I don't know how to cut it up so neatly by demographics or types of players, but ideally the game could scale and break to accommodate both though right? I mean for both those demographics it would be nice to see them covered in a game that introduces D&D to a broader audience. Simplest way to meet the need would seem to be XP scaling, since nothing there is set in stone for it in the rulebook, but we have some definite scaffolding to build off of. It's flexible, always at the game master's discretion, just with the general guidelines of challenge rating vs reward that's sensible whether in XP or Treasure. I don't think they should even play that set until they know how many encounters they intend or what the game will ultimately morph into. But its seems like very simple to make XP scaling an option.
I guarantee at least some would love to turn that on right now, even with a more limited party of 4. Don't make it the default I suppose if we're worried about scarring off a cash cow, or passing up on the chance to turn more people on to D&D. Just make it like the second "XP setting" option from a gameplay menu at launch of a new game?
Then they could also see how many of their players are playing with that toggle on/off, to get a clearer picture of how many people like it, or what they end up doing with it once it's there. Right now with the level cap low, and some people feeling like they hit too quick, it would be a nice feature and one that doesn't seem too hard to throw in the oven. Simple calcs of this sort are why we got the computers up an humming in the first place. I'd love to see them drop something like that on us, instead of just drop here and there, because it could change the whole feel from a setting. Since it was brought, I also wish that we could appeal to the Skyrim Witcher Audience with a gamemode that just offered a driving view and associated control scheme. It seems like the game is basically already set up for it, just absent a locked camera and some movement toggles. It would be super straightforward to accommodate that for a majority of the gameplay outside combat itself, and probably there too, if they just went even more oldschool like full POV within combat for that gamemode. Call it Solo or something in the Options with no XP scaling. They just need to make it read descriptive in the settings instead of judgmental like "difficulty options" typically do. They should move away from that idea maybe. You know, that the game settings are 'Story-Time, Easy, Normal, Hard, Ultra' whatever. That's not the best way to frame it. Should maybe read more like 'Lone Wolf 1, Co-Op 2-4, Large Group 4-6 or Solo with Party' then for that last either 'AI Follow' or 'Puppet Master' mode. With recommended game settings (and XP settings) for each, it might work. I wish they could thread the needle on something like that.
I can see how a game like this could accommodate a broad swath of different audiences. Just needs to dial the settings a little better, and come up with some controls and UI and Cam concepts to accommodate what people like. The visual assets seem to be fairly solid and in place, like they'd work well for any of those approaches. Basically a game that can play more like DA for Lone Wolf, like Divinity for Co Op, or like Classic, but all using the same systems and assets. More Raw less Raw or whatever, depending how one sets up the launch. I don't know, people always say don't try to be everything to everyone or you just fail spectacularly, but I'm not so sure. It'd be great to have a game that worked like that in different ways for different purposes or moods. I think they could maybe pull it off, but instead of 1 size fits all do it more tailor made? I really want 6, but I also would like to see that done well. Not just grafted on. There's still time, but they gotta start cooking something or at least preheat. I think it would be fun if I could play this game like might and magic III, just fully POV with a cam skipping around, that'd be fun with 6. Or like tactical battle style of Pools of Radiance where the game goes O and I have a heart attack lol. They could even make it have like some comic appeal that way when they list the view/mode settings. Using the same art assets but like banging out a few different ways to do the controls/ui/camera view? I wish hehe
