When is a campaign setting no longer relevant?

[Dragonhelm]

After a while, all settings become dated to some degree, whether in an RPG, on TV, or on the big screen. We've seen Star Trek go out of date technology-wise, yet the themes remain relevant. The latest reboot has shown that old settings can have new life.

What about campaign settings, though? Can they ever become irrelevant? Greyhawk and Blackmoor are the granddaddies of them all, yet do they still appeal to a modern audience? The Forgotten Realms became explored so much that those realms were no longer forgotten. Yet it has just undergone a major reboot to keep it fresh.

At some point, will the various settings no longer hold meaning for us? Would they be based so much in prior editions that they are a hard fit for the current edition? Are their themes no longer appealing?

At what point should a campaign setting be retired? Are some settings so eternal that they should never be retired? And what of their themes? Are those themes eternal, or are they dated?

Discuss!

 

[Aus_Snow]

Admin edit: please don't do "fixed it for you" here. Thanks! I've removed that bit of your post. ~ PCat

At what point should a campaign setting be retired?

Never.

Hyboria is a classic example here. Will any given publisher (f'rex, Mongoose Publishing) overhaul that setting, to uh, 'keep it fresh' or whatever? *snort* Hardly.

 

[Mark]

Would they be based so much in prior editions that they are a hard fit for the current edition?

Why would this be so?

 

[GMforPowergamers]

At some point, will the various settings no longer hold meaning for us? Would they be based so much in prior editions that they are a hard fit for the current edition? Are their themes no longer appealing?

I think the problem is people don't relize what a theme is...Lets take dark sun and dragon lance as our two examples...

I have seen people say that Darksun can't have teflings in it or half orcs becuse it didn't before...

I have seen people say that in Dragon Lance the towers have to be alignment based becuse they always were...

are eaither of these themes???

I don't think so. I like the Ultimate line in Marvel Comics, they take the idea of the orginal story, and restart it today (alot like that star tre analogy you used) The benfit is you have hinesight...what are the most loved stories of the last 30 years of spiderman...what if we rewrote those today with new twists...

well what was the best part of the settings?? what didn;t work?? why did they work or not work...

then start fresh.

Darksun is a dessert world with low magic and little metal. It is a survival game with savage versions of the races. It is ruled over by Dark near deific powers called Dragon Kings...
every race/class is exceptable, but some are very odd...

How about dragon lance I bet people who know more can break it down...

 

[Bumbles]

Y'know, when I think of some of the older campaign settings, I think of historical tours and other things where you can see how folks lived in ye old tymes.

Some of that stuff may be briefly entertaining, but I'll just as soon pass on a lot of it. Other parts of it, well, they'd still be popular today.

Now how does this fit with campaign settings? Well, I think Greyhawk and Blackmoor can keep going strong for a while without any major changes. They really aren't, as far as I recall, so strongly defined by rules that they couldn't be easily implemented. Whatever wouldn't work? Well, you could just ignore those parts. Dark Sun, Dragonlance, and Birthright, now, those would be cases where some work would have to be done. But it'd mostly be making rules for them the same as for FR and Eberron. Psionics would be a tough one, and the Blood thingie of Cerilia, but nothing impossible. I leave the question of Tieflings and Dragonborn appearing in them to others.

Oh, and Hyboria, or rather Conan has gone through quite a few changes, not so much in campaign settings, but in all the media that the character has appeared in. He sure gets around. Maybe he has bills to pay.

 

[Ariosto]

We've seen Star Trek go out of date technology-wise, yet the themes remain relevant.

Since when are phasers, tractor beams, instantaneous transporters and warp drives outdated???

 

[LostSoul]

Since when are phasers, tractor beams, instantaneous transporters and warp drives outdated???

Ever since the Black Eyed Peas came out with Boom Boom Pow.

I'm so 3000 and 8
You're so 2000 and late

That song has changed everything.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Since when are phasers, tractor beams, instantaneous transporters and warp drives outdated???

I think he is reffering to a few years ago when enterprise was on the air there was an interview where they said why they ship looks more upto date then the orginal series (witch had very bulky computers and push buttons and levers).
the problem was we had SOME tech better then they had.

I like to tell this story...In the middle of a discussion with someone about this, in the middle of TGI fridays I sayed "Oh hold on I kust remembered I have to call my mom" pulled out my cell phone fliped it one handed, then said "call mom" it dialed, and when she answered I told her it was nothing I just had to prove a point... then I reminded my friend of star trek 4...kirk gets some strange looks with his communicator doing pretty much the same thing in 1985...no one in the resterant batted an eye lash at me doing it though.

the real problem is that all the fanatasy stuff : phasers, tractor beams, instantaneous transporters and warp drives... were controled by tech imagined in the 60's and 70's. Computers get smaller every day, I bet atleast one person reading this has a phone more advanced then my first computer back in 93...and that computer was more advanced then what we saw in TOS...

 

[Ariosto]

If you've got a growing market, then you can keep selling a classic durable product. With a stagnant or shrinking market, you've got to keep billing something "new and improved" to sell it again to the same bunch who bought the last batch. If you can profit by "giving away razors and selling razor blades", then you're really in the sweet spot. I don't see why a Call of Cthulhu fan would consider it necessary to buy each new edition of the rule book -- but the more people there are playing the game, the more interest there is in the scenario books and other add-ons.

I have just pulled out the original FR boxed set and FR1-6 (less The Magister), along with a 2nd edition set. I am not interested in "having to" study all the lore, much less buy and read a pile of novels and other expansions. It's a game, not a graduate degree program!

However, the original remains as fine a work as ever. A well-done work of fantasy is timeless. In the realm of the objectively unreal, "there's no there there" unless it's somewhere deep inside each of us.

 

[Dire Bare]

I'm not familiar with the stuff currently in print, but I found the Shadowrun game dated years ago. Also, the original World of Darkness games as well.

As far as D&D settings go, I feel that Greyhawk, Blackmoor, and Mystara are way past their expiration dates (let the flames begin). And Mystara is the setting of my youth that I still love! For long-time gamers the nostalgia factor can keep these settings alive for many years to come, but when playing with folks new to the game I would avoid them.

I'll admit that my heretic thoughts could be simply outdated presentations rather than outdated settings . . . perhaps a brand new shiny Greyhawk put together by some stellar designers would reinvigorate the setting for me, but I'm not holding my breath.