220:, over set rules found in a book. The idea is for the players to engage with the fantasy as much as possible, and have the referee arbitrate the outcomes of their specific actions in real time. The idea of game balance is also de-emphasized in favor of a system which tests players' skill and ingenuity in often strange or unfair situations. The players should expect to lose if they merely pit their numbers against the monsters, and should instead attempt to outwit or outmaneuver challenges placed in their way. Keeping maps comes highly recommended.
294:
using older rules or retro-clones and use their blogs to demonstrate the principles of the style of gaming they prefer: rules light, freeform, and placing a greater emphasis on player skill rather than on character skill. Taken together, along with a do-it-yourself spirit, the outlines of what the old school revival is all about become more apparent.
862:
Wizards of the Coast finally got around to acknowledging that some people like to play the earlier versions of the game and, seeing a small but flourishing market, tried to capture the spirit of OSR with a number of publishing initiatives. It is as if
Wizards does not really see new value in the old
207:
as it was played in the first decade of the game's existence—less emphasis on predefined endings, and a greater emphasis on player choice determining the fate of characters. OSR Games provide play that wrong decisions can easily become lethal for characters and do not guarantee satisfying endings to
68:
magazine described it as "a quarterly fanzine for the old-school
Renaissance". The two terms (revival and renaissance) continue to be used interchangeably according to user preference, though a 2018 survey found that most respondents understood the R in OSR to mean "renaissance" over "revival", with
390:
If the 'old-school revival' continues to pick up steam and the current game continues to flounder sooner or later some bean-counter at Hasbro who doesn't have an emotional attachment to the current edition is going to realize that there's a demand (i.e. money to be made) for 'collector's editions'
293:
This has led some critics to charge that the old school revival is essentially "fundamentalist", while many old school players counter that it is in fact radical in its original meaning, which is to say, returning to the roots of the hobby. Many of these same bloggers are participating in campaigns
1011:
OSR RPGs seek to capture the feel of roleplaying game sessions from the time via the following principles: high lethality, randomized and horribly unbalanced encounters, followers who flock to the side of high-level adventurers, and a free-form, unplanned plot that rewards careful exploration and
598:
Forums like
Dragonsfoot, Knights & Knaves Alehouse, and Original D&D Discussion all play vital roles by enabling old school gamers to discuss, share, and argue about their ideas with one another, just like the 'zines and APAs of yore. In recent years, these forums have been bolstered by a
424:
The popularity of none d20 systems is again growing with WFRP selling second only to WoTs D&D. CoC and GURPS have also seen a slight revival in their market share. Compare this to the decrease in sales of d20 material over the last year (although still high). Over production and over stock is
549:
Respondents clearly preferred
Renaissance (70% of responses) as the meaning of the R in OSR. Revival took silver, with about 20% of responses. After that was a long tail of many different alternatives. Third place was "Rules" (but at less than
918:
The earliest iterations of OSR games, like the Old School
Reference and Index Compilation, are simply various editions of the early D&D rules with new art and accompanying text offered as PDFs (often free) or print-on-demand at
69:"rules" and "revolution" as distant third- and fourth-place choices. Ben Milton describes the use of "Revival" as a return to older role-playing games, and "Renaissance" as taking inspiration from the kinds of play they engendered.
356:
These averages tell a simple story, which is that respondents agree most that OSR refers to a play style and set of design principles. Respondents agree somewhat that OSR is a scene or movement and that OSR is a collection of
164:
By the early 2020s, the OSR had inspired such diverse developments in tabletop gaming that new classifications such as "BrOSR", "Classic OSR", "OSR-Adjacent", "Nu-OSR" and "Commercial OSR" were being used.
705:
Through forums, blogs, and new fanzines like Fight On! and
Knockspell, the movement is now attracting the attention of gamers of all stripes, including many born well after the hobby's early days.
60:
The terms "old school revival" and "old school renaissance" were first used on the
Dragonsfoot forum as early as 2004 and 2005, respectively, to refer to a growing interest in older editions of
403:
599:
vast network of blogs, each as idiosyncratic as its owner, and many of which have produced a significant amount of new — and free — material for use with both original and retro-clone games.
