Maybe I'm missing something, maybe it's just that I need more coffee this morning, but are there any games in production for the Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition ruleset? You know, the one that simplified the tedium of the game supposedly to not only make the pen and paper version easier to play but also to make it more friendly for video games to be based on it. After doing some quick research I couldn't come up with anything of interest. Doesn't that seem odd to anyone? With BioWare and Obsidian moving to in-house IP for their announced RPGs (Dragon Age and Alpha Protocol respectively) is there actually a possibility that we won't see a D&D-based game come out this year? If so, that would end a 20-year streak between 1988's Pool of Radiance and last year's Neverwinter Nights 2 expansion Storm of Zehir where we saw at least one D&D game in stores annually.
- Wizards of the Coast's licensing deals became a lot more expensive since the release of the original Neverwinter Nights.
- Moving to the 4th edition rules would be prohibitively more expensive for an entrenched studio with 3rd edition code already written.
- The Dungeons and Dragons universe / business on the whole is fading.
- Someone, likely Obsidian, BioWare or, wait for it... Bethesda, are playing their cards very close to their chest.