If you look at Dungeons and Dragons, you can see several major influences. If you go all the way back to the beginning, though, it's clear that one influence stood above all others - J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. Tolkien's estate was able to see that as well, which led to a few lawsuits and some revisions that led D&D to become the game it is today.That wasn't the end of the story for Lord of the Rings … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Middle-earth Role Playing
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RPG Legends: Blackmoor
Dungeons and Dragons is the original table top role playing game. While many other games have come and gone, Dungeons and Dragons has maintained its spot at the top of the list. In its early days, though, it wasn't quite the institution that it is now.Early Dungeons and Dragons was very much a game in which things were figured out as they go. As such, a number of great campaign settings came and went - and were … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Blackmoor
RPG Legends: Ravenloft
D&D's settings have been, for the most part, different flavors of fantasy. One setting, though, decided to go in a very different directions. Instead of sword and sandals, it went for howling wolves and the children of the night.This setting is Ravenloft, and it brought true horror and dread to the world of Dungeons and Dragons for the first time. Publication History Ravenloft is particularly unique when it … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Ravenloft
RPG Legends: Al-Qadim
As Dungeons and Dragons began to find some success with its more popular settings, there was a sense that players wanted more. Most of the settings only concentrated on small areas of their constructed worlds, leaving a great deal of room for DMs to create their own new areas within those settings.It should come as no surprise that TSR thought they could tap into that same market by creating new sub-settings in … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Al-Qadim
RPG Legends: Fallout
Some of the greatest CRPGs were built from the bones of table top games. One series, though, managed to blaze its own trail. Sure, Fallout has its roots on the table and borrows liberally from earlier games, but it's become something of its own. This game series is nothing short of a phenomenon, a series that has managed to entrance players over the course of over twenty years. A History of Fallout Fallout is a … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Fallout
RPG Legends: Shadowrun
When most people think of role playing games, they think of fantasy settings. After all, the origins of the genre were strongly tinged with fantasy and most of the games that followed tried to copy what was already successful. There have been some games, though, that have seen more potential in these games. Their creators realized that the mechanics could be adapted to almost any setting.One game that proved that … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Shadowrun
RPG Legends: Spelljammer
Spelljammer ForeverAt some point during its development, Dungeons and Dragons just got weird. It took a gamble on embracing every aspect of its cosmology and pushing out settings that seem incredibly odd to today's players.Fortunately, some of these settings ended up being spectacular. While they weren't anything like the D&D players know and love today, they provided for fantastic worlds that still have … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Spelljammer
Super Mario RPG
Anything can be an RPG. All you really need is stats, a story, and a good system in which everything can take place. There's no better example of this fact than the existence of the Super Mario RPG series. Yes, Super Mario - the tubby plumber who is best known for being the shining mascot of the platformer genre - stars in his own RPG series. If you take a look at everything that went into the series, though, you'll … [Read more...] about Super Mario RPG
Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar
Pigs are strapping on their wings. The devil is enjoying a snow cone. Despite all common sense and reason, one of the legendary unfinished games of the RPG world has finally been released. Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar is a game long in the making, with twenty-plus years of hype and development behind it. It now comes time to examine how this quasi-mythical game came to be, what the finished product ended … [Read more...] about Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar
RPG Maker VX Ace Overview
Have you ever wanted to make your own video games? If you've ever looked into it, you know that it's not exactly an easy process. You need some very high-level computer skills and a lot of money behind you just to make a product that most people will ignore. If you really want to make RPGs, though, there's a great game/tool out there for you. RPG Maker XV Ace is an interesting product that gives amateurs all they … [Read more...] about RPG Maker VX Ace Overview
RPG Legends: Greyhawk
One cannot have Dungeons and Dragons without Greyhawk. Sure, there have been other settings in the history of the game. There have even been settings that have arguably been more successful. At the heart of the game, though, is Greyhawk - still sitting around, still waiting for adventurers to come through and add to the legacy of the setting. Greyhawk has, in many ways, become more than a setting - it's a core part … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Greyhawk
Stick RPG 1 & 2
One of the great things about RPGs is that they don't have to look great. Sure, some of the biggest role playing games on the PC and consoles have boasted incredible graphics, but it's always been the story that really matters. One of the best examples of story trumping graphics can be found in a Flash game series. Stick RPG has been one of the more popular flash game titles ever released, with literally millions of … [Read more...] about Stick RPG 1 & 2