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EN World Interview With Mike Mearls, Lead Designer of D&D Next
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<blockquote data-quote="Mark CMG" data-source="post: 5920047" data-attributes="member: 10479"><p>Thank of it this way, the caller and receiver exist in a phone call but the content that the caller puts into the call is the most important thing, regarding the actual phone call, and the phone and infrastructure are there to support delivery of that content, regardless of the caller or receiver.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Assuming a character in the setting is roleplaying, I think we agree. My problem is accepting the term "roleplaying game" on the cover of a game that focuses primarily on combat, encourages players to focus on combat through the preponderance of rules geared toward combat, and gives little to no focus on the actual roleplaying, even in combat.</p><p></p><p>I recently watched two tables of gamers at the FLGS set up for their own games. To the outside observer, it would have been very difficult to tell them apart. Each was a game that lasted a couple of hours. Before each, one person at the table read a bit of scenario setup text. The remainder of the time was spent moving figures on the tabletop in combat with one another. At one table, a couple of the players referred to their miniatures by names they had been given. The table where the miniatures, the characters if you will, was a Necromunda game where the players didn't have miniatures with the exact weapons they had chosen so they gave the individuals names that could be easily recognized by looking at the miniature: one had an eye-patch and was called by some pirate name, another was very muscular and was called Big Dan or some such, etc. The players on the other table hadn't even bothered naming the individuals and most referred to them in the Third Person, "The Dwarf does (this)" though one went so far as to say, "My fighter does (this)" or "My fighter charges toward the (that)," so at least there was a sense of ownership. When I asked one of the players later if they liked that type of game he said, "Yeah, I love roleplaying games." I didn't have the heart to tell him that what he was actually doing wasn't really playing a roleplaying game. It might say that on the rulebook but what was happening at the table wasn't a roleplaying game or at least was less so than the Necromunda game taking place at the next table where the players' combatants (PCs?) at least had names.</p><p></p><p>So, yes, I do believe that there are some less roleplay-ey ways to approach a roleplaying game. I won't say superior, because I love games like I just described, I just don't call them roleplaying games and wouldn't likely use a roleplaying game ruleset to run such a game because I feel there are other rules that actually handle that type of game better. Nevertheless, a roleplaying game ruleset should probably encourage the roleplaying aspect all throughout the rules, from character creation through gameplay, whether its in combat or exploring or emulating other social interaction in less combative environments. Integrating all of the aspects of the game so that the focus is on character, not how what a character might do 'mechanically interfaces with the game space' would go a long wa toward helping such a ruleset earn the name roleplaying game on its cover.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>I'm not sure what everyone wants is roleplaying despite the terminology they use.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Mark CMG, post: 5920047, member: 10479"] Thank of it this way, the caller and receiver exist in a phone call but the content that the caller puts into the call is the most important thing, regarding the actual phone call, and the phone and infrastructure are there to support delivery of that content, regardless of the caller or receiver. Assuming a character in the setting is roleplaying, I think we agree. My problem is accepting the term "roleplaying game" on the cover of a game that focuses primarily on combat, encourages players to focus on combat through the preponderance of rules geared toward combat, and gives little to no focus on the actual roleplaying, even in combat. I recently watched two tables of gamers at the FLGS set up for their own games. To the outside observer, it would have been very difficult to tell them apart. Each was a game that lasted a couple of hours. Before each, one person at the table read a bit of scenario setup text. The remainder of the time was spent moving figures on the tabletop in combat with one another. At one table, a couple of the players referred to their miniatures by names they had been given. The table where the miniatures, the characters if you will, was a Necromunda game where the players didn't have miniatures with the exact weapons they had chosen so they gave the individuals names that could be easily recognized by looking at the miniature: one had an eye-patch and was called by some pirate name, another was very muscular and was called Big Dan or some such, etc. The players on the other table hadn't even bothered naming the individuals and most referred to them in the Third Person, "The Dwarf does (this)" though one went so far as to say, "My fighter does (this)" or "My fighter charges toward the (that)," so at least there was a sense of ownership. When I asked one of the players later if they liked that type of game he said, "Yeah, I love roleplaying games." I didn't have the heart to tell him that what he was actually doing wasn't really playing a roleplaying game. It might say that on the rulebook but what was happening at the table wasn't a roleplaying game or at least was less so than the Necromunda game taking place at the next table where the players' combatants (PCs?) at least had names. So, yes, I do believe that there are some less roleplay-ey ways to approach a roleplaying game. I won't say superior, because I love games like I just described, I just don't call them roleplaying games and wouldn't likely use a roleplaying game ruleset to run such a game because I feel there are other rules that actually handle that type of game better. Nevertheless, a roleplaying game ruleset should probably encourage the roleplaying aspect all throughout the rules, from character creation through gameplay, whether its in combat or exploring or emulating other social interaction in less combative environments. Integrating all of the aspects of the game so that the focus is on character, not how what a character might do 'mechanically interfaces with the game space' would go a long wa toward helping such a ruleset earn the name roleplaying game on its cover. I'm not sure what everyone wants is roleplaying despite the terminology they use. [/QUOTE]
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