If your table is anything like mine, then you love a good pop culture reference. It’s something of an informal tradition in my group that each session must contain at least one Lord of the Rings and one Monty Python joke.
I never gave it much thought until I read "The Fantasy Role-Playing Game" by Daniel Mackay. He suggests that gamers construct a common 'imaginary entertainment environment' by combining and repurposing bits of pop culture, fashioning them into something new in the process. I'm curious if this is true across all groups, or if there are any tables out there that try to eschew these references.
So how about it? Any large blonde Hemsworth looking dudes with hammers? Maybe a bounty hunter trying to protect a baby goblin? Perhaps you based your world's government on strange women lying in ponds distributing swords...?
So like it says in the title: What movie references always crop up in your games?
Princess Bride references come up frequently, as they should. But also sci-fi references are common. Star Trek and Star Wars, of course, but also Dr. Who and Hitchhiker ones as well.
Hide behind the pile of Bards!
For us it's stuff from Princess Bride: "You were supposed to be this great legendary thing!" "You did something right!"
Also Dumb and Dumber: "You can't triple stamp a double stamp!"
Monty Python, endless quotes from this.
Star Wars
Not necessarily movies. But I have a knack for accidentally making references to tonnes of things in my games and we usually throw around several quotes or in jokes
LotR, Monty Python, Berserk, Star Wars, Princess Bride, Dark Crystal/Labyrinth, Hitchhiker's Guide, Star Trek-- in that order. Less as we've become more story focused and more competent as storytellers.
I think there's a big difference between taking elements from other stories for your own and deliberately making references to those other stories.
I try to emulate parts of Middlearth and the world of Warhammer to get a sort of dark, brooding, ancient and melancholy tone in one of my settings. But that's a vastly different thing than, upon my barbarian's confirmation of a critical hit, declaring "that's 82 damage. Blood for the Blood God! Skulls for the Skull Throne!"
The one is just using thematic or more specific elements for world-building/storytelling. And I not only think that it can help you become a better story teller (because it helps you sharpen your ability to identify the exact elements that help create the exact effect you're going for), but it's also essentially impossible not to do. Sure, you can try to tell a story that doesn't evoke "The Lord of The Rings" or "Forgotten Realms or whatever, but it'll be hard. And your audience will probably just make connections to those things in some way you didn't intend and couldn't forsee, anyway.
The other is something that breaks the suspension of disbelief or the immersive nature of your story. Which, while I would certainly say doesn't lend itself to a great story on it's own, isn't necessarily something to avoid at all costs.
If my players break character and tell a joke or quote Monty Python during a tense moment, that's an almost subconscious attempt to relieve some of that tension. Which really just tells me I'm doing something right. One of my proudest moments was producing a jump scare without ramping up the tempo or volume of my voice; I just used a few lines of exposition and...stated the last one, and got that reaction. And then came the nervous laughter and the jokes and the recognition of ma' skillz.
the typical stable of Princess Bride, Star Wars, LotR, etc...but, two of our players are former professional wrestlers (small venue stuff)and others are huge wrestling marks and so there are A LOT of wrestling promo quotes thrown around, far, far too many at times.
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Red v Blue, Princess Bride, Monty Python, Men in Tights... it's almost as if a bunch of people sitting around playing a fantasy game can't take anything seriously.
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Hide behind the pile of Bards!
I actually got the pile of dead bards mini for backing that one. By Grabthar's hammer, I swear it shall be painted one day!
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Aliens comes up a lot. I think it’s the group vibe.
“They’re coming out of the walls...”
“Game over man, game over...”
“Somebody wake up Hicks...”
Etc
So you're saying that I should make the time to watch Aliens. Got it.
...
Always shocking to me how many of the classics I've managed to miss.
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Aliens comes up a lot. I think it’s the group vibe.
“They’re coming out of the walls...”
“Game over man, game over...”
“Somebody wake up Hicks...”
Etc
So you're saying that I should make the time to watch Aliens. Got it.
...
Always shocking to me how many of the classics I've managed to miss.
Oh, yes, I definitely recommend Aliens.
As long as you’ve seen Alien first.
Every time someone has to roll stealth: Come friends who plough the sea!
Mean Girls comes up a lot.
Stop trying to make Mean Girls happen. It's not going to happen.
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Every time someone has to roll stealth: Come friends who plough the sea!
My wife was in a college production of this. I still have a T-shirt they sold with that line quoted on the front, that I have been known to wear to gaming sessions.