Friday, May 6, 2016

Minimalist Gaming--possible, or just another pipe dream?

If they had a show for Game Hoarders I might be a good fit. I suspect that other bloggers and OSR people online might be a much better fit than me....I've moved across a few states over the last two decades, and that has at times forced me to consolidate my vast collection of books and games, plus my efforts to migrate to electronic readers at least cut down on the number of books I have filling shelves (if not games). But I really do have too much.

I've been thinking about how nice it would be to just keep cutting down until I am at last at the "essentials." D&D 5E would be my natural choice....but could I really give up thinking about 13th Age? Savage Worlds seems to be the best fit for what I need for all-purpose multigenre gaming right now....but BRP and GURPS have long and steady histories with me (even if I haven't run GURPS since 2008...sigh). Call of Cthulhu remains my go-to for horror gaming, but could I really give up Kult, Chill, Cryptworld, Unknown Armies and more? What about all the superhero games I've collected but suspect I'll never, ever get to play?

Minimalism is hard for gamers. But it is a thing! People do it, and find their lives simpler and possibly better for it. I have at least one long-term friend who I believe is an excellent minimalist, though he may not know it.

I am tempted by the concept, which is tough, because I grew up in a family which could give most hoarders a run for their money. I'm already downright reformed compared to other family members in my life, so relatively speaking I'm already a borderline minimalist by their standards. But to a true minimalist I'm a nightmare of rolling paper and collectibles, an Id-like monstrosity of content and memorabilia from the Forbidden Apartment.

If I go through with this, I may have a lot of stuff on ebay again soon. I've already decimated my Pathfinder collection (twice, but it kept growing anyway) and I'm eyeballing everything else. It would be nice to move to a more "dedicated" stance with a handful of treasured, much-played games rather than the current problem I have, of way too many games dividing precious time and interest too thinly.

Stuff to consider....



1 comment:

  1. I'll take your pathfinder off your hands. I don't have nearly as much stuff as you and my back room (AKA the one room in the house I can use) is packed with Miniatures, board games and RPG books along with amps and guitars. So I may not be the hoarder you are but I certainly feel your pain.

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