[RP Discussion] FREEDOM!

[Aix]

So let's discuss open RP situations and sandboxes. I would assume most of you don't care much for sandbox RPs since they are very rare on YCM and I've personally found that people can be at a loss as to what to do sometimes, so I try to avoid situations where there may not be much to do or an obvious thing to do.

[Techi☺]

The concern over sandbox RPs is understandable.

 

Given my recent interaction with my GBTK rp where Open-Ended Character creation wasn't drastic, but there were plenty of questions and confusion. For the most part, the players didn't really have any problem and the dialogue containing the questions could really be boiled down to one (maybe two) pages of PM discussion. So, it really wouldn't be fair of me to say that people were lost when presented with an Open-Ended Character creation, but I was told by a friend while I was making it that there was little to no chance of him joining because he prefers RPs where the world and plot shapes his characters in some way. Which I agreed with him, those sorts of characters always have a much more powerful sense of belonging, a relation to the very lands and world around them as their characteristics are derived from it directly. However, after a brief discussion and my worries that GBTK wouldn't even start, I did eventually beg him into joining and with glee he set off to various random fantasy races to design three characters practically over night complete with appearance, name, and their source of combat-related skills. 

 

I know that Sandbox and the freedom I provided with character creation in my RP are not exactly the same thing. But, in terms of freedoms given to the players as far as creativity lies, I'm sure we can compare and contrast results in a reasonable way. Frankly, the only person who directly told me they would have a problem with or difficulty making a character while they had all of the options under the sun also happened to appear to be the person who had the most fun making their character. Ultimately, I wish someone who has experience with Sandbox RPs would start one, or someone in this discussion would direct me to one. I wish to see how the two directly differ, and if my previous comparison holds any merit at all. If it does, then it is possible that I have reason to believe that players on this forum could actually have more fun if they play a mix of some plot-driven RPs and Sandbox RPs. A sort of supplementary experience to add to their RP toolbelts. 

 

To be frank, I have very little experience with Sandbox Rps myself, or at least I am fairly sure I do. If a player who is confident that they can provide a faithful representation of a Sandbox RP on this site is willing to produce such, feel free to start it and link me. Or Pm me. Or message me in any way you deem appropriate. 

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

As I've only been in so far 5 RPs I dunno if I'm the best to judge. However I don't see a problem with sandbox, especially with how easy we can communicate with each other (OOC, PM, Skype, etc.) I will admit there are times I just don't have a particular idea of what to do, but I can usually figure something out. The main issue lies, from what I can tell, is when everyone all at once thinks "Well I'll just make a post and hope someone else responds to me". Which can lead to a bunch of people not doing much and expecting another person to give them something to do, while those other people are thinking the same.

 

Simplest way to solve this is to ask people directly "Hey could you include my character in your post in some way" or something of that nature.

[Kyng]

I would assume most of you don't care much for sandbox RPs since they are very rare on YCM and I've personally found that people can be at a loss as to what to do sometimes, so I try to avoid situations where there may not be much to do or an obvious thing to do.

Challenge accepted.

[BANZAI!!!!]

So let's discuss open RP situations and sandboxes. I would assume most of you don't care much for sandbox RPs since they are very rare on YCM and I've personally found that people can be at a loss as to what to do sometimes, so I try to avoid situations where there may not be much to do or an obvious thing to do.

In general, the problem with running more of a sandbox in a purely text-based form is that it requires the GM to have as much of the setting fleshed out as possible in order for the players to interact with it, which by its very nature requires a lot more work than keeping everything on or near a plotline. Its much simpler in something like a tabletop rpg where most of the fleshing out takes the form of various numbers and stats and can be determined by quick dice rolls as opposed to however long it takes the GM(s) to compile their notes and to what degree of detail they are willing to flesh out the setting for people to interact with and explore.

 

From a player standpoint, the conundrum really just boils down to "What should I do?". In my experience, text (and to a lesser extent tabletop) rpgs need some sort of direction for the cast to go in. There can be multiple possible directions for the cast to go in, and they can be as simple as "clear dungeon A" to some complex struggle or what have you, but the fact is that a lot of players will be entirely at a loss for what to do without some sort of hook to point them in the direction of activity/plot.

 

In short, running an open-world, sandbox-like roleplay is a hell of a lot more difficult on a forum than something more linear and plot-oriented, which is why i think we see so few of them here and other places.