Tabletop Game playing: Then and Now
The tabletop game industry is an intriguing thing to observe, largely because of its history. Rarely has any industry not heavily invested in electronics displayed so many instances of innovators introducing an entirely new type of product and successfully finding a market for it.
Up to now, such developments have occurred for over three times in the history of tabletop gaming, making it the way it is now. There is still a debate over whether or not the fourth time will continue on until the fifth occurrence.
Tabletop gaming, of course, stems from simple board and card games like chess and poker. These are, without a doubt, the root of the industry as it is, even as it has evolved to become significantly more complex than its ancestors. In theory, from games like chess and checkers came the first wave of tabletop gaming products: the tabletop war game.
This genre includes small models which represent either individual units of entire squads, the former being more preferred. Over a map having specific markings and obstacles, players would control great numbers of these models. Rulebooks would decide all matters of interactions like movement, troop morale, damage calculations and limitations on army construction. Almost everything is determined by a roll of dice. Some of the most popular examples are Games Workshop's "Warhammer" franchise, both the fantasy and 40k versions.
Of course, after a few years, innovation struck the industry again. From the mind of David Arneson came the idea of adapting the rules of tabletop war games so they functioned on a much smaller scale. Rather than a single player controlling large armies, the player could focus and develop only one character at a time. With help from Gary Gygax, the tabletop gaming world would face the birth of the tabletop roleplaying game, starting with "Dungeons & Dragons." It was a drastic departure from the large numbers that the industry dealt with before. It removed the need for models, expanded and modified the number of options available and spawned an entirely new type of tabletop gaming experience. Aside from "Dungeons and Dragons" - still going strong decades later, with the 4th edition out - there are more games along these lines. These include the sci-fi "Alternity" and the Lovecraftian horror-inspired "Call of Cthulhu."
After several years of success, another mind hit upon another innovation that would introduce the world to an entirely new product. Richard Garfield considered the feasibility of creating a game that functioned like "Dungeons & Dragons," but was played with cards, as opposed to dice. Soon enough, the world was introduced to the collectible/tradable card game. "Magic: the Gathering" was an entirely new experience, calling on enough imagery to connect with RPGs but played with greater similarity to card game. Almost two decades and over 10,000 different cards later, "Magic" is still going strong. Even "World of Warcraft," an MMO, has gotten in on the market with a TCG that bears its name, trademarks and general style.
With three turning points that prodded the industry to evolve, tabletop gaming has definitely evolved from its roots. More than a handful franchises have even managed to exceed their root game and slip into the other forms: "Vampire: the Eternal Struggle" is a card game form of White Wolf's old "Vampire: The Masquerade" RPG line; "Warhammer 40k" has its own RPG; and "Dungeons & Dragons" has its own miniatures-based strategy game.
Up to now, such developments have occurred for over three times in the history of tabletop gaming, making it the way it is now. There is still a debate over whether or not the fourth time will continue on until the fifth occurrence.
Tabletop gaming, of course, stems from simple board and card games like chess and poker. These are, without a doubt, the root of the industry as it is, even as it has evolved to become significantly more complex than its ancestors. In theory, from games like chess and checkers came the first wave of tabletop gaming products: the tabletop war game.
This genre includes small models which represent either individual units of entire squads, the former being more preferred. Over a map having specific markings and obstacles, players would control great numbers of these models. Rulebooks would decide all matters of interactions like movement, troop morale, damage calculations and limitations on army construction. Almost everything is determined by a roll of dice. Some of the most popular examples are Games Workshop's "Warhammer" franchise, both the fantasy and 40k versions.
Of course, after a few years, innovation struck the industry again. From the mind of David Arneson came the idea of adapting the rules of tabletop war games so they functioned on a much smaller scale. Rather than a single player controlling large armies, the player could focus and develop only one character at a time. With help from Gary Gygax, the tabletop gaming world would face the birth of the tabletop roleplaying game, starting with "Dungeons & Dragons." It was a drastic departure from the large numbers that the industry dealt with before. It removed the need for models, expanded and modified the number of options available and spawned an entirely new type of tabletop gaming experience. Aside from "Dungeons and Dragons" - still going strong decades later, with the 4th edition out - there are more games along these lines. These include the sci-fi "Alternity" and the Lovecraftian horror-inspired "Call of Cthulhu."
After several years of success, another mind hit upon another innovation that would introduce the world to an entirely new product. Richard Garfield considered the feasibility of creating a game that functioned like "Dungeons & Dragons," but was played with cards, as opposed to dice. Soon enough, the world was introduced to the collectible/tradable card game. "Magic: the Gathering" was an entirely new experience, calling on enough imagery to connect with RPGs but played with greater similarity to card game. Almost two decades and over 10,000 different cards later, "Magic" is still going strong. Even "World of Warcraft," an MMO, has gotten in on the market with a TCG that bears its name, trademarks and general style.
With three turning points that prodded the industry to evolve, tabletop gaming has definitely evolved from its roots. More than a handful franchises have even managed to exceed their root game and slip into the other forms: "Vampire: the Eternal Struggle" is a card game form of White Wolf's old "Vampire: The Masquerade" RPG line; "Warhammer 40k" has its own RPG; and "Dungeons & Dragons" has its own miniatures-based strategy game.