Broken Base Lookback #5: Or...Wow...I got old too quickly...

[Umbran]

For what it's worth, the gamer you describe in your post fits the guys who created OSRIC to an absolute tee. They came back to gaming in their mid-30s, found modern games wanting, and went back to what they liked when they were kids.

That may be (though, I'd thought most of the retrocloning folks didn't really ever leave gaming, but I could be wrong). But, I'm not talking about people with the zeal to create a new game. That's a rather particular sort of player.

EDIT: The thing is, I find that retro-clone players like playing the games they played as kids, but tend to play them very differently.

While most games can be used for multiple purposes, I'm a "right tool for the job" sort of guy. If the lapsed players want to play differently now, give them a game that uses the best of design that's come up in the intervening years to do what they want, rather than clone an old thing for the purpose.

Not that I've identified exactly what those players might like - that'd take some serious research - but just to give an example of what I mean - I'd look less to OSRIC to fill the lapsed-player needs, and look more to things like Old School Hack. In general, applying many of the comfortable old tropes, but with new designs.

 

[Desdichado]

Not that I've identified exactly what those players might like - that'd take some serious research - but just to give an example of what I mean - I'd look less to OSRIC to fill the lapsed-player needs, and look more to things like Old School Hack. In general, applying many of the comfortable old tropes, but with new designs.

But then you'd be missing the point. Playing the same game, more or less, is one of the driving demands of the OSR crowd. That doesn't mean that they're playing the same way--although many are, and in fact they take an amost zealous approach to recreating what they feel was the 1980 D&D experience or something like that. But they don't want to play with "innovative" rules. That's the whole point. They want to play with the rules that they already know and love.

 

[Umbran]

But then you'd be missing the point.

Maybe you're missing my point. The folks playing OSR games are more than welcome to them. I am *not* saying that OSR players would be better served by new games.

I'm saying, "Stopped gaming many years ago," does not automatically equate to, "OSR player."

 

[rogueattorney]

Maybe you're missing my point. The folks playing OSR games are more than welcome to them. I am *not* saying that OSR players would be better served by new games.

I'm saying, "Stopped gaming many years ago," does not automatically equate to, "OSR player."

That's true. But I've seen a lot of perplexed "why do these guys who liked [Old Game] not like [New Game That Isn't All That Much Like Old Game]?" type of posts before.

We need to know why lapsed players lapsed in the first place.

Your earlier post seemed to envision players who were basically content with the older games, but stopped playing them because life got busy, and now can game again because life slowed down a bit. In that case, if they were never discontented with the old game, why would anything other than the old game be more likely to bring them in.

 

[Croesus]

Your earlier post seemed to envision players who were basically content with the older games, but stopped playing them because life got busy, and now can game again because life slowed down a bit. In that case, if they were never discontented with the old game, why would anything other than the old game be more likely to bring them in.

I can't speak for anyone else, but for me, it's because I'm not the person I was 30 years ago.

About a year ago I convinced my group to try one of the clones, I think it was Basic Fantasy. I was excited about the idea of running an old style dungeon crawl with old style characters. I even pulled out one of the early hack and slash modules from that time, with plenty of varied monsters, traps, and puzzles.

The game lasted two sessions. The players and I both found it fairly boring, even tedious in parts. The game was very similar to sessions I played so long ago, but it just wasn't satisfying. No one wanted to map. They were constantly leaving the dungeon so the wizard could regain his one spell, or the fighter could heal up. Characters died from a single hit.

Maybe it was rose-colored nostalgia. Maybe it was because I can play dungeon crawls on the computer, so I want more when playing face to face. Maybe something else. All I know is that I learned that I no longer want the same game I played when I started. I'll play it as a one shot, but nothing more than that.

Just my experience, but I suspect I'm not alone in this type of reaction.