Quote from: Bren;1024302Pretty easy for those RPG players who never visit an RPG forum, attend a con, or collect RPG rules as a side hobby. In other words the vast majority of the people in the world who have ever played an RPG.

Yep.  Sheer dollar volume alone should tell you.

Not all at once. D&D all editions, Earthdawn, Rifts, Palladium Fantasy Star Wars D6, Star Trek (Icons), 13th Age.

Quote from: AsenRG;1024886Pure BS, Pundit, much as you might want it to be true.
I know quite a few players who refuse to register on a forum, and yet have never even bothered trying out D&D. Most of those usually have some experience with BRP, though;)!

Vast majority not equal all.

And building one what Gronan said, if you look at the units sold and the dollar volume versus the numbers of folks on the various fora. That gamer involved on the internet are dwarfed by the those who are not. That of those not involved on the internet the number of D&D/Pathfinder unit sold and dollar volume versus the rest of the industry implies that yes indeed the vast majority do play D&D and that the odds are high that it is only RPG they play.

But it is not so high that somebody like you have a different view. I suggest go down to a local game store and talk to the store owner about the issue. I know in my area the figures for two stores approaches 80% split between D&D 5e and Pathfinder. And at another store it is more 50-50 largely due to the fact in-store games are part of a gaming club that promote different interest. This is spread over Northwest Pennsylvania.

Finally what does it matter if it true or not? The internet changed everything and vastly expanded the ability of gamers to find and more importantly play the games that they like. Not just for on-line play but finding people locally to game with as well.

BRP, Fate, Savage Worlds, GURPS, the OSR, and the rest will continue to thrive within their niches because in addition to the above, the amount of effort needed to properly support a RPG has dramatically dropped. Often it just takes one person to revive an RPG from the dead or to turn things around.

So seriously so what if it is true?

Quote from: estar;1025431... And building one what Gronan said, if you look at the units sold and the dollar volume versus the numbers of folks on the various fora. That gamer involved on the internet are dwarfed by the those who are not. That of those not involved on the internet the number of D&D/Pathfinder unit sold and dollar volume versus the rest of the industry implies that yes indeed the vast majority do play D&D and that the odds are high that it is only RPG they play.

It's a notably different sort of statistic, though. Playing an RPG doesn't require ever buying one. And if the claim is "have only ever played D&D", it doesn't take much for a person to go from the claimed category to the other.

QuoteFinally what does it matter if it true or not? The internet changed everything and vastly expanded the ability of gamers to find and more importantly play the games that they like. Not just for on-line play but finding people locally to game with as well.

It doesn't really matter. People can hang out with people playing only some games and not others regardless of what's selling or what's popular.

Quote from: rgrove0172;1024074How the hell could any gamer only play D&D?

When we're including "+Variants", pretty easily.  I'm running AS&SH and S&W games right now and playing in a DCC game.  Other games I'd like to be playing include LotFP, C&C running their A series, a 1e game running old TSR modules I've never played, another S&W game set in the Borderland Provinces focusing on the politics of the region, a Beyond the Wall game, and probably a half dozen other ideas I have kicking around before I'd feel the need to drift away from D&D+Variants.

Played D&D only a couple times. Most of my gaming time in last 5 years was spent between Shadowrun and PbtA, with the occasional one/two shots of things like Mutant Year Zero and Blades in the Dark.

Playing D&D only is very easy. There's multiple editions, widespread distribution, a host of free hacks and clones and many willing players/participants. There also seems to be a relative lack of people offering to run other games.

I live in a gaming mecca and I could seek out other games -- I know they are out there -- but I have enough gaming already.

If you've found something you really enjoy, and are still having fun with it, why wouldn't you keep doing it?  Then whether or not you try something else is how available it is and how promising it looks.  I'm a person that likes to try new things at times, but also enjoys spending a lot of time on one thing.  There are only so many hours to spend.  Having spent a decade or more on a single game, I don't have any trouble understanding the possibility that someone would stick with one longer, even though that isn't me.

Quote from: Christopher Brady;1024080The same type of person that only plays Call of Duty or Solitaire or any other person who focuses on one hobby.  A lot more than you'd think.

There are plenty of other examples I can think of. People who have war-gamed, but only Warhammer or Battletech. People who play 'gamer' boardgames... if you count Risk or Axis&Allies. People who've read Tolkein and GRRM, but no other fantasy. There are plenty of people who have dipped their toe into various fandom waters, without making it exhaustively their thing.

