‘OG D&D’: Analysing aspects of fandom cultural capital in contentious Dungeons & Dragons social media

This research interrogates the subset of fandom called OSR, or Old School Renaissance, and its relation to the diversity in Dungeons & Dragons communities. Some who populate OSR are hostile to changes in the game, as it bends to a larger, diverse audience in recent years. These ideas are often expressed in social media spaces online and lead to contentious conversations between players. I perform a critical discourse analysis on X posts linked to fringe OSR members, specifically surrounding changes in Dungeons & Dragons that were seen as too progressive by some. I note how these gamers encourage a cultural capital that further boosts a veneration of nostalgia, while wanting to enforce a so-called magic circle between the gaming world and the real world. Further, I discuss how fan-related cultural capital furthers norms valued in gaming spaces.