The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.
From Gary Gygax
Outside of the mindless sitcoms that the networks thrive on, people able to think generally consider most entertainment is escape in one form or another.
There is no winning or losing, but rather the value is in the experience of imagining yourself as a character in whatever genre you're involved in, whether it's a fantasy game, the Wild West, secret agents or whatever else. You get to sort of vicariously experience those things.
Random chance plays a huge part in everybody's life.
When AI approximates Machine Intelligence, then many online and computer-run RPGs will move towards actual RPG activity. Nonetheless, that will not replace the experience of 'being there,' any more than seeing a theatrical motion picture can replace the stage play.
Gaming in general is a male thing. It isn't that gaming is designed to exclude women. Everybody who's tried to design a game to interest a large female audience has failed. And I think that has to do with the different thinking processes of men and women.
The essence of a role-playing game is that it is a group, cooperative experience.
There's a call to adventure. It's something in the inner psyche of humanity, particularly males.
Role-playing isn't storytelling. If the dungeon master is directing it, it's not a game.
I foresee online gaming changing when there are good audio-visual links connecting the participants, thus approximating play in a face-to-face group.
5 perspectives
2 perspectives
1 perspectives