DM's are Producers, Players are Consumers

[Hussar]

Was recently listening to a podcast (Fear the Boot Ep 117) and they had an interesting point. Well, interesting to me anyway.

In the podcast, they were saying that because the DM does all this work, and is responsible for the table and the game and everyone's enjoyment, the DM's are producers and the players are consumers. In other words, and I'm roughly quoting here, the DM prepares the banquet, serves the food and then cleans up the mess afterward.

Is this how you view it? I don't. My players, and all of the players I consider to be good players that I've played with, contribute a great deal to every facet of the campaign and the game. Now, bad players, that's a different story altogether and I'm not talking about that because, well, I don't play with bad players. But, with good players, I feel it's incumbent on everyone to make sure that the table is having a good time. It's incumbent on everyone to keep the campaign going. I don't view the DM in quite the same way as its being portrayed here.

Yes, the DM is doing more work than everyone else. Sure. I don't deny that. I'm actually typing this because I'm procrastinating getting some prep work done , but, I don't buy into this very heirarchical structure of DM and players. (Or GM or Storyteller or whatever you want to call the person)

What do you think?

 

[Umbran]

That could be the case in some games, I suppose - if you run a game where the players have little impact on how events unfold, then it might well seem like this.

 

[Henry]

I'd say it's true in some versions of the game, but for me, not any more. I still do some paperwork, but the world creation, etc. I most often do with my downtime -- waiting for a program to install, talking over lunch, driving a long distance, etc.

 

[Ourph]

I felt exactly that way with 3e because the prep work wasn't fun. I "slaved" over creating a fun adventure and the players "bought" my services by appreciating the work I put in.

Now that I'm running 4e and the work is no longer tedious but FUN I don't feel that way any longer. Running a D&D game feels like playing a game again!

 

[Lanefan]

I'm not sure if the DM so much prepares the banquet as sets the table....but in either case, without a DM, nobody eats.

I don't see it as quite as sharp a producer/consumer divide as what the OP refers to, perhaps, but the divide is still there...the DM produces the world and (in many cases) the ruleset or house rules, and the players generate characters to run around in - and add to - said world.

True "consumer" players would add nothing to the world. Fortunately, most players are more than this.

Lanefan

 

[WayneLigon]

I think it's mostly true. The players have some input and they contribure through their character backstory, but the vast majority of the work is on the GM. I can't remember the last time players actually helped lighten that load in any respect.

 

[Hammerhead]

Utterly wrong.

A chef can prepare a banquet, but if no one shows, he can still eat some of the food himself.

Trying enjoying a role-playing game with just a DM; with no protagonists to foil their schemes, the antagonists just win. That's no fun .

 

[S'mon]

The GM cooks the meal and sets the table, but the players provide scintillating dinner-party conversation. Players are more than consumers; good players make the game a joy for the GM, bad players don't.

 

[jensun]

I think it's mostly true. The players have some input and they contribure through their character backstory, but the vast majority of the work is on the GM. I can't remember the last time players actually helped lighten that load in any respect.

Every game my current group has played in the last 8 years (since it formed) has involved co-operative world building between players and GM.

The current game I am GM'ing was mostly written by the players.

 

[Pseudopsyche]

I'm not sure what the producer-consumer terminology buys you, but the metaphor of preparing a meal seems apt. More precisely, running a session of D&D maps rather well onto hosting a dinner party. Some hosts will obsess over crafting the perfect menu and will delight over their guests enjoyment of their tightly coordinated event. Others will invite friends over for a potluck and might find that some of their guests pitch in with the dishes. Everyone contributes to making the event a success, but one person is largely running the show and--I hope--gaining pleasure in sharing his or her creative and organizational skills with friends.