Characters: simply cyphers for Players?

[TomTitTot]

I have a quick but important question for you old hands here at DitV.

I am concerned that Dogs is designed to evoke and elicit judgements from players via characters however: are the characters merely window-dressing for the player's judgements, or do the characters make the decisions and the players only direct those characters.

This concerns me, because I believe many RPG player use their characters to shield themselves from making hard decisions by allowing their characters to adhere to a black and white or easily thrown away moral framework, and I wouldn't like that to happen in my game. Not that it's a problem for my players that I forsee, but one of my players very much uses her characters as a mask for her own beliefs and moral judgements in other games, and the other is very interested in making realistic characters that have their own points of view.

Anyway, late and must sleep now. Thanks, guys.

Sorry if this isn't clear. Tired.

[Moreno R.]

Hi!

In my opinion, the character can't make any REAL decision. It's always the player that make decision, about what the character will do in the fiction.

The really important thing is that the player CARE. He has to care about what happen to the people the character meet. Without this, if he don't care, the game can't work right.

If the player care, he can show this playing his character in a very immersive way,or not. It doesn't matter. He will have to do hard decisions anyway.

Another important thing is that the player should not be forced to play "only with the knowledge of his character". This is explained very well in the game manual, and it's not a minor matter.  (Using theory jargon, there should be some Author Stance)

[lumpley]

When I play, often my character does things that I find appalling, according to her own strict internal integrity. Sometimes she does things I surprise myself by approving of.

Violating the character's internal integrity is poison to the game. But, at the same time, and as importantly, the game is set up on purpose to confront your character with the consequences of her choices. If she changes her mind about something, based on experience, that'll be according to, not in violation of, her internal integrity.

Hm...

If you're worried about your players not getting honestly into the game, hell, maybe it's not the game for them. That stuff in chapter 1 about how you need to get your players' buy-in, I really mean that.

-Vincent

[TomTitTot]

Well, one of my players has very much bought in. The other, I think, may have a bit of trouble.

I suppose we'll see. Game is tonight, and I'm excited to finally be running it.