After watching Star Wars: VISIONS Volume 2 I had some thoughts and ideas for Star Wars role playing that are a little different from what I've done in the past. Well, sort of. I'll clarify in the post.
The biggest revelation I had after watching the VISIONS Volume 2 is that Star Wars' canon is hurting it more than helping it.
That may be a strange conclusion to come to in the minds of many, especially given the fact that VISIONS Volume 2 - much more so than Volume 1 - features a number of episodes clearly set in the period of the Galactic Civil War. The forces of the Imperial Empire are front and center as antagonists in at least four of the nine episodes.
Still and all, only one of these, 'The Spy Dancer', directly refers to The Rebellion. None of them address Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, the destruction of the Death Star, or the seemingly ever present desert world of Tatooine.
The creatives behind the various VISIONS installments can go virtually anywhere and do anything, adding brand new characters, worlds, species, droids, and a whole host of other elements and ideas to the increasing familiar Star Wars setting.
Some of the most interesting episodes in the second 'season' are those not directly (or at least clearly) connected to the established canon of the Star Wars universe. You could certainly place any of the episodes somewhere in the official timeline with little difficulty but it isn't necessary. In fact, one of the things that makes episodes like 'Aau's Song' or 'Journey to The Dark Head' so great is that they can easily be taking place long before 'The Phantom Menace' or long after 'The Rise of Skywalker'.
They could also be happening somewhere outside of established Star Wars space/time. Star Wars is not, as I always attest, a traditional Science Fiction setting. It isn't a What If? exploration of our own reality. It is a Fairy Tale in Space. It's Science Fantasy. Its depictions need not keep an 'accurate' chronicle as one would for real life current events. Star Wars is for spinning adventure yarns and spreading legends of a time long ago, in a far, far away galaxy.
VISIONS tells stories that are both very Star Wars and generally separate from the events and people that make up the fictional history of its universe as we the fans know it. That flexibility and freedom, IMHO, is what Star Wars live action and gaming has been missing. Be assured first and foremost that you are telling a great story and that the story feels like Star Wars. Whether it fits into the overall timeline should be a tertiary concern.
The VISIONS series (Volume 1 and 2) has inspired me to start working on yet another crazy side project that I definitely don't have time for. More details will be forthcoming once I have a handle on exactly what it is I'm doing but the basic idea is:
A great Star Wars RPG feels like Star Wars. If you want to create a different feel, use a different system and apply its vibe to Star Wars. For example, using Traveller to play Star Wars (as I've tried in the past) adds a level of detail, texture, and (dare I say) realism that makes the atmosphere of the setting more Science Fiction-y.
My thought is, 'How do I add more of a mythic, legendary quality to Star Wars?'. I want to focus on the fairy tale aspect I mentioned above. To assist with this I think I need a Fantasy RPG but one that's more interested in emulating folklore and focused on narrative than the typical War Game/Tactical Combat descended games.
What game is that? I've said numerous times in the past that most Fantasy RPGs don't feel particularly fantastic to me. D&D and its ilk, for example, come off as technical, almost scientific, most notably in their names and terminology and the 'naturalistic' way they describe monsters. Not what I'm going for.
Hmm. I think I might have something...
AD
Barking Alien
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