contracts. When D&D thrives, the overall market grows, and everyone benefits.
The original question remains valid: why does Street Fighter help fighting games, but D&D doesn’t help other TTRPGs?
The full answer is multifaceted:
The final verdict? D&D is good for the industry in the short term but potentially harmful long-term if WotC continues monopolistic behavior. Ideal industry health would require a second brand equally large as a credible alternative. So far, no contender has come close.
Blog D&D, game design, gaming industry, indie games, Pathfinder, RPG market, tabletop RPG, TTRPG, Wizards of the Coast
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