GNS: saying it my way

[adamdray]

I'm not saying anything new here. I'm just trying to say some things in my own words for my own benefit. If anyone else goes, 'ah, cool! I never understood it that way before," then cool. But that probably won't happen.

Creative Agenda
Creative Agenda is a Forge game design term that stands for the "social and aesthetic parameters"[1] that people

Comments

[ex_greymaide85]

Ever since xiombarg explained it too me, I have found GNS very useful. Whenever I GM a game(unless running a premade module), I always tell my players that I am a decidedly narrativist GM, and very non-gamist. Then I link them to the forge post on the same.

I still occasionally get a rules munchkin who thinks silly things like rules loopholes should get in the way of the story. Those people end up unhappy, so explaining GNS is a great way to prevent that.

Oh yeah, and the narrative element is why I like LARP so much too!

[selentic]

A great concise explanation of GNS!

I've always had trouble unpacking my goals for play the way your model players above have, however.

Reflecting on this just now, i'd have to say that for the game i'm currently GMing my play goal is to empower the PCs so that by following their individual stories the group constructs a narrative of the setting, building a dynamic world.

I'm not sure where that fits into the CA scheme, exactly. Following from this article, I would have to say it is mostly Simulation. Huh... Not what i would have expected. Do you have to front-load human issues to make it Narrative, or can they emerge in reflection?

Thanks for making me think, though! ;)

[adamdray]

I don't think it's all that important to figure out what CA your group is using, if you're already having all the fun you want. You know? If it ain't fix, don't mix your metaphors.

You don't have to front-load your human issues to get Narrativism, no no, but they have to come up in play. If by "emerge in reflection," you mean after the game is over, you construct meaning out of it, that might not be Narrativism as Ron would define it. You need to be hitting those buttons during play or it's not "Story Now" (it's Story After). But you might realize more about the button-pushing after the game is over, sure.

Do realize that these are my personal ideas about GNS and CA, not "The Forge's" (whatever that means) or Ron's or anyone else's. As shown in my last big theory post, my own ideas are diverging from the mainstream, too.