What Does "Simulation" Mean To You? [+]

[Reynard]

FIRST: This is a + thread, meaning that as we discuss this, we all recognize that we can have differing opinions about what "simulation" means in the context of TTRPGs.

SECOND: As the thread title suggests this is about your personal definitions and opinions, not necessarily the S of GNS or other well worn theories. We can certainly talk about that definition, but this thread is not intended to be limited to it.

So with that out of the way: What does "simulation" mean to you in the context of TTRPGs? How much of it do you want? Do you prefer games that bake "modeling the world" into the rules? Does "simulation" mean "realism" to you, or something else? Is genre emulation the same thing as simulation?

Let's talk about it.

 

[billd91]

If a game or, more specifically, a rule or element within the game is simulative I take it to mean that it gives a significant nod toward verisimilitude in how it behaves or its properties, how it works - even if that means there's some imbalance in game play or inconvenience for players. And yes, that can mean genre emulation if that's a significant divergence from our own reality (particularly for unnatural character durability of action movie-style heroes or superhero games).

 

[aco175]

First tell me what GNS is? You are using an abbreviation before telling us what it is. I'm guessing the S is simulation, but I do not know the rest.

 

[John Dallman]

If my experience on Stack Overflow: Worldbuilding is any guide, there are quite a few people out who think that comic-book super-powers are "realistic" and can have "hard science" explanations.

To me, "simulationist" means there is significant verisimilitude, and that asking "how has this happened?" is not a silly question, and has answers within the way the setting works. Fictional science is OK, but needs to be economical with its miracles. The rules of psychology and economics are usually harder to replace than those of physics.

 

[KYRON45]

I'm holding off for the "What does verisimilitude mean to you" thread.
Sorry....couldn't resist.

I'll see myself out.

 

[zarionofarabel]

I always thought it meant that the game is shooting to be somewhat realistic. In the video game industry, ideally (the terms get misused sometimes) there are two classifications. There are GAME which are not trying to simulate reality, and there are SIMULATOR which are trying to simulate reality. I know when I was younger SIMULATOR were all the rage. Especially flight and racing. Nowadays the SIMULATOR don't seem to be all that popular, save Microsoft Flight Simulator, though I'm sure that's not even all that popular anymore. I think some of the EA Sports titles might be considered SIMULATOR. Kerbal Space Program is another one that, despite the goofy theme, was trying to be a kind of SIMULATOR. To give a simplified example of the difference, the way I used to explain it to people, is if you are playing a FPS and you can pick up a spinning icon and it heals you, you are playing a GAME. If you don't even hear the single shot that killed you, you are playing a SIMULATOR.

 

[Maxperson]

FIRST: This is a + thread, meaning that as we discuss this, we all recognize that we can have differing opinions about what "simulation" means in the context of TTRPGs.

SECOND: As the thread title suggests this is about your personal definitions and opinions, not necessarily the S of GNS or other well worn theories. We can certainly talk about that definition, but this thread is not intended to be limited to it.

So with that out of the way: What does "simulation" mean to you in the context of TTRPGs? How much of it do you want? Do you prefer games that bake "modeling the world" into the rules? Does "simulation" mean "realism" to you, or something else? Is genre emulation the same thing as simulation?

Let's talk about it.

To me simulation is simply an attempt, however badly, to simulate something in real life. So in D&D when falling does 1d6 per 10 feet fallen, to a maximum of 20d6, it's simulating 1) gravity, 2) damage from the impact at the end of a fall, and 3) terminal velocity.

 

[Umbran]

So with that out of the way: What does "simulation" mean to you in the context of TTRPGs? How much of it do you want? Do you prefer games that bake "modeling the world" into the rules? Does "simulation" mean "realism" to you, or something else? Is genre emulation the same thing as simulation?

Let's talk about it.

To me, simulation is (mostly) creation/use of a systematically-driven model of something.

The thing being simulated may not have much to do with the real world, so simulation does not equal realism, or even verisimilitude.

Genre emulation does not, to me, equate to simulation, because 1) Fictional genre is not a well-defined "thing" to simulate. 2) Fictional genre emulation is often best achieved by including non-systematic techniques.

These days, I don't really have desire for a lot of simulation in my ttRPG play. I find, again, for me, simulation play puts focus on the thing being simulated, rather than the players, and whether I am running or playing a game, I prefer my ttRPGplay to be more player-focused. I can, and do, play other kinds of games when I want to play with simulations.

 

[Bill Zebub]

I've been asking myself this same question while reading the discussion in the thread that led to this. I write computer simulations, and the use of the term in an RPG context doesn't make any sense to me. So I'll be curious to follow along in this thread to see how others respond.

 

[Micah Sweet]

To me, simulation is simply the idea of modeling the game's setting as realistically as possible within the practical limits of play. Now obviously the extent of those limits varies significantly from person to person, but my limits are pretty high on this stuff. I want details on things like food and water, exploration, construction (complete with granular pricing and construction times), training, economics, mass combat, politics, and more. If you can do it in real life, I want a way to do it in the game, and not handwave it.

I also care about verisimilitude, which to me simply means consistency in the setting, and the idea that, outside of explicit supernatural exceptions the world operates at a level approximating our world. No implicit assumptions that PCs are inherently more important than other people. No (or minimal) mechanics designed to affect the narrative. You interact with the setting through your PCs and their ability to affect the world.

So far as genre emulation goes, there are several games where I think it can be quite valuable, even necessary for play as intended. Examples of games I would want to play include Star Trek Adventures, Star Wars (Edge), The One Ring, and pretty much any superhero game. In all these cases my personal affection for the source material and my belief that it's far easier to get the kind of play I want by enabling mechanical enforcement of the genre can push past for my desire for hard simulation, and even there I want it where I can get it.