Why do you choose to play d20 games?

[Calico_Jack73]

Looking at some of the posts on my other poll I came to discover that many people here play d20 system games even though they prefer other games. Why do you play d20 games?

 

[francisca]

Looking at some of the posts on my other poll I came to discover that many people here play d20 system games even though they prefer other games. Why do you play d20 games?

I picked "isn't my fave", which isn't to say I don't like it.

I play 3E because I wanted to run a 3E game and see what it was like. We've been playing off an on for a couple of years now, with some 2-3 month breaks mixed in. We're play every other monday night on a regular basis now.

I dunno if I have a favorite. I think each system has it's own set of merits and flaws, and you choose which dysfunctions you want to live with.

I still play 1E about once a month. I want to find a hackmaster game to play in and see how it goes. I got a hankering for Basic/Expert D&D and 1E Gamma World, but nobody to play with.

 

[The_Universe]

I love D20. While I feel some nostalgia for games played in old systems, D20 has the part of my heart that my wife doesn't.

It's so versatile, and as the GM/DM, it's hard to find a system more friendly to my needs, while still giving the players sufficient options. CR/EL is handy handy handy, and games like Mutants and Masterminds prove that the system can really do just about anything.

 

[ngenius]

Yes, d20 may not be the best but it has biggest community

I picked "isn't my fave", which isn't to say I don't like it.

I play 3E because I wanted to run a 3E game and see what it was like. We've been playing off an on for a couple of years now, with some 2-3 month breaks mixed in. We're play every other monday night on a regular basis now.

I still play 1E about once a month. I want to find a hackmaster game to play in and see how it goes. I got a hankering for Basic/Expert D&D and 1E Gamma World, but nobody to play with.

d20 may not be the "best" game system, but it is the most popular, especially with the OGL allowing so many Third-party modules, adventures, etc. Yes, many complain that we now have an overload of poor quality products. But, hey, this is how Microsoft dominated the desktop and home computer business. Make the most widely advertised and accepted game system, and the world lies at your feet (begging, literally). Those who criticise harshly, will always be in a minority.

So, just because of that, d20 deserves to be nominted as the best, since it has the brightest future (unless of course WoTC goes bankrupt and that is unlikely).

Just an opinion expressed by a novice gamer. :\

 

[Psion]

I put other because I don't see games as a contintuum. Different games have different applications. Though there certainly are a number of games I consider quite a bit worse (harder to play or run, harder to understand, etc.), I do see it as one of many competitive and modern solutions.

I do think that the general ability to find a group and the support are definite boons to be had when using it.

More to the point, if one were to ask the question "why does d20 get played at your table and not other systems:"

• My players like, understand, and are comfortable and familiar with it. We can all agree on it. (I like the flexibility of HERO as a system, but find it is above the heads of most players.)
• I don't like dice pool systems, rules-vacuous systems, diceless systems, card-driven or pente-stone driven systems, and d20 is none of these.
• OTOH, I do prefer games that use a simple and easy to ajudicate dice system with easily understood probablities (linear or two dice, no changes in die types), and d20 is one of those.
• I do like systems with structure that the players can use as sources of ideas and to minimize handholding, and d20 does that.
• I have less time these days to write new add ons for existing systems, so I find that the broad support for d20 is a boon to me as a GM.

 

[Cthulhu's Librarian]

I picked "Other", but that does not mean I don't like d20. If I didn't like it, I'd be on some other board.

d20 has the advantage of being the most popular system and it is flexable, so it's fairly easy to find other players. Plus, it's the system of choice for several of my good friends, and they are the people I play with most often. If I had my choice, I'd probably play Call of Cthulhu BRP, but there are only a few others around me that know the system, much less enough people who could meet on a regular basis to play using the system. Plus, d20 gives me the option of playing using the same core set of rules with minor changes and have a variety of genres to play under without having to teach everyone a new system. So, even though I like other systems better, it's the easiest system for me to use on a regular basis.

 

[Thanee]

Other.

Started, because we played quite a bit of AD&D before, but at some point moved on to other systems. With the 3rd edition, we came back to playing D&D again, and since we like it so far, we still do.

Bye
Thanee

 

[takyris]

Pretty close to Psion. I like different gaming systems, but this is the one that meets my current needs, has a minimum of rules that completely rub me the wrong way, is well supported, and is acceptible to my players.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Other.
Started, because we played quite a bit of AD&D before, but at some point moved on to other systems. With the 3rd edition, we came back to playing D&D again, and since we like it so far, we still do.

I have less time these days to write new add ons for existing systems, so I find that the broad support for d20 is a boon to me as a GM.

Some of you are answering "Other" when the reason you wrote in is one of the choices. Thanee... Look at your last sentance, wouldn't "I honestly like d20" make sense? Psion, I included an option that d20 is the most supported system and you could have answered that way.

If you are going to answer "Other" please back it up with your statement instead of stating that you really meant to vote for one of the existing choices.

 

[Len]

Your poll doesn't include what I think is probably the most common reason that people play d20 games:

Because D&D is a d20 game.