D&D 5E 5e and the Cheesecake Factory: Explaining Good Enough

[Snarf Zagyg]

Thus for me the CF argument misses the mark. I don't default to D&D, I choose it - because of the quality of the design work and how well it fits the purposes my group has. I imagine it is not your intent, but it seems very dismissive to suppose fans of D&D are settling for some kind of least-worst option.

I did call it the Cheesecake Factory Theory, and not the Taco Bell Lowest Common Denominator And Now Everyone Has The Runs Theory, for a reason.

I think people today overlook the value of second-best (edit- especially when it comes to group decision making)... and competence.

 

[Aldarc]

I think people today overlook the value of second-best (edit- especially when it comes to group decision making)... and competence.

Isn't there a joke that occasionally pops up here speaking to that idea that 5e is everyone's second favorite edition?

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Isn't there a joke that occasionally pops up here speaking to that idea that 5e is everyone's second favorite edition?

In truth, I think that there a whole generation of gamers starting today that don't participate much in the forums because they are too busy twitching and twitting and instagrimming and click-clocking ... and for them, 5e is the bestest edition ever, because that's all they know! And that's totally cool, because everyone starts somewhere, and you never forget your first love.

 

[TheSword]

I’m yet to hear what system is fundamentally better though. This isn’t a statement asking for a big argument about which is the best TTRPG. It’s a statement to say, other systems I see discussed, as good as they are at some things usually have their own set of flaws. We can’t even agree on what would make a TTRPG the best. Let alone where games rank on those measures. I hope it’s beyond the scope of this thread.

When people say D&D is the most popular because it’s all they know (or have been brainwashed) then I get uncomfortable. I dislike snide arguments that rely on the assumption that the population is dumber than they are, and can’t make decisions ‘correctly’ and doesn’t know what they want.

In some things the market is a lousy way of deciding how good something is. However when it comes to hobby materials I reckon it’s just fine. Particularly when it’s not a flavor of the month and success is sustained.

As for the argument that I’m a rabid fanboy who only likes D&D. I’ll say that it hasn’t always been rosy for WOC and certainly not TSR. 4e - as innovative as it was - saw the company shrink financially and it was knocked off the top spot by Pathfinder. 2e/AD&D was lukewarm to me and I played more of other systems than that one. 3e was fun, but also suffered from crippling bloat and imbalance. I have no loyalty to the D&D brand beyond the quality of the product they release.

It just happens that they’re releasing good stuff now, and that makes me put away my other systems and play this one.

 

[Asisreo]

I don't think many of the replies are off the mark by much, including the OP.

For some, its a restaurant of choice (I don't know a restaurant I'd rather eat than Cheesecake factor because I am actually not very high income in a place that doesn't even have one). For some, its convenient. For others, its comfortable or familiar.

 

[clearstream]

In truth, I think that there a whole generation of gamers starting today that don't participate much in the forums because they are too busy twitching and twitting and instagrimming and click-clocking ... and for them, 5e is the bestest edition ever, because that's all they know! And that's totally cool, because everyone starts somewhere, and you never forget your first love.

That comes across as presumptuous. You denigrate the judgement of a large number of people, while giving your own judgement a free pass.

 

[jeffh]

Isn't there a joke that occasionally pops up here speaking to that idea that 5e is everyone's second favorite edition?

I know I've been saying that since shortly after it came out, and I don't intend it as a joke. Though some people do find the observation amusing. (Especially when someone initially misses the point, and asks "what's the first?", eliciting the answer "that varies, but the second is nearly always 5E").

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

That comes across as presumptuous. You denigrate the judgement of a large number of people, while giving your own judgement a free pass.

Seriously? Are you spoiling for a fight?

Let me make this explicitly clear:

I was responding to @Aldarc who stated that 5e was often referred to as the second-favorite edition on these forums (aka, "here").

I made a joke that most people understand to be self-denigrating that invokes the fact that most of the people commenting on these forums are, in fact, older - not only "3e" older but we also have a lot of people that go back to 2e, 1e, and OD&D.

Which is why people here would think of 5e as their second-favorite edition; because most people fall in love with their FIRST game they play.

Now, I will explain this in even more painstaking detail. Many of the olds here, like me, played another edition first, that we fell in love with. So 5e is most likely to be our second-favorite edition. But a person who has just come into the game would only have played 5e, so it would be their first love, and their favorite edition. Therefore, sampling the comments here would necessarily be skewed, because ... wait for it ... the people who type long comments on the forum are going to be older than the people who have just started playing D&D with 5e.

Now, if you would like to get into giant INTERNETZ FIGHT, feel free, but I need to go yell at some clouds. Take care!

 

[DEFCON 1]

Heh... I almost want to say that the analogy ends up saying more about the attitude of people towards Cheesecake Factory than it does towards D&D. How you feel about that restaurant will color whether you think the D&D comparison is right or wrong.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Heh... I almost want to say that the analogy ends up saying more about the attitude of people towards Cheesecake Factory than it does towards D&D. How you feel about that restaurant will color whether you think the D&D comparison is right or wrong.

Maybe someone should put up a poll:

What Chain Restaurant Is 5e?