Epiphany

[Benny]

I was thinking, there is a lot of stigma associated to RPG's, and the public face of it doesn't help. It's a closed room, dark faces, pizzas and fat kids pretending to be hobbits...bare with me.

Name a very successful game on multi formats....GTA - San Andreas for example. You play a character, you go to people, get missions, complete them and earn respect, basically getting better.
Pop down the gym/shops etc train yourself up. Alternatively, you can roam around killing randoms, and enjoying the city around you.

Sounds familiar. (the only thing missing is vehicles)

[smilodon]

Nice analogy. It's true some people think that playing a role play game means you have to believe you are the character themselves. There is nothing to stop someone doing this it's a free world, but that's not the only form of role play. For me it's guiding a consistent charcater around a virtual world and have the behave in a particular way based on a predefined personality, personal history and personal belief system. This is what vast numbers of games allow you to do (Half Life, Half Life2, Far Cry, Call of Duty, Mafia, GTA and so on and so on).

The fundamental difference is that with a RPG it is YOU who decides what the character is like and NOT the game developer. It is you who decides the plot and story line based on where you take the character and what you make the character do and again not the developer. Games players have been crying out for a completly non linear free form game and finally they can have it with a MMORPG. Of course to enjoy the game to the full requires some effort and input from the player. No one is going to write your history or personality as they did with Tommy Vercetti in GTA Vice City or Gordon Freeman in Half Life. NAd of course you can play the game straight without any role play at all. And even without role play games like WOW still work and still offer a great gaming experience. It's just that for me role play in WOW is the icing and cherry on the cake.

(It also helps to be wearing a big pair of rubber Hobbit feet and a pointy hat)