[My Group of Role-Players] Power-19 of a GameChef entry

[Arturo G.]

Hi everyone!

This is the Power-19 for my GameChef entry of this year. Although I'm working in the draft, I would like to know if people find the idea funny and interesting.


* What is your game about?
A group of RPG gamers playing in a disfuntional social context, and how do they survive to obtain some satisfaction from it.

* What do characters do?
They are gamers, trying to get fun and satisfaction from their exciting RPG game. They will lead their characters through their imagined world trying to create a story. However, to enjoy the game they should follow their very different agendas, specially those not directly related to the game content. As egos and agendas collide, they may be spoiling all the fun of others in the way.

* What do the players do?
They try to get the best enjoyment for their gamer-characters, fulfilling their agendas, while trying to keep the fun for other gamer-characters. It they let the situation become to tense, the group may suffer.
They will explore the funny disfunctional social situations that may arise. Reflection on previous RPG actual-play experiences will build-up in the situation.

* How Does your setting reinforce what your game is about?
The setting directly represents a disfunctional RPG group: Some gamers with different social and game agendas playing together without a safety net.

* How does character creation reinforce what your game is about?
The character creation revolves around choosing (or get by random-assignment, or whatever) different agendas, objectives, or means to get fun.

* What types of behaviors/styles of play does your game reward (and punish if necessary)
In the short-term, the game-mechanics will reward players for being selfish and follow their personal agendas, no matter the social-troubles they introduce or increase.
However, in the long-term, they have a common purpose, and trying to keep the social situation stable will become important. If the situation breaks, the fun will be spoiled for everyone. But the only ways to break tension is subtly hurting the other characters.

* How are the responsibilities of narration and credibility divided in your game?
All the players have narration rights for their gamer-characters actions, and there will not be new elements introduced in this imaginary-space, except those coming from the play dynamics itself and the mechanically controlled ones.
However, the gamer-characters will have very different credibility on their in-game. There will be a GM-character with a lot of GM fiat power.

* What does your game to do command the player's attention, engagement and participation? What does the game do to make them care?
The exploration of a disfunctional social situation that becomes explicit from the first is full of conflict. The story that will be developed by the gamer-characters may still be interesting and enjoyable. Trying to keep the
balance to make it work will be challenging. The game will include mechanics to help players to use reflection on their previous gamer experiences to get the best (and the worst) from the situation.
If they make through the situation, perhaps their gamer characters will manage to participate in an enough enjoyable experience.

* What are the resolution mechanics of your game like?
The in-game characters will be using task-resolution with a lot of GM fiat; making it functional is part of the game. The gamer-characters will be adding-up excitement by their contribution to the in-game events, setting the active agenda for that scene. When a scene arrives to a climax, they try to resolve using their agendas.
The success or failure of what they try will add-up to their satisfaction/frustration scores, but also to other gamers with related or opposite agendas.
When the tension grows too much, the players should use bomb-mechanics to control it, or let the situation break.

* How do the resolution mechanics reinforce what your game is about?
Personal agendas produce resolution advantages on the first level. Satisfaction and frustration produced in the in-gamer experience will be accounted and the mechanics will let the players fire tension-explosion mechanics if they arrive at certain levels.

* Do characters in your game advance? If so, how?
The low-level in-game characters will advance in the most classic way of speaking. It will be possible to play different sessions of the same group of gamers and even try to create a classical campaign.
The gamer-characters will get satisfaction/frustration scores that will be adding-up tension. But they will reset at the start of each session (a small quantity of satisfaction/frustration will be carried-on from the result of the previous session). The gamers will evolve, changing their agendas, as the social situation may change.

* What sort of product or effect do you want your game to produce in for the players?
Reflection on disfunctional situations around a game experience.

* What areas of your game receive extra attention and color? Why?
Fetishes, misconceptions, and other preconceptions on RPG popular culture. Even if I only get a little approximation, I expect the game to be a framework to be expanded by personal experience and group sub-culture to include their own traditions. Mocking about them will be the excuse to introduce them and explore how they work.

* What part of your game are you most excited about or interested in? Why?
Making a satiric and fun experience based on exposing up and front, in a fun an easy to understand way, my own disfunctional social experiences around RPG games.

* Where does your game take the players that other games can't, don't, or won't?
Come and watch those little poor RPG gamers trying to create fun with their egos working against them. You have probably experienced it from inside. Now, show the hidden agendas and see the social troubles working from outside.

* What are your publishing goals for the game?
Originally, submitting it to game chef. I did. Now I want to work-up something like an ash-can from it.

* Who is your target audience?
RPG gamers with (or without) a hint on what a disfunctional playing situation may be.

[Arturo G.]

Someone pointed out to me that the expression "Group of Role-Players" may have bad (even insulting) connotations.

For the kind of game I'm working on, it may be even appropriate. But not being a native English speaker the nature of those possible connotations complete elude me.

May someone give me some explanation or examples? Are that bad connotations a local thing, or something widespread on the English-Speakers community?

Any help?