I think fora like these have a selection bias for people who are in some way or another 'all-in' on this whole RPG-ing thing (Chirine being a notable exception here). Out 'in the wild,' I feel that there are a lot more people who have all sorts of fun with whatever TTRPG is most popular in their neck of the woods (and I think the 'everyone starts with D&D' truism is America-specific), without ever needing to explore all the other options out there.

Quote from: estar;1025431if you look at the units sold and the dollar volume versus the numbers of folks on the various fora. That gamer involved on the internet are dwarfed by the those who are not. That of those not involved on the internet the number of D&D/Pathfinder unit sold and dollar volume versus the rest of the industry implies that yes indeed the vast majority do play D&D and that the odds are high that it is only RPG they play.

But it is not so high that somebody like you have a different view. I suggest go down to a local game store and talk to the store owner about the issue. I know in my area the figures for two stores approaches 80% split between D&D 5e and Pathfinder. And at another store it is more 50-50 largely due to the fact in-store games are part of a gaming club that promote different interest. This is spread over Northwest Pennsylvania.

Finally what does it matter if it true or not? The internet changed everything and vastly expanded the ability of gamers to find and more importantly play the games that they like. Not just for on-line play but finding people locally to game with as well.

BRP, Fate, Savage Worlds, GURPS, the OSR, and the rest will continue to thrive within their niches because in addition to the above, the amount of effort needed to properly support a RPG has dramatically dropped. Often it just takes one person to revive an RPG from the dead or to turn things around.

So seriously so what if it is true?

Very well said. The sales numbers don't lie (although exactly what story they tell is of course up for interpretation, as a data guy I feel compelled to mention that). D&D (and PF) are the 800-lb gorillas of the hobby. But, also very well said, so what? Popularity is only relevant in how likely you are to find a gaming group interested in your specific favorite game (and if you have a group already, the real question is how easy it is to sell them on the idea of trying your favorite system), and whether your favorite system is likely to keep printing new material (and if you still prefer 'previous unsupported edition version XYZ', that could be completely meaningless). There's no moral weight to 'most popular.'

Quote from: Steven Mitchell;1025561If you've found something you really enjoy, and are still having fun with it, why wouldn't you keep doing it?  Then whether or not you try something else is how available it is and how promising it looks.  I'm a person that likes to try new things at times, but also enjoys spending a lot of time on one thing.  There are only so many hours to spend.  Having spent a decade or more on a single game, I don't have any trouble understanding the possibility that someone would stick with one longer, even though that isn't me.

This is exactly why AD&D (Demon Idol cover) is 99% of my RPG consumption.  Why F around with buying a bunch of knock-off systems and likely sinking money into dead weight when this one works great?

Quote from: Steven Mitchell;1025561If you've found something you really enjoy, and are still having fun with it, why wouldn't you keep doing it?  Then whether or not you try something else is how available it is and how promising it looks.

Sweet Crom's hairy nutsack, this.  This is why I still play OD&D, because nothing else has convinced me it is more fun.

Quote from: Skarg;1025464It's a notably different sort of statistic, though. Playing an RPG doesn't require ever buying one. And if the claim is "have only ever played D&D", it doesn't take much for a person to go from the claimed category to the other.

Somebody in the group has to have the rules. So relative sales figures is good proxy to get a handle on just how widespread a particular RPG. Especially since we are talking order of magnitude differences here.

Quote from: Skarg;1025464It doesn't really matter. People can hang out with people playing only some games and not others regardless of what's selling or what's popular.

As a predictor of what a specific gamer knows in the way of RPGs it is quite useless. But the original post for this point was making a general point.

Quote from: Willie the Duck;1025565But, also very well said, so what?

It means two things

It support Pundit's contention that there are more a few gamers out there that only play an edition of Dungeons & Dragon.

The second it addressing why people get bent over the fact D&D and similar editions are the 800-lb gorilla. I met folks that to a greater or lesser degree despise the fact that D&D is the most popular. I went overboard on my reply in this regard. I am stressing my opinion that relative popularity is not the major factor people think it is for the hobby. For somebody trying to making a living sure it is a factor. But for the hobby it not.

Quote from: Gronan of Simmerya;1025596Sweet Crom's hairy nutsack, this.  This is why I still play OD&D, because nothing else has convinced me it is more fun.

Don't you use some AD&D addons?

Quote from: Christopher Brady;1025621Don't you use some AD&D addons?

True, mostly added spells, magic items, and monsters.  One can legitimately ask at what point have I glued enough bits on to change the game.

I don't think I have, especially since going back to the pre Greyhawk hit dice and weapon damage, but that's just an opinion.