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RPG Evolution: Is the OSR Dead?
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<blockquote data-quote="robconley" data-source="post: 7680840" data-attributes="member: 5636"><p>I feel that being influential and getting new material made are two different outcomes. The former is a kin to a random dice roll either it happens or doesn't and you really can't "make" it happen as it is ultimately a question of taste which is fickle. The best you can do is to make sure what you do is of the best quality you make it so if it happens you are in a position to take advantage of it. </p><p></p><p>The latter, I think is the important outcome on whether a niche is successful or not. If the niche become just large enough or organized enough to see the production of new material as good or better quality as what came before then it is a success in my book regardless of actual size. </p><p></p><p>Hex and Counter wargames have figured out how to do the latter so new games are being produced to the present day. </p><p></p><p>The OSR has the done the same for older edition of D&D and other RPGs and served as a model for renaissances for other older games which is an added bonus in my book.</p><p></p><p>Unlike Hex and Counter wargames, OSR has some influence through a fortuitous combination of circumstances. So publisher, like myself and others, can take advantage of that to get more sale and do more projects than we could otherwise. But even if it never happened, the nature of technology and internet would be meant that much that would have been produced for the OSR still would have been released anyway. The barrier to publishing is that low and is down to the point where it just a matter of talent and the amount of time the people in the project are willing to spend. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>It a matter of taste, and thus any theory is only good for looking back and understanding why something happened. It is useless for prediction. We know from the past that for any written project that good writing, good editing, good art, good layout, and good physical presentation are indicators of a successful project. But there have been successful works that violated one or more of that. There been works that had all of the proceeding and failed. When you stack it up it amounts to "who the <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /><img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /><img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /><img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /> knows why anything succeeds". Andy Weir, the author of the Martian, slaps what amounts to a bunch of well edited, well researched blog posts about a highly technical fictional story of astronaut stranded on Mars using just the physic and situation we know about today, and produces a mega hit. Who would figure that?</p><p></p><p>In hindsight what fueled the OSR was several things</p><p></p><p>1) OD&D, B/X, and AD&D 1st have the largest group of fans out of all RPGs prior to 1990. So even the OSR publishers exceeded in only attracting a few percentage points of older gamers that still a huge audience compared to other classic RPGs.</p><p>2) The Internet makes finding stuff easy</p><p>3) By subtracting a few mechanics the d20 SRD is pretty close to how classic D&D works. With some work that is in the capability of a determined individual or group it can be used to make a near clone of a target edition. Thanks to the OGL the result can be published without fear of a lawsuit.</p><p>4) The classic edition are great games in of themselves which allowed them to attract new gamers which allowed the OSR to be more than a nostalgic flash in the pan.</p><p></p><p>For my part after I read OSRIC, I knew that classic D&D was here to stay. My experience with open source software development told me that once somebody figure how to make something open and it was popular at one point it was enough to keep it going as a viable community producing new content. So I threw my hat in the ring and came out with my own stuff.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Matt's Primer has two major things about it.</p><p></p><p>1) It is a instruction manual for running older games that don't have the mechanics of newer games like skills.</p><p>2) It is a snarky attack on games with newer mechanics.</p><p></p><p>I could have lived without #2 but #1 provided highly useful to me and other folks I know who have read. Some of them like the snarky attitude and some didn't. I liked Matt's primer because it made me as comfortable with running OD&D, Fate, and other lite RPG as the games I usually run which were games like GURPS, Hero System, and Harnmaster.</p><p></p><p>So is your objection really about the attitude or do you feel it fails to effectively instruct somebody how to run older games as a referee.</p><p></p><p>If it former, sure I can see that. If it is the latter I have to disagree. </p><p></p><p>Rob Conley</p><p>Bat in the Attic Games.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="robconley, post: 7680840, member: 5636"] I feel that being influential and getting new material made are two different outcomes. The former is a kin to a random dice roll either it happens or doesn't and you really can't "make" it happen as it is ultimately a question of taste which is fickle. The best you can do is to make sure what you do is of the best quality you make it so if it happens you are in a position to take advantage of it. The latter, I think is the important outcome on whether a niche is successful or not. If the niche become just large enough or organized enough to see the production of new material as good or better quality as what came before then it is a success in my book regardless of actual size. Hex and Counter wargames have figured out how to do the latter so new games are being produced to the present day. The OSR has the done the same for older edition of D&D and other RPGs and served as a model for renaissances for other older games which is an added bonus in my book. Unlike Hex and Counter wargames, OSR has some influence through a fortuitous combination of circumstances. So publisher, like myself and others, can take advantage of that to get more sale and do more projects than we could otherwise. But even if it never happened, the nature of technology and internet would be meant that much that would have been produced for the OSR still would have been released anyway. The barrier to publishing is that low and is down to the point where it just a matter of talent and the amount of time the people in the project are willing to spend. It a matter of taste, and thus any theory is only good for looking back and understanding why something happened. It is useless for prediction. We know from the past that for any written project that good writing, good editing, good art, good layout, and good physical presentation are indicators of a successful project. But there have been successful works that violated one or more of that. There been works that had all of the proceeding and failed. When you stack it up it amounts to "who the :):):):) knows why anything succeeds". Andy Weir, the author of the Martian, slaps what amounts to a bunch of well edited, well researched blog posts about a highly technical fictional story of astronaut stranded on Mars using just the physic and situation we know about today, and produces a mega hit. Who would figure that? In hindsight what fueled the OSR was several things 1) OD&D, B/X, and AD&D 1st have the largest group of fans out of all RPGs prior to 1990. So even the OSR publishers exceeded in only attracting a few percentage points of older gamers that still a huge audience compared to other classic RPGs. 2) The Internet makes finding stuff easy 3) By subtracting a few mechanics the d20 SRD is pretty close to how classic D&D works. With some work that is in the capability of a determined individual or group it can be used to make a near clone of a target edition. Thanks to the OGL the result can be published without fear of a lawsuit. 4) The classic edition are great games in of themselves which allowed them to attract new gamers which allowed the OSR to be more than a nostalgic flash in the pan. For my part after I read OSRIC, I knew that classic D&D was here to stay. My experience with open source software development told me that once somebody figure how to make something open and it was popular at one point it was enough to keep it going as a viable community producing new content. So I threw my hat in the ring and came out with my own stuff. Matt's Primer has two major things about it. 1) It is a instruction manual for running older games that don't have the mechanics of newer games like skills. 2) It is a snarky attack on games with newer mechanics. I could have lived without #2 but #1 provided highly useful to me and other folks I know who have read. Some of them like the snarky attitude and some didn't. I liked Matt's primer because it made me as comfortable with running OD&D, Fate, and other lite RPG as the games I usually run which were games like GURPS, Hero System, and Harnmaster. So is your objection really about the attitude or do you feel it fails to effectively instruct somebody how to run older games as a referee. If it former, sure I can see that. If it is the latter I have to disagree. Rob Conley Bat in the Attic Games. [/QUOTE]
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