It's Okay to Play OA (Oriental Adventures)

When Oriental Adventures (Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 1st-Ed.) was first released in 19xx, it was riding the wave of the ninja craze. There were already a ton of ninja movies in cinemas (especially at the drive-in), Street Fighter was an arcade staple, and Chris Claremont and Frank Miller's Wolverine limited series was in markets. But AD&D is interactive; it was an entirely different experience you could only get from roleplaying games, which were also in their heyday.

Robotech was really the only anime to which we had been exposed at that time, and it had not been massively popular by US TV standards. Off the air after only one season in most markets, it found a loyal fanbase - myself included - but one that took years to grow. But while Robotech showcased mecha and current trends in Japanese sci-fi of the time, Oriental Adventures delved into the fantasy history, legend, and lore of the Eastern Orient - particularly Japan's.

These successes paved the way for companies like Viz Media to bring us Kamui, Dark Horse to issue the Lone Wolf & Cub series, and Akira to get a nationwide cinematic release and colored release from the Marvel comics imprint, Epic. And, although I may be overestimating its impact (AD&D was still a niche hobby, even then), Oriental Adventures was at the forefront of all of this. (There was also Bushido, but it did not receive the kind of distribution Oriental Adventures did, the latter of which was widely available in bookstores.)

It's distressing to hear the criticism it receives today, especially from those so far removed from its context. It set alongside many pop-culture classics that opened the door to more interest in Japanese culture and products, especially media. Now we have entire streaming services dedicated to anime, and manga sales have topped those of US comics, but Oriental Adventures and the aforementioned were all we had back in The Day.

So I'm granting you full permission to play and enjoy Oriental Adventures, Bushido, Palladium's Robotech, and all other Oriental-based TTRPG of the 1980s and '90s. Our intentions were pure, as consumers and interested parties, and the limitations of a pre-Internet era are to blame for any perceived slights or misinterpretations that may or may not exist. Furthermore, we are all far removed from the era in which these things were produced and need not feel restricted to only their negative aspects.

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons' Oriental Adventures is an absolute blast to play, regardless of its historical accuracy. And although TSR's goal is expected to have had more to do with making money than representation, it does a fine job of bringing a foreign culture to a Eurocentric fantasy tabletop game. Not everything has to be so serious that it can't be enjoyed for what it is, and Oriental Adventures belongs in that category.

© The Weirding, 2025