Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="MoogleEmpMog" data-source="post: 2024495" data-attributes="member: 22882">But why?  Why play D&D (online, at least) when they can just play World of Warcraft?  If they do the latter, they can roleplay to their hearts content and immerse themselves in gorgeous Blizzard artistry and game design.I would lump RPG players roughly into three categories for marketing purposes: storytellers, dungeon crawlers and tacticians.  Of course, most gamers hit multiple categories.Storytellers can do their thing in any system.  If they just like experiencing good stories, then books, movies and console RPGs serve their needs.  They need a pen-n-paper game only if they want to tell their own tales with others.  These people can be seen online doing 'collaborative storytelling' and sometimes fanfic.  The "new" competition for their business is comprised of console RPGs, internet message boards and isolated RP groups in MMORPGs.Dungeon crawlers espouse the Steve Jackson's Munchkin motto.  They need a system for fast, crazy combat and lots and lots of loot.  Games like Diablo, and to a lesser extent like Baldur's Gate and most MMORPGs, serve their needs.  Many are beer-and-pretzels gamers IRL, and they need a pen-n-paper game to get together with friends.  The "new" competition for their business is comprised of PC RPGs, collectible card games and most MMORPGs.Tacticians want a robust ruleset, time to plan and a challenging experience.  Stories are fine; battles that require almost puzzle-like precision to escape alive are better.  Games like Alpha Centauri, Heroes of Might and Magic and Final Fantasy Tactics serve their needs.  These games are rarer - on the PC, they've almost vanished entirely.  They need a pen-n-paper RPG for infinite tactical options or just for the chance to play a strategy game that doesn't require as much manual as mental dexterity.  The "new" competition for their business is comprised of Tactics RPGs and turn-based strategy games, and that market has all but vanished.Only the Tactician isn't as well served by a MMORPG as by online D&D, and even he is likely to dislike playing without a map and minis.</blockquote>

Verification