Hey Folks,

The final piece of my 9-article series was just posted on RPGnet, though it won't be announced on the main page until Thursday. It details my conclusion from 18 weeks of exploring the connections between roleplaying and modern aesthetic theory, including a bunch of things relevant to our work here on the Forge and elsewhere.

You can find all the articles, including the newest one, here:
http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/collists/fineart.html

I'd love to discuss any of my theses, either here in this thread or in the column's mini-forum on RPGnet.

I should be starting a brand new, longer-running column in the next few weeks, called "Push." It's going to detail the trials and triumphs of trying to put all this new progressive game theory into practice, both in the development and play or games and also in the way that I put my company together. I hope many of you will show up for that one too.

Thanks to everyone who's helped me with this column, either by writing articles for me to respond to (in the case of Chris Lehrich, John Kim, Ron, and others), or by offering great comments, or by just reading and offering morale support against the trolls of RPGnet.

Just read a few of these, and skimmed through some others. Good stuff there, especially on the whole "girls don't play" thing. My ex-gf (who is now my best friend, but let's not go there) is currently engaged in gender studies... so I expect to be talking about that one for a while.

So thanks.

And may I add that 'Push' is a wonderful term? ;)

Jonathan Walton wrote: The final piece of my 9-article series was just posted on RPGnet, though it won't be announced on the main page until Thursday. It details my conclusion from 18 weeks of exploring the connections between roleplaying and modern aesthetic theory, including a bunch of things relevant to our work here on the Forge and elsewhere.

Thanks for the nice words, guys. Actually, I got tons of flack for "Girls Don't Roleplay," from people both less and more radical than myself. There's still so much work to be done to make roleplaying more accessible for non-traditional audiences (women, minorities, folks over 30, "cool" kids, the beautiful people, etc.) and I feel like I could write a much better article on the same subject now, but that's water under the bridge...

I've already got half of Push #1 written, and it's going to be hot! The first article is called "Pimp My Game, Kick it Up a Notch, Emeril-Style, Bam!" Keep a look out for it.

Later.
Jonathan

Jonathan Walton wrote: I've already got half of Push #1 written, and it's going to be hot! The first article is called "Pimp My Game, Kick it Up a Notch, Emeril-Style, Bam!" Keep a look out for it.

heh, interesting. I got a completely different vibe from that title.

I took it to be a play on MTV show Pimp My Ride starring X to the Z Xzibit...where junky old cars are turned into flashy pimp mobiles.

So I'm thinking the column will be how to take boring old run of the mill game mechanics and mount a set of chrome twennies, a 15" retractable DVD monitor, sound system to wake the dead, and a built in fish tank in the back.

Actually, you're both right.

In the first column, I'm planning to take my half-finished game Argonauts, do some ("m to the zz!") Ralph Mazza-inspired sacred cow killing, pimp it out with a more progressive set of mechanics, but try to find a way of delivering it that will allow the game to remain really accessible, so as not to piss off the peeps. Hands on, practical application of theory and design, on a project that I'm actually trying to develop, in other words.

Ideally, it'll both prepare me to finish the game and show people how they can take something as traditional as d20 (well, M&M really, which is a slight bit more progressive than D&D), kill it, take its stuff, and pimp it all the way out. Hopefully, over the course of the column, I can include a paragraph each week on how the pimped-out Argonauts is progressing, including playtest write ups and other morsels.

That's the plan, at least. I'm definitely looking forward to it.

Jonathan Walton wrote: Actually, you're both right.

In the first column, I'm planning to take my half-finished game Argonauts, do some ("m to the zz!") Ralph Mazza-inspired sacred cow killing, pimp it out with a more progressive set of mechanics, but try to find a way of delivering it that will allow the game to remain really accessible, so as not to piss off the peeps. Hands on, practical application of theory and design, on a project that I'm actually trying to develop, in other words.

That's the plan, at least. I'm definitely looking forward to it.