What does it take for an RPG to die?

[Autumnal]

Are people still playing FUDGE? Were there a significant number of FUDGE fans out there who saw FATE, said "Nah, I'm good," and are keeping the dream alive?

Yeah, there are. Most years there’s a release or two for it, and they do sell and get discussed in ways that suggest they’re getting played.

 

[Reynard]

Yeah, there are. Most years there’s a release or two for it, and they do sell and get discussed in ways that suggest they’re getting played.

This underscores a important point too: our bubbles will make us think a game is dead when outside our bubble it might have a thriving community and new material. I would have guessed FUDGE died with the rise of Fate, but that is apparently untrue.

 

[Sketchpad]

There's several RPGs I own (and sometimes play) that I'd qualify as "dead" - Alternity, Boot Hill, Gangbusters, Fading Suns, Spycraft, Star Frontiers, TSR Marvel FASERIP, Gamma World, FASA/Last Unicorn/Decipher Star Trek, WEG Star Wars, Rolemaster & Middle Earth Roleplaying (by Iron Crown) - just to name a few.

Thing is, there are communities for some of those games. MSH, d6 Star Wars, and MERP all have thriving online communities. Rolemaster has had some new stuff released lately from Iron Crown. I think I heard new rumblings about a new edition of Spycraft as well.

Oh, wow. People who play dead games are actually necromancers!

Necrogamers for the win. Games never truly die. Like artifacts in Indiana Jones, they just need a person to discover them again.