When you're the only one who likes what you like

[merelycompetent]

Have you ever been the only person, among all those you associate with, who likes something? And everyone else is indifferent to displeased with it?
<snip>

First, let me clarify: There is a difference between constructive criticism ("Hey, MC? We're having some problems with your game...") and being a jerk ("MC, I can't *believe* you're running RPG 7.2, The Rotten Tripe Edition! What a load of horse puckey!"). The former is invaluable, but painful, feedback. The latter is what I'm posting about below.

Indifferent is OK. Spending a full five minutes dissing the game that I spent hours preparing to run is a slap in the face. Talk about just plain out and out rude! That's not being a friend. That IS being a jerk.

Now, your friends may also be feeling upset that you're moving away. They could be showing that in a very un-friend manner. Now is the time to find out... and stay friends.

Or it could be that your friends weren't the sort of friends you thought they were.

Whatever the reasons, I think it would behoove you to contact one or more of your friends for a little one-on-one heart-to-heart about what's really going on here. I think you're currently operating on hurt feelings and assumptions. If they really are your friends, they'll talk with you honestly. If they blow you off, or tell you to get a thicker skin... then use this move to cut the leeches off. You can more constructively spend the time before the move a) prepping for the move, b) searching for a new group at the destination, c)setting up a new campaign to introduce your new friends to, and so forth. Life is too short... you know the rest.

 

[Hereticus]

I feel a little bit the same way but with all those groovy, narrativist indie games instead of D&D 4th Ed. I'd really like to 'get into' one of them but my gaming pals are more into traditional games. Which I don't mind either, so I'm not really feeling "the only one" blues, but I can empathize with you.

D&D is like the PC of gaming. Mac and Unix may be better to some, but so many more people play D&D, and there is also so much more core material.

 

[The Ghost]

Have you ever been the only person, among all those you associate with, who likes something? And everyone else is indifferent to displeased with it?

Lol! That is the way I feel when I start talking about baseball around my gaming friends - they just stare at me blankly. Of course, when they start talking video games I just stare blankly at them.

 

[Hereticus]

First, let me clarify: There is a difference between constructive criticism ("Hey, MC? We're having some problems with your game...") and being a jerk ("MC, I can't *believe* you're running RPG 7.2, The Rotten Tripe Edition! What a load of horse puckey!"). The former is invaluable, but painful, feedback. The latter is what I'm posting about below.

Indifferent is OK. Spending a full five minutes dissing the game that I spent hours preparing to run is a slap in the face. Talk about just plain out and out rude! That's not being a friend. That IS being a jerk.

Now, your friends may also be feeling upset that you're moving away. They could be showing that in a very un-friend manner. Now is the time to find out... and stay friends.

In defense of what was said in the OP, D&D is the standard in RPGs, and 4.0E is the current edition and the one that is supported most by WotC. All things being equal, there is good reason to upgrade and play the current version.

However there is familiarity with familiarity, and 4.0E is more of a drastic change than any other previous edition. So some people will embrace new Coke, and some insist on their Coke Classic.

I gave 4.0E a fair shot, and the game grew on me (no fungus joke please). But still, I prefer 3.5E because of content and my personal preferences and playing style.

 

[Hereticus]

Lol! That is the way I feel when I start talking about baseball around my gaming friends - they just stare at me blankly. Of course, when they start talking video games I just stare blankly at them.

LOL... other than Rod Carew and Kirby Puckett, professional baseball does not exist in Minnesota.

Now its hard to play a game in my area without being in awe of the Sox and Pats...

 

[The Ghost]

LOL... other than Rod Carew and Kirby Puckett, professional baseball does not exist in Minnesota.

Now its hard to play a game in my area without being in awe of the Sox and Pats...

I'd have a better response if the Twins had not lost 6-5 to the Red Sox today. Plus, I do not want to derail Rechan's thread. As for the Pats, well, what's the saying? If your not cheating, your not trying?

 

[Dyson Logos]

Yeah, I really miss running SuperWorld.

The classic Chaosium supers game? I was never a huge fan of it, but I actually just pulled it down off my shelf the other day to write a blog post about it. Scheduled for... the 29th I think.

 

[mhacdebhandia]

And then I come to EnWorld with its edition wars.

Fourth Edition seems to be more popular on RPG.Net, though of course we're not without edition wars over there.

 

[Baron Opal]

Yeah. I imagine that I liked it better than HERO because I am such a RQ fan. Everyone else wanted to play HERO, however. V&V was popular, but we got too many silly heroes and villians.

 

[Zustiur]

Well at the risk of contradicting things I've said in the past...
I actually find I'm beginning to like 4E. It is a good game, perseverance was one of the key factors - I had to play it for months before I started to actually enjoy it. That said, there are some things that must be kept in mind with any group disagreement over systems.

1) Not enjoying a game does not mean that whole system is bad.
2) Lack-of-familiarity breeds contempt
3) Game style counts for a lot.

1 and 2 should be self explanatory. I will expand on 3:

4E is an interesting, tactical, RPG. It's a game with a lot of nuances that stem from all the options you're presented. It is a good game, and much fun can be had with it. However, for a seemingly great number of people, it doesn't scratch the D&D itch properly. Whatever the individual's reason, there is something about 4E that doesn't quite 'fit'.

For me that means I roll my eyes at the names of powers, and the effects thereof. I grit my teeth when I hear the same combat moves over and over. But once I ignore those factors, I have fun. Obviously other people's feelings differ, but I'm finding that 4E satisfies a weird mixture of my Warhammer 40,000 itch and my D&D itch. It provides the tactical interest and army (power) selection interest of 40k, while providing much of the role-playing interest of D&D.

At the same time, it doesn't satisfy my passions in other ways - I don't paint D&D minis, I don't get to roll a tonne of dice to wipe my opponent off the board, and I don't get the same satisfaction about cutting down orcs or casting spells. I still have fun, it's just a new kind of fun. It's almost like a new hobby. Perhaps someday I'll have 3 interests, instead of 2.

And at the risk of sounding like I'm flaming - the one gripe with 4E that I just haven't been able to overcome yet - rules ambiguity. If only they were written more clearly! I'm so sick of being caught out because my DM's interpretation of the rules doesn't match my own.