Aimed at the general discussion. It's necessary but not sufficient to play as a character for it to be a role-playing game. Likewise, it's necessary but not sufficient to have rules, systems, and mechanics for it to be a role-playing game. If there's no role-playing, it's not an RPG. If there's no game, it's not an RPG. The RP can be as heavy or light as you like, but it has to be there. Likewise, the game can be as heavy or light as you like, but it has to be there.
playingattheworld.blogspot.com
There was a History of Braunstein published in 2008. Barons of Braunstein is up on DriveThru, though it's a licensed thing with the writers' house rules rather than Wesely's...though there is a few pages of essays in the back talking about the original version. There's probably a few interviews and articles floating around. Hopefully the project Ben was talking about is the definitive version from Wesely himself.
I'd be content giving the crown to Wesely.
Western Gunfight is also an interesting side note across the Atlantic, with people emphasizing the individual characters and playing your role.
Western Gunfight (1970): the First RPG?
In 1970, a group of UK gamers located in Bristol published the first edition of their Western Gunfight rules, which recorded systems they ...
Unless I'm forgetting something, there are no fantastical elements in the Braunstein setting. It's a fictional past that didn't happen, which makes it alternative history rather than fantasy - something that's more often seen as being science fiction (in the vein of Turtledove's work, for ex) if it isn't left as a sub-genre of historical fiction (which would be my preference). Imagi-nations and fictional campaigns were part of wargaming far before Wesely, although these days they're more likely to include touches of fantasy or implausibly advanced technology.
Did they claim that? Were they not referring to D&D?
It's tied to another thread discussing what genre might have begun roleplaying if TSR hadn't been a thing. I'm not as convinced as @Celebrim is that fantasy was inevitably going to be the first RPG genre in that scenario, but I do think fantasy would be a very early branch off any alternate trunk, just as scifi (and/or science fantasy, depending on how hard you need scifi to be) was an early branch in our world.
