thread: 2009-12-08 : Your 3 Insights
On 2009-12-15, Marshall Burns wrote:
THE RUSTBELT
1. Subject Matter
Hatemail-bait version: Gamma World, Fallout, and their ilk are not post-apocalyptic games.
Non-hatemail bait version: Post-apocalyptic games should not be adventure games with Roadwarrior makeup. The post-apocalyptic genre is about the unpleasant things folks have to do and deal with in order to get by in a fucked up post-apocalyptic world... as a metaphor for the unpleasant things folks have to do and deal with in order to get by in the (also fucked up) real world.
2. Roleplaying Practice
Roleplayers (and other creators of fiction) need to be better at making their characters emotionally & psychologically realistic. They also need to keep in mind that emotional & psychological makeup when making decisions on behalf of said characters.
Bold claim: When this is in place, and the roleplayers are disciplined to maintain it, all actions & decisions are compelling. Even ?I say nothing.?
3. Human Nature
This is kinda tough; human nature is all over the design, but there?s a lot of ?might?s. Such as:
Your beliefs MIGHT be mere delusion. It also MIGHT not matter.
Your addictions MIGHT not be a bad thing, or they MIGHT burn down your life.
Your regrets MIGHT be the gateway to strength, or they MIGHT make you weak and helpless.
The game itself has no opinion on these; it lets the players decide, through play.
The only solid, assertive statement I can think of in it is this:
One way or the other, win or lose, you?re gonna suffer. But you can make your suffering count for something, if you?ve got the guts and care enough to do it. As for whether or not it was a good decision, well, that?s complicated.
I also want to put in a vote of confidence for this exercise and method of thinking. Because, those three insights there? Those are exactly what I was thinking about when I designed the game. #1 is the Situation mechanics (by which I mean the Business As Usual and Spike techniques) and the how-to-GM section. #2 is the Psyche system. #3 (the solid statement) is the Push/Price mechanic. The fact that those techniques are present, focused on the things they are, and interlocked with each other is what makes the game cook.
@Simon C: all of those things, especially #3, are why I like On Mighty Thews. Probably because I agree with them. Except I wouldn?t say that Conan remains unchanged. He changes, but he does so on his own terms, which is important. He doesn?t let the big city break him; he makes it make him stronger.
@Graham: I?m inclined to think that a statement about the genre is unavoidable. A vampire game about seduction is at least saying something like ?the vampire genre is an interesting way to explore issues of seduction.?
Also, I seem to recall you saying something on SG regarding A Taste for Murder, something along the lines of, ?A lot of people think that the English murder mystery is something really polite, but it?s actually quite dark.? I don?t mean to be an ass, but, there it is.
