A video game division of Wizards of the Coast has announced plans to release a new tabletop RPG focused on the new IPExodusinstead ofDungeons & Dragons. Wizards of the Coast is best known as a tabletop game developer and a leader in the trading card game and tabletop RPG industries. While it actively publishes and developsMagic: The GatheringandDungeons & Dragons, Wizards also has a number of video game studios under its umbrella as a result of its parent company Hasbro’s desire to make headway into the industry, including a sci-fi video game calledExodus.
Now,ExodusdeveloperArchetype Entertainment has announced that it will also publish a tabletop RPGcalledExodus Traveler’s Handbook, as detailed on the officialExoduswebsite.Details about the new tabletop RPG are currently scarce, but it was designed by BioWare veteran James Ohlen, the creative force behind theExodusvideo game. The tabletop RPG will be released to early supporters of the game first starting on December 10th.
Why The Exodus TTRPG Is Such A Big Deal
Wizards Currently Focuses On Dungeons & Dragons, Not Other TTRPGs In Its Portfolio
Wizards of the Coast has published other non-Dungeons & DragonsTTRPGs in the past, but it has focused almost exclusively onDungeons & Dragonsin recent years. Wizards has spent the year promotingD&D’s 50th anniversary, with the release of a new rules revision for Fifth Edition. Additionally, Wizards has published several crossovers betweenD&DandMagic: The Gatheringin recent years, with several campaign-setting books focused on various Magic: The Gathering worlds. Given the focus onD&D,though,it’s still surprising to see a division of Wizards publish a non-D&Dtabletop RPG game.
However, Ohlen does have a history of publishing TTRPG material separate from theD&Ddesign team. After leaving BioWare, Ohlen founded Arcanum Worlds,a tabletop RPG studio that created a new campaign setting forD&D.Arcanum World also published material on the DM’s Guild, a website on which third parties could publish D&D material using official D&D IP in exchange for Wizards taking a portion of each sale. After Ohlen joined Archetype Entertainment, he continued to publish material on theDMs Guild, withChains of Asmodeuspublished as an official Wizards of the Coast publication.
Our Take: Does Dungeons & Dragons Have Competition From Inside Its Own House?
Wizards Is Hedging Big On Exodus
Wizards of the Coast clearly has big hopes for thesci-fi RPGExodus. Not only is this the first IP developed by one of its video game studios, but it’s also a focus of the upcomingSecret Levelshow by Amazon Studios.Letting Ohlen develop his own TTRPG is another sign of the company’s confidence in the game, even if theExodusTTRPG isn’t currently being publicized.
If Exodus becomes a major hit, we could see moreExodusTTRPG content on the way to help flesh out that world in between video game releases. Ohlen’s other TTRPG releases were popular when they were released, and it’s very curious to see him bring some kind of in-house competition toDungeons & Dragons.
