Ben writes about whether "gamism" or "narrativism" are better ways to reach the coveted "mainstream audience" as opposed to the lame "gamer audience."
Why does one want to do that again?
Maybe we could try to find a way to make "Advocate" and "Out" magazine appeal to straight people, too, or to make "Ebony" appeal to white people, but why?
I know it's been Ron's big hobby horse for years now, how to create the coveted "game for non-gamers," and he's doing it right now with "Spione" and all that. But what's wrong with making roleplaying games for people who like roleplaying games?
I'm feelin' grumpy.
I have a hard time reading this project, this "making gaming for non-gamers," with the implicit assumption that that would be superior to gaming for mere gamers, as anything but self-hatred among gamers ashamed of their marginal, geeky status, maybe displacing that self-hatred onto the munchkins who play less enlightened kinds of games.
Like I said, I'm feelin' grumpy.
Ed and Joe's blog of games and gaming.
5 comments:
Of course it could be that he simply wants to expand the audience of rpg's. It seems to be something worth trying.
There's nothing about the act of playing a role playing game that requires them to only appeal to people who enjoy fantasy or science fiction. Getting a wider range of people involved might bring some interesting ideas into the mix.
Can't say that I'm likely to buy or play such games, but it'll be interesting to see someone experiment in that direction.
It doesn't necessarily have to be about self-hatred.
I just said I was having a hard time reading it as anything else....and that I was feeling grumpy. :)
Ooh, good point, Ben. Thanks for pointing that out to me. :)
Hey Ed.
As a gamer geek, can I loathe gamer geek culture without loathing either myself or other gamer geeks, like as people? Or must my appalled disgust at the way we gamer geeks act as a society necessarily be self-loathing and geek hate?
Because I think gamer culture is broken and bad. I don't forsee ever designing a game to celebrate it. But I don't think that we're broken and bad.
You have my permission. :)
But it is a subtle thing to loathe a culture without loathing the members of that culture. Kinda like hating the sin and loving the sinner, you know. A tricky act to pull off.
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