Technology and culture in your campaigns

[DeepShadow of FoS]

Most of Ravenloft’s (setting) problems come from the fact that Ravenloft (adventure), on which it was based, was little more than a board game dungeon with “Dracula” vampire strategy complications.

Huh? The original module has been widely credited with breaking the mold when it comes to giving monsters depth. When it was first run, the final battle ended with the players grieving for Strahd as they staked him, and people were practically in tears.

Did it have flaws? Sure. But it wasn't about killing the monsters and taking their stuff. That's EXACTLY what it wasn't.

[Herman Strauss]

Do we really want to go into, "Combat free is the only REAL roleplaying." versus "WTF brosef haven't killed anything in an hour."?

Point taken! The definition of what-RPG-is –and- isn't is both matter of personal taste and way off from being thread topic related!
Now as far as the cultural salad that Ravenloft SEEMS to be!
The setting has been so ingeniously designed that the DM can, without a great deal of trouble (just by picking the necessary Domains), play virtually any kind of horror scenario he wishes.
It is a world that gave the DM the opportunity to run different “Campaign Options” at a time when they weren’t any (and without having to reinvent the world to fit them in)!
The Domains are the spices and seasonings and it is only natural to feel nauseated if you put them all in your meal.
You want “Friday the 13th” cursed item hunting? No problem! Forged of Darkness.
Specific Monster Hunters? Van Richten’s Guides.
Lovecraftian Madness? Bluetspur!
Jack the Ripper? Sherlock Holmes? Paridon!
The list just goes on…
See, the setting can be used in a typical way like any other fantasy seating: a large exotic dish, but it is much more savoring and pleasing as a spread rich buffet where you savor the unique flavor of each dish before moving on to the next.
It is a setting of specialized campaigns. Don’t choke on one; enjoy as many as you can!
And don't worry about Napoleon fighting Caesar; they are in the same setting but in different campaigns

[Herman Strauss]

Huh? The original module has been widely credited with breaking the mold when it comes to giving monsters depth. When it was first run, the final battle ended with the players grieving for Strahd as they staked him, and people were practically in tears.

Did it have flaws? Sure. But it wasn't about killing the monsters and taking their stuff. That's EXACTLY what it wasn't.

Maybe I am a little (or a lot) biased towards the specific adventure.
It is just that I don’t sympathize parents that outlive their children (especially since it's their children I’ve known and grew up with)!
I didn’t play the module (it was long out of print when I started playing).
I came to adore Ravenloft The Demiplane (for the reason mentioned above) and not The Castle.

[Rotipher of the FoS]

I didn’t play the module (it was long out of print when I started playing).

Understood. If you weren't gaming in the 1E era, you couldn't know how radical a departure I6 was from the usual dungeon-crawls being published back then. Heck, plenty of old-school published adventures didn't even give their Big Bads a name, let alone a dramatic backstory.