The Future of Dungeons & Dragons Games Should Look to the Past

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home December 31, 2024 3 Views 5 Min Read
The Future of Dungeons & Dragons Games Should Look to the Past

Thanks to the runaway success of Baldur’s Gate 3, there’s arguably never been a time when both the CRPG genre and the Dungeons & Dragons IP were more popular. Previously confined to a relative niche within the wider umbrella of role-playing games, Baldur’s Gate 3 has inspired new players to go back and revisit games in the CRPG genre, both current and classic, discovering that deep character customization, rich role-playing systems, and rewarding turn-based combat are hallmarks of games bearing the CRPG moniker. Now, the Dungeons & Dragons IP would do well to unearth this buried treasure of its past for future video game releases.

Larian Studios and its founder Swen Vincke have been transparent about the massive undertaking necessary to produce a game like Baldur’s Gate 3, and it’s a safe bet that the next game bearing the Baldur’s Gate name will be several years out, if not more. However, losing the momentum and attention that Baldur’s Gate 3 has brought to the Dungeons & Dragons license would be a missed opportunity on the part of Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast. As players eagerly await another AAA RPG set in the D&D universe, smaller, more retro-inspired titles might be the perfect holdover.

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Baldur’s Gate 3 Should Inspire a Useful New Ruleset for Dungeons and Dragons

Baldur’s Gate 3 took advantage of one interesting mechanic, but the lack of it in D&D means players are missing out on immersion.

The Dungeons & Dragons “Gold Box” Games Are Fertile Ground for the IP

The “Gold Box” games are a series of titles released between 1988 and 1992 utilizing the Dungeons & Dragons license and produced by Strategic Simulations. While several developers worked on the more than a dozen titles that make up the “Gold Box” legacy, these games are characterized both by their trademark engine (aptly named the “Gold Box Engine”) and their signature gold packaging bearing the TSR logo (the then-owner of the Dungeons & Dragons IP). Even though these games were limited by the constraints of the technology available at the time, it’s no surprise to learn that many players look back fondly on the “Gold Box” titles as their first forays into digital role-playing.

After years of being relegated to the annals of history, the Gold Box games finally made their way to Steam in 2022. Not counting the Buck Rodgers games produced by the Gold Box initiative, 11 of the “Gold Box” titles use the Dungeons & Dragons license in the loosely connected series, with each one of them rife with potential for a modern-day remake. These titles include:

  • Pool of Radiance Forgotten Realms
    • Pool of Radiance
    • Curse of the Azure Bonds
    • Secret of the Silver Blades
    • Pools of Darkness
  • Savage Frontier Forgotten Realms
    • Gateway to the Savage Frontier
    • Treasures of the Savage Frontier
  • Dragonlance
    • ​​​​​​​Champions of Krynn
    • Death Knights of Krynn
    • The Dark Queen of Krynn
  • Neverwinter Nights (1991)
  • Forgotten Realms: Unlimited Adventures

Skald: Against the Black Priory Shows Players Still Enjoy the “Gold Box” Style of RPG

Aside from players showing a renewed interest in Dungeons & Dragons​​​​​​, the “Gold Box”-style of role-playing games has a modern entry from earlier in 2024 that garnered plenty of acclaim from those who played it. An obvious homage to both the “Gold Box” Dungeons & Dragons games and the Ultima series, Skald: Against the Black Priory was a surprise indie release in 2024 that immediately drew attention from fans of CRPGs, turn-based tactics, Lovecraftian fiction, and late-80s computer games.

Rather than divert all resources for the IP to the development of a new AAA game using the D&D license, Hasbro and WotC could take advantage of the series’ history across video games and the success of Skald by making new, old-school D&D games. Better yet, the company could enlist the help of Skald‘s developer, High North Games, to deliver a new RPG experience that understands the atmosphere, mechanics, and aesthetic of the older classics.

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