Define: Old School

Yeah, that's where I started. And I came up with:

Old School: Used, usually approvingly, to refer to someone or something that is old-fashioned or traditional. (Dictionary.com)

Old School: Anything that is from an earlier era and looked upon with high regard or respect. (Urban Dicitionary)

So, that's helpful. I kind of like the second one 'cause it makes it sound more cool. But we should probably go with the first as more generic and applicable in most people's eyes.

So what about old school gaming? Well, that would mean that old school gaming is gaming in an old fashioned or traditional manner. Using games from earlier eras. Now some might right away take issue with this definition because it implies you have to use antique games. Or the original games from earlier times. But I would say that any game that is designed very similarly to earlier games qualifies as old school.

The web has a little to say about this as well. First we get, from Wikipedia:

"Retrogaming, also known as old-school gaming, is the hobby of playing and collecting older computer, video, and arcade games. These games are played either on the original hardware, on modern hardware via emulation, or on modern hardware via ports or compilations. Participants in the hobby are sometimes known as retrogamers, in the United Kingdom, while the terms classic gamers, or old-school gamers are more prevalent in the United States. Similarly, the games are known as retrogames, classic games, or old-school games. Retrogaming is often linked to, although not the same as, indie gaming (the hobby of playing games that are not published by any conventional publisher). Additionally, the term old-school could apply to a newer game, but with features similar to those of older games, such as "old-school RPGs".


Now, granted this is from the computer gaming field, but I think it applies here. What we have is another admission that old school can "apply to a newer game, but with features similar to those of older games."

So what exactly are those features? Well, this is where I will defer to someone much wiser than me in game creation terms, and heck even in terms of life most likely. I'm not proud. Matt Finch. Matthew J. Finch to be exact. There is noone in my book that is more in tune with what old school means for tabletop RPGs than Matt. I say that because my favorite old school clone is Swords & Wizardry in any of its guises, and my favorite article on gaming period is Matt's "A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming". It has been to it that I refer when introducing anyone to old school gaming, especially newer gamers like flock to my student club each year where I teach. So if we want the features of old school gaming that any game needs to be considered old school we can find them from Matt. Matt first described them as the "Zen Moments". for that's what they were to him and to many others who finally "get" old school tabletop rpgs. They are in a nutshelled list:

• Rulings, not Rules
• Player Skill, not Character Abilities
• Heroic, not Superhero
• Forget Game Balance

Then Matt proceeds to give players and GMs a number of excellent tips to help them get into old school gaming and become true old school gamers. Now, this list has been a subject of much thought for me lately. And it has brought me to several conclusions that some people may not like at all. But to keep this blog entry from being another epic one, I want to cover these thoughts in smaller chunks. So in the next entry I'll talk about why not every game can be played old school style given these four truly old school features. In so doing I'll talk about each feature in a bit more detail, as if they weren't obvious enough, in order to justify my claims. And stay tuned for some shocking news.

Updates & Stuff: Me, Old School, & D&D 5e

Hey everyone, been quiet for a day or two. I've had some health concerns that I'm ironing out; my network got hijacked so I had to reinstall a bunch of stuff; but I did update Page IV with a Hackmaster blurb of sorts. I'm not entirely pleased with it so I'll probably change it. But I'm still trying to organize and complete all the pages. Not sure how they fit in exactly, so expect more than few changes there in the future. The central core of the blog will always, of course, be the blog though. And you can count on that.

Some entries I'm working on that should be done today are on, 1) the definition of Old School and 2) more 5e stuff. As to item #1, well I've done lots of reading on old school meta stuff and am still confused on what exactly constitutes old school. In fact as I finish my blurbs/reviews on HM, C&C and DCC RPG, I'm even more confused than ever. For it seems that these games are really more innovative than retro and my experimental title of variant clone is little troubling to me. Perhaps it's being persnickety about semantics, but old school is different in so many people's eyes. So I'll be finishing a post that looks at various people's definitions of "old school" and considering the idea of style of play in relation to game design theory as a whole. As to point 2, well I'm still intrigued about 5e. Not so much because it may convert me or anything, but because it may be a grand departure of the direction that WoTC took D&D since 2000. But the real question that arises. If I can get comfortable with a definition of old school then the natural question is: do certain games not allow certain styles of play? In other words can any game be played old school style?