370:
142:
and many new adventure scenarios and game settings. These continue to be created and marketed, along with older, formerly out of print gaming products, via print-on-demand services.
633:
Dragonsfoot benefitted from these fans that had little interest in the latest version of the game, whose rules and aesthetics seemed very different from their own preferences.
932:
684:
646:
612:
577:
495:
272:
126:
In addition to the development of internet platforms and printed rule books, other printed OSR products became widely available. In 2008, Matthew Finch (creator of
438:
52:. It consists of a loose network or community of gamers and game designers who share an interest in a certain style of play and set of game design principles.
411:
86:
377:
982:
More than strict rule emulation, though, OSR RPGs like those mentioned below seek to capture the feel of roleplaying game sessions from the time
335:
528:
200:, which are designed to recreate the "feel" of 1970s roleplaying while taking only slight (if any) inspiration from the early rules.
81:
such as
Dragonsfoot, Knights & Knaves Alehouse, and Original D&D Discussion, as well as on a large and diverse network of
130:) released his free "Quick Primer for Old School Gaming", which tried to sum up the OSR aesthetic. Print-on-demand sites such as
717:
446:
940:
692:
654:
620:
585:
503:
280:
229:
17:
391:
of the classic games (OD&D, AD&D, B/X D&D) and we'll see them back on the shelves in some form or another.
953:
Daniel
Proctor's Labyrith Lord, which emulates the 1981 edition of Dungeons & Dragons, was the second retro-clone
174:
93:
875:
1096:
157:
237:
151:
469:
667:
C&C grew out of discussions on
Dragonsfoot in 2003 OSRIC, a First Edition AD&D clone created by
173:
A variety of published RPGs can be understood to be influenced by or part of the OSR trend, ranging from
43:
323:
Sometimes referred to as the Old School Renaissance (OSR), this loose gathering of gamers and designers
64:
and games inspired by those older editions. By February of 2008, a pre-launch call for submissions for
995:
966:
788:
902:
846:
817:
763:
307:
562:
425:
leading many online stores to slash prices. An old school renaissance could be on the horizon.
343:
161:
materials, possibly in response to a perceived market for these materials driven by the OSR.
101:
48:
536:
146:
208:
character arcs. Characters live and die by player choice as opposed to the story's needs.
8:
46:
which draws inspiration from the earliest days of tabletop RPGs in the 1970s, especially
863:
D&D material, but merely recognizes the opportunity to make money from those who do.
216:
The general ethos of OSR-style play emphasizes spontaneous rulings from the referee, or
135:
99:(legal emulations of RPG rules from the 1970s and early 1980s), including games such as
257:
793:
725:
668:
516:
a fully-fledged old school revival (or, as some call it, an old school renaissance)
78:
77:
The OSR movement first developed in the early 2000s, primarily in discussion on
188:
27:
A play style movement within the tabletop role playing game hobbyist community.
1030:
Most of the time in old-style gaming, you don't use a rule; you make a ruling.
92:, interest in and discussion of "old school" play also led to the creation of
1090:
903:"Old School Dungeons & Dragons: Wizards of the Coast's Problem Child"
847:"Old School Dungeons & Dragons: Wizards of the Coast's Problem Child"
818:"Old School Dungeons & Dragons: Wizards of the Coast's Problem Child"
308:"Old School Dungeons & Dragons: Wizards of the Coast's Problem Child"
217:
131:
833:
print-on-demand, an option that has become central to OSR culture.
671:
and Stuart Marshall of the Knights & Knaves Alehouse in 2006
1063:
Game balance just isn't terribly important in old-style gaming.
182:
112:
107:
82:
996:"Excellent Tabletop RPGs From The Old School Revival Genre"
967:"Excellent Tabletop RPGs From The Old School Revival Genre"
404:"Is True20 mustling in on Castles & Crusades' turf?"
439:"Where the hell The Old School Renaissance come from?"
