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Minimized Learning Curve
With mobility, the learning curve to get started in D&D is greatly reduced. The apps are helpful and intuitive, and guide both first-timers and professionals effortlessly towards success. This means more people are not burdened by the volumes of rulebooks and can get started fast.
Increased Accessibility
With free mobile apps, cost-effective virtual tabletops, and the ability to play from anywhere in the world the potential investment barrier to getting started in D&D is minimal. Players are not required to visit a bookstore to purchase manuals, miniatures, dungeon materials, or even dice anymore. As well, interested parties no longer have to travel, spend, or know someone who has already committed.
Forums and Community Spaces
There are thousands of questions to ask when learning how to navigate the complexity and creativity of a D&D campaign. Naturally, spaces have opened up on sites like Reddit where people can ask, learn, contribute, and educate themselves. There are millions upon millions of questions, responses, threads, blogs, forums, and wikis to reference and connect with. Very frequently during gameplay, especially during odd contextual moments, players and DMs will consult these spaces for a ruling. As well, DMs will visit these spaces beforehand to develop their campaign story and share material.
Increased Awareness and Popularity
In all, D&D is more pervasive in media, easier to access, and easier to learn. More and more people are playing D&D and/or are interested in doing so. The Imagine Games Network (IGN) recorded over 250% growth from 2014 to 2018 (Borba, 2019), Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner mentions, "We are seeing about 150 million hours of content viewed on Twitch and YouTube, which is up nearly 50% year-on-year," (Whitten, 2020), and Google Trends illustrates consistent climb in interest over the last ten years (2024).
Developing Culture
D&D has had a cultural renaissance in the last ten years, which is evident in the response of film and TV. The blockbuster Dungeons & Dragons film was released in 2023 with the growing popularity.
D&D has been romantically featured in various TV shows like Stranger Things (2016). Even entire TV shows have been created based on D&D campaigns, like The Legend of Vox Machina (2022).
In video game culture, Baldur's Gate 3 (2023), based completely on D&D, became one of the most popular and awarded video games of all time.
Virtual and Augmented Reality
VR and AR technologies are further developing the immersion and interactivity of the D&D game. With a singluar device, players are able to and interact with the fantasy world, from any angle, at any size, in remarkably detailed and enhanced ways.
Mobility has allowed for so many changes to take place in D&D, many for the best. In this light, it must also have changed the nature of learning... for the best?
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