What's Wrong with Virtual Tabletop Play?

[helium3]

I believe there's a way to incorporate computational tehcniques as tools into a game but still retain the feel of tabletop.

 

[WayneLigon]

And of course, it's not very good if you don't own a computer, or hate using them. There is one guy I know that despises them; he only has one in his house because of his wife and daughter, and only uses one at work because they make him. Two of the four players in my Sunday group don't even own computers, nor do they have easy access to one.

 

[Merkuri]

Hussar - It would be cool to see an unedited transcript from one of your online games.

I'm in Hussar's game, and he posts each of the transcripts online so we can look over them if we missed a game or if we wanted to remember a certain point. Here's one of the more recent ones. Warning, there may be WLD spoilers inside:

Session 69

 

[Trench]

All good points. And I can totally understand the preference for real-live tabletop games. However, if one doesn't have the option of doing so...

For example, we have a large group- around twelve or so. We have one person from Australia. One from Mexico. One from Canada, who works crazy hours. We have a night shift person, and his wife who has to get up at four in the morning and be in bed by eight or so. Some of us have access to computers at work and during the day. Others only have a short window once they get home from work.

These schedules make a chat room pretty impossible. So PbP is the only recourse. We've streamlined a lot of the rules. Initiative got thrown out from the get go. It's first post/first go, with the people who post late having attacks after the monster goes. Many feats are basically wasted feats, which places the focus on other things. The vast majority of our players are hardly combat optimized, given that we write out everything- the focus in on story first.

Also, the dreaded "splitting up of the group and having odd man sit out for a session" doesn't occur any more. The DM can easily split the attention between both groups with no difficulty. No one is left behind. In fact, we regularly split our forces for scouting, while other groups talk to someone, or prepare for battle, etc. It works well.

I'll admit, it also helps that we've known each other up on ten years now. We can read each other really well, and often can guess what one person is going for just by reading it.

Again, given the choice, sure table top it.

 

[Mandeville]

You know, I would be interested in trying an online virtual tabletop game. I run a game every week for my friends and I think that playing in an online game with a different group of people would be a neat change of pace. I would never want a virtual tabletop to replace my game with my friends, but I see no reason it can't be an alternative.

I see it like playing D&D with my friends on Thursday nights and playing ...Neverwinter Nights on the weekend or some other day.

 

[Goblyn]

This thread has made me curious about trying some gaming through VoIP; really the only thing I need is a headset and I might have one somewhere around here.

I am one who can't even talk fast enough top convey my ideas, let alone type; but a headseyt with webRPG ... hmm.

 

[Arkhandus]

I suppose I'm Hussar's "Me Too."

*insert copy of what Hussar said*

I don't understand the rabid opposition to roleplaying online, particularly through chat-based programs. We who play and DM this way still enjoy it, and the others in our groups do. It's certainly a lot better than not playing D&D at all. When I moved to Arizona, I had no more gaming group, so I ended up finding online tabletops to meet and play with folks despite the....unfriendly....environment in Arizona.

It was terribly boring with no gaming before that..... And I've only been able to find two face-to-face gaming groups to join while here, just briefly; I'm pretty much restricted to online gaming now, and my experiences with PBEM were rather pathetic by comparison. Play by Post I haven't tried exactly, but I'm not opposed to it.

Sure I'd prefer gaming face-to-face, but only by a small margin; I don't find OpenRPG to be inferior to it, just a bit different.

 

[Philotomy Jurament]

I don't understand the rabid opposition to roleplaying online, particularly through chat-based programs. We who play and DM this way still enjoy it, and the others in our groups do. It's certainly a lot better than not playing D&D at all.

I wouldn't call myself rabidly opposed, just completely uninterested. It's not that I'm technically challenged or living in the stone age, either (I write software for a living). I have no problem with someone else playing online -- if you enjoy it, that's great. I won't be doing it, though, for the following reasons:

- I prefer face-to-face social interaction: sitting around the table, sharing snacks, etc. That's true of role-playing in particular, but it's also true as a general rule. I'd rather go have coffee with someone rather than chat on the phone, for example.

- If I can't role-play around a table (for lack of players, for example), I'd rather do something else where I can maximize my enjoyment, instead of "settling for" a lower-quality (IMO) role-playing experience. Role-playing is only one of my options for recreation, not something I absolutely must find a way to do. In reality though, I don't find lack of players to be a problem, so it's not an issue.

- I spend all day sitting at a computer. The last thing I want is more computer time -- especially hours of it.

- If I *am* going to play a game on the computer, I'd rather play something that was designed for a computer and that takes advantage of everything a computer has to offer.

I think this is just one of those things that boils down to preference, so arguing over the particulars, making cases for online play being "just as good (or even better)," etc. is kind of pointless, IMO.

 

[awayfarer]

I really do not understand the assertion that face to face gaming moves along faster than online gaming.

I started gaming about two years ago with two different groups, almost simultaneously. The set up was.

1: Group one ran MERP through a combination of tabletop and conference calling. There were 4 of us in Mass. and 3 in California. Occasionally us east-coasters would run side adventures by ourselves.

2: The other game was actually one Hussar was running. Five players in a Scarred Lands game over Openrpg.

I had side by side comparison from the start, and my experience is that the way the game runs is largely dependant on the group. The tabletop group was significantly slower for a number of reasons, although not all have a bearing on tabletop vs online. The tabletop group moved to Openrpg about 6 months ago and games run at least as smoothly as they did face to face and certainly not any less.

I like online gaming for several reasons.
1: I don't need to leave the house.
2: Easier to stay in character
3: If I miss something someone said, I can just scroll back and look at it. Everythings written down and theres less time spent covering old ground.
4: I don't need a big bag of tiny, easy-to-lose plastic bits and do not need to go out and buy minis. (Although I realize not everyone uses minis to begin with)

Lastly, who says the social interaction aspect isn't there? You're still gaming and chatting. Theres also nothing to stop you from having a beer.

 

[crazy_cat]

I wouldn't call myself rabidly opposed, just completely uninterested. It's not that I'm technically challenged or living in the stone age, either (I write software for a living). I have no problem with someone else playing online -- if you enjoy it, that's great. I won't be doing it, though, for the following reasons:
*snip*
- If I *am* going to play a game on the computer, I'd rather play something that was designed for a computer and that takes advantage of everything a computer has to offer.

I think this is just one of those things that boils down to preference, so arguing over the particulars, making cases for online play being "just as good (or even better)," etc. is kind of pointless, IMO.

Agreed 100% - apart from the bit about being a software writer.