see the whole of me igniting.

[schwann]

Sort of BAWWW ahead?

There's nothing more discouraging than going through a long list of roleplays that are currently open on LJ. I just... Don't understand. How can one roleplay work, and another with an amazing, original plot idea just... Not work? It's difficult to tell what will make one roleplay successful, while another fails before it

Comments

[criminalize]

The app is one of the important things for me-- apps are often what turn me off games. I find writing the backstory really redundant (unless the character's an AU) 'cause that's what Wiki's for. D: And sometimes in apps they ask for maybe a paragraph of journal entry, which is hard to do if the character doesn't talk much (eg. Mieu).

I love RPs that have a good number of active people-- and by that I don't mean huge RPs like Poly, 'cause those're really daunting and replying to comments can take hours. Even an RP with only 20 people can be nice if everyone's active and everyone's friendly and having fun.

Uh... obviously, it's good if the muns seem friendly? Sometimes I get encouraged by an active OOC board where everyone's chatting and having cracky fun (as opposed to an OOC board just littered with people saying "HIATUS"). I like crack a lot, so people capslocking silliness at each other encourages me for some reason.

OOH, and there has to be someone from my fandom. Has to. It's nice if there's people from fandoms I know, but I

[schwann]

Oh, I agree with you so much about the backstory thing. If there's a wiki article, why make people type it all out? Just to prove we know it, even if it won't weigh that heavily in a completely new world? A short summary along with a link is fine... Just. Argh. As for journal entries, I get you. That's why I really like when some games will give you... Prompts? Or questions? And you have your character answer them. It's a good test of their voice.

Huge roleplays are seriously daunting. So many prying eyes and characters to deal with. Medium sized roleplays are so much easier to have your character get out there and know people. No one has to really feel left out.

An OOC board, or a chat on AIM are always great. At hypnagogy, we have chats all the time. The best part? The mods are usually in the chat with us and just talking away as if they aren't the mods at all. That's why I love the game so much. As a player base, we all seem to like each other and get along well, and it shows in the game

[criminalize]

Not to mention the fact that some people have HUGE backstories. I mean, if I had to type out every single thing that ever happened to post-TotA! Luke fon Fabre... I would die. Summaries sound like a good idea. And I've never seen the prompts/questions thing before, that but does sound a lot better! And more realistic, too, since most RPing happens in character interaction rather than in journal posts.

I love it when mods don't act too high and mighty for their own game. I think that if people're mods, it's their job to welcome people to the RP and... well, they don't have to, but it's nice if they chat a little to the person, make them feel welcome? I used to be in an RP where everyone was really welcoming and friendly when someone joined and made a "hi guys!" post-- it was a lot better than some of the other RPs where people are new and say hi, and no one welcomes them. At all

[gonsai]

I find myself worrying about used_future. This is our first attempt at building our own game. While yes, the concept is mostly original (post-armageddon isn't new. Desert Punk is), it's still a difficult sell given players actually have to WORK to fit themselves into the setting.

Have faith though. I know I say it a lot but clairbourn is STILL alive and kicking and THRIVING even. So you at least had one great idea.