Oh, and Mike Mearls still hasn't responded to my email letter. I have a feeling he's not going to because doing so would leak a 5e release before GenCon. Not only is he probably under contract to not do that, he likely doesn't know much himself. Either that or he read my follow up post and got ticked off. *shrug* So I suppose we'll have to wait and see what comes out at Gen Con. I'll do my best to keep you updated in that regard. But as always there will probably be those better than I at timely new coverage. What you can expect is my high quality (snicker) editorials on any news I find of relevance.

Until this pm when I get those posted: Game On!!

D&D's Literary Connection

It has been said many times that what spawned the hobby of role playing games as we know them today was miniature wargaming of the late 60's. I've been thinking a lot about this lately, and I have begun to form the opinion that we don't give credit where credit is due in this regard. And truthfully the greater deal of the credit for D&D's inspiration was early speculative fiction.

By now many gamers are familiar with Appendix N in the first Dungeon Master's Guide. In case you haven't perused this short essay and suggested reading list, you can check it out here. I highly recommend it. But I'm not blogging about Appendix N today. I've already done that, as have many others. Rather I would prefer to make a larger and perhaps more important point. D&D's connection to literature is perhaps greater than we may realize. And this can more generally be said to be true of all RPGs.

First and foremost RPGs are about storytelling. The story may not be particularly brilliant or enthralling beyond the fact that we are vicariously participating in it. But it is a story nonetheless. And if we were asked to relate the happenings of a given gaming session we would tell it in story form. In this way we are participating in a very old art form: storytelling. The creation of D&D particularly came about because players desired to experience more directly the events that were until that time told only in literary form. The mechanics of early wargaming were but the necessary tools with which to experientially tell the tales we had been inspired by.

Gary, Dave and the other early wargamers, were avid readers of planetary romance, swords and sorcery, horror, weird fiction and science fiction. These tales lived in their hearts and minds and had inspired them with the milieu for their new conception. I would argue that while the development of the first RPG was a unique synthesis of literature and wargaming, the literature came first.

And in addition to early fictional literature Gary Gygax and his compatriots read heavily in mythology, legends and ancient, medieval, renaissance, and early modern history. The tales and stories of these genres also played a strong part in inspiring and fueling the imagination. Yes, the true muse of D&D was literature. And at times I wonder if we have lost sight of this, and if we haven't would urge that we keep our gaze firmly fixed. For true gaming greatness and inspiration comes from deep within the imagination. In that magical and poetic connection with the muses that have inspired authors for time out of mind. This connection is almost mystical in its workings and often takes archetypal form.

Joseph Campbell talked of the hero's journey:

Which could more than adequately describe about any adventure scenario we would wish to dream up. And Jung talked about archetypes of the collective unconscious which later gave us the archetypes of the Warrior, Magician, Priest and Trickster. Which seems an awful lot like the basic classes of most fantasy RPGs: The Fighting Man, The Magic User, The Cleric and the Thief. These universal motifs that we play with so casually in RPGS are of course rooted in deeply held mythic consciousness. They are all forces from the depths of our psyche that are most often dealt with in literature, myth and story. They are also the bread and butter of the modern RPG.

These elements don't have to be consciously recognized for what they are to enjoy and participate in RPGs any more than enjoying a good story requires one to be a critic. But when we take our gaming to the next level; when we are busy searching for ideas and inspiration and the next challenge to throw at our heroes. It might help us to acknowledge that out craft is closer to that of the author of tales, the storyteller around the campfire, the shaman leading a vision quest, than simply a game designer. I would urge and claim that focus on the art of what we do and less on the mechanics preserves the power and originality of our creative endeavor.

And truly such artistic pursuits edify and prepare us to better serve as the storytellers we are. Immersing ourselves in mythology, epics, legendary tales, and fantastic literature of all sorts we tune into the muses that inspired the first imaginative visionaries to which we are heir. Spurning our inheritance will only cut us off from the power which gave us life. Returnng to our roots will ensure that we like those that drink the draught of the Ents cotinue to grow to higher heights.