What is "railroading" to you (as a player)?

[Reynard]

I think those that conflate linear and railroad aren’t typically consistent with their meaning.

Or we could just continue the argument no matter what.

 

[Reynard]

I should note that with this group when I did a Session Minus One with them, I gave them a questionnaire about their gaming preferences and experience and one of the questions I gave then was choose what playstyle they wanted - an open world where they make their own stories or a linear adventure path where the GM present scenarios for them to investigate, and the whole group indicated preference for linear adventures with GM developed plots. None of them wanted anything like a sandbox.

That is refreshing. I would have been happy in this campaign if when i pitched the "player driven open world" they would have responded with "no thanks; give us the plot". But alas.

 

[Celebrim]

I think that as long as we can suss out what folks mean when they use a term, even if we personally disagree with that definition, we should just discuss the point, not the terminology.

The problem is that it's quite possible to use a term without having any idea what you mean by the term much less having a conscious definition for it.

A lot of people have loose definitions along the lines of "I know it when I see it" which makes the meaning of the term wholly subjective to them, and thus really not useful to communicate anything except perhaps "I don't like this". My own definition of railroading came out of a series of discussions about the topic where it was clear that people only meant by the term "something I don't like" and were widely applying it to a bunch of things that only shared in common that they didn't like it. They were then arguing with each other only over whether it was right to like this or that thing.

The problem they then have with my attempt to define the term is that they argue that the term is wholly negative in connotation (which I agree) and therefore my definition is wrong because it isn't. But they are neglecting that "what I don't like" is subjective to them and has a sliding scale. What they don't like may fall into a range many other people are OK with. As such, my definition has to account for that subjectivity. I formulated a definition that was based on process and behavior, not based on people's response to it. How much you are on board with the GM limiting player agency varies according to taste and circumstances. It turns out in practice, almost everyone is a little on board with it as a necessary concession to the limits of the imagination and storytelling. I am postulating that people use the term "railroading" to mean "I think you are using too much of these particular processes and behaviors" without being able to necessarily articulate that or even exactly what the processes and behaviors are.

 

[Scott Christian]

Yes, they are using it as a "less good way to play that some people like for some reason" and ignoring folks who find it objectionable. Then, tossing out the classic "too many definitions to mean anything". Its rehtorical device to control the concept.

Incorrect. Here is what I said:

I don't use railroading as a pejorative term. So my definition is:

"Having a sequence of events in a story that have been thought through by the DM. It can still have options. The play can happen in different sequences at times. It can still follow player's interests and/or include their PC's stories. And it can still go off rails at times."

To me, that is a railroad.

Railroading is a style of play, just like sandbox, linear, or follow player agency, which I consider improv. And, just so you know, our table plays best when it is railroad. Too many objectives and we don't do well. Most tables I have played at do best when it is a railroad or linear style of play.

 

[Reynard]

General Update: Since I gave them their forks back to leave the feywild any time they want, they have decided to stay and doo the adventure I prepared anyway.

 

[Micah Sweet]

General Update: Since I gave them their forks back to leave the feywild any time they want, they have decided to stay and doo the adventure I prepared anyway.

That must be annoying. I'm sorry.

 

[PhD20]

In general, how do you define "railroading" or being railroaded as a player ina game?

Me: "I want to go over there."
GM: (either explicitly or implicitly) "You can't."

And a general awareness that every path leads aggressively back to the same story the GM is trying to tell without working player choice and agency into it.

 

[RenleyRenfield]

General Update: Since I gave them their forks back to leave the feywild any time they want, they have decided to stay and doo the adventure I prepared anyway.

SO much THIS^ So many times I hear the player "ung, this is so railroaded!" and then I open up the world, and let them do whatever they want and they just say "can you make a adventure for us to do and set it all up for us?" Ok, let me get the rails back out... one sec lolol

Ok, so not really railroading, but even still iykyk