Is it possible that 2nd edition could make a very popular come back?

[Ahnehnois]

It seems to me that 2e has a lot of things going for it. It was "the" D&D (the officially supported version) for a very long time relative to the other editions, and likely has a large extant base of players who are familiar with it.

It also has the best D&D-based computer game ever, Baldur's Gate, which has been/will be rereleased for modern systems and helps spread the word.

And the rules themselves are so numerous and varied and amorphous that they can work for a lot of people, if those people are interested in making them work.

I don't know about a "very" popular comeback but I definitely see why people are still playing it and will be for the foreseeable future.

 

[BlueBlackRed]

My group collapsed because we didn't care for 4E (described it as a good rpg, but it wasn't D&D to us).
Not long ago we reformed and started playing again using the 2E rules.
It's been fun, but it was definitely nostalgia versus 2E being the game we'll play for awhile.

We're casually discussing what we're going to play after we finish up a few I2-6 modules.
It could be DCC, E6, or PF.

 

[TerraDave]

I don't know about the rules, but I have started recollecting 2E Forgotten Realms books, as nothing after it really compares content-wise.

Its an important caveat. But I don't see that as really 2E, I see at as FR...

My PCs just arrived in Sigil, so of course I have looked at some 2E era stuff. What else would I do? But its not for the stat blocks.

 

[Scars Unseen]

Yes, but that means they also don't get to sell new versions of many evergreen books.

It isn't a clean and obvious balance - old players may be tempted to buy a new ruleset, if many supplements will still work with it. Or, they'll skip it because it isn't different enough to need a new game!

True, but the reverse applies as well. If you can't put out content for a popular setting of equal quality to what was released for previous editions, don't expect long time fans of that setting to keep buying your stuff. I stuck with 3E in part because the FR supplements were at least passable(though arguably still worse than the old TSR stuff).

After 4E gutted the Realms and didn't bother to fill the hollowed out shell with anything of note, 5E would have to pull out all the stops to reel me back in as a customer. As it stands, I plan to use 1E/2E FR material, but not with D&D. I'm kind of debating whether to use Castles & Crusades, Fantasy Craft or a conversion of L5R as my fantasy system of choice.

 

[fjw70]

My group collapsed because we didn't care for 4E (described it as a good rpg, but it wasn't D&D to us).
Not long ago we reformed and started playing again using the 2E rules.
It's been fun, but it was definitely nostalgia versus 2E being the game we'll play for awhile.

We're casually discussing what we're going to play after we finish up a few I2-6 modules.
It could be DCC, E6, or PF.

You don't play good non-D&D games? To the point your group will break up if you are playing a good game?

 

[Zardnaar]

I'm thinking AD&D 3rd ed or a clone doing that would probably do better than a resurrected 2nd ed. Hell just re releasing 2nd ed with ascending saves, attack rolls, AC and a basic skill system and feats/talents replacing WP/NWP (at the same rate) could be an improvement IMHO.

 

[BlueBlackRed]

You don't play good non-D&D games? To the point your group will break up if you are playing a good game?

It's a long story, but yes, we only play D&D.
Between money and no consensus of interest in other games, that's how it is.

Because I detested 4E, even after giving it a very fair chance, and I couldn't get the group to agree on an alternative, I took a break.
Then one person left, then another, and then the group died.
After a few months hiatus we reformed playing 2E.
2E has been fun, but once the nostalgia wore off we're back to where we started, a lack of consensus of what to play.

 

[Zardnaar]

It's a long story, but yes, we only play D&D.
Between money and no consensus of interest in other games, that's how it is.

Because I detested 4E, even after giving it a very fair chance, and I couldn't get the group to agree on an alternative, I took a break.
Then one person left, then another, and then the group died.
After a few months hiatus we reformed playing 2E.
2E has been fun, but once the nostalgia wore off we're back to where we started, a lack of consensus of what to play.

Burnt out on 3.x games like Pathfinder? We only play D&D with a little bit of Star Wars. I can recommend ACKs if you like OSR type gameplay with some build options like 3rd ed feats.

 

[Tequila Sunrise]

These threads get weirder and weirder. Might as well ask if there's any chance that Ford's Model T will make a comeback.

2e has great settings, and not much else.

 

[Mistwell]

My group collapsed because we didn't care for 4E (described it as a good rpg, but it wasn't D&D to us).
Not long ago we reformed and started playing again using the 2E rules.
It's been fun, but it was definitely nostalgia versus 2E being the game we'll play for awhile.

We're casually discussing what we're going to play after we finish up a few I2-6 modules.
It could be DCC, E6, or PF.

With D&D Next/5e frequently described as version 2.75, have you considered maybe switching to D&D Next/5e?