#RPGChat Archive, 5 April 2012: Choosing the Right Game
#RPGChat Archive, 5 April 2012: Choosing the Right Game
Apr 05
The topic for the 5 April 2012 chat was how to know if the game you are playing is the right one?
Wondering what RPGchat is? Allow us to explain. Interested in participating? Join us next week on twitter. Just look for the #rpgchat hashtag, and share your thoughts when you’re ready!
Tweets of Note:
@d20Blonde
Tonight we’re discussing the rules you love and why you love them. Essentially: What’s the right game for you?
what is the most important thing in playing a game?
@Alpharalpha
I would think that having fun maybe the most important thing in a game, regardless of rules or system.
@Warden_Op
@Alpharalpha Hear hear! The tricky part is building a game that’s fun with strangers or friends. Players make 1/2 the fun.
@Arashinomoui
The right game – something that allows me to model physical/social/intellectual challenges in a simple, but interesting fashion.
@ImYourDM
To me, the best ruleset is the rules you know best, so that you can just play the game and not have to stop and look something up.
@TheUniverseGM
I think the person who has just one “right game” is a rare beast.
@TheUniverseGM
@d20Blonde Rules are really important…but a lot less important (to me) than setting or story. Except at extremes
@d20Blonde
More than anything, I’m a big fan of rules that work with the setting. When they fit together perfectly? MAGIC.
TheUniverseGM brought up the mix of “fluff and rules” and sparked some good comments:
@TheUniverseGM
So what are the factors we care about? 1. Balance of rules to fluff (preferences vary). 2. Flavor of fluff (preferences vary)
@koboldstyle
@TheUniverseGM kinda frustrated at separating rules and “fluff”. Good rules create fluff, good fluff inspires rules
@pdunwin
@monkeyking @koboldstyle @TheUniverseGM Spirit of the Century taught me that the fluff/crunch connection can be soft & flexible.
@koboldstyle
@TheUniverseGM Kinda love it when rules and fluff inherently feedback into something greater than the sum of their parts
@SpringaldJack
@koboldstyle @theuniversegm “fluff” is an unfortunate term but think there’s a meaningful space between mechanics and color
@D4sign
Rules should make sense in-universe as often as possible so that they’re not just arbitrary balancers
Some important things to remember in choosing a game:
@cameronmcnary
I think a good starting point might want to be: “What kind of stories do you want to tell?”
@FoxBSoS
I LOVE when the mechanics actually inspire story ideas, character ideas
@cameronmcnary
@jasonseas Remember, when you’re talking about art, “what I enjoy” does not necessarily equal “good”.
@GeekyLyndsay
HEY #RPGchat! I think flavour & rules balance when you find that you run up against the rules at the very edge of your play, not the middle
@koboldstyle
Interesting to also consider “rules tone”, where some rules are put forth as “making the game”, others just suggestive.
@MageMistress
Words of Wisdom! RT @FoxBSoS: Overall, a good group can take bad rules & a bad setting & make it fun, the reverse is rarely true.
And we close with some examples of games with a good balance of fluff and rules:
@TheUniverseGM
For max flexibility, try #savageworlds, #d20modern, #true20,#GURPs, #RISUS, #mutantsandmasterminds, #ubiquity #rpgchat
@TheUniverseGM
More games with good links between rules and setting:#eclipsephase, #shadowrun, #d6starwars #rpgchat
@FoxBSoS
The rules for #L5R are beautifully entwined w/ the setting & flavor of that game. It’s a great example.
@MageMistress
I love World of Darkness because it is very flexible. I can run extremely different games with one base set of mechanics to learn.
@TheUniverseGM
Good example! RT @cameronmcnary: You know what? Ill go with Feng Shui. It only tells one kind of story, but it does it SO well.#rpgchat
As always a complete archive of the chat is in spreadsheet form, here.
Alpharalpha