933:"Full Circle: A History of the Old School Revival"
685:"Full Circle: A History of the Old School Revival"
647:"Full Circle: A History of the Old School Revival"
613:"Full Circle: A History of the Old School Revival"
578:"Full Circle: A History of the Old School Revival"
496:"Full Circle: A History of the Old School Revival"
273:"Full Circle: A History of the Old School Revival"
203:Broadly, OSR games encourage a tonal fidelity to
85:. Partly as a reaction to the publication of the
1088:
718:"Fight On! magazine - Issue 01 Information Page"
138:allowed authors to market periodicals, such as
761:
258:"Old School Revival | The GeekPreacher"
111:which were developed in OSR-related forums.
930:
682:
644:
610:
575:
493:
270:
1012:creative solutions to dangerous scenarios.
993:
964:
123:, began to be published as early as 2008.
467:
900:
844:
815:
305:
14:
1089:
1079:. Swords & Wizardry. pp. 5–8.
1046:. Swords & Wizardry. pp. 2–5.
994:Gailloreto, Coleman (4 October 2020).
965:Gailloreto, Coleman (4 October 2020).
789:"A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming"
764:"A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming"
436:
149:began publishing reprints and PDFs of
1074:
1056:
1041:
1023:
931:Maliszewski, James (21 August 2009).
683:Maliszewski, James (21 August 2009).
645:Maliszewski, James (21 August 2009).
611:Maliszewski, James (21 August 2009).
576:Maliszewski, James (21 August 2009).
494:Maliszewski, James (21 August 2009).
271:Maliszewski, James (21 August 2009).
1077:A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming
1061:. Swords & Wizardry. p. 6.
1059:A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming
1044:A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming
1028:. Swords & Wizardry. p. 2.
1026:A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming
939:. Escapist Magazine. Archived from
691:. Escapist Magazine. Archived from
653:. Escapist Magazine. Archived from
619:. Escapist Magazine. Archived from
584:. Escapist Magazine. Archived from
502:. Escapist Magazine. Archived from
279:. Escapist Magazine. Archived from
175:emulations of specific editions of
24:
535:. 20 December 2018. Archived from
470:"Revenant Runes Pre-Launch Thread"
368:
342:. 14 December 2018. Archived from
115:dedicated to OSR content, such as
25:
1108:
746:
437:Conley, Robert (23 August 2009).
880:Simulacrum: Exploring OSR Design
762:Robert Conley (8 October 2008).
211:
1068:
1050:
1035:
1017:
987:
958:
924:
894:
868:
838:
809:
781:
755:
740:
710:
676:
638:
604:
569:
555:
521:
901:Bebergal, Peter (6 May 2013).
876:"A Historical Look at The OSR"
845:Bebergal, Peter (6 May 2013).
816:Bebergal, Peter (6 May 2013).
487:
468:Calithena (27 February 2008).
461:
430:
396:
362:
328:
306:Bebergal, Peter (6 May 2013).
299:
264:
250:
158:Dungeons and Dragons Basic Set
55:
42:, is a play style movement in
13:
1:
243:
238:History of role-playing games
152:Advanced Dungeons and Dragons
751:. Mythmere Games. p. 3.
7:
223:
44:tabletop role-playing games
10:
1113:
371:"The long journey home..."
72:
168:
1075:Finch, Matthew (2008).
1057:Finch, Matthew (2008).
1042:Finch, Matthew (2008).
1024:Finch, Matthew (2008).
1097:Dungeons & Dragons
749:Knockspell Magazine #1
563:"Six Cultures of Play"
231:Dungeons & Dragons
205:Dungeons & Dragons
102:Castles & Crusades
49:Dungeons & Dragons
32:Old School Renaissance
768:Bat in the Attic Blog
336:"OSR survey: meaning"
177:Dungeons and Dragons
147:Wizards of the Coast
95:Dungeons and Dragons
89:Dungeons and Dragons
62:Dungeons and Dragons
565:. 27 February 2024.
