Quote from: YamoHe's not saying that a foreign reader couldn't be made to understand such references, provided that definitions were provided, just that they would never have the same visceral resonance for that reader as they do for the game's target audience.

It would be easy to explain to a man from China who Robin Hood and King Arthur  were in legend, but would he ever feel the same way about these figures that someone with a English-speaking cultural background does?

Or Henry V, or the Black Prince, or intrinsically get the difference between southerners and northerners, lancasters and yorks, etc etc?

And that's all without even getting into the monsters. I mean, the Basque monsters are pretty inaccesible to anyone who's not basque but at least other hispanics have been exposed to it.
That all needs to be replaced for an English game, though, with stuff like Herne and the Green Man, bogeys and goblins.

RPGPundit

Of course, it could be that the reason people want it in english is we are tired of being fed Robin Hood, Herne, the Green Man and want to learn/enjoy something new.

Of course, despite my vast sweeping knowledge of cultures other than my own, I must confess that to me Gallego means a cool dude, medically trained, not a hot GM, due to his godly GMPC's, probably living around LA now, possibly addicted to weed.  This one's to you, where ever you and your second generation tremere warlock have gotten to.

Quote from: RPGPunditI think the main barrier is that they'd have to De-ibericize it a bit.  As it is, its got a few too many cultural features that non-hispanics really wouldn't clue in on.  

if you could do Aquelarre but set it in medieval England with all the English/celtic folk superstitions about monsters and demons in place of the spanish/basque ones, then you'd be cooking with gas as far as a translation was concerned.

?

That would seem kinda pointless then. I'd certainly not want it rehashed with boring old "local" flavour. I'd much prefer the foreign.

I think you're underestimating the ability of role-players to learn new stuff. There are lots of people who know jack shit about King Arthur and other british stuff and still read voraciously on the subject after getting into Pendragon. Yes, it would be best if a translated issue would have some additional explanation and/or a glossary, but I think there wouldn't be that much lost in the end.

Heck, we do know some amazing trivia about fictional worlds, so learning from history shouldn't be that much harder. We can even talk to _outsiders_ then!

I'd much rather have a translated book by people who really know their stuff than someone taking foreign myths and spreading them all willy-nilly over their fictional world (WFRP, I'm looking at you!).

Quote from: SosthenesI think you're underestimating the ability of role-players to learn new stuff. There are lots of people who know jack shit about King Arthur and other british stuff and still read voraciously on the subject after getting into Pendragon. Yes, it would be best if a translated issue would have some additional explanation and/or a glossary, but I think there wouldn't be that much lost in the end.

Heck, we do know some amazing trivia about fictional worlds, so learning from history shouldn't be that much harder. We can even talk to _outsiders_ then!

I'd much rather have a translated book by people who really know their stuff than someone taking foreign myths and spreading them all willy-nilly over their fictional world (WFRP, I'm looking at you!).

Very true (well except for the WFRP). I mean western fantasy lit and games are huge in South East Asia - for various reasons - but maybe the Pundit thinks that the American (maybe) audience is much more provincial in it's gaming taste...

Quote from: David RVery true (well except for the WFRP). I mean western fantasy lit and games are huge in South East Asia - for various reasons - but maybe the Pundit thinks that the American (maybe) audience is much more provincial in it's gaming taste...

Well, I don't know what a market share hispanic players have in the United States, but at least they should know some of the stuff. And I've yet to find the common ground the archetypical midwestern role-player would have with Eberron, Exalted or Glorantha.

If provinciality would be such a factor, Boot Hill would still reign supreme
(I know, I know, it does. I'm talking about market share...)

Quote from: David Rbut maybe the Pundit thinks that the American (maybe) audience is much more provincial in it's gaming taste...

That is, frankly, my suspicion.  I could be wrong, though.

RPGPundit

Quote from: RPGPunditI think the main barrier is that they'd have to De-ibericize it a bit.  As it is, its got a few too many cultural features that non-hispanics really wouldn't clue in on.  

if you could do Aquelarre but set it in medieval England with all the English/celtic folk superstitions about monsters and demons in place of the spanish/basque ones, then you'd be cooking with gas as far as a translation was concerned.

RPGPundit

Medieval England is nothing much like Hollywood tells us either, it's just as alien frankly.

For me, the Spanish element is key to the interest, it's a cool setting.  Lose that and I would have no interest in it.

Frankly, the guys who will be put off by it being set in Spain probably aren't in the market for a gritty medieval rpg that focusses on verisimilitude and on getting a period feel for the magic anyway.