Wizards of the Coast
By Isaac Donnelly
Wizards of the Coast is a Renton-based multimedia entertainment publisher, and two of its most popular games are Dungeons and Dragons, and Magic the Gathering.
The purpose of this story is to introduce you to WotC (the shortening of Wizards of the Coast) and, specifically, what its impact is on culture in Washington.
I have been personally interested in this company and its impact ever since I was young, looking at my dad’s old Magic the Gathering card binder and examining the art, reading the masterful flavor text on the bottom of each card.
These formative experiences got me and many others more interested in world-building than Lord of the Rings or any film at the time.
(Here is an example of the front of a Magic the Gathering card displaying the various details and statistics involved in Magic Cards.)
The lasting influence of WotC’s products on “Nerd culture” can be felt at nearly every major store, alongside electronics or toys you’d expect to find in a store like Walmart or Fred Meyers. The products are things previously only found in local stores dedicated to semi-obscure hobbies.
Magic the Gathering cards and polyhedral dice are just a few of the things that broke through from hobby shops to the mainstream retailers.
However, the game stores still have their own place, showing people new games while they browse the classics. The stores also have weekly events for people to group up and play games with strangers and make friends.
Wizards of the Coast has been around since 1990, and was purchased by Hasbro in 1999. Earlier this year it became a separate division of Hasbrok, and Chris Cocks, the former chief executive of WotC, is set to become the chief executive of Hasbro.
When that happens, it means that the majority of the Board of Directors will be the types of people who play its games, giving them a deeper understanding and connection to its games and the target audiences for them.
Here is a video that provides a tour of the products at WotC:
(Pictured, a thumbnail depicting the WotC logo on their Renton building.)
