Editing Earthdawn (section)

==Reception==
[[Stewart Wieck]] reviewed ''Earthdawn'' in ''[[White Wolf (magazine)|White Wolf]]'' #37 (July/Aug., 1993), rating it a 3 out of 5 and stated that "''Earthdawn'' is a solid game, but the 'innovations' seem like unnecessary complications. The world is fun, but not fresh. This is not the fantasy game to leave your current campaign for unless you want to bank on the ever-fulfilled FASA promise - an extensive line of support material, much of which will be very good and will undoubtedly add a lot to the game."<ref name="WW37">{{Cite magazine |last=Wieck|first=Stewart |authorlink=Stewart Wieck|date=July–August 1993|title=Feature Review: Earthdawn |magazine= [[White Wolf Magazine]] |number=37 |pages=36–40}}</ref>

Chris W. McCubbin reviewed ''Earthdawn'' in ''[[Pyramid (magazine)|Pyramid]]'' #3 (Sept./Oct., 1993), and stated that "Although it never becomes bogged down in cliches and avoids outmoded concepts, ''Earthdawn'' is, at heart, a very traditional heroic fantasy RPG."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sjgames.com/pyramid/sample.html?id=408|title = Pyramid: Pyramid Pick: Earthdawn}}</ref>

In the February 1994 edition of ''[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]'' (Issue 202), [[Rick Swan]] liked the high production values "highlighted by striking illustrations and FASA’s usual state-of-the-art graphics", and found that "Thanks to clear writing and sensible organization... it's an easy read." But Swan also found the game setting insubstantial compared to others. "Despite workable rules and a clever setting, ''Earthdawn'' is more frosting than cake, with little of substance to distinguish it from the competition." Nevertheless, he found himself drawn to the game. "In a greasy pizza, let’s-not-take-this-too-seriously kind of way, ''Earthdawn'' holds its own."<ref name=dragon>{{cite journal|last=Swan|first=Rick|author-link=Rick Swan| date=February 1994 |title=Roleplaying Reviews|journal=[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]|publisher=[[TSR (company)|TSR, Inc.]]|issue=202|pages=82–83}}</ref>

In a 1996 reader poll conducted by ''Arcane'' magazine to determine the 50 most popular roleplaying games of all time, ''Earthdawn'' was ranked 24th. Editor Paul Pettengale commented: "Very good indeed. ''Earthdawn'' combined traditional fantasy with ''Call of Cthulhu''-style horror and a detailed background to create an evocative and interesting setting. Combined with a clear, well-designed rules system and an impressive range of supporting supplements and adventures, this is an excellent fantasy game. It's also of special interest to fans of ''Shadowrun'', because it describes the past of the same gameworld."<ref name="Arcane14">{{cite journal|last= Pettengale|first=Paul|date= Christmas 1996 |title=Arcane Presents the Top 50 Roleplaying Games 1996|journal=Arcane|publisher=[[Future plc|Future Publishing]]|issue=14|pages=25–35}}</ref>

In 1999 ''[[Pyramid (magazine)|Pyramid]]'' magazine named ''Earthdawn'' as one of ''The Millennium's Most Underrated Games''. Editor [[Scott Haring]] noted (referring to the FASA edition) that "''Earthdawn'' had an original, inventive magic system (no mean trick given the hundreds of fantasy RPGs that came before), and a game world that gave you the classic "monsters and dungeons" sort of RPG experience, but made sense doing it."<ref>{{cite journal| title=Second Sight: The Millennium's Most Influential Company and The Millennium's Most Underrated Game|journal=Pyramid (Online)|last=Haring| first=Scott D. |author-link=Scott Haring | url= http://www.sjgames.com/pyramid/login/article.html?id=1240| date=1999-11-25| access-date=2008-02-16}}</ref>

In Issue 12 of the Australian game magazine ''[[Australian Realms]]'', Malcolm Adler thought the rules would satisfy both new and experienced players: "The rules are written in a simple enough form and with plenty of examples so that a new gamer should not get lost. For more experienced gamers there is enough depth in the system to keep the average player happy." Adler liked the ability of gamemasters to go in new directions, saying, "One of the biggest positives on Earthdawn's side is the continual encouragement to do with it what you will." Adler concluded, "My opinion is that the game is going to be big. I suspect the second biggest RPG in the market is about to arrive. Consequently you owe it to yourself to check it out when it becomes available in August. Give it a good look over and then make your own judgement."<ref name=arm>{{cite magazine|last=Adler| first=Malcolm| date=July–August 1993|title=Reviews|magazine=[[Australian Realms]] |  issue =12|pages= 2 }}</ref>

In his 2023 book ''Monsters, Aliens, and Holes in the Ground'', RPG historian Stu Horvath noted, "In a fantasy world, one of the most difficult tasks is conveying that sense of the fantastic. The design of ''Earthdawn'', through its careful presentation in both art and text, gives players the necessary details to bring to life a world of wonders as easily as they might conjure a game set in the real world. Once there, players can go forth and forge their own legends."<ref name=mahg>{{cite book| last = Horvath| first = Stu| title = Monsters, Aliens, and Holes in the Ground| publisher = MIT Press| date = 2023| location = Cambridge, Massachusetts| pages = 234–235| isbn =9780262048224 }}</ref>