One of my mutuals on BlueSky was musing about why people want to play licensed TTRPGs, and I have thoughts about it.

I’m not trying to throw shade on them; it’s a valid perspective. It just started me thinking about my history with licensed RPGs. I’ve always enjoyed both creating my own settings for RPGs and playing in other people’s settings. These have often been settings from TV shows, movies, or books, whether as a licensed game or not. The earliest were TMNT and Other Strangeness, Robotech, and Ghostbusters. I’ve run games set in the Alien universe (how I wish the RPG had existed back then) and Macross¹. This has continued to this day with Tales of Xadia, Avatar Legends, Dresden Files Accelerated, The Walking Dead, The Laundry, Dragon Age, and, yes, Alien. I actually want to play games within those settings², so since I have a good handle on what’s appealing about licensed RPGs, I thought I’d go a little deeper into the subject.

It’s Not Any Different

Playing a licensed RPG is the same as playing any RPG with an established setting. Granted, bespoke settings for RPGs tend to be engineered specifically to allow for nuances of the roleplaying medium — and some licensed games do try too hard to stay within the box of the IP, or don’t provide enough guidance for how to play within the confines of the setting. But this isn’t an unknown issue for games with their own settings, either.

Familiar Setting and Lore

There’s a reason that people like playing games set in The Forgotten Realms over Generic Wizard Fantasy. Established settings feature lore, locations, events, and characters that players already know and love, and licensed games are often no different. Some of these, such as Middle Earth, are extremely rich and rival (or surpass) all but the oldest and most prolific RPGs in this regard. This familiarity makes it easy for players to get into the game and start playing without needing extensive background explanations. This can be a significant plus for newcomers to RPGs. It also helps players understand the types of stories the game will support. When I say we’re playing Star Wars, players are often already familiar with the setting’s tropes, themes, and elements; they likely already know what The Empire or a Wookie is, even if they don’t know the deep lore of the setting. If we’re playing Tales of Xadia or Avatar Legends, you know we won’t engage with “mature themes”. On the other hand, when I’m running Tribes in the Dark, I almost always have to explain what a Fatima is. If you’ve never played Apocalypse Keys, you aren’t likely going to know what an Omen class monster is. This familiarity makes players more quickly invested and engaged in the games based on licensed settings³. This even extends beyond the lore. The established plotlines, conflicts, and character archetypes can be a boon for GMs looking for inspiration. Players will often have more clearly defined archetypes to use as springboards for creating their characters and an easier time fitting their concepts into the world.

Established Style

Media properties will have a distinct aesthetic, visual, and narrative style. This includes things like iconic items, catchphrases, or the overall tone, which helps reinforce the vibe of the setting, making the game feel like an authentic extension of the original world. The IP may have art books, novels, comic books, or other sources that players and GMs can use for reference and inspiration. It’s beneficial to be able to point to what Sunfire Elves look like when they use Heat Being in Tales of Xadia, or what a particular creature looks like in Dragon Age.

Opportunity to Explore

This speaks directly to “the stories have already been told”. This is very true, and in some cases, the story that’s been told is about the only exciting thing about a property. But it might not be the only story that can be told. Even in settings like Avatar the Last Airbender or The Dragon Prince, where plainly the main characters are the center of world-changing events (and in many ways analogs for PCs), you can easily set a game before or after those events. Some games acknowledge this and provide resources and information for doing just that. Others, especially some video games, are already similar enough to tabletop RPGs in the way the world is presented or the characters interact with it, that this isn’t an issue.

So, how does the “canon factor” apply to exploration? Players and GMs can feel constrained by what has already been established in a setting and may even self-limit based on that. Everyone knows that hobbits in Middle Earth aren’t tall and have hairy feet. Deflector shields work differently in Star Trek versus Star Wars. While these things help establish the boundaries within a setting, and players and GMs benefit from being familiar with them, they shouldn’t be taken as a reason not to change things up. Once you get any RPG to the table, whether it’s Tribe 8 or Star Wars, it’s yours. Introduce things that didn’t exist before, or change things that already exist, in whatever ways you or your group wants. Feel free to create alternate histories or “what if” scenarios. Do you feel that Aang being The Last Airbender or the Avatar limits the stories you want to tell in that setting or the types of characters players can create? You could start your game in one of the previous eras (Avatar Legends embraces this premise and supports it). Still, you could just as easily excise Aang (and his companions) from the setting and forge your own path.

Accessibility

By this, I mean both how widely available knowledge of the property is and how it can lower barriers. A licensed RPG can reduce the anxiety around finding a group to play the game with, by making it easier. Knowing that other potential players are fellow fans can be reassuring because they are “your people.” Sometimes trying to “homebrew” a setting can feel overwhelming or intimidating⁴. Playing in the licensed RPG for an IP you are comfortable and familiar with can help avoid these anxieties and other feelings — feelings that can hold somebody back from starting to play. Seeing that copy of the Alien or Avatar Legends RPG sitting on a shelf might be the thing that sparks someone’s interest and overcomes any reservations they had about playing RPGs⁵.

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with not wanting to play in RPGs based on licensed settings. It’s purely a matter of personal preference. I personally don’t think either way is intrinsically better than the other. I’ve spent plenty of time with licensed settings, adapting existing settings, bespoke settings created just for a particular game, and developing my own. The most important thing is enjoying yourself, and if getting the most out of your games means using a licensed game, there’s nothing wrong with that.