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<blockquote data-quote="Merkuri" data-source="post: 5044517" data-attributes="member: 41321">The metaphor doesn't have to be perfect.&nbsp; The term &quot;sandbox&quot; outside of gaming refers to a place where you can do anything.&nbsp; It's often used to describe a place where people test things out or play around for fun.&nbsp; This idea of &quot;go play in the sandbox, do whatever you want&quot; is more important than the metaphor of an enclosed space with sand where children play, IMO.&nbsp; I think it's possible to have an infinite sandbox, or a sandbox whose boundaries are those of the campaign world itself.&nbsp; It can be as limited as a village or as wide as a galaxy.In fact, I would go as far as to say that a &quot;true&quot; or &quot;perfect&quot; sandbox should have no such boundaries besides what is feasible in the campaign world.&nbsp; The DM may start the characters off in a valley with high mountain walls, but if the PCs get adventurous enough to find their way above, around, or through those mountains then the sandbox should expand outside it.&nbsp; In the extremely unlikely event that the PCs find their way to launch themselves completely off of the planet and head into space, a &quot;perfect&quot; sandbox would allow them to do this and include space in the &quot;box&quot;.(Note, when I use the term &quot;true&quot; or &quot;perfect&quot; to describe a sandbox I'm referring to a campaign taken to the most extreme level of &quot;sandbox&quot;.&nbsp; I'm not trying to indicate that this is a &quot;perfect&quot; campaign or the &quot;true&quot; way to play, it's just one end of a spectrum.)</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Merkuri, post: 5044517, member: 41321"] The metaphor doesn't have to be perfect. The term "sandbox" outside of gaming refers to a place where you can do anything. It's often used to describe a place where people test things out or play around for fun. This idea of "go play in the sandbox, do whatever you want" is more important than the metaphor of an enclosed space with sand where children play, IMO. I think it's possible to have an infinite sandbox, or a sandbox whose boundaries are those of the campaign world itself. It can be as limited as a village or as wide as a galaxy. In fact, I would go as far as to say that a "true" or "perfect" sandbox should have no such boundaries besides what is feasible in the campaign world. The DM may start the characters off in a valley with high mountain walls, but if the PCs get adventurous enough to find their way above, around, or through those mountains then the sandbox should expand outside it. In the extremely unlikely event that the PCs find their way to launch themselves completely off of the planet and head into space, a "perfect" sandbox would allow them to do this and include space in the "box". (Note, when I use the term "true" or "perfect" to describe a sandbox I'm referring to a campaign taken to the most extreme level of "sandbox". I'm not trying to indicate that this is a "perfect" campaign or the "true" way to play, it's just one end of a spectrum.) [/QUOTE]

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