Steve Jackson Games Forums - View Single Post - Is roleplaying having a hard time recruiting younger people?

Nymdok · 10-07-2013, 12:37 PM

Kids just dont play em as much anymore.

Comp RPG vs PNP Rpg. The FInal Fantasy guys feed alot of that need without the need for social interaction that we've been slowly breeding out of kids for the last 20 years. It demands people.

Big Time Slot - Ive palyed in games where it runs for a 12-14 hour stetch. Kids just dont have that level of time to commit. Even a 6 hour game can be tough to fit in. It demands a certain amount of time.

No slick interface - MapTools et al is improving this, but as long as someone is trotting out a map and putting real world figs on a board, RPG is goign to suffer by comparison for space and just general 'slickness' of the interface. It demands a certain amount of space.

Not enough evangelisim - I raised my kids to be GURPS people and GURPS people they have become. I like to think that D&D and WOD people do the smae thing with their kids, but I dont know thats the case. I still think its one of the most interesting forms of gaming and indeed a media all its own, but until kids can experience that from a first person perspective, it looks weird from the outside.

Persistent NERD stigma - The Geek/Nerd division is one that for somereason hasnt been kind to RPGs. Geeks play Japanese RPGs like final Fantasy, but only NERDS drop dice and describe their pretend actions.

Nerd Competition - Nerds are getting lured in by OTHER nerd things. CCGs only take one other player. Some people prefer to take their 'pretend' to the next level and go full on LARP. Some people are warhammer people. For various reasons, young nerds are taking thier playtime elsewhere.

Whats odd is that I would have surely thought that having a computer and printer in almost every house everywhere would have caused a boom in the RPG industry that would have catapulted it to a more mainstream audience. Sadly this has not been the case.

Nymdok

10-07-2013, 12:37 PM	#6
Nymdok Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Houston	Re: Is roleplaying having a hard time recruiting younger people? Kids just dont play em as much anymore. Comp RPG vs PNP Rpg. The FInal Fantasy guys feed alot of that need without the need for social interaction that we've been slowly breeding out of kids for the last 20 years. It demands people. Big Time Slot - Ive palyed in games where it runs for a 12-14 hour stetch. Kids just dont have that level of time to commit. Even a 6 hour game can be tough to fit in. It demands a certain amount of time. No slick interface - MapTools et al is improving this, but as long as someone is trotting out a map and putting real world figs on a board, RPG is goign to suffer by comparison for space and just general 'slickness' of the interface. It demands a certain amount of space. Not enough evangelisim - I raised my kids to be GURPS people and GURPS people they have become. I like to think that D&D and WOD people do the smae thing with their kids, but I dont know thats the case. I still think its one of the most interesting forms of gaming and indeed a media all its own, but until kids can experience that from a first person perspective, it looks weird from the outside. Persistent NERD stigma - The Geek/Nerd division is one that for somereason hasnt been kind to RPGs. Geeks play Japanese RPGs like final Fantasy, but only NERDS drop dice and describe their pretend actions. Nerd Competition - Nerds are getting lured in by OTHER nerd things. CCGs only take one other player. Some people prefer to take their 'pretend' to the next level and go full on LARP. Some people are warhammer people. For various reasons, young nerds are taking thier playtime elsewhere. Whats odd is that I would have surely thought that having a computer and printer in almost every house everywhere would have caused a boom in the RPG industry that would have catapulted it to a more mainstream audience. Sadly this has not been the case. Nymdok