This is by far the dumbest thing I’ve heard on DungeonTube.

I’m going to call out a couple of DungeonTube channels for this one, not by name but by their video contents. It’s the most preposterous thing I’ve heard to date. I swear they are getting desperate for views.

“There are too many TTRPGs.”

Say WtAF now?!? Are they serious? Oh, yeah they kind of are serious.

Unfortunately the rest of the video just sounds like, “Just play D&D 5E or 5E.2024.”

The other gist from a different creator (same topic) was, “Just play Pathfinder 2E Remastered.”

I won’t name and shame these creators as I’m sure it’s the start of a trend.

Not to mention one of these DungeonTubers is becoming my arch nemesis because every time he drops a video now, I pretty much have to take issue with it. Whether it escalates to response videos is another story. I’m trying really hard to stay positive. (Translation: Stress is the mind overriding the body’s natural urge to xxxx someone with a xxxxxx xxxx.)

If this does become a DungeonTube trend, I called it for the record. The massive flood of fantasy games over the last three years is making life difficult in the minds of the D&D 5E kids that started in 2015 or 2020. They haven’t been exposed to multiple editions of their favorite game like those of us with real experience.

I think it’s downright pathetic to watch a content creator with a whopping ten years of experience tell us he’s tried 40 whole games including a few of his own and some exclusive playtests at conventions and we should just buy his stuff or play 5E.2024. Oh and he’s got these Kickstarters coming, too. <Jeff barfing noises.> Seriously, BOB! You wasted 20 minutes of your audience’s time for this?

That post-holiday revenue on YouTube must really be going down. If someone could throw me 10K subs and at least 4K watch hours, I’ll be your friend. I’ll even stop saying mean things about you. I can’t help that a VidIQ (AI) coach told me to embrace the negative side of TTRPG YouTube if I want more views. Not that it’s necessarily the smartest AI advice ever, but what do you do?

Seriously, 40 games would be a drop in the bucket if I were working in the industry.

I think the problem with some of these DungeonTuber/influencer/content creator types is that they don’t know how good they have it. If you’ve gotten an entire TTRPG book written and published, plus all these convention deals, focus on your own game. Good grief! That’s the dream, and they’re living it.

Back in my game shop days, I wasn’t exactly rolling in money. I was happy, and I didn’t realize how amazing it was at the time. Money isn’t everything, but it can buy practically anything I’d ever want. My unique position as the guy that had the entire Chessex catalog committed to memory did allow me to check out some games no one else had heard of.

Still, these guys nowadays with their fancy DungeonTube channels are rolling in opportunities I only ever used to dream of. Bob Worldbuilder, Ginny Di, Professor DungeonMaster, and that one guy with the 3.2-million-dollar Kickstarter have it made in the shade. Yeah, they can afford to dabble in just about any game they want. But… with one exception (maybe) they’re all pretty much in the pockets of Wizards of the Coast. They’re really just getting paid one way or another to shill for good old D&D. So why even mention other games?

I never met a TTRPG I didn’t like, just some a lot more than others.

TTRPGs are like pizza. Some are great, some are good, some are just worthy of mentioning. A few are stale right out of the box, but it’s rare. It’s all good regardless.

Nevertheless, I’ve never once thought there were too many TTRPGs out there. While I love Dragonbane with all my heart, I know Shadowdark, OSE, Call of Cthulhu, ICONS, and dozens more are still out there. Heck, those are all titles off of one shelf in my man cave. I can spit out titles all day. I love TTRPGs.

Will I ever get to run/play all of them? No, pretty likely that’s not going to happen. Some games that have a great setting or an amazing game engine are still destined to collect dust on my shelves, probably forever. But that’s still no justification to say there are too many games.

Each and every game from W.O.I.N to Cypher to Tinker’s Damn has a place. That’s not to say we can’t take inspiration from any/all of them in some way. I like a game called Singularity, (Affiliate Link.)  but players and GMs for that game are few and far between unless I want to spend hours digging online to find one of the other dozen people who might have the book. Still, as Cyberpunk-in-space games go, it’s pretty darn cool. It’s almost a sure bet if I see a more obscure game being offered at a convention or game store, I’m going to ask to sit in for a while or maybe even make a character.

Even if the system is kind of “meh,” sometimes the setting is so outstanding it won’t even matter. On the other hand, I see people talking about Candela Obscura like that game worked straight out of the box and it’s buggier than an ant farm. Proof that if you love a game enough, you’ll find a way to make it work.

If you don’t want some lesser known TTRPG, you can always send it to me.

