The Past, the Present and the Future of Roleplay

Zaliox

Inactive Member
{{Please note: What you're about to see is an opinion/point of view. If you get butthurt, offended, or mad easily, viewer discretion is advised.}}

Uh, just a small rant that will hopefully bring up points that have been brought up recently, and very often.

Just a quick heads-up, if you don't give a s#$! about roleplay, and/or dislike it, this doesn't really concern you. But if this seems mildly interesting to you, go ahead. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

~
A few folks recently have been bringing up the fact that roleplay has become boring, repetitive, crawling with godmodders, and "nothing like the old days". Heck, a few even said they wouldn't roleplay anymore because that's all there is to RP nowadays... it isn't as "fun". And then there’s the last few who hate it.

Unfortunately, from what I have noticed, they seem close-minded and won't open to new ideas... they won't take the time and effort to understand. Maybe because they think it's useless, or a lost cause. But if you won't take the effort to comprehend something, you don't have the right to complain. It's like someone complaining about the prime minister/president, but they didn't even vote. Refusing to think about it is not going to make what you don't like disappear. Breaking it down, and taking the time to understand... now you have the right to complain. Maybe you changed your mind. Maybe you found other things you didn't like. But, you got over that first obstacle.

Besides, as humans, we get bored when the same negative points get brought to attention over and over again. :tongueout:

~
Another thing I'd like to bring to attention is godmodders. No, don't groan or sigh, I know, it's brought up all the time. But I'd like to talk about it.
We all know what godmodding is, eh? No? Maybe? Here's the full definition just in case:
"God Modding" is in essence when someone’s character has the ability to do practically anything without limits or boundaries. An example is when they simply cannot be harmed by any and all means other RP-ers try.

-It can be killing or injuring a character without the player's express permission.
-It can be when they simply can’t be hit and dodge all attacks or anything for this matter aimed at them.
-It can also be using other characters that other people RP with. In other words, if you do not RP as Legolas, then you cannot have Legolas say anything, or do anything, without the player's express permission.

The absolute worst is when they make out another character to be what they’re not, just to make their own character seem superior. They make others seem weak, screaming for help, when they’ve made it quite clear about their advantages and strengths. This is called power-play. It’s a strain of God-Modding, but instead of just being irritating, it’s offensive to boot.

This is a prime example of God Modding:

Player A: Punches Player B
Player B: Dodges attack, grabs Player A and throws him. Player A flies at Player B, who warps behind him and slashes Player A in the back.
Sounds familiar?
Yes, we may of all at one point "godmodded", but no biggie.
Notice the "-ed" at the end? We were smart enough to stop because we figured it was a bit unfair, unentertaining and boring.

Don't be proud you're a godmodder. Or "an inch" away from godmodding. Godmodding is godmodding. Not an inch away, not a centimeter away, not even a millimeter. Do not blur the line between roleplaying and godmodding. They are both quite different things.

Roleplay isn’t “I’M THE BEST”. Roleplay isn’t a one-man-job either. What makes roleplay fun, is your characters interacting with others. Becoming a godmodder leaves almost no room for character interactions, and most importantly, development. Our characters weren’t born knowing everything they knew… they learned over time.

~
Alright, last but not least, just a thought.

You know what the problem could be?
We have took roleplay too seriously.
To the point where we want to battle 24/7.
To the point where other people, new roleplayers, are worried their character are not “cool” enough.
To the point where we are a source of entertainment to others, like a stupid Disney sitcom (sorry).
Roleplay used to be lighthearted.
We made it dark.
We made it complex.
But we liked it. So we continued.
We are so deep in that tunnel, there’s hardly any light.
Heck, it could be even considered a clique.

~
Roleplay isn’t a one-man-job. One person alone can’t change it. Maybe we all have to change or tweak ourselves a bit. Roleplay is going to die out soon, on the forums. We can either continue with where it is, then crash and burn, or turn back and attempt to set things right. It doesn’t matter if things aren’t exactly the way they were before. As long as we attempt to make a difference, I’m certain the enjoyment of roleplay will return, even more fun than it ever was.

~
TL;DR
  • Don’t automatically dislike/hate roleplay for the same reason every time. Actually take the time to think and consider it.
  • Godmodding makes you a douche. Don’t do it.
  • Roleplay has been taken too seriously. Time to backtrack.

~
Thank you for taking the time to read this (if you did) and I apologize if it was pretty long (nobody likes walls of text).
Questions, comments, or concerns? Feel free to drop them down below!
 
Last edited:
I see somone has taken my place as the "The Giant Wall of Text Maker That Tries to Pacify Everyone" position... Thou shall not replaceth me though!

