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In an announcement on the DnD Beyond website, D&D Executive Producer Kyle Brink introduced OGL 1.2, the latest version of the Dungeons and Dragons Open Gaming license. Brink pointed out that this version of the license contains none of the ownership, royalty, and tax reporting requirements found in the more restrictive OGL 1.1 that leaked last week.
Wizards of the Coast (WOTC) – the Hasbro-owned publisher of Dungeons & Dragons – released the new draft before its self-imposed deadline of Friday, January 20. Unlike the previously leaked draft, OGL 1.2 will be subject to community feedback known as “playtesting” in the tabletop gaming community.
Beginning of our playtest with a Creative Commons license and a new irrevocable OGL. https://t.co/fsnasY6y4Q
— Dungeons & Dragons (@Wizards_DnD) January 19, 2023
One of the main concerns of the D&D community is that the new license was intended to replace the original OGL 1.0a and could be applied retroactively to all content and products released under the license.
WOTC now explicitly states that older content will not be affected by the new OGL 1.2. “Nothing will impact content you’ve already published under OGL 1.0a,” Brink said. “It will still be licensed under OGL 1.0a. Your business is your business. In the announcement, Brink said the original OGL is removed from authorization to allow WOTC to adopt the options to protect against publishing harmful, discriminatory or illegal content covered by OGL 1.2. “We want an inclusive and safe gaming experience for everyone,” Brink said. “That’s extremely important to us, and OGL 1.0a didn’t give us the ability to guarantee that.”
Kyle Brink’s summary of the new D&D Open Game 1.2 license:
Virtual Table Policy: We will continue to support VTT usage for OGL Creators and VTT Operators. The virtual table policy specifies this.
Ownership Disputes: You own your content. You are not giving any license back to Wizards, and for any ownership disputes, you can sue for breach of contract and damages (instead of delaying products that other players are waiting for while we fix the problem) .
No Hateful Content or Behavior: If you include harmful, discriminatory or illegal content (or publicly engage in such behavior), we may terminate your OGL 1.2 license to our content.
Creator Product Badge: You will have the option to include a badge on your OGL works. Once we get your feedback on the badge, we’ll create a guide on how to use and display it.
In addition to introducing OGL 1.2, WOTC also revealed that core game mechanics for D&D will be licensed under a Creative Commons. It’s a move that will likely win back favor with the D&D community. Creative Commons is a non-profit organization dedicated to overcoming “legal barriers to sharing knowledge and creativity” and will manage the basic rules and mechanics of D&D, putting them out of WOTC’s control for good.
“We’re giving the core mechanics of D&D to the community through a Creative Commons license, which means they’re entirely in your hands,” Brink said. “If you want to use the SRD’s quintessential D&D content, such as owls and magic missiles, OGL 1.2 will provide you with a perpetual, irrevocable license to do so.”
Hi everyone! We saw some questions coming in today about our OGL 1.2 article, and we wanted to provide some clarification. Watch this thread for more OGL 1.2 Playtest FAQs!
— D&D Beyond (@DnDBeyond) January 19, 2023
The transparency of these updates follows a more heartfelt apology posted by Brink earlier this week, after some D&D fans found WOTC’s initial apology for the OGL 1.1 leak a little disingenuous. Responding to concerns from the broader tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) community, Brink said, “Our language and requirements in the OGL draft were disruptive to creators and did not support our core goals of protecting and cultivating a inclusive game environment and limit the OGL. to TTRPGs. Then we made it worse by staying quiet for too long. Brink added “We hurt fans and creators, when more frequent and clearer communications could have prevented so much.”
The blog post announcing OGL 1.2 will be updated later today with a link where fans and players can submit feedback on the draft. The feedback survey will remain open until February 3, and WOTC will respond to any comments or updates by February 17. “The process will stretch as long as needed,” Brink said. “We will continue to iterate and get your feedback until we are successful.”
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