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Message: <blockquote data-quote="kenada" data-source="post: 9198700" data-attributes="member: 70468">My contention in <a href="https://www.enworld.org/threads/rpging-and-imagination-a-fundamental-point.701162/post-9197789" target="_blank">post #9</a> was that having playing-style reinforcement was neither necessary nor sufficient. I thought there was agreement based on your response in <a href="https://www.enworld.org/threads/rpging-and-imagination-a-fundamental-point.701162/post-9197808" target="_blank">post #11</a>, but it seems like we don’t.I’m having trouble reconciling this with the text cited in <a href="https://www.enworld.org/threads/rpging-and-imagination-a-fundamental-point.701162/post-9197744" target="_blank">post #5</a>, which seemed to be about allowing the player to specialize an avatar via the effects of their actions.In my Undertale <a href="https://www.enworld.org/threads/rpging-and-imagination-a-fundamental-point.701162/post-9198217" target="_blank">example</a>, the narrative changes, but your avatar does not. The text suggests that the purpose of the feedback loop is to allow the player to customize their avatar via their actions in the game, but that’s not what happens. The story changes, but that seems like a separate concern from specializing your avatar. However, if you do kill things, your stats go up. There’s still no specialization (which the text called out as an issue in OD&D).That’s not the case for Mass Effect. Your Paragon and Renegade ratings have some effect on dialog options. In ME1, they also provide a few other character benefits. This would allow you customize your experience, so I guess it’s technically a form of specialization, but it seems a bit weak. Apparently, Mass Effect: Andromeda apparently doesn’t have that system anymore because they wanted “more shades of gray” (I skipped ME:A).So I’m not seeing where playing-style reinforcement comes into play with Undertale. You choice of route matters, and your actions in those routes do cause changes in the game, but those things don’t seem to be what the text has in mind. If it’s actually broader than that, then that would suggest games like OD&D actually do have playing-style reinforcement. All I need to do to reinforce my conception of being a careful adventurer is by listening at every door to get surprise on the monsters (and hopefully find some elven boots).However, I feel like that would be too broad. I would like to modify suggestion in <a href="https://www.enworld.org/threads/rpging-and-imagination-a-fundamental-point.701162/post-9198217" target="_blank">post #32</a> and say that an RPG is a game where you take on the role of a character for the purpose of experiencing something as that character. Maybe it’s finding treasure, or exploring new worlds. Maybe it’s about overcoming challenges and proving your mettle. Maybe it’s about experiencing a particular emotion or learning more about oneself (the player). From there, we can then hybridize it with different elements (playing-style reinforcement, improv play, etc).</blockquote>

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