Are you in the market for a pair of Draco Scale Chunky Stomper Boots? The KOI x Dungeons & Dragons Collection, which debuted this week, has got you covered. The fashion line is “inspired by the realms of fantasy and magic,” and includes creations like the Dungeon Dice Mystic Charm Trainers, the enchanted Ooze Gelatinous Cube Bag, and “Shapeshifter Edition” Mary Jane shoes.
“Whether casting spells, rolling for initiative, or exploring the unknown, these pieces are the perfect gear for your journey,” promised a press release.
D&D’s publisher, Hasbro subsidiary Wizards of the Coast, has been in merchandising & licensing overdrive since the game started to boom in popularity during the COVID pandemic, and especially since the September release of new core rulebooks.
But none of this is new to the world of Dungeons & Dragons. As I wrote in my book Of Dice and Men, the game’s original publisher, TSR, experienced a similar boom in the late 1970s:
In 1979 [TSR] published the Official Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Coloring Album; in the years that followed, other companies released a torrent of D&D-branded merchandise, including lunch boxes, beach towels, and action figures.
It seems silly, but at the time, the words “Dungeons & Dragons” could make any product a top seller. Even TSR’s bigger competitors knew they had value: In 1980, TSR partnered with Mattel to release the Dungeons & Dragons Computer Labyrinth Game, which required players to move a die-cast metal hero through a molded plastic maze. An electronic sensor (the “computer”) beeped and chirped every time a player moved their piece. A September 1980 Forbes article described D&D as “the hottest game in the nation” and predicted explosive growth. TSR went on to post sales of $8.5 million for the year, an increase of 400 percent year over year.
Whenever I see an announcement like the KOI fashion line, I experience a real “what a world” moment —and rightfully so, because the fact that D&D is not only cool but fashionable right now is hard to believe if you were a fan of the game during its nadir in the 90s and 00s. But it’s important to keep a little bit of historical perspective here: All of this has happened before. All of this will happen again.
Did you know you can subscribe to these posts and get them delivered to your email inbox? It’s free, and all the cool kids are doing it. Just click here.
Some News
- GamesIndustry.biz released its annual global games market infodump
- A board game born in Mexican prisons is bringing people together
- Belatro wins the 2024 Indie Games of the Year
- More details leak about the possible January reveal of the Switch 2
- We’ve finally figured out how to play this 4,000 year old board game
- Fortnite players suspect a melting ice block contains Mariah Carey
- You can vote here for EN World’s most anticipated TTRPG of 2025
- Lessons to be learned from the sexist history of D&D
- Only 15% of Steam users’ time was spent playing new games in 2024
- The cost of a 1st print woodgrain D&D box is now $22,766.66
Read This
I talked to tech executives and venture capitalists for a recent issue of The Information, and asked them about the video games they loved and obsessed over in 2024. Read their picks in Silicon Valley’s Favorite Video Games of 2024.
Personally, I’m still addicted to Balatro.
Watch This
Now that the holidays are upon us, you’re probably bursting with cheer and full of goodwill to men. This will put a stop to that.
Starting way back in 2000-something, when I had a very early blog on Forbes.com, I began celebrating the season by posting the worst piece of Bantha poodoo to ever soil U.S. airwaves, the famously disastrous Star Wars Holiday Special. Some call it a tradition. Others say it does to Christmas what the Death Star did to Alderaan.
Originally broadcast on CBS in 1978 —and then never shown again— the Star Wars Holiday Special was produced by George Lucas when he was riding high off the release of the first Star Wars movie, and looking to make a few extra bucks with two painfully awful hours of cornball humor, slipshod animation and embarrassing performances.
Lucas was said to be so ashamed of this program that he has systematically hunted down and destroyed every copy he could get his hands on. Despite his efforts, enterprising fans can locate low-quality bootlegs at science fiction conventions and on the Internet —like right here. Hit the full-screen button and enjoy!
Colophon
I’m currently watching: The Penguin • Last movie in a theater: Gladiator II. • Podcast: The Lonely Island & Seth Meyers Podcast, “Harpoon Man” • Reading: Dan Simmons, “Drood” (affiliate link) • Listening to: Kendrick Lamar, “GNX“
I’m currently working on: An investigation about a social media site (reporting) • A feature about an AR company (reporting) • Not going crazy doing Christmas shopping
Get future posts as a blog, via RSS feed, or as an email newsletter. This post may include affiliate links. Ludo Ergo © 2024 by David M. Ewalt is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International 
Ludo Ergo 