Fantasy wasn't mainstream then, and now it is. Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Harry Potter kickstarted fantasy into the mainstream conciousnes

Fantasy wasn't mainstream then, and now it is. Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Harry Potter kickstarted fantasy into the mainstream conciousness. It's no surprise that a growing acceptance of the genre in the large would also lead to a growing desire to participate in it, and the streamlined rules and whatnot are just a little boost to help in that direction.