2016/04/19

Are Millennials missing something?

A poor RPG doesn't make you feel dejected?

I think that is one of the reasons why i started being interested in the history of our hobby and that is what triggered my collecting mania.



The subtle feeling that there MUST be more than meets the eye.

You play Dungeons & Dragons for a couple of years, then you realize the many inconsistencies it has or you just aren't satisfied with one or two official mechanics of play -  so, instead of trying to fix the problem by implementing an house rule that you just devised, you decide to look around to check if there exists another role-playing game that suits your needs.

Yes, at that time (when i discovered for the first time games such as Rolemaster, for instance) i felt that D&D encroached on my intellectual horizon, preventing me from relishing higher tastes.

Higher tastes.

The attitude of keeping playing Dungeons & Dragons blindy, without considering all the other fantasy role-playing games that were produced and published in the past, thus ignoring all the different perspectives would have jeopardized my entire game life.

Most of all, what i wanted to accomplish was to find out which were (in my opinion, of course) the best fantasy rpg's ever published in the history of our hobby.

Imagine that someone prevents you from knowing some important pieces of information, and therefore you are doomed to experience just a portion of the whole reality.

In this way, the consequence might be that you will be able to experience a crass kind of entertainment, a crass kind of joy (yes, i am using the word JOY, because that is what i feel when i play, so it is not an over-statement). You will never come to know that "unknown joys" are there and await to be picked up and savoured. No one tells you that.

You never felt in danger like this?

And, more importantly, the so-called "Millennials" are missing something valuable not knowing the predecessors of the latest edition of D&D that they are currently playing?

8 comments:

Lev said...

Pretty much how I discovered Rolemaster as well; and Swordbearer, and Traveller etc (not so RuneQuest, which I already had exposure to).

The interest in other RPGs has continued since those heady days and I even when playtesting utterly terrible games I remain "Mesmerised by Sirens".

Luca Lorenzon said...

I completely agree.
And I am a Rolemaster fan, too ;)

Weasel said...

From the young kids I know, they'll play pretty much anything if you show them why it's cool.

BUt someone has to show them, because the shelf at the book store only has D&D books.

Cross Planes said...

My first RPG was Champions, I played it for a couple of months before I made my first AD&D 2E character. My stats only allowed me to make a fighter. I asked why? My DM said because. So for decades D&D was about what my character could not do. And then I discovered the OSR and it became about filling in the blanks.

Its amazing how many games I discovered simply because my first DM would only let me play a fighter.

Philosophical slumber said...

@Ivan: i think you are right, much depends on the way you show them a new game.

@Mark: your personal experience was an interesting read and funny, too :)
What often prods us to explore new, uncharted territories is exactly the feeling of incompleteness you described.

Jonas said...

I can't settle for one game either. There is joy in playing with different systems, learning them or even just crashing and burning.

Anonymous said...

For me a lot of my interest in other systems than D&D was the hope of finding a better/"more realistic" combat system. But of course that implies better character generation, skill/task resolution, etc. and so on. After spending a lot time with Rolemaster, and flirting with tons of other systems, we hit on GURPS. Which nailed the realistic combat but we realized maybe that wasn't really what we wanted. :) Now I am more prone to tinker and house-rule within D&D and its clones.

I do feel a little bad for younger players who have no idea that there are so many other options and there is not perfect design, or that latest is not necessarily the best.

Philosophical slumber said...

@Mike: as for your quest about finding the best combat system, did you ever try "The Riddle of Steel"? I never played it but heard about its great and realistic combat mechanics.

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