A Shifting Perspective on RPGs

 If you had asked me ten years ago what roleplaying was, I would have given you a detailed answer, likely delving into how it’s an “infinite” game that can go on forever, bounded only by your imagination. These days, I have a different perspective.

You see, when I first started playing D&D, my intellectual entry point was video games. Video games are designed to be played by (usually) one person for many hours. Certain games like Diablo or roguelikes have procedurally generated content that remixes itself every time you play. Unfortunately for me, whether subconsciously or not, I have been chasing after the false god of the infinitely regenerating game.

I have spent a lot of time on tools that make prep easier by generating a massive amount of “stuff.” I have spilled gallons of ink (both digital and actual) on thinking about expansive worlds with 10,000 years of history, none of which ever generated a single second of gameable content for my players.

My greatest gaming achievement, Dwimmermount, was built on a published product but expanded in the ways players wanted. I spent hardly any time at all on the greater world, instead focusing on the day-to-day happenings of a few cities, and more specifically, a few important individuals in those cities. All in all, I probably had a dozen NPCs the party interacted with. A whole world needed barely a dozen NPCs at any given time.

Even the most well-designed video game, however, eventually must end. Whether it’s after 10 hours or 10,000, there will come a time when the player has either finished the content or at least gotten their fill of it. I personally have over 1,000 hours of Team Fortress 2, and I could still easily sit down and play the game today. There is a strange misconception that D&D games must go on forever. Perhaps that’s part of the game's draw: the expectation that it's somehow infinite. Like a bunch of settlers exploring new lands, we look out and see the vast fields, endless sky, and distant mountains. Our imagination is captured, at least until the reality of hiking through trackless wilderness, getting bitten by bugs, sleeping on uneven ground, surviving unpredictable weather, and wiping your butt with a leaf sets in.

The fantasy never holds up to the reality. So let’s prepare a reality game.

Moving forward, let us always assume the following:

• Our campaign will last for only 20 sessions
• Time is precious
• We will make every effort not to waste time
• Everyone will do their best to have fun