Anyone use surveys for new gaming groups?

[Umbran]

It's the same thing. I don't want homework or to be treated like a statistic. Talk to me. Engage me in conversation about gaming. Have a session where instead of playing, you get together and talk about this stuff. But don't give me a form to fill out.

Well, that's just a question of format. There's more than one way to do a survey.

When I started my current group, I made up a set of questions I wanted to know the answers to, and questions I wanted to see how they answered (which is not quite the same thing). For the majority of the group, I had in-person conversations, in which I covered the questions. For a couple, I had a conversation by e-mail.

I didn't hand out a multiple-choice questionnaire - I took my survey in a more dynamic way. But, it was still a survey.

 

[TarionzCousin]

Well, that's just a question of format. There's more than one way to do a survey.

Exactly.

I have done surveys as handouts, socializing sessions, email, and other methods. It is useful information to have.

Basically, you are telling your players "I want to know how best to enable this game to be fun for you. In order to do that, I need specifics."

 

[ggroy]

If I'm the DM, I usually do pre-game surveys both as one-on-one (usually via telephone) and as informal socializing sessions with the group. I ask the player(s) to make detailed lists of what they want and don't want in the game. The players usually do most of the talking in the one-on-one surveys.

In the first pre-game group socialization sessions, any obvious signs of tension and irreconcilable differences between they players will frequently start to show up. It's better to know stuff like this from the beginning, than to find out about it later.

If the players can't come up with a unanimous decision about the DMing style they want, then I'll ask them whether they want to continue any further.

 

[Rechan]

I tend to agree. Gaming is a hobby, it's something everyone gets together for to escape the day to day hustle. Surveys get the job done, but I think as Kzach said, a better way would be to have a Session 0, in which the players and GM are just getting together to talk about the game and maybe work on characters.

In my experience, players want to play when they sit down. Saying 'sorry guys, we'll game NEXT week, this week we're just going to talk' is a let down. I've done that twice and I was begged for us to do something. Even spending the entire session making characters generates grumpiness from the players I've done it with.

For that matter, when you ask people this in person - as a group - you don't get each individual's full, fleshed out answers. You don't find out that Bill really just does not like pirate games, because if other people seem excited about a pirate themed game, Bill feel social pressure to just say "Ok I guess" and go with the group.

Not to mention if Bill as a player is less talkative, you can't get all those answers from each person anyways. Bill may not articulate he wants more power ups than social gaming. This is a clear way that's a Player-to-DM dialogue. Asking a vague "What kind of game do you like?" with such an open ended answer typically gets a sentence in reply, and doesn't get at a quarter of those necessary elements I'm trying to hit at. Combat to RP ratio, tone and focus, etc.

 

[Rechan]

That's another good question to add. An open-ended question like "What do you NOT want to see (example: evil character, naval game)".

When I started my current group, I made up a set of questions I wanted to know the answers to, and questions I wanted to see how they answered (which is not quite the same thing).

What are the specifics of those questions, or how are you phrasing them?

Also, bare in mind I won't just hand these things to people when they show up. Like I said, I would intend to send them via email, so that the players can email them back.