Commitment To a Concept

This is kind of about something that has been on my mind lately, and it will become clear once we finish this up. Its also about gaming for the right reasons, I guess.

To really enjoy "role-playing" games I think you have to be committed to the role you're playing. I'm playing Mass Effect 2 and its a fun game, but the aspect I truly enjoy is playing my Shepard and playing him as a Renegade for the reasons I've decided make it reasonable for him to be a Renegade. Does this mean I'm having more fun than someone who just shoots everything and makes whatever dialogue choice he feels like making at the time? Hell if I know.

To continue, Fred plays a Dwarf named Derf (which is actually a blind dwenoren with sensory spines on his chin and face, but he refuses to accept my retcon), and I think its pretty blatantly obvious that he has no affection or attachment to the character. The enjoyment he gets when Derf does something successfully is probably far less than what I get from Spineplate when he pulls off a daily that drops an enemy down to its bloodied value in one hit.

Don't play a fighter or cleric or whatever because you think that the group needs it. Play the fighter/cleric/whatever because you need to. If you play it to screw with the DM/GM or other players, you're playing for the wrong Dogdamn reasons.

Note about the future: From now on I will say GM whenever it would be appropriate to say something like Dungeon Master, Game Master, Storyteller, Sheriff, or whatever the title is for the system. GM is easier and just as recognizable as DM.

I used to GM for the wrong reasons. I had a story to tell and I wanted to watch the players be part of it, but only if they did what I wanted. Nowadays I have a story to tell, but I want to see how the players interact with it and how they alter it and the world around them. I'm not sure there is a right reason to GM, but I think that is a better one.

If you GM because you have to (been there) or because you feel obligated to, you've made a poor decision. You need to care about the world or environment you're building or its going to be trash or you're never going to make the time to work on it so that it can be more than trash.

It all boils down to the following: if you're going to be a part of something that is so dependant on everyone being into it, make sure you're playing or GMing for the right reasons.

Music: Very Poorly Concealed Secret Track (Ping Pong Cover) - MC Frontalot