Hasbro has pissed off 'Dungeons & Dragons' fans with a rumored change to the game's licensing agreement
- A 'Dungeons & Dragons' leak has fans furious and vowing to abandon the popular role-playing game.
- A rumored change would give D&D's owner more rights over user-created content for the game — and a cut of any profits.
A new licensing agreement for the hit roleplaying game "Dungeons & Dragons" leaked — it hasn't been a critical hit with fans.
According to a document leaked to Gizmodo that contains a new open game license (OGL) agreement, a new version of the beloved board game will "tighten" restrictions applied to fans who create content for the game.
The current agreement, which has been in place since 2000, allows outside designers and publishers to make adventures and rules, along with other products, for the game — and to keep any profits.
The new agreement would give Wizards of the Coast — the makers of the game who are owned by Hasbro — partial ownership of these products, and the ability to demand a share of profits from creators.
Nerds are now vowing to burn their beloved game to the ground, calling the change corporate overreach to nickel-and-dime creators who are showing their love for D&D and the community of players.
D&D fans are canceling their subscriptions to the game's online tools, a major source of income for the game's owners.
One D&D social media personality, Ginny Di, encouraged fans to cancel to send Wizards of the Coast "a message." Her tweet has racked up 13,400 likes since posting Thursday.
On the D&D subreddit — which normally features questions about rules and fan art — fans have been planning boycotts and customer service blitzes to make their rage known.
User Northwest_Quest urged comrades to "Boycott All Wizards Products" including merch and other board games.
"Keep speaking out, keep sharing, calling, and protesting. But if you really want to show them how you feel? Hit them in their wallet," another user wrote on Reddit.
"They've more than proven they don't care about anything but the money, might as well speak their language," they added.
Meanwhile, rival RPG publishers have vowed to create their own license to give creators freedom — and invited players to buy their products using discount codes themed around the boycott.
Wizards of the Coast was set to make an announcement Thursday on a livestream, but abruptly canceled the stream as the outrage grew.
Wizards of the Coast finally addressed the leak on Friday, saying the drafted license was part of a new license it was creating and was given to content creators to get their feedback.
"However, it's clear from the reaction that we rolled a 1," the company said, referencing the game's rules.
Wizards said the "thought never crossed our minds" to have a royalty system built into the new license.
"The license back language was intended to protect us and our partners from creators who incorrectly allege that we steal their work simply because of coincidental similarities," the company wrote.
"We want to always delight fans and create experiences together that everyone loves," it added. "We realize we did not do that this time and we are sorry for that."
The outrage comes as D&D has experienced a renaissance in recent years. The beloved RPG has exploded in popularity thanks in large part to online streamers, as well as a starring role in the Netflix hit "Stranger Things."
The game even has a big-budget movie adaptation coming out later this year titled "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" starring Hollywood stars like Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, and Hugh Grant.