I don’t think you’re who they care about anyway considering the only thing you seem to be concerned about is whether it can make you money. Then again, I guess that was the topic of this thread.
Even if Lorcana dies, it certainly looks like they will hit every one of their films before it does, which means the collectability for Disney fans will be there. It will definitely outperform Metazoo. That has zero organic interest, zero fundamentals and was always a rug pull full of deluded investobros selling to each other.
Just my observation but haven’t any done analysis to know if I’m right or wrong. I’m sure Disney fans aren’t just kids but that is their target demographic.
I feel like others have pointed out that in order to have a successful TCG you need it to be playable and enjoyable which it doesn’t seem they’ve nailed yet. That suggests the creators didn’t even focus on that aspect and likely their sole motivation was competing in the collectibles space. Disney has such a huge product base that trading cards equate to just another product, whereas Pokemon has expanded their products after the huge popularity of the cards and anime.
I’m not knocking it for others if they have interest, but as someone that has only just begun collecting, I have zero nostalgia for Disney products or other cards in general.
Hmm I think it’s too early to say whether or not the creators aren’t focusing on it. I’m not a player of TCGs myself. It’s been a rocky start but I don’t think it sinks them just yet.
And I know only one person brought up MZ, who I have now ignored, but if that could last a couple years with a game that wasn’t designed for serious play, I would think that if Ravensberger are serious, they will have more rope to get things right.
You could well be right and I certainly wouldn’t count out a product if Disney is serious about making it successful. I don’t know the specifics of the partnership with Ravensburger or their history with TCGs but I do know Disney is very protective of their IP and who they allow to use it (eg only one factory in China has the rights to produce drink bottles with Disney characters and the logo) it would seem odd Disney didn’t just do everything in house if the end goal wasn’t a playable game.
I think in order for a product to be fully/mostly absorbed into the market (successful), demand has to come from multiple sources with different motivations. Demand from people who want to play and collect are two, but I’d argue “people who want to make money” are actually a TCG brand’s primary customer: distributors. On a product level, the factors that impact the bottom-lines of major distributors aren’t terribly different from those of individual investor with a bathroom full of boxes.
Of course it’s different. Distributors and LGS (and big box stores for that matter) aren’t in the investment game. Their primary business is the churn of these cards.
An LGS cannot afford to let product sit when they need to pay the invoice for the next set.
If your card game is filled with only investobros, you’ll end up like Metazoo.
I agree with the original point that having people buy a tcg for a diverse set of reasons is a good thing.
I also agree that the investment side doesn’t really add much in terms of the longevity of a card game. It’s helpful for moving product in the short-term. What took out metazoo was basically one poorly performing set and no one to catch the falling dagger because very few people were interested in the product outside of what it can do for them financially. So while the presence of an investor culture is a healthy sign, too much just creates a house of cards waiting to fall.
Lorcana is absolutely propped up by speculators and investors at the moment.
BUT, there are also lots of actual collectors and from what I can tell the competitive side isn’t doing too bad either. The first real competitive events had 512 spots and were sold out within minutes, forcing Ravensburger to up the number of entries to 2048. Playable cards are quite valuable, but not out of reach.
Obviously it’s hard to say anything about the future of the game, but to me it looks like Ravensburger is doing things quite well for now. They have printed a masssive amount of each set like they promised they would, while also keeping it interesting for collectors with Enchanteds and exclusive promos.
A game certainly can’t subsist over the long term on speculation alone. All I’m saying is, the same factors that let distributors move a game’s product at good margins and liquidity over the long term have a lot of overlap with the factors that cause sealed product to drift upwards. It benefits a publisher when the distributors and investors below them are making money.
I think this is skewed by pandemic era thinking. These products were never meant to sit in warehouses unsold. The only reason that happened was because popularity fell off a cliff and they could not sell, not that the distributors or shop owners did not want to sell them.
There are no investors below distributors. It does not make financial sense to invest in a product right out of the gate with mass supply and a 3 year reprint window at quantities out of your control.
They want the product to move as quick as possible because that allows their buyers to place the next order instead of going bankrupt like many online stores have done since the pandemic ended.
Spoiler: Lorcana is going nowhere and will be worth nothing within 5 years, this is a shameless cash grab by Di$ney to try and belatedly ride on the back of pandemic pokemon hype
I dont play lorcana but my opinion on it now that its been out some time hasnt changed, that like most other things they do it will be around a couple years and then theyll pull the plug.