539:on 24 February 2021
529:"What about the R?"
474:OD&D Discussion
882:. 16 December 2021
722:Fight On! Magazine
346:on 25 January 2021
36:Old School Revival
18:Old School Revival
192:to games such as
87:Third Edition of
16:(Redirected from
1104:
1081:
1080:
1072:
1066:
1065:
1054:
1048:
1047:
1039:
1033:
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1021:
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991:
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738:
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728:on 26 April 2020
724:. Archived from
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459:
458:
456:
454:
445:. Archived from
443:Bat in the Attic
434:
428:
427:
421:
419:
410:. Archived from
400:
394:
393:
387:
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376:. Archived from
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943:on 24 June 2021
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588:on 24 June 2021
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283:on 24 June 2021
269:
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260:. 30 June 2012.
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79:internet forums
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58:
28:
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797:. 22 July 2009
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194:The Black Hack
189:Labyrinth Lord
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747:Finch, Matt.
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212:Style of play
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1010:
1003:. Retrieved
999:
989:
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974:. Retrieved
970:
960:
952:
945:. Retrieved
941:the original
937:The Escapist
936:
926:
917:
910:. Retrieved
906:
896:
884:. Retrieved
879:
870:
861:
854:. Retrieved
850:
840:
832:
825:. Retrieved
821:
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792:
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771:. Retrieved
767:
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748:
742:
730:. Retrieved
726:the original
721:
712:
704:
697:. Retrieved
693:the original
689:The Escapist
688:
678:
666:
659:. Retrieved
655:the original
651:The Escapist
650:
640:
632:
625:. Retrieved
621:the original
617:The Escapist
616:
606:
597:
590:. Retrieved
586:the original
582:The Escapist
581:
571:
557:
548:
541:. Retrieved
537:the original
532:
523:
515:
508:. Retrieved
504:the original
500:The Escapist
499:
489:
477:. Retrieved
473:
463:
451:. Retrieved
447:the original
442:
432:
423:
416:. Retrieved
412:the original
407:
398:
389:
382:. Retrieved
378:the original
373:
364:
355:
348:. Retrieved
344:the original
339:
330:
322:
315:. Retrieved
311:
301:
292:
285:. Retrieved
281:the original
277:The Escapist
276:
266:
252:
233:retro-clones
230:
215:
204:
202:
198:Into the Odd
197:
193:
187:
181:
176:
172:
163:
156:
150:
144:
139:
136:DriveThruRPG
127:
125:
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100:
97:retro-clones
94:
88:
76:
65:
61:
59:
47:
39:
35:
31:
29:
1000:Screen Rant
971:Screen Rant
907:Boing Boing
851:Boing Boing
822:Boing Boing
801:13 February
773:13 February
533:Necropraxis
408:Dragonsfoot
374:Dragonsfoot
369:Foster, T.
357:aesthetics.
340:Necropraxis
312:Boing Boing
56:Terminology
886:22 January
669:Matt Finch
244:References
218:gamemaster
121:Knockspell
145:In 2012,
140:Fight On!
117:Fight On!
66:Fight On!
1091:Category
224:See also
180:such as
1005:24 June
976:24 June
947:24 June
912:24 June
856:24 June
827:24 June
732:24 June
699:24 June
661:24 June
627:24 June
592:24 June
543:24 June
510:24 June
479:24 June
453:24 June
418:24 June
384:24 June
350:24 June
317:24 June
287:24 June
73:History
919:cost.
794:Wired
183:OSRIC
169:Games
128:OSRIC
113:Zines
108:OSRIC
83:blogs
38:, or
1007:2021
978:2021
949:2021
914:2021
888:2022
858:2021
829:2021
803:2018
775:2018
734:2021
701:2021
663:2021
629:2021
594:2021
550:4%).
545:2021
512:2021
481:2021
455:2021
420:2021
386:2021
352:2021
319:2021
289:2021
196:and
186:and
155:and
134:and
132:Lulu
119:and
105:and
30:The
40:OSR
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34:,
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20:)
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