We Can Laugh About It Now

Last night I GM'd for our gaming group. We were doin' Fantasy Hero.

At one point, the players realized that the game had deviated from a predetermined path (in this case, a published "adventure"). I explained that as part of preperation for the game, I used this published item. It had maps, NPCs, and events to mine.

I began to worry about wether or not the players could or would trust me. Woudl they think that if I was not concerned about deviation from the printed material, everything MIGHT END IN CHAOS?!?!

I made it a point to break play, explain my desire to move away from pre-programmed gaming, and tried to distill, in 30 words or less, the sort of player-co-directed play I was interested in. (Aside: I've tried to engage people about these issues directly, without the context, but I think they've blown this off as so much academic crap not worth discussion. "Let's just play already!")

When I referred to an event in the published material, one of the players made a comment about the "big blinking sign" that said "PLOT HOOK." We all laughed about this. And it was funny: an parody of the very common thing we've all been told is a good tool for RPGs.

The only thing that bothered me about this was that I again had to stop and explain that it wasn't what it seemed, that there was no "secret plot" to figure out or discover, and that the rails they saw were not rails, in fact.

We did have a good time - it was a good game! Probably the most fun I've had running a game in a while.

But I'm still creeped out about the perception that I still employ tactics that suggest that the players should do THIS or THAT or they is no game to be had.