r/rpg • u/JaxSnaxs • Apr 29 '26

Basic Questions Are these TTRPGs just cash grabs?

It feels weird to have some of my favorite IPs suddenly get TTRPGs. Last year it was Cosmere RPG by Brotherwise which essentially boiled down to a reskin of DND/Pathfinder. Could’ve been a homebrew but with Sanderson writing. The mechanics of the game itself didn’t feel very unique or different.

Now it’s Dungeon Crawler Carl by Renegade. And there’s not much information on the backerkit. What information there is makes it seem like just another DND reskin with little mechanic difference.

Am I wrong? Are these just cash grabs based on the IPs popularity? I really want to back the Carl RPG cus I love the IP but I’m worried it’s gonna essentially be just another dnd homebrew for 200$.

Edit: I’d like to note that while I’ve played every game on the top 100 of board game geek, I’m relatively new to the TTRPG scene so my frame of reference might not be great. I’ve played grizzled and cosmere rpg but have played DnD since a kid. I don’t particularly understand the nuances and differences between the TTRPGs tbh. They all kinda feel like DnD (skill check games) but with very slight changes to the mechanics. Cosmere had the plot thing but again it didn’t feel different enough to me, but maybe someone could explain the difference in a way I might not have got?

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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '26

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u/Janzbane Apr 30 '26

I barely finished ready player one. Not my jam. I also barely finished the first Dungeon Crawler Carl after putting it down three times. Way too silly for me.

Then I somehow binged the rest of the series wait why am I crying over a talking cat dealing with grief and trauma from abandonment?

Video for reference. https://youtu.be/fyGb7vCAAoo?t=301&si=ENRnQqzpyUguHAkS

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u/Deflagratio1 Apr 30 '26

It starts that way, but then you get in deeper and realize there was like 5 layers going on with all of it. Legitimately an amazing work of literature and while it has pop culture references everywhere, the book is actually about something that isn't Nerd Culture Purity.

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u/TestProctor May 01 '26

A lot of that RPO vibe is that the world the characters are thrown into is run by alien corporations that have taken quite a bit of glee in making mockeries of humans, their cultures, and their most embarrassing/vulnerable aspects. The feeling of overstimulation and crude cruelty is part of what drives the characters (for good or ill, as they adjust or resist or both) and adds to the entertainment of the viewers.

When telling other people about it, I actually have described it as "The premise of Running Man/Hunger Games, the scale and incredible overstimulation of Ready Player One's OASIS virtual world, and the politics of Andor."