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Message: <blockquote data-quote="eyebeams" data-source="post: 7647805" data-attributes="member: 9225">The most accessible form of roleplaying for neophytes is fanfic-based freeform play. These feature:1) No cost2) No need to meet anyone physically3) No need to learn rules4) Well-known contemporary media properties5) Multiple free, intuitive tools6) Platform neutral -- forums, blogs and other web hangouts work well on anythingThe idea that a game can be introduced through a tablet/smartphone app is based on the popular notion that young people are "digital natives" who will take the technology for granted. Unfortunately, the "digital native" stereotype is wrong; most smartphone and tablet adopters are over 25. This is formidable competition. How can tabletop RPGs catch up? Point by point:1) Release the core rules for free. This is easy, since pirates already do it anyway. You might as well make it easy and control versions. 4chan's TG and torrenting communities already collaborate on distributing DTRPG PDFs within days of paid release.2) Encourage the growth of online play communities from a central exchange, without administering it all yourself. I don'y believe dropping wads of cash on a virtual tabletop/toolset is a good idea, because centralized development will always have to catch up with free options. I can already run RPGs through everything from forums to G+.3) Produce rules that can be learned gradually, without being set aside as a "starter." Throwing down a chunk of change on a game you're supposed to drop after Level 5 (or whatever) immediately creates a barrier between yourself and full adopters. 4) Current successful licences are all based on existing crossovers between RPGers and other fandoms. This almost never grabs anyone new. Freeform games are usually starved for well-developed, game specific soft content, however. Basically, companies need to start paying for fluff and setting again. This runs contrary to what the majority of game designers and hardcore fans believe, but they're wrong. The collapse of a unitary D&D and the rise of casual freeform proves that the last decade's obsession with building a "better mousetrap" of game systems was a self-indulgent effort that appealed to existing RPG greybeards. The fact is that setting/narrative context is the necessary unifying factor, not systems. The entire project of innovating through system first has had a decade to make a breakthrough. It failed.5 and 6) It's about time we acknowledged the huge number of people who are not waiting to play through a top down software product, but are already doing so through free stuff. Since these tools are always changing, your community hub needs to stay constantly updated, providing play sites and advice.The big challenge is to build a profitable business model from it.  The idea of paying for *any* element of an information-centric pursuit is pretty much alien to young people. If you look at conversations that younger gamers actually have about acquiring games, it's all about filesharing -- there is a distinct contempt for the idea of paying for anything. In all cases, the trick is to produce something that new consumers want, but can't make themselves. The solution may be some subscription-based freemium model, where the core of the game is free, but the ongoing content/support stream costs money. Lots of people hate that -- I'm not fond of this sort of thing myself -- but current RPG consumers have basically purchased as much as they're going to, and lots of people have less money than they used to.</blockquote>

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