RP History 101
Anyways, Roleplaying wasn't supposed to be a forum-wide event where everyone used the Shoutbox for RP. In fact, the very first RPing in the forum used to be a thread called "Forum Game: Endless War". 'What does a thread have to do with this anyway?' One might be thinking. It's simple, the thread stated above was the very first Roleplaying Thread(I think). The rules were specified on the very first page. The OP(Rai) had placed various rules on what and what not to do. Now, this is where I(the guy who finds loopholes in rules) steps in to the thread. It all started when I started RPing, when a former member(Midnight) created an observation room where all players are invincible once they enter in it. This when Mr. Blackout created the InvinciBunk. The InvinciBunk was an invincible structure created by me to have Beers and Hookers parties. Anyways, fast forward a couple of RP months later, a member(forgot his name) tried to destroy the InvinciBunk and subsequently failed, since this member was frustrated that he couldn't go by his own rules, he created his own thread, and this is when the start of the replicas of the thread were made in which members tweaked the rules slightly to give them the upper advantage. Eventually, due to the surge of members creating threads, they carried this out to the Shoutbox and let their threads rot in the depths of the OTP Lounge.
 
Last edited:
Great thread, Zaliox. Hopefully this can educate some users who are relatively new to the roleplaying scene, such as myself.

I would like to know your opinion on "phasing" though , I essentially see it as the same a dodging. And people do it A LOT. I personally hate this technique, this is arguably the most complex feature in roleplay at the moment. Battling is near impossible with a character that has this technique.
Edit: Welp, @Renegade has mostly proven me wrong on this, but feel free to voice your own opinion.
Edit #2: @Renegade has corrected herself (or am I misunderstood?), so my point continues to stand, I guess.

Whilst I am on the topic of battling, I could not agree more with this quote.

Don't be proud you're a godmodder. Or "an inch" away from godmodding. Godmodding is godmodding. Not an inch away, not a centimeter away, not even a millimeter. Do not blur the line between roleplaying and godmodding. They are both quite different things.
THERE ARE COUNTLESS CHARACTERS ON THE FORUMS WITH "ONLY ONE WEAKNESS"!
When I say this, I don't mean a single RP character, I mean MANY. Some people may get butthurt over this comment, if so, leave your complaint in the complaint box. (which i don't read)
"Bat minteh!!1!! mah rp cherektterr has a 1 weekness1!!1! dats nawt ged-medding!1!1!! Dx"
Trust me, IT IS. Having a single weakness is a stupid excuse for escaping the dread god-mod category. If god-mossing was a party, you'd practically be knocking on the door, yet no one would be answering. Now, I await for some experienced RPer to prove me wrong.
EDIT: I should've added this in my original post, when I say this, I DO NOT refer to members who have one weakness that everyone knows. I mean members that have one hidden weakness, and don't take damage from anything else.

Overall, I agree with everything Zaliox said, roleplay is WAY too complex, I remember when I used to be part of the now-dead Spore community, roleplay was fun and simple looking back on it, even though I didn't have the slightest interest in roleplay back then.
 
Last edited:
To list off some that shouldn't really be "phasing" but rather, dodging:
-HF (High Frequency) entities, weapons, etc. Yes, HF means it's hard to hit/damage, but not impossible. This is a vibration based thing, not tangible/intangible, because if it can CUT things then it can touch them.
-Solid, non-direct technology/magic; this is anyone who doesn't have phasing as a magic (spells or natural abilities such as the case of the soul) or technology (Light, or in a specific case, PhantomTech)

Anything that fills into this would not be able to phase with protection from god-modding. That's logical, but, like everything, phasing is still countered. Like light is weakly affected by gravity, a strong enough pull would bend it, but that same pull would have an effect on everything. Even if it's "magical." \
Dodging, on the other hand, is pure physical movement. A bullet is typically faster than a brain process. Anticipation may help, but even anticipation should be less so done than phasing. That's a solidly wrong way to excuse god-modding.
Unless I am misunderstood, this is my point EXACTLY. The ability to viabrate your body at a frequency high enough to be temporarily invulnerable is somewhat excusable, since it is a "natural ability", which is somewhat close to magic, but using technology is silly. I really don't see how it is different to dodging. I will be open to criticism, but this can also be related back to viabration. If it's a natural ability, it's irritating, yet possible, but using technology to do that is silly, any character could have one of those and become NEARLY invulnerable. It is possible to counter phasing, but why even do it in the first place, if that is the case? For example, I will provide this somewhat realistic character duel.

User One: /me phases through rocket shell using PhantomTech
User Two: /me sucks User One into the cold void of space, using gravity.
User One and User Two simultaneously: God-modding scum! >:U

See? Both sides can cry foul. User One phased through an attack using a foreign and non-natural ability. User Two hit User One with an unavoidable attack. And plus, roleplay would be much better without all this complex trash.
 
I feel you bro. My RP character always is ineffective. Literally, when I shoot, it can't break a single can and Kaneki survives a 2 inch bullet to the head for some reason. While somebody else shoots a nerf gun and it destroys a universe. That is a godmod there. Agreed.
 
Back
Top