Why has WOTC made the Forgotten Realms their default setting

cause they are lazy?

>>50387965
They are building a brand identity.

By focusing on one setting, they can focus the user experience, and hence what the layman thinks when he hears "D&D".

This is very useful for cross-marketing purposes. If they make a new D&D videogame or movie, everyone will know it's set on FR, and there won't be any confusion about the different worlds.

It also gently shepherds the community into one block, instead of having a bunch of sub-communities for each world and then another sub-sub community for people brewing and houseruling things for each world, you have users who can share their adventures between each other while being on the same page, so to say.

Because the games (Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights) and the literature (Drizzt), as well as the amount of mechanical support it's had across all editions since 1e, have made it by far their most popular setting, even after they took a huge dump on it in 4e.

>>50387965
I have a better question. Why was 3.5's default setting Greyhawk while every videogame or novel was in Forgotten Realms

>>50388046
This. Between Salvatore, Greenwood, and the vidya Forgotten Realms is what people think of when they think of a D&D setting. Nobody gives two shits about Greyhawk these days, and shit like Eberron and Planescape are too far removed from the common idea of what D&D is to be a flagship.

Forgotten Realms is a great big mix of every possible trope, so it's easy to shill to everyone with even the slightest interest in fantasy.

I think the way they'very done it for 5e is smart: you have info about the sword coast, which is arguably the default forgotten realms setting. So, with a little work, you can easily use old source books to flesh out fearun, or just slot in oc shit in around the sword coast if you want.

I much prefer a narrow focus to build on, rather than the old system of "here is a setting book with a billion generic fantasy realms and cities with stupid names."

I'mean looking at you, 3rd edition forgotten realms splat.

>>50387965

God seriously? I haven't played since 3.5, but forgotten realms was always the dull as bread shit tier setting.

>>50387965
Because it is, by a wide margin, their most well-known and well-developed setting.

>>50387965
Because they know Paizo is closing down first quarter of 2017 and they are moving in to pick up the anime pedophiles who like drows and tieflings audience

>>50387965
Because it's an easy to understand setting. Just like how harry potter is fantasy for normies, forgotten realms fits the roll of fantasy for people who think that fantasy only involves tolkien tropes.

FR makes magic too common. When it's too common it ceases to be magical. Magic as techonology. No thanks!

>>50391660
>Magic as techonology. No thanks!
It's fine if it's developed reasonably when considering that aspect. Like, the way magic plays into industry and infrastructure and academia in Eberron is pretty interesting compared to FR's "there's pretty much just magic all over the place" saturation.