What makes setting lore "actually matter" to the players?

[Thomas Shey]

Basically yes. WoD fans cyberbullied the hell out of me for not worshipping their lore and I’m still traumatized by that. It’s been years and years and I still get triggered every so often. Now I’m being told all change is good change and I should shut up and be grateful for anything.

This entire convo I’ve been feeling very turbulent because I feel like I’m told my feelings are invalid, I shouldn’t care about anything because it’s all dross and make believe games, and I was stupid to invest any emotional energy in these silly make believe games in the first place. I feel like I’m going insane here.

You absolutely have a right to your feelings here. What you like, and how you react to people who treated you badly are entirely your right to interpret.

But there's a well known line: "Everyone has a right to their own feelings. No one has a right to your own facts." Much as they may feel so to you, the kind of information in the Wod and the Witchcraft setting may feel different to you, but they are not different in kind in any objective way. They are both "lore" in the sense this thread is using.

Since it seems to be causing you problems, this will be the last I say on this subject to you.

 

[Campbell]

I don't think all change is inherently good. I think the specific lore changes in V5 make for a more functional game than classic Masquerade. I personally still prefer the setup of Requiem Second Edition, but like the adore blood cults in V5 and think bringing Lasombra back to Camarilla really adds some of the edge it had been missing in V20.

My fundamental issues with V5 are more mechanical. Not a huge fun of how erratic the dice can be in comparison to Chronicles of Darkness.

 

[VelvetViolet]

Since it seems to be causing you problems, this will be the last I say on this subject to you.

Ok. I have to step away anyway.

 

[RenleyRenfield]

I don’t think all change is inherently good. Do you?

"All" is just a strawman. Nobody is advocating for "you must accept all new changes".
But adding Jar Jar to Star Wars didn't ruin all of Star Wars.

So changing lore in Vampire, Witchcraft, Nephilim, Forgotten Realms, Pathfinder, etc etc = is fine.
Some you may like, some you may not. = is fine

If you back off the hate/panic over change, and think more about how diverse roleplay is and how much you do love the game, and how much lore is made up by the players anyway = you will find many things to like about the new lore too.

Some takes a bit of emotional time to chill on, others seem cool right way. Some of those changes are not really clear until a few months into gaming when you see what the designers did what they did. (V5 is very much this for me. Took me a bit, but i get it now, and I didn't realize how good the new lore changes where until I went back to play V20)

Basically yes. WoD fans cyberbullied the hell out of me for not worshipping their lore and I’m still traumatized by that. It’s been years and years and I still get triggered every so often. Now I’m being told all change is good change and I should shut up and be grateful for anything.

This entire convo I’ve been feeling very turbulent because I feel like I’m told my feelings are invalid, I shouldn’t care about anything because it’s all dross and make believe games, and I was stupid to invest any emotional energy in these silly make believe games in the first place. I feel like I’m going insane here.

I don't want to drag you or give you a hard time. There is a lot of lore and shared games we like, and I do miss those conversations. So much potential...

I also think, that there is a clear difference between expressing opinion and being the bully. Saying "I liked X lore better, I wish the game still had that. Ah well, gotta go think of a way to add it back in for my own games." = great! I fully support and would aid you in doing so. Others will join in and help keep your ideas relevant to a game even if it now conflicts with published lore. (which I also encourage, make your game your own!)

But saying "This is a skinjob, this is terrible, they are ruining all of this game!" is overly sensationalist and now playing the part of the bully, its just telling people that some aspect of a game is bad, and not having any justifiable reason other than personal opinion.

This is where respect for others comes in to play when phrasing what you like and don't like.
Expounding on what you miss = fine.
Ranting about how you hate X = just just detrimental to all.

Say your opinion, say what you like, say what you miss. All of that is great and respected.
But I feel that its best to not walk into a Star Wars convention and start telling everyone how you hate double lightsabers and how it ruined everything