Recently bored with EnWorld, Dragonsfoot, and the Labyrinth Lord forums all at once, I decided to visit the rpg.net forums that I signed up for once and then never posted on.
And I regret it.
It's like everybody who thinks that more rules is "more better" and wants games to tell them exactly how to play and buys "adventure paths" and worships at the feet of Pathfinder and 4e all congregated at the same place to provide each other with shallow, boring conversation about some crappy, crappy crap.
Nearly 3/4 of the posts on the main page are questions regarding the rules on some popular game (Exalted seems to be number one at the moment, for some unholy reason) with such interesting topics as:
"Exalted+: Long term effect of Alchemical interaction with celestial exalts"
"[Exalted] Return of the Scarlet Empress is out! "
"[Exalted] Primordial Intimacies"
Oh, wow, isn't that interesting? Maybe I'm the wrong kind of audience (I am), or maybe I'm just upset that there isn't a forum to system-neutral gaming or the kind of questions that aren't the blase, uninteresting "How does system X work in game Y, I am mentally unable to make something up," or "Tell me how to play game Y, I cannot read due to my eyes having atrophied."
Actually, that second one would be awesome. But the point is, the game design thread is filled with boring cruft and people writing fantasy heartbreakers like it's something new, the D&D subsection is devoted to 4e and Pathfinder, There's almost nothing worth reading, unless you're either
a) Extremely interested in the boring, bloated systems that modern game designers are producing, or
b) Extremely interested in, I dunno, some other crap.
Long story short: Rpg.Net is a cesspool and I'm only going there out of an interest to spread the Good Word about old-school games.
I agree with you about RPG.net. I'll occasionally check in if I'm searching for a non-D&D review or something, but don't spend much time there. There are a few old-school folks carrying the torch there, but not much OS discussion...
ReplyDeleteMaybe the next time you need a change of pace, try Original D&D Discussion or Knights & Knaves Alehouse?
odd74.proboards.com/index.cgi
http://knights-n-knaves.com/phpbb3/index.php
I lurk at the Knights and Knaves forum, but I'd forgotten entirely about the od&d discussion. Thanks for the links. :)
ReplyDeleteI just recently ran across your blog entry while looking for something else and am somewhat baffled by your assessment of RPG.net. I actually find it fascinating, but then there are two things that I do. 1. I hunt down threads that interest me. 2. If I don't see them, I CREATE them.
ReplyDeleteBy your own admission, you haven't done the second thing. Other posters can't magically know just what YOUR particular interests are. You have to speak up! This is true on any message board. If they don't respond immediately, so be it. You keep posting what you think are thoughtful and intelligent topics until something sparks a response and hopefully a discussion.
Since I've joined RPG.net I've been exposed to posts about all sorts of games from old classic RPGs to the latest releases. I would have never heard of Burning Wheel, Eclipse Phase or Dogs in the Vineyard had I not joined. Hell, I never knew FASA created a Masters of the Universe RPG until I saw it in a thread there.
If you create the threads that YOU want to see and just maybe there will be more just like them.
@Anastas: I've a bad habit of grazing message boards and posting very little. For me, it's more of a way to look at how others view things than as a forum for me to get my word out. When I feel such a need, I have this blog here or some other such thing, like the Goblinoid Games forum or ENWorld.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, I haven't been much thinking about roleplaying games recently, though that'll probably change soon.
I'm sorry if I upset you. In my defense, I was feeling grumpy that day. I don't understand why people like Exalted so much, since it's basically silly combat after silly combat grafted over the 3.5e D&D engine. Isn't there anything more interesting to play?