[RPG Theory] RPGs Are Writing, Not Reading

[stevekenson]

It occurs to me that, in many regards, the lauded goal of “creating stories” in RPG play often leads to the mistaken belief that playing a good RPG should be like reading a good story of the same genre, whether fantasy, four-color comic book, cosmic horror, or whatnot.

However, in my experience, the “story” part of an RPG actually comes after the game is over, when you and your friends are recounting the cool story of what happened to each other or to someone else (”Hey remember that time we saved the world from the Overshadow?”). Playing the game is actually more akin to writing a story, including all the missteps, edits, typos, mistakes, unexpected turns, and revisions that go along with that process. It’s when GMs and players expect the game to play like reading a novel or watching a show—where the author (GM) has done all the work in advance—that things become railroady, frustrating, and disappointing.

Comments

[jcstarbrand.livejournal.com]

Yep, and to say it once again, no prep work survives first contact with the players anyway. It's getting back on the preplanned track that feels like-- no, wait-- IS railroading. But every so often they do what you are somewhat ready for, and sometimes that makes you look good. :)

Generally if things work at all, they work out better than I planned, but of course nothing like the story I envisioned. So I never get my heart set on anything as a GM and it's all good.