Playing out a session/episode in an hour?

[DevP]

I'd like very much to sell my upcoming regular game as something that can be played once (or twice) a week in hourly sessions; I hope this will encourage some normally over-commited college students to play. My goal is to play a game on the Nar/Sim border (goals of telling stories, with Sim drift due to my inexperience and the experience of the players' with traditional structure perhaps); ideally, cover about as much action as the average hourlong TV drama.

I once was able to get an episode of plot in a little over an hour with zero prep and two players, through strong scene framing; it's one of my better GMing experience, I think, but it was hard. Are there suggestions in how to make for a focused and short yet fulfilling game session? Techniques I'd consider useful to begin with:
* agressive scene framing
* more preparation of various "hooks" for the game
* limit on the number of players (yet, I think playing in groups of 5 should still be possible)

[Ron Edwards]

Hi Dev,

I think those three criteria are good, but I'm very concerned with the issue of what a "hook" is. Do you mean the extent to which player-characters are already embedded in conflict? Or the extent to which players themselves are emotionally swept up in participating?

My point is that the first is not, and never can be, a means to the second. It may be part of the second, but that's all.

Best,
Ron

[DevP]

I think those three criteria are good, but I'm very concerned with the issue of what a "hook" is. Do you mean the extent to which player-characters are already embedded in conflict? Or the extent to which players themselves are emotionally swept up in participating?

Interesting, I suppose I meant neither. <g> What I thought was: a few loosely pre-generated places to see / people to meet / events that may happen that I could have arise if it was appropriate to their play. Related to the first and second points, it would be good to begin the action in media res relative to the "A-plot", but that would mean I have to define that A-plot first. Of course, this presumes a largely Sm game of a nature conducive to A/B/C plots.

For you "hooks" - players embedded or emotionally invested into the conflicts - I feel that this is a constant need in the session, but do you feel that it is specifically helpful when attempting to play shorter sessions.

[Ron Edwards]

Hi Dev,

I think the most important feature of running a quick session is for the people involved to be invested in the shared Creative Agenda - together. Typically, they arrive at that investment through two things simultaneously.

1. The Situation of play. Note, not "the characters" or "the setting," but the Situation. If they aren't grabbed by that, then they are forced into waiting mode. The most interesting character in the world, for instance, is only a holding pattern for Situation.

2. The key mechanic, whether it's Reward or Resolution or both. I think it's fair to say that character creation is the first step of realizing the reward system through the process of resolution. In fact, these are the primary features of System; all else (e.g. scene framing, IIEE, narration, etc) are all components or contexts for them. So you have to present, right up front, what they will be utilizing in play which you (as the knowledgeable person) think is the key.

Consider 1 and 2 simultaneously - and you will discover that you have traveled from Exploration to Techniques right along the arrow of Creative Agenda, as described in my big model.

Best,
Ron