Who Decides What You Play?

[schneeland]

For existing groups, there's typically a group ideation phase, where people pitch stuff or just throw in ideas. Once we have consensus, one person volunteers to GM - often, but not always the person who pitched the new idea.

For new groups, so far either someone pitched an idea (system + campaign), then recruits players for it, or it just came up in conversation and someone volunteers to run the game. In many cases, that's just a one-shot, but in some this has developed into a full campaign.

 

[Wolfpack48]

The more excited our GM is to run a campaign the easier it is for everyone to get on board. Our group is pretty easy going and we just roll with it. A lot of times we’ll just get together without gaming and just talk about what genre we’re excited about these days. By the time we’re done talking everyone is usually pretty gung ho on an idea and actively thinking about making characters.

 

[Thomas Shey]

Assuming my last choice was something I really didn't want to play, id likely bow out of the game. Though, thats easy for me to say now that online gaming has greatly expanded my options.

These weren't usually don't-want-to-play-at-all-costs so much as really-not-interested. And of course there was the passive "would you like us to get together a game we can all play or not?" factor.

 

[DammitVictor]

(Existing) Generally, when we don't have a regular game going... we decide that we want to play something, and I decide the kind of system and setting I want to run, and the group usually goes along with it. Sometimes they balk and I go back to the drawing board. Sometimes someone else wants to run something specific, and we roll with that.

It's possible that someone can want to "run a game" without a firm idea of what they want to run, and put the decision to a table discussion, and we'd all be totally okay with that... but it's just not how we've ever done it before.

 

[The Soloist]

We talk about it as a group. We are all GMs who rotate games.

Over the last four years, we've played Legend of the 5 Rings, Symbaroum, Shadow of the Demon Lord, Coriolis, Traveller, Aliens, Vaesen, Dragonbane, D&D 5e, Paranoia and Savage Wolds. Blade Runner is next on the list.