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Post by tavis on Jul 10, 2012 15:08:03 GMT -6
I volunteered to be an Industry Insider Guest of Honor at Gen Con this year, and one of the panels I'm on is about the old-school renaissance (Saturday at 1 pm, if you'll be there!). I'm thinking one of the more interesting things I could do would be to go through a timeline on which important dates or stages in the OSR are superimposed with similar dates in the early development of RPGs. I know I've seen some good lists of dates etc. for both; any links would be most appreciated! Also, suggestions for other topics that'd be of interest are welcome. |
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Post by Finarvyn on Jul 10, 2012 19:03:39 GMT -6
That is so cool. Sadly, my GenCon trip will be a hit-and-run for a couple of hours on Thursday. If I'd known you were doing this I might have tried to adjust my plans.  I'm glad to have someone in the panel who seems to actually know what the OSR is all about. For some reason, the OSR seems to get a lot of bad press but it's just a bunch of folks who like older edition games and want to keep the spirt alive. Congrats on being picked! You will rock! |
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Post by bryce0lynch on Jul 12, 2012 6:14:22 GMT -6
The "feel" of the different versions would be interesting also. From weird and strange OD&D to the Orcs and goblin filled 1e to magical society 2e., etc.
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premmy
Level 5 Thaumaturgist
Posts: 295
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Post by premmy on Jul 12, 2012 7:57:31 GMT -6
I think one interesting thing would be to take a look at how early non-D&D games emerged and compare that with the emergence of non-D&D OSR material (even if the latter don't usually call themselves that). For instance, Stars Without Numbers is highly D&D-like in rules (though certainly not a near-clone), but also has many of the design sensibilities of Traveller. Or there's Mazes & Minoaturs, which on one hand is overtly a tribute/thought experiment/parody based on D&D, but on the other it is actually different enough to be considered a separate game.
And of course, parallel to that we also have how stuff like Tékumel and others that started out pretty much as "one guy's personal version of D&D", and I'm sure there are similar processes in and near the OSR.
Just a thought.
EDIT: Another idea I find interesting - partially based on personal experience - is how much of present-day old-school gaming is done by people who actually weren't around in the old days. I mean, I don't publish, but when I work on my own things for actual play, my (self-professed old-school) sensibilities are absolutely not tinged by any memories or nostalgia, since I don't have any. I know Melan is the same way with his Hungarian-language "sort of retroclone" and attendant setting, and so must be, say, James Raggi, and I strongly suspect many others.
And that, I think, is an idea worth exploring, because I find that a significant segment of the self-defined OSR is extremely prone to a sort of tunnel vision navel gazing where they basically equate the acronym with "only D&D, and only how it was played back then", and that's just delusional.
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jasons
Level 4 Theurgist
Posts: 111
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Post by jasons on Jul 12, 2012 21:20:32 GMT -6
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Post by grodog on Jul 15, 2012 12:13:06 GMT -6
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Post by tavis on Jul 16, 2012 14:43:29 GMT -6
That's super helpful, thanks!
Do you have similar link wizardry for a rundown of '70s publications? I know I've seen one on this board even. I won't need anything like the same level of precision - I'll be talking in terms of rough eras rather than days of the month.
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Post by maldoor on Jul 23, 2012 15:20:28 GMT -6
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Post by tavis on Jul 26, 2012 13:11:25 GMT -6
Awesome, yes that's exactly what I was thinking of!
It's interesting to see that the emergence of new systems happens almost right away in the original timeline, with EPT and Tunnels and Trolls. Likewise new adventures happen right away in the OSR, with OSRIC modules even pre-dating OSRIC.
In both cases, it takes about four years to switch positions. TSR publishes D&D in 1974, and their first adventure modules come out in 1978. OSRIC comes out in 2006, and by 2010 LotFP is the first of the OSR games not aimed at back-compatibility so much as a style of play. (This analysis is somewhat crude - other publishers are doing modules sooner, and every retroclone has its own aesthetic - but then again The Wall doesn't line up with Wizard of Oz either unless you give it a little slack.)
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