Scott Christian
Hero
I think, from a societal piece, it still reflects LotR a lot. The D&D clubs at high school still adhere to a Tolkien mind-set. That said, anime, Harry Potter and some more fantastical mindsets are also prevalent. It is a mixture.I saw someone mention in another post that D&D no longer reflects LotRs (and Conan). Society has moved on and now D&D is or is expected to lean more into DOTA and The Witcher (funny enough is based heavily on classic fairy tales like Snow White, Beauty and the Beast, etc etc)
I found the poster choosing DOTA and Witcher really odd choices. If anything I'd say more like MMOs and Anime...
Anywho, it got me to thinking while LotRs is far far more widely known period, what younger D&D fans may care about more now-a-days is Pokemon or Warcraft. Should D&D reflect the more current modern popular fiction? A monster hunter that catches Beholders in special magic balls?
Would it even be D&D anymore if you pushed to the side Halflings, Elves, Dwarves, etc?
Does D&D NOW reflect current media as opposed to the old and dusty LotRs (What Amazon tv series?). What do you think it should reflect? Lean back into more MMO play like 4th ed?
From a gaming perspective, it is definitely shifting away from serious and strategy to a more entertaining and humorous tone. I find this to be on both sides of the screen. Expectations maybe? (Note: I am not discounting that strategy has left the game, just saying it appears less prevalent.)
As far as the Witcher goes, I think it has moved further away. It is also one of the reasons for the show's popularity. Outside of maybe a few creatures, and some fantastical parts in the books, like the Djinn, I see very little resemblance to D&D.