What Do You Think is the Future of RPGs?

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I think that World of Warcraft is already the future of role-playing games (which I don't think is really that great of a thing). So I would vote for video games to replace tabletop gaming. It will still exist, but it's going to be very trivialized.

History suggests it won't. The comics industry has dropped to unheard-of-lows in the last decade, but the major companies keep the biggest (with the most expensive paper and the widest distribution, and thus the highest costs) alive as idea factories. It's no coincidence that Comic-Con International is now overrun with Hollywood types.

Likewise, it's no coincidence that White Wolf merged with an MMORPG company.

You're going to see lots of tabletop games kept around as idea factories, rules test beds and so on. Hasbro will eventually sell to someone like Sony Online Entertainment or someone else in the MMORPG market and D&D will soldier on just as Batman does, for the same reasons.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

MMORPGs (e.g. WoW) may brand themselves as RPGs, but any game where acting out in character is met with scorn by the majority of its players

Are you on a roleplaying server?

 

[DungeonMaester]

AD&D

I hate to say it, but I think RPG's are going to go the way of a boardgame/wargame.

Don't you mean back to a way of ar game style?

---Rusty

 

[Theocrat]

Whizbang, you say that now that the cats out of the bag, in reference to OGL. By that what do you mean?
Mongoose has produced several OGL games, such as OGLCybernet, OGL western, greek and crap loads of other OGL topics. Not saying they are right, or even good (I did/ do like OGL Cybernet since it's the closest thing to real Cyberpunk 2020 [becasue 203x sux]).
Are you saying that 4e will continue to use the d20 standard and be OGL? If so where did you get this information? I've seen posts by Clark Peterson that he believes that they will annouce 4e at GenCon, and I've also seen the catalog for 2008 and realize that it's noticeably absent of "rule" style books except those for Eberron [which I know nothing about and wouldn't know if they are heavy rules or just flavor] and the "How to create a book" book. The last part of 2007 also seems to be less heavy with new rules, with books on how to play a Sorcererer {for women} and Inn Fighting a dice game along the lines of 3 Dragon Ante {which I still have yet to play, even with 2 decks}.
Thanks for your input and answers.
Be Well. Be Well Until You Hear About 4e.
Theocrat Issak

 

[kitsune9]

It will go away and be a shadow of itself

I would agree with the Gneech in that rpgs will always be around in some form or another in the same way that you have a few enthusiasts that still like slot cars. Eventually, this industry will disappear to become that shadow as rpgs can become more technologically developed and get completely get rid of the social factor appeal, not to mention the heavy reading times.

Sure, we can say they will never replace the social interaction, but what does that mean today to the kids in the 12-19 demographic when those words are coming from the 40+ year old's mouth? Not much.

I don't see our game companies shutting down their doors and going out of business (I'm not a doom and gloom person), but I do see them doing other things where rpgs aren't their bread-and-butter anymore, just a part of it if at all. I don't know when this trend will happen. Some would say it's happening now, others would say 5, 10, 20 years from now. I don't know.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Whizbang, you say that now that the cats out of the bag, in reference to OGL. By that what do you mean?

The OGL cannot be recalled. Read the license; it spells it out there.

The only way to make a 4E (or a 5E or a 6E) NOT compatible with OGL (and remember, Blue Rose and Conan and Mutants & Masterminds are all OGL, so the system is very flexible) is to change D&D to such a degree that it'd be essentially unrecognizable. (Maybe it'd turn into GURPS or Traveler or something.) That would be near-suicidal by whoever holds the D&D property.

So now and forevermore, game companies will be able to produce OGL that can be used with D&D. Twenty minutes after 4E hits the streets, you'll see the first products "compatible with the fourth edition of the world's most popular roleplaying game" coming out. (My money's on Ronin Arts getting there first.)

I've seen posts by Clark Peterson that he believes that they will annouce 4e at GenCon

And Chris Pramas predicted it the year before. I wouldn't worry too much about who predicts what, especially as lots of freelancers are working on stuff for WotC for 2008, and if 4E was in the pipeline, I feel pretty confident that there would be leaks by now.

4E is being carried to us by Godot, and you know how punctual he is.

 

[Nifft]

More Internet -- Tools for at the table, tools for instead of the table, tools for the DM, tools for groups. This includes cybersex and elf-porn, because that's what the Internet is basically for.

More Quickies -- Mini-games, skirmish games with minis, and systems that can be connected into a bigger game but also function independently. Good when you want to run a beer-n-pretzels session or find yourself at a beer-n-pretzels gathering.

Multiscalar Games -- Synthesis of the above. Game systems where you can choose what granularity you want for each of the sub-systems, and make informed changes as you (& your group) decide to explore different aspects of the game.

Cheers, -- N

PS: Oh, and more encounter-based rather than fixed-time-based, because both balance and book keeping gets much, much easier.

 

[Nifft]

The OGL cannot be recalled.

BUT I REMEMBER IT PERFECTLY! -- N

 

[Scribble]

I personally don't really think RPGs will be going anywhere.

Do I think they will be huge more popular then the movies kind of things? Doubt it...

There will always be geeks and nerds like us though to keep it alive... even if only a few smaller press companies exist.

 

[Doug McCrae]

CRPGs will go in many new directions.

Hybrids between traditional rpgs and crpgs, including using computers to hide system complexity.

There will be no further major innovation within traditional rpging. The last one was in 1989, when Greg Stafford invented narrativism with Prince Valiant.