Oh, I adore this game! It's so precious!
youtu.be/kKjJpUlRWi0

A group with familiar play culture, common goals, but maybe not everyone is fully open. We show up and play, but we don't learn all that much about each other.

An example might be a several-session game run in a community I frequent. It's how I would describe The Gauntlet back in the day.

Never feel bad for getting into the weeds. Everyone knows the good ideas hide in the tall grass.

I agree. Like if the GM info is all in one zine and player info is in another, you can pass that around. Maybe have some common world knowledge in one so the players can use it as a reference. It's especially nice when they include little adventure zines.

Is the lack of well-defined decades a symptom of our culture stagnating, or is it the cause?

I remember constantly being reminded that it was the 80s, 90s, or even the new millennium, always with the meaning 'Let go of the past; we've moved on.'

I just started it last night!