Wizards of the Coast has formally announced that it will publish revised editions of its three core D&D rulebooks in July of 2003.  WOTC published the Third Edition of the D&D rulebooks in 2000, which marked a major change in the venerable role-playing system.  It appears that the books that will be published next summer will be revisions and refinements of the Third Edition books, rather than a radically changed Fourth Edition.  In a statement explaining the reasons for publishing the revised editions, WOTC's D&D design team noted that the main impetus for revision came from 'consumer feedback that has provided us with a wealth of information for making our books richer in depth and easier in gameplay.'   The new versions of the three core rulebooks--the Player's Handbook, the Dungeon Master's Guide, and Monster Manual--will all be 320 pages in length and will retail for $29.95.

 

According to WOTC the revised editions of the core rulebooks will be fully compatible with existing D&D backlist items, and will also contain instructions on how to meld any new information with current campaigns and adventures.  The revised editions will include content from books that have been published since the Third Edition core books came out in 2000.  About 25% of the content of the revised core rulebooks will consist of new and revised material, and the D&D design team has attempted to balance the character classes in the Player's Handbook, make the Dungeon Master's Guide more user-friendly, and make the statistics in the Monster's Manual easier to understand.  Each of the revised core rulebooks will sport a new cover, which should make them easy to distinguish from their predecessors and freshen the look of these key role-playing manuals.