thread: 2005-10-20 : The Fruitful Void
On 2005-10-24, Michael S. Miller wrote:
I think we're saying the same thing, V. I was using "you" very specifically. Let me expand.
Shadowrun (and many other games produced on the "supplement treadmill" model) are built on the axiom: "if we (i.e., the game designer/publisher/freelancer) make it up, you (i.e., the players and GM) will care about it." Illusionist GMs do the same thing: "If I (i.e. the GM) make it up, you (i.e., the players) will care about it." The room that those games and those GMs leave for player creativity is the unimportant space that they're not have not, and have no intention of using.
The way I see it, my "if you (i.e. the player) make it up, you (i.e., the player) will care about it." is the same thing as your "player creativity, of a particular emotional sort." Does that make sense?
When I said "Without that caring and commitment, the arrows drift outward, the whirlwind doesn't form, and the energy dissipates." I was referring to players I've met who refuse to engage. Who make stuff up and then refuse to care about it. No game design can force a player's emotional creativity. Even when the game demands it, the player can always refuse to meet the demand.
Clearer?