Seriously, if there’s a game in your collection and you don’t want it, please send it to me. Get ahold of me on social media or by email and let’s make a deal. I’d sure hate to think Bob Worldbuilder or Diana of the Rose would need to part with all those free goodies they get in the mail or at conventions.

It’s 2026, and it’s easier than ever to communicate with our fellow humans. You can reach me on social media and a half dozen other ways. Please reach out and I’ll help you with all those unwanted free games you have that are such a burden.

These “kids” don’t realize how many games were out there before them.

I hate to break it to y’all, but the Chessex catalog used to be filled with TTRPGs, war games, and board games that I can almost guarantee most of you have never heard of. Not to mention all the indie games that were peddled by mail or at conventions. Ravenstar anyone? I have the T-Shirt.

I remember when all the Old Grognards were hardcore wargamers and roleplaying was a cute side hobby. That was before Warhammer 40,000 became a household name. The day eventually came when all the fresh blood in the hobby was to embrace 40K. D&D became the Warhammer 40K of RPGs.

There was a time when The Fantasy Trip (aka GURPS,) Tunnels & Trolls, Role Master, or Basic Role Playing competed with D&D. Those old games are still around, but good luck finding players. It’s a nice collector’s piece, though if you can find TFT or T&T anywhere. That’s also before the WotC of Borg era began and even the D&D competitors kowtow to them. (Looking at you, Paizo and Kobold Press.) Heck, Paizo and WotC seem to have some freaky agreement to swap employees every so often. <gagging noises>

There was a time when you couldn’t swing a cat without hitting a space game.

Star Wars, Star Trek, BattleTech, Space Master, Battle Lords of the 23rd Century, Amazing Engine, and GURPS Space led the pack alongside the ancient classic, Traveller.  Then Alternity came around. I had a brief time when I wasn’t doing any fantasy gaming except for a few pickup games. Are we counting RIFTS as a space game or just as post-apocalyptic sci-fi?

The competition in the area of space games thinned out thanks to Starfinder being the top of the charts for so long. I curse the day 2E and 2E remastered happened to that game. Aliens, Coriolis, and Star Trek from Modiphius are pretty much it these days before we get into all the 5E variants and indie titles. (And people wonder why I want to write a space/mecha game so bad.) I would also love for Star Wars to make a comeback in D6 or d20 format. I think the Star Wars rights must be up in the air again given how little has been done with that title as of late, but that’s speculation.

At one time, I’m sure someone in the hobby said, “There are too many space games.”

Will there ever be “too many RPGs?”

Practically every TTRPG sub genre has had its day in the sun. It’s only a matter of what catches on next. I’d say we’re currently still drowning in fantasy games. I keep hoping and waiting for a supers revival. That’s besides the fact that a bunch of other games look to be poised for their time in the sun. There are also a lot of TTJRPGS launching or launching again this summer and not all of them are fantasy based.

We’re still working on that game to end all other games, though. Until that day comes, we have to keep making games, trying games, reading games, and talking about them. There will never be too many.

If you have too many games in your private collection, it’s easy to fix. Donate them to a convention as giveaway gifts. Sell them on eBay, Facebook Marketplace, or your personal website. Give them to a friend who collects games. If you can still find a FLGS that takes second hand TTRPGs, go for it. I don’t recommend Half Price Books because they usually only take D&D and a big chunk of the staff doesn’t know much if anything about TTRPGs. (The few times I’ve tried have flopped.)

But your collection and the whole wide TTRPG hobby as a whole are two different things, BOB. You might want to think about that before making another silly video like that. If you’re just in the hobby to make money off of your stuff and D&D, good for you, I guess? You can like D&D and pitch your own stuff the same way you have in dozens of other videos.

At the end of the day, DungeonTubers have not changed. We’re going to see more dumb videos that proclaim that we should only play whatever Wizards of the Coast puts out and ignore the rest. Ironically (or should I say, “hypocritically,”) some of these same DungeonTubers were making listicle alternatives to D&D just three short years ago. Personally, I don’t care what you do, just don’t try to convince your subscribers that there are too many games in the hobby when it’s blatantly false.

I’m stepping down off of my soapbox now. Holy crap this argument is dumb. Publius.

I say it every year, but I think 2026 bears repeating it. This year I intend to write more, read more, and discuss cool TTRPGs as well as supplements. Most of all, let’s just have more fun. Let’s explore. Let’s save the kingdom from the evil warlord. Let’s discuss all the fun stuff in gaming that we love.

With the world in the state it finds itself in today, please be kind. Please be considerate to one another even if we don’t agree. Lastly, please pursue the thing that brings you the most joy without harm to others. Thank you!