So, this thread is intended to be about whether we will see another explosion of innovation and experimentation in design and aesthetic like we saw in the 90s, and what that might look like. All speculation, I know,but probably less acrimonious than arguing about -- weirdly -- 4E in yet another unrelated thread.
In this sense it does seem like MCDM is leading the charge here. Matt has said they're trying to design a cinematic and tactical fantasy adventure TTRPG from first principles. So they've specifically discarded as much of the 1974 game as possible.
That said, I'm not sure what the hobby as a whole really wants. What I do know is that not only has WotC lost my attention due to how they've handled the licensing, they've also done horribly on nearly every published module since Dungeon of the Mad Mage. I've realized that I've been disappointed, frustrated, or aggravated by everything they've produced since 2018. Tasha's Cauldron of Everything is the lone exception, and it felt like it was two years out of date when it was published.
Worse, looking at the changes from OneD&D have been even more disappointing to me. I agree that the game needed some changes and nerfs, and I even agree with a lot of the design changes. But the overwhelming theme has been to make everything feel as unimpressive or as uninteresting as possible. I have never been as unexcited by D&D as I have been since the start of the OneD&D playtest.
None of the new options taken as a whole really interest me.
None of the classes feels like they can do something
cool, let alone do something
badass. I look at it and think, "This so boring and lifeless. I feel like they imagine I will be excited finding a purse of 50sp at level 7 by killing a bandit. What are they doing?"
I know some folks have suggested there may be less innovation rather than more as publishers throw themselves into 5E-alikes. Do I ever hope those folks are wrong! I want to see the next Deadlands or Earthdawn or Ars Magika or Fading Suns -- new ideas with new systems.
I think there are many who will go into 5e-alikes. Advanced 5e, Kobold Press's Project Black Flag, Iskandar, etc. Or D&D adjacents like Pathfinder 2e or 13th Age 2e (which is supposed to KS soon). The Kobold Press preview was very short, but it was more interesting than anything I've seen from WotC in years.
I wonder if Savage Worlds will attract people again. I really like the feel of the game and it is much broader now, but the mechanical cruft that was so suitable for Deadlands feels increasingly unappealing and cumbersome. Initiative in particular I really dislike, as it takes awhile to shuffle and nobody ever remembers the suit order. "Fast and furious" it ain't.
There are things with PbtA that I like, but myself and my table bounced off Dungeon World
hard. Combat was very unsatisfying to us in ways that we didn't expect. PbtA just didn't feel right to us. BitD was similarly a bust. I think our table just fundamentally rejects the "Writer's Room" conceit. It's not what we want in a TTRPG. Which is odd because you'd think it would appeal to GMs, and my group is a table of GMs. Nope. We like wargaming, too, so we want that skirmish combat subgame. I wonder how many tables will similarly reject the PbtA/Evil Hat narrative game style.
I think my ideal game would be a blend of 13th Age class design, Savage Worlds/PbtA skills, and 4e D&D combat. And it can't be as crunchy as D&D 3.x or anything Pathfinder. My eyes cross when I see
stuff like this. I don't want it to be so nuanced and prescriptive in an attempt to be comprehensive.
I know Monte Cook games and Green Ronin Publishing have been up to new stuff, too. And I wouldn't be surprised if there's something new from Chaosium. But increasingly these companies feel like an old guard. They grew out of the early 2000s or earlier, which is now longer ago than I like to contemplate. I guess I just feel like if they were going to take off, they would have.
FFG whole line feels dead. It feels like Embracer Group shoved everything TTRPG into Edge Studio and have left it to wither and die. Genesys might be interesting, but it must not be profitable enough for them.
There's still Warhammer, Warhammer 40k, and The One Ring, but I don't know that Cubicle 7 or Free League Publishing are looking to do anything new. Modiphius still looks like they're selling 2d20 under various licensed properties. Really wish they'd clean up Conan 2d20.
And the retro teams at Necrotic Gnome, Basic Fantasy, and Goodman Games look to be continuing to do the same thing. They're all at least somewhat backwards-looking being in the OSR market.
Up next for us to try is Worlds Without Number, which looks attractive as another D&D adjacent game, but I don't really like some of the OSR elements. It's what always turned me off Stars Without Number, too, which is stellar in design and presentation but just not what I'm looking for. I'm interested in cinematic, heroic fantasy. I don't want gritty realism or grim darkness. Or table gen the setting. I guess we'll see if it feels right or not.
I also still need to check out Lancer. It's not our usual fare, but it seems like it would be fun. I know nothing about the system, though.
Overall, then, I have no idea where we might see genuine innovation, then. One of the 5e-alikes might gain traction, but I don't see the kind of movement or passion to reinvent the wheel. Well, except for MCDM. Is it going to be them? Some unknown on Kickstarter? I don't know.
I'm just really unhappy with WotC's output. The OGL v1.1 might have lit the match, but they've been packing that powder keg for years now.
