Goonhub
03-11-2023, 07:03 PM
I'm late to join the discussion but wanted to share some thoughts on this topic. It'll probably be long and a little wordy, but I'll do my best to try and organize my thoughts on this.
I want to start out by saying that I agree with a lot of what has already been said. I've had some similar experiences to what SirSwagmeyer and Hollandaise shared, though I haven't experienced something like that recently.
A lot of conversation has been had about how this doesn't happen intentionally, and I do think that's absolutely true. I even slightly disagree with the use of the term "meta-friending," as I feel like it's giving a negative connotation to just...making friends with other players in a multiplayer game. But again, we're talking about a multiplayer game where everyone interacting with each other is the key draw of the roleplay. Having friends is fine, but constantly excluding others just to rp with a specific group of friends isn't.
Something that a few people have touched on that I want to provide a bit of thought on is characters leaving their positions to rp with their friends. I feel like a lot of players forget that their character is at work. They have a job that they're expected to do. While there are some jobs that can get away with that a bit more than others, it absolutely bothers me when I see a department head ignoring the other characters in their department. I personally experienced more than one shift where new players were left aimless while the department head was off rping with the same couple of people they would always interact with.
However, some of my favorite memories on Goon have been one on one interactions that, admittedly, may have come across as cliquey. While I won't get into specifics since it isn't the main point, I'm referring to when one of my characters went stargazing with another after they bonded over shared trauma. The little ways in which their personalities bounced off each other was a really awesome interaction to watch happen, but it also wasn't a situation where other players couldn't really get involved. I think these kinds of things aren't bad, but they shouldn't be the bulk of your interactions on rp.
It goes back to that idea of balance I mentioned. Having personal stories play out isn't bad, but they shouldn't come at the expense of excluding other players if it makes sense to do so. On top of that, I also agree with what a lot of folks have said when it comes to out-of-game RP. It's unrealistic to have every important moment of your character's life play out in a workplace setting. Their job at Nanotrasen is really only a snapshot of their day. Stuff might happen, for sure, but if there's an important conversation that your character wants to have with another, I don't think a round on RP is the right place to do that.
I've been a bit all over the place, so I think I'll wrap up here. I wanted to share my thoughts because cliques are an issue I've seen and even participated in because I felt like it was the only way to really "fit in." That shouldn't be the case, and I like to think that things have changed for the better since this post was made, at least a little. I hope so, at least.
I want to start out by saying that I agree with a lot of what has already been said. I've had some similar experiences to what SirSwagmeyer and Hollandaise shared, though I haven't experienced something like that recently.
A lot of conversation has been had about how this doesn't happen intentionally, and I do think that's absolutely true. I even slightly disagree with the use of the term "meta-friending," as I feel like it's giving a negative connotation to just...making friends with other players in a multiplayer game. But again, we're talking about a multiplayer game where everyone interacting with each other is the key draw of the roleplay. Having friends is fine, but constantly excluding others just to rp with a specific group of friends isn't.
Something that a few people have touched on that I want to provide a bit of thought on is characters leaving their positions to rp with their friends. I feel like a lot of players forget that their character is at work. They have a job that they're expected to do. While there are some jobs that can get away with that a bit more than others, it absolutely bothers me when I see a department head ignoring the other characters in their department. I personally experienced more than one shift where new players were left aimless while the department head was off rping with the same couple of people they would always interact with.
However, some of my favorite memories on Goon have been one on one interactions that, admittedly, may have come across as cliquey. While I won't get into specifics since it isn't the main point, I'm referring to when one of my characters went stargazing with another after they bonded over shared trauma. The little ways in which their personalities bounced off each other was a really awesome interaction to watch happen, but it also wasn't a situation where other players couldn't really get involved. I think these kinds of things aren't bad, but they shouldn't be the bulk of your interactions on rp.
It goes back to that idea of balance I mentioned. Having personal stories play out isn't bad, but they shouldn't come at the expense of excluding other players if it makes sense to do so. On top of that, I also agree with what a lot of folks have said when it comes to out-of-game RP. It's unrealistic to have every important moment of your character's life play out in a workplace setting. Their job at Nanotrasen is really only a snapshot of their day. Stuff might happen, for sure, but if there's an important conversation that your character wants to have with another, I don't think a round on RP is the right place to do that.
I've been a bit all over the place, so I think I'll wrap up here. I wanted to share my thoughts because cliques are an issue I've seen and even participated in because I felt like it was the only way to really "fit in." That shouldn't be the case, and I like to think that things have changed for the better since this post was made, at least a little. I hope so, at least.