Welcome to the first post of 2025! We here at StartPlaying are looking forward to rounding up another year of tabletop RPG news and delivering it in easily digestible chunks.
And this year begins with a delectable course of stories! Hasbro is already being criticized for a business decision regarding Dungeons & Dragons, JRPG hit Fabula Ultima is on sale for a steal, Mainstream news jumped into DnD culture wars, and DnD Beyond teased a lot of new baddies for the 2025 Monster Manual.
DnD Pinball Machine & DnD Slot Machine Announced
Wizards of the Coast is going into 2025 strong with more multimedia expansions of the Dungeons & Dragons IP. The first announcement comes from Stern Pinball (via EN World) about a DnD-themed pinball machine. It looks to be called Dungeons & Dragons: The Tyrant's Eye and will feature a mechanical red dragon. More details are expected during CES 2025.Â
The other DnD game machine reveal was actually announced last month but is just now garnering controversy on social media. Hasbro entered a partnership with Games Global to produce products using DnD branding. The first release will be a slot machine called Dungeons & Dragons: The Tyrant's Eye. The use of DnD in a gambling machine drew critical comments from those who disapprove of Hasbro’s recent handling of the franchise.Â
Fabula Ultima Bundle For Fantastic Price
Fabula Ultima is one of the go-to suggestions for running a JRPG campaign, even with an official Final Fantasy TTRPG now available. The system garnered praise for its classic turn-based battles and player-facing worldbuilding. Good news for the interested: Fabula Ultima is part of a current ongoing Bundle of Holding offer. For just $14.95, you can get PDFs of the core rules, GM toolkit, and two expansion books. That’s less than the price of the core rules alone, and the deal only lasts for about two more weeks.Â
New York Times Late To The DnD Species Party
The New York Times put out a long feature about the DnD 2024 rule changes… months after the 2024 Player’s Handbook hit store shelves. The piece focuses largely on the change from “Race” to “Species” and how some fans aren’t pleased. There’s an interview with a self-proclaimed Grognard and of course mention of Elon Musk’s recent attempt to turn DnD into the next culture war battleground. While not a badly written article by any means, it does call into question the benefits of having DnD in the mainstream. What could’ve been nuanced analysis instead feels like an SEO grab after Musk’s latest Twitter tantrum.Â
DnD Beyond Shares Year-End Stats And Monster Manual Tease
In its 2024 wrap-up post, DnD Beyond shared some numbers about the success of the “5.5” rules and one enticing number for 2025. The post claims that 3.6 Million characters were created with 2024 core rules, the most popular options being Fighter, Rogue, Human, and Elf. Also, 1.3 Million maps were used in Beyond’s native VTT with the majority being uploaded by users. Finally, over 500 monsters are promised for Monster Manual 2025, with over 85 being brand-new.Â
Thanks for reading, and may your dice be kind!Â
