rpanons | Yer wonderful

Yer wonderful

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things i want:

- a few but strongly established and active DRS. right now bakerstreet effectively takes the place of a DR but without any of the continuity. new ones that crop up never seem to last long. there's

sixwordstories,

dear_mun,

the_love_hotel and that's like, it. I'd really love it if something like

8_dressing pre-reboot was on DW.

- more aus. there are tons of self-indulgent AUs i'd love to explore and i love the process of integrating a character into a setting in a new way but retains the qualities that still make the character them. i like both fandom-based AUs (like an Matrix AU game would be amazing) and original idea AUs (generic steampunk setting or something). specifically, i'd really love: steampunk au, western au, roaring 20's au, edo period au, matrix au, and a bajillion video game aus that would be too long to list. video games are neat to base things off of because all the world building is already complete, and there's probably a higher chance of your average DWRPer being more familiar with that than the stuff they probably snoozed through in history class (like me; i like it but like hell if i can actually remember anything important now without googling the shit out of everything).

- on that note PLEASE NO MORE MAGICAL COMMUNICATOR DEVICES. or at least please keep it setting-appropriate. a matrix game? hell yes they should have communicators. western game? no, forever no. it is so frustrating trying to justify my characters using those devices when really wouldn't, especially in a setting that forces it for the sake of homogenizing it and making it appeal to more people. if it doesn't fit in the game setting, don't be afraid to leave it out. i LIKE having to make my character struggle and come up with creative work-arounds to communication issues like that. it's a lot more interesting and makes the interactions they do have all the more meaningful, for me.

+100000 to the magical communicators! I'd actually rather that characters not have standard-issue "communicators" at all. If the game is set in a world where cell phones and computers exist, characters can obtain them and use them to contact each other through more realistic means (exchanging phone numbers, using forums, etc).

I kind of prefer AUs with an original setting, if only because I've seen so few canon-based games that actually do a good job of explaining the setting for the canonblind. You need a really solid understanding of the game info and just a sense of the feel of the worldbuilding to write an AU backstory. I'm fine with something based on a canon world, but with enough changes so that people who are familiar with that canon won't be the only ones who know what's going on.

yeah definitely hear you on the AU settings, which is probably a huge reason why a lot of people can't dig their heals in them because it does take a lot of research if you aren't already intimately knowledgeable with the setting.

history aus are pretty easy to divert to because there's pretty much no limit to the amount of detail you can dig up and refer to

on the other hand, i also really love the idea of having a detailed original setting that isn't so defined that it still leaves wiggle room for players to further expand upon it. some people seem to get really timid about doing that though--i think that's what i really really want, is a setting that is defined enough so i could make a cool au, but open enough that i could bounce around ideas with other plays and get people into world building with me.

Yeah, that's the other reason why I prefer original settings - players can expand on what the mods create, and fill in all the little details. With a canon setting, there's less room for players to add their own ideas.

I know there have to be other people who are into games like this! (Because I've played with several of them and we've had amazing good times.)

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmjPoGk4ARJEdE9xcFgwendvLXAzS1lva2hfMTctckE#gid=21

There are all these DRs but no one plays in 99% of them, and every time a new one gets made and everyone gets excited about it ... no one plays in them. I don't know what people want at this rate.

well, for one thing, drs are up against the great hulking juggernaut of bakerstreet, and they just can't compete against bakerstreet's size, activity, simplicity, and steady

stream of new prompts. a dr that doesn't offer something substantially different from bakerstreet probably isn't going to go anywhere.

another problem is advertising... it's easy to advertise a new meme on bakerstreet, but where do you advertise a dr? advertising it as a game on atp kind of goes against the spontaneity of drs.

but like a game, a dr that doesn't have a core group of starting players who will maintain activity is going to be dismissed as "dead on arrival." even when there's no app to fill out, dwrpers are too self conscious to play in a place that seems empty.

i think one way to go might be to have more "open museboxes" - small games with little or no application process that can experiment more with creative styles and themes.

Since

wayswithwords has been the point of discussion a couple of times recently...

People expect DRs to be of game-level quality in regards to players as well as characters. Which, naturally, defies the point of an open dressing room.

This in turn leads to people bitching and moaning about everything that happens in DRs, if it isn't entirely up to par with what would happen in a high-quality game. The whole point of DRs is having fun, though, which doesn't always tie in with being flawlessly IC. Sometimes, stupid AUs and random scenarios are a lot more entertaining.

... the thing is, most people dislike being relentlessly shit on for simply having fun in a DR. So they take their verses to private museboxes, which leaves the DRs dying yet again.

The only necessary difference between games and DRs is that DRs don't have activity checks or apps (or, like Mallow Hallow, they have simple apps). There's no reason why you can't have high-quality gameplay and characterization and plotting and continuity in a DR. If DRs are just for random scenarios and stupid AUs and playing with canonmates, then there's no point - you can get all of that on memes now. There just isn't much need for the old single-fandom crack DRs.

But there are obviously still people who want the quality and plot continuity of games without the bloated app requirements. Even the most stringent apps don't guarantee "quality" gameplay, and no AC requirement seems to stop people from character squatting and dropping threads. There's just no magical combination of rules that's going to solve those problems.

So why not try going the opposite direction? Simple apps, no activity requirements. There are other ways to monitor quality (like through some kind of feedback system where too many legitimate complaints can result in removal of the characters) and there are other ways to encourage activity (like through mandatory CR memes). That's how we used to run small games back when LJRP started and all you usually needed to submit was a character profile (and info on weapons/powers if applicable to the game).

I never said you can't have quality in DRs. I personally have no issues playing in them; my point was that several people cry about the possibility of someone who is not what they consider a ~great~ RPer daring to tag them. The point isn't that you can't have quality at all, it's that you'll always get a few players joining whose idea of good may vary.

As for apps... Are you literally me. I just had that same discussion over at WG! But seriously, the idea sounds pretty great. I suspect it would get a whole lot of anon hate and trigger a few shitstorms nowadays, but at the very least in theory, it sounds absolutely fantastic.

For a game, that is.

I think the point of DRs is that everyone can play anything at any given time, without having to app, no matter whether somebody else plays the same character. The AUs and stupid scenarios were more of an example into the direction of what people love to shit on. Back in LJ!SWS, I had a lot of great, cross-canon, serious (well, as serious as RP gets) verses with multiple people, some which lasted over several months. I think that is the kind of thing I am missing most about DR-culture at the moment. Alright, now, I have museboxes and PSLs, but it used to be far more carefree, if you know what I mean? It is kind of hard to explain.

Western game?

T E L E G R A P H [STOP]

Yes, please. It would be great to have a place for my Western muse.

I would love to have continuity DRs like back on LJ. I miss the casual fun of it, not having to take everything deathly seriously, being able to just throw stuff out there and being surprised at the good CR that would just happen. Unfortunately, everyone I know would rather musebox.

I WANT SOMEONE TO RESURRECT THE CAPSLOCK DRESSINGROOM

ME TOO SHIT

i had some good memories grabbing a few of my game mates and invading the DR for a day.

A million times yes to the Matrix AU. I've been waiting ever since it was first mentioned but it seems nothing came of it.

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Yer wonderful

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ayrt

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sa damn it

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