Adventure Time TTRPG Drops "Yes And" System, Switches To 5E

When the Adventure Time roleplaying game was announced back in June, it was going to be using a brand new RPG system called the "Yes And" system, which involved dice which had Yes and No on one die, and things like And or But on the other.

However, publisher Cryptozoic Entertainment has recently indicated that, following fan feedback, the upcoming Kickstarter will now be powered by 5E instead. The update was included last week as part of the FAQ in its current Adventure Time card game Kickstarter.

Has Adventure Time: The Roleplaying Game changed since you announced it a few months ago?

Yes, we made the decision to make it a 5e experience, based on feedback from fans. That doesn’t mean the game shown at Gen Con earlier this year won’t be released too, but the main offering in the upcoming Kickstarter will be the 5e RPG.

 

[MatthewJHanson]

I'm sad to see this. I was excited about what I heard of the "yes and" system. I don't think D&D capture the tone of Adventure Time well.

Yeah, especially since the show was a D&D show, I can see why Adventure Time fans probsvly flooded the creators with questions about a 5E version.

I said something similar when the original announcement came out.

Adventure Time had a lot of trappings of D&D, and it's obviously made by people who know and love D&D, but it doesn't tell D&D stories. The core story of the Adventure Time is about a boy growing up, and most of the conflicts are interpersonal conflicts.

Start with the very first episode. It's a zombie attack. In a game of D&D the main conflict is whether we can kill all these zombies. But in the episode of AT, the main conflict is whether Finn should reveal the secret to Jake or keep his promise to Princess Bubblegum.

Or look at Vault of Bones. It's a dungeon crawl! That must be a D&D episode right? Except that getting through the dungeons isn't the conflict. It's about sharing your hobby with somebody that you love, accepting that they don't love the same things about it that you do, but then adapting to them and finding a way that you can let them enjoy it their own way.

These kinds of stories I think are hard for D&D to pull off, which is why I don't think 5e is the right fit.

 

[Parmandur]

I'm sad to see this. I was excited about what I heard of the "yes and" system. I don't think D&D capture the tone of Adventure Time well.


I said something similar when the original announcement came out.

Adventure Time had a lot of trappings of D&D, and it's obviously made by people who know and love D&D, but it doesn't tell D&D stories. The core story of the Adventure Time is about a boy growing up, and most of the conflicts are interpersonal conflicts.

Start with the very first episode. It's a zombie attack. In a game of D&D the main conflict is whether we can kill all these zombies. But in the episode of AT, the main conflict is whether Finn should reveal the secret to Jake or keep his promise to Princess Bubblegum.

Or look at Vault of Bones. It's a dungeon crawl! That must be a D&D episode right? Except that getting through the dungeons isn't the conflict. It's about sharing your hobby with somebody that you love, accepting that they don't love the same things about it that you do, but then adapting to them and finding a way that you can let them enjoy it their own way.

These kinds of stories I think are hard for D&D to pull off, which is why I don't think 5e is the right fit.

I dunno, man, that doesn't necessarily fit my experience of D&D. Sure, we go into more detail about the combat, but all the weirdness and shenanigana and character stuff happens at the table.

It does make sense to me that they would get enough feedback from confused fans to tack with the wind.

 

[SteveC]

This is not a development I'm happy about. I had looked at the original system and thought I might pick it up for a light game but I don't need another 5E based, well, anything.

For what it's worth, I think these 5E games, like the 3X games before them, generated more initial interest by being compatible. And yet all of them are now utterly forgotten. So a 5E compatible game might do better in an initial KS, but I doubt many people will be playing it or even remember it a few years from now. Of course that's just my opinion.

 

[MichaelSomething]

I'm sad to see this. I was excited about what I heard of the "yes and" system. I don't think D&D capture the tone of Adventure Time well.


I said something similar when the original announcement came out.

Adventure Time had a lot of trappings of D&D, and it's obviously made by people who know and love D&D, but it doesn't tell D&D stories. The core story of the Adventure Time is about a boy growing up, and most of the conflicts are interpersonal conflicts.

Start with the very first episode. It's a zombie attack. In a game of D&D the main conflict is whether we can kill all these zombies. But in the episode of AT, the main conflict is whether Finn should reveal the secret to Jake or keep his promise to Princess Bubblegum.

Or look at Vault of Bones. It's a dungeon crawl! That must be a D&D episode right? Except that getting through the dungeons isn't the conflict. It's about sharing your hobby with somebody that you love, accepting that they don't love the same things about it that you do, but then adapting to them and finding a way that you can let them enjoy it their own way.

These kinds of stories I think are hard for D&D to pull off, which is why I don't think 5e is the right fit.

You clearly never watched an episode of Critical Role!

 

[Parmandur]

You clearly never watched an episode of Critical Role!

And Critical Role matches my experience of playing D&D.

 

[Tonguez]

I dunno if 5e is the right tone for Adventure Time, Is prefer something more narrative but oh well, t

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

You may forgotten the success of the 5e has created a new generation of players but these just arrived aren't too interested into learning new systems, or not more three systems. You can't blame them.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I mean, that's open gaming working as intended when Ryan Dancey unveiled the OGL back in the day.

It is, and I appreciate it, but it does depress the creation and proliferation of other systems. I hope they are able to follow through on releasing their bespoke system.

 

[Parmandur]

It is, and I appreciate it, but it does depress the creation and proliferation of other systems. I hope they are able to follow through on releasing their bespoke system.

Sounds like they are, from what they're saying. But it only makes sense to offer D&D rules for a D&D property.

 

[Morrus]

I'm actually more inclined to take a look at it now. I love Adventure Time, I just don't have the time to learn a new system. I hope both versions do well though.

I've played like a dozen new (to me) systems over the last year. As long as you're not talking about some big heavy complex system, it's usually quicker than learning the rules to a new boardgame, and you don't often hear people saying they only play one boardgame and don't have time to learn another.

OK, I exaggerate. but learning a new system isn't a time sink, especially for light systems like this. I think maybe folks assume all games are like D&D, but 90% of them are much lighter. I mean, it's no skin of my nose what other people play or don't play, but I feel like folks are missing out on some great gaming experiences which D&D isn't designed to provide. There's this perception that leaning a new RPG is a big undertaking, but it's not.

(And if you are playing with a GM who already knows the system, as opposed to running it, it's almost effort free. You can usually sit down at the table, get a quick intro from the GM, and be playing right away. You pick up the nuances pretty quickly as you play.)