The D&D maker promises to get player feedback for its next “open” license update

When Wizards of the Coast (WotC) brought out proposed changes to the decades-old Open Games License (OGL), most casual gamers and smaller creators had to hear about it. A leaked copy of a copy sent to top content creators. Now, WotC promises that any upcoming changes will be made through a “more open and transparent” process that will start a “strong conversation” about any new proposals.

in Post on the D&D Beyond forums Today, Kyle Brink, Executive Producer of WotC wrote that “new proposed OGL documents” will be publicly shared on or before Friday, January 20. and open response fields.

WotC compare the new process with the one you are using playtests for Unearthed Arcana documents, which is often used to get feedback on draft mechanics and untested gameplay ideas. Once the new OGL survey ends, Brink says WotC will “collect, analyze, react and present what we’ve heard from you.”

We’re sorry (because you noticed)

Brink clarified some types of fan-made content that the new OGL will not explicitly affect, including videos, contracted services (for example, paid main services in Dungeons) and virtual tabletop content. Brink repeated, too WotC’s last promise That the new OGL will not charge any fees, will not affect existing content licensed under OGL 1.0a, and will not require you to license creative content back to WotC (all elements contradicted in the leaked version of OGL 1.1).

Brink’s post also offers WotC’s most direct apology to date for the OGL fiasco Many publishers have pushed the table to abandon WotC in recent weeks.

“We’re sorry,” Brink wrote. “We got it wrong. Our language and requirements in the OGL draft were annoying to creators and not in support of our core goals of protecting and developing the overall gameplay environment and limiting OGL to TTRPGs. Then we doubled down by also staying silent for a long time. We did a disservice to fans and creators, when it was Frequent and clear communication can prevent a lot of this.”

Brink’s post Other WotC connections They referred to the leaked OGL 1.1 as a “draft” that was shared with the main creators “so their feedback can be considered before anything is finalized.” But some in the community have challenged this characterization, saying OGL 1.1 It was distributed with an attached contract who allegedly Came with a deadline for signing And Pre-negotiated preferential terms for some funding sources.

“The Wizards will try to say what we saw from OGL 1.1 is a draft they sent in for comment. That’s a lie,” Raid said. D&D Director: The Griffon’s Saddlebag he said on Instagram last week. “WotC never asked for feedback or said it was a draft or any of that stuff. … The thing is, no one signed it, and that’s why they backtracked on this.”

Wizards of the Coast did not respond to a request for comment from Ars Technica on the ongoing controversy over OGL changes.