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We're Finally Mainstream! Now What?
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<blockquote data-quote="Mercule" data-source="post: 7713202" data-attributes="member: 5100"><p>I see your point. Games like <u>Baldur's Gate</u> definitely used the D&D system mechanics, so I have mixed feelings about it. When you get to, say, Skyrim, though, that's clearly not "playing D&D" (not that anyone is claiming otherwise). So, where to draw that line?</p><p></p><p>Going back to my statement about "if the tabletop game dies, then D&D is dead," I still hold to that. If DDO/NWN stayed around, but the PHB (etc.) went out of print, I'd consider D&D to be gone. I think it's a branding issue. D&D is a medium. It's the comic.</p><p></p><p>Forgotten Realms is Batman. You can have Batman in the comics, on TV, in a novel, in a video game, or on the big screen. You could even have a Batman Musical on Broadway (though that chills me to the bone). Ditto to Forgotten Realms. You can have a FR movie, an FR video game, a novel, etc. You can also have a Forgotten Realms D&D game. Or, a Forgotten Realms GURPS game (which is about as interesting, to me, as the Batman Musical).</p><p></p><p>Asking whether people are consuming Batman is different than asking whether people are reading comics. Asking who is playing D&D is more like asking who is reading comics. My interesting isn't in whether the Realms or Eberron or Planescape (Batman, Superman, Spiderman) are selling well. It's in whether D&D (comics) is doing well.</p><p></p><p>Carrying your analogy a bit further, the consistent mechanics/different delivery between the TTRPG and the video games might be a bit more like the difference between monthly comics and graphic novels. They're close, but (I suspect) have somewhat different audiences that don't always cross-over. Actually, that might be an extremely good analogy: to the casual player/reader, there's little difference because they get a story told in pictures (or via a set of mechanics), either way. To a fan or author/GM, there's a big difference because one is a finite story/package and the other is ongoing and open-ended.</p><p></p><p>Ultimately, I'm most interested in what keeps DMs in business, so to speak.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Mercule, post: 7713202, member: 5100"] I see your point. Games like [U]Baldur's Gate[/U] definitely used the D&D system mechanics, so I have mixed feelings about it. When you get to, say, Skyrim, though, that's clearly not "playing D&D" (not that anyone is claiming otherwise). So, where to draw that line? Going back to my statement about "if the tabletop game dies, then D&D is dead," I still hold to that. If DDO/NWN stayed around, but the PHB (etc.) went out of print, I'd consider D&D to be gone. I think it's a branding issue. D&D is a medium. It's the comic. Forgotten Realms is Batman. You can have Batman in the comics, on TV, in a novel, in a video game, or on the big screen. You could even have a Batman Musical on Broadway (though that chills me to the bone). Ditto to Forgotten Realms. You can have a FR movie, an FR video game, a novel, etc. You can also have a Forgotten Realms D&D game. Or, a Forgotten Realms GURPS game (which is about as interesting, to me, as the Batman Musical). Asking whether people are consuming Batman is different than asking whether people are reading comics. Asking who is playing D&D is more like asking who is reading comics. My interesting isn't in whether the Realms or Eberron or Planescape (Batman, Superman, Spiderman) are selling well. It's in whether D&D (comics) is doing well. Carrying your analogy a bit further, the consistent mechanics/different delivery between the TTRPG and the video games might be a bit more like the difference between monthly comics and graphic novels. They're close, but (I suspect) have somewhat different audiences that don't always cross-over. Actually, that might be an extremely good analogy: to the casual player/reader, there's little difference because they get a story told in pictures (or via a set of mechanics), either way. To a fan or author/GM, there's a big difference because one is a finite story/package and the other is ongoing and open-ended. Ultimately, I'm most interested in what keeps DMs in business, so to speak. [/QUOTE]
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