Kudos to the TML for spotting this first. Slightly (but not terribly) surprised this wasn't mentioned before by TPTB.
http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/columns/edit18jul05.html
http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/columns/edit18jul05.html
Riiiight. Sorry, no. I really don't think it is. I've never seen anyone just starting roleplaying (in any form) say "ooo, I'm a real man now" or think they were different somehow."Role-playing is a rite-of-passage for most boys today.
Honour is not even remotely unique to Traveller. Aren't most Traveller games about running round doing morally dubious things for people to eke out a living? Where's the honour in that? OK, a lot of D&D may be about killing things and taking their stuff just because they're there, but most games do not encourage you to be 'dishonourable'.And I think that that central concept of honor is what distinguishes Traveller from all the other major settings.
And with that statement, MWM proves he's REALLY out of touch with the modern gaming public. He really thinks that NOTHING since the original D&D first came out has been easier to learn or as fun to play? That there's no better game at all in nearly 30 years of gaming history? Maybe that really is what he thinks, but that really doesn't do anything to add to his credibility. Someone who thinks that is clearly NOT trying to connect with modern gamers.I think that the original Dungeons & Dragons, easy-to-learn and fun-to-play has never been bested by anything that has come after.
Seconded.Originally posted by hirch duckfinder:
as for desert island rpg - why not let the man take his nostalgia trip? i think your expectations are unreasonable mal - he's just a guy doing his best. if you disagree, do so with respect and honour.
its easy to shoot anyone down any time. we are all flawed. for me, mr. miller has contributed greatly to my enjoyment of life. and he intends to attempt to contribute more. which is all good by me.
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A major influence? On what?!Originally posted by Jeff M. Hopper:
Lets face it, mal - mwm has has created a legacy in gaming with Traveller. Whether you like it or not, he's been a major influence for quite some time now. [/QB]
What he obviously (to me at least) meant is that RPGs are something that boys naturally come into contact with at one point or another nowadays. And reading the next sentence, he includes video RPG games in that, so he has got a point I guess.Originally posted by Malenfant:
Riiiight. Sorry, no. I really don't think it is.
Sorry, but this sounds a *lot* like a whiney Star Wars fanboy ranting about George Lucas.Originally posted by Morte:
The man has lost the plot.
Nostalgia does not change that.
If he was just gone into obscurity, I'd cut him slack.
But he's preventing canon revisions that would improve the game, and he may even put T5 out, so he matters.
Therefore, no mercy.
He's made it fairly clear that he's not interested in useful feedback or suggestions.Of course, you *could* try and make your wishes felt and actually give the man feedback and suggestions.
I am doing that and I have done that.Originally posted by Tobias:
You seem to think - with justification no doubt - that you could make contributions to a more modern, more scientifically version of Traveller. So why not go ahead with it? Unless of course you can't be bothered to work with a "fossil" like MWM, but in this case I would frankly say that your attitude is the problem.
Didn't anybody except hirch duckfinder read that sentence in context?Originally posted by Scarecrow:
By 'Honour' he may be referring to the feudal system at the heart of the OTU and a big part of character gen.
Because all these settings are cliche-fests, make Traveller look like the end-all, be-all of Hard SF and are (especially Star Trek) fairly unsuited for RPG purposes.
Why play in the frankly insipid Traveller setting when you can play in the oh-so-more colourful Star Wars, or Star Trek, or Matrix (etc etc etc) settings with a ruleset that allows them to do all manner of kewl stuff?
I won't comment on that, because without knowing the goings-on, I am not fit to judge where the problem was. I just noticed you have a rather forceful way of expressing your distaste for things.Originally posted by Malenfant:
He's made it fairly clear that he's not interested in useful feedback or suggestions.