time out.

[rivendellrose]

What is it about online RPGs that seem to inherently spell "inter-player conflict?"


All I've ever wanted out of any of the games I've been in is to play my character, interact with the other characters, and have a good time doing it. I want to watch the interactions develop, see where they all go. The relationships between characters are delightful to watch, and I enjoy the ways different plots and storylines grow and come together to form something bigger, something cohesive and fascinating.

And yet I've only been in one game where things didn't happen to get in the way of that. Out of the four games I've played in, Memento Mori (the one I've been in the longest) has no problems just playing along at it's slow speed. We've lost some people, we've gained new people, but it never causes any real trouble. It just keeps plugging along, and we all have fun with it.

The others? One I abandoned after several months, out of loyalty to some friends and out of frustration with the way the game was being run. I felt it wasn't fair - people should be allowed to make their own choices about their characters. People should be flexible.

The second I love dearly - I passionately adore my character, and I'm totally flabbergasted by the talent and creativity of the mod and other players. I pray that it won't have any of these problems, because it would pain me horribly to see it suffer.

And yet it seems to be suffering - suffering from the problems in the third game, which, in the few weeks since I joined it, has shown more growing pains than I can imagine one game having in twice that time. It's a *good* game. It's got a fascinating storyline, amazing players, and truly unique interpretations of the characters. It's also the most highly populated game I've ever seen - maybe that's part of the problem. I don't know. I'm new to it, although I've been watching for quite a while now.

I really love these games. I just want them to go well, and for everyone to have fun. I know that if anybody had a problem in MM, I would do anything I could to make it better, and I know that the mods in the other games almost certainly feel the same way - they've all been nothing but helpful to me, including the one I abandoned. I just wonder sometimes, from what I see in all these games - is that enough? Can we as the mods actually do anything to solve these problems, or is this sort of game eventually destined to destruction because of conflicting personalities, conflicting desires as to plot and character interpretation, or other factors I don't yet understand?

I want very much to believe they aren't. I want to, but on days like this I really do start to wonder.

Comments

[dalhessian.livejournal.com]

Honestly, I think it's because in some, the mods don't step in enough. They just seem content to let the game trundle along as it will without saying yes or no on certian points or making a decision with all the players versus a few. Mods who are there and accessable as well as decision makers when needed make an rpg in my view. *shrugs* That's just me though.

Re:

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

That's very true. It's important for the mods to be willing to step in when they're needed.

On the other hand, there's a balance to be maintained. We've both been in a particular RP... which I shall not name... wherein my impression was that the mods did a bit too much of controlling what happened to people's characters. Of course that was just my impression, and I'll admit that it was predominantly a second-hand one, so I might be off-base.

*Shrugs.* As in so many things, I guess it's about finding a happy medium point between keeping order and fairness and totally running everything without player approval or consideration.

[onefishjyuufish.livejournal.com]

After just a week and a half of co-modding my own RP, I can see how it's difficult to make things run smoothly (especially with a lot of people very suddenly thrown together, most of whom don't know each other).

I've been trying to make sure that everyone knows the Mods are available and should be contacted whenever they might need something, but I think people are hesitant to do so at times, even when there's a problem that can affect the entire game. :(

And of course, the more people you get together, the more potential for disagreements, infighting and bitching. *sighs* Not much you can do about it but do your best to keep the peace.

Re:

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

Yup, that sounds about like the conclusion I'm coming to, also... Thank god none of this is happening on the RP I co-mod, so far. And that one is a pretty small and low-key group, honestly - they'd have to be or they'd go mad from the slow pace it's kept for the last year. ;)

I'm sure your players will figure it all out sooner or later - seems like there's always an initial period where people are scared of each other and unsure how to interact. I know I get like that, at least - it's nerve-wracking trying to talk to people you don't know, especially online where you have no visual or tone clues as to what they're thinking.