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<blockquote data-quote="piou" data-source="post: 9143598" data-attributes="member: 7042024">PbtA isn't a single system and for any thing a given PbtA does you'll find one that does it differently. In that sense it's very different from Fate or Gurps: it's not a modular system, it's more of a design philosophy.There are however some common traits among PbtA games:<ul>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul">They generally use a 3 result system (miss, weak hit, strong hit) that is really good at pushing the narrative forward on its own, especially combined with Failing Forward principle (often encouraged in PbtA games). This makes them generally better suited to improv-heavy games than prep-heavy ones.</li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul">They're very good at playing very specific things. So &quot;13 yo kids solving mysteries in their school in the 1990s&quot; is much more likely to be well emulated using PbtA than &quot;investigation&quot;. The more specific the better. This is generally seen as why most bad PbtA games are bad: it generally has to do with a lack of luster when emulating a very specific genre or trying to emulate something too big and losing any theme in the process.</li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul">They require a specific GM style. In fact they so require it that it's codified by GM rules. These are good rules, but coming from D&amp;D it's generally quite the cultural shock. It works though, so trust the game and try it as it wants to be played before trying to change anything.</li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul">They're fiction first game. The impulse of an action is always given in narrative first, then this can trigger mechanical consequences, and this results in a narrative consequence. But you're never just &quot;pushing a button&quot; on your character sheet to do something, you're never just activating an ability, it comes from the fiction first. &quot;You have to do it to do it.&quot;</li>
<li data-xf-list-type="ul">Despite being largely narrative games, they're generally not rules-light. There are tons of rules in most PbtA, be it for the characters or on the GM side. They're not difficult to track or apply (in most cases) but they're there.</li>
</ul>I think this should give the most information for people trying to gauge whether a PbtA game might be for them or not.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="piou, post: 9143598, member: 7042024"] PbtA isn't a single system and for any thing a given PbtA does you'll find one that does it differently. In that sense it's very different from Fate or Gurps: it's not a modular system, it's more of a design philosophy. There are however some common traits among PbtA games: [LIST] [*]They generally use a 3 result system (miss, weak hit, strong hit) that is really good at pushing the narrative forward on its own, especially combined with Failing Forward principle (often encouraged in PbtA games). This makes them generally better suited to improv-heavy games than prep-heavy ones. [*]They're very good at playing very specific things. So "13 yo kids solving mysteries in their school in the 1990s" is much more likely to be well emulated using PbtA than "investigation". The more specific the better. This is generally seen as why most bad PbtA games are bad: it generally has to do with a lack of luster when emulating a very specific genre or trying to emulate something too big and losing any theme in the process. [*]They require a specific GM style. In fact they so require it that it's codified by GM rules. These are good rules, but coming from D&D it's generally quite the cultural shock. It works though, so trust the game and try it as it wants to be played before trying to change anything. [*]They're fiction first game. The impulse of an action is always given in narrative first, then this can trigger mechanical consequences, and this results in a narrative consequence. But you're never just "pushing a button" on your character sheet to do something, you're never just activating an ability, it comes from the fiction first. "You have to do it to do it." [*]Despite being largely narrative games, they're generally not rules-light. There are tons of rules in most PbtA, be it for the characters or on the GM side. They're not difficult to track or apply (in most cases) but they're there. [/LIST] I think this should give the most information for people trying to gauge whether a PbtA game might be for them or not. [/QUOTE]

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