Casting Shadows

The question for Day 28 is about a game that used to be a favorite but is no longer in rotation within your group. It is no longer played. I tend to have multiple games going on at one time, and to try new games quite often, so for this question, I will be addressing it as a game which used to be played regularly, or constantly, but now is not played at all and is very unlikely to ever be played again. There are a few.

If I did not make this specific distinction the list would be too long and would cover too many types of games. With the question’s condition of favorite, I would also have to include games that I am currently not playing, but which I am likely to play again. That would mean All for One: Regime Diabolique or A Time of War, or perhaps Aces&Eights. These responses lack surprise, and I think they miss the  real point of the question. There is a hint, to me at least, that these old games which used to be beloved by the group have fallen by the wayside and have done so for a reason. We used to play them all the time, but now we do not play them at all. The question really lies in the reason~

For me, there are two significant answers. Both, interestingly enough, are such large games that they almost comprise their own category of game, and both have numerous approaches and flavors for use. The two games I am thinking about are Dungeons&Dragons, and the World of Darkness. Both of these games (in their varied expressions) occupied nearly a decade of my life – each. When I was done with them, though, that was pretty much it. No real interest remained in returning to them. This is less so for WoD games than for D&D, but the sentiment is comparable. I recently ran Wraith again, and a few years ago I ran Mage for a short time again, but both of these were more as introductions for other players than from a desire to accomplish something myself with the games. Likewise with D&D, after I decided to stop playing it, I never returned to it as a GM, and only played it as a player to help a new DM gain some confidence, and to help a roll-play group get some exposure to roleplay, at their request.

As I have expressed elsewhere, I owe a lot to both of these impressive games, and while part of that debt is in learning that they really are not for me in terms of derived enjoyment, it does not mean that I do not still think well of them. In both cases, what the system supports, and what the settings encourage, are not really things which hold my interest or flow harmoniously with my inspirations. There are exceptions, but at some point in play, I end up having to surrender my own potential for fun, or have to houserule or otherwise significantly alter too much of the game to make the exercise efficient or sensible. It just makes more sense to seek the most fun, and to find a game which matches the goals of the group.

Although there are parts of these games which still interest me, and certain settings which I still enjoy, these still feel like a part of my past. They are treasured, and they are responsible for important areas of growth. They are solid stones on which I stand as a foundation, but they are not the future, they are not in the direction I am traveling.

How about you?

#rpgaday2015