Is RP a dying art form?

[sidusar]

On Leanon RP is reduced to a very select few, but at least tolerated by most. We do our thing and most of us even try to fit in with the PvP content and are still being ridiculed for it, while others do only pay lip service to the Gods of RP to heap abuse on the other faction.

Sounds just like it always has been on Aris then.

Except that recently those very select few are such a select few that there really aren't enough left to keep any 'RP community' going anymore. There's still plenty of the semi-RPing, but there's always been about a dozen players and one or two guilds that practiced the 'high' RP in public, pretty much providing the framework that the casual and semi RPers could hook up to.

Now that they're gone, it's much harder for new RPers to find an RP-heavy environment to play in, or for casual RPers to find someone to hook up to when they feel like doing some RPing today. The semi-RPing is pretty much all that remains, and frankly it feels a little directionless without it's banner carriers. If there is still high-RP on Arispotle, it's behind closed doors, only within the circle of a guild or group of friends, but not done in public, and thus of not much use to anyone not already inside the circle.

And why, if Games such as Ryzom are as some say exclusively built for PvP purposes, do Devs even bother to develop a deep and rich lore, if nobody does give a fart about it in the end.

Obviously, most people do still care about the lore and backstory of games. Most people just don't want to take part in, they merely want the story happening around them, want to be merely an onlooker like with a book or a movie. Fiach puts it's nicely comparing RPers to NPC's: they're just flavour. Like the trees everywhere, you can't do anything do with them, and thus they're mainly irrelevant, but they make the game look pretty.

That's how most non- to semi- RPers play; in other areas of the game they may make their own content, but the lore is something they want presented to them ready-made. That doesn't mean they don't care about it, however. It's quite possible to enjoy watching something without participating in it (in fact most our entertainment is based on that ).

[moyaku]

Although I'm only what some would call a "semi-RPer", I never noticed any lack of respect toward deep RPers on our server ; I even think they are more than welcome to play along with most non-RPers players.

As a matter of fact our guild leader (Drakfot)and a member of Evo (Ulani) are RPers and I think most of our guildie try to RP in public chat when addressing them (even in guild chat actually). Well Maybe we don't do it the best way, being a bunch of funny peeps, but hey ! we can't all be artists

So we would have to ask them (and the other RPers) what their feelings are about this question, but to me they never seemed to suffer any form of discrimination because of their IG behaviours.

On the Other hand I don't think PVP became the only thing animating our server... I often see people trekking, digging and crafting ; how would I know I don't PVP anyway... I still feel comfy on Aris though and I'm not the only one in that case.

[iceaxe68]

I talked about this with a friend in House Etchmarc. She says that many of the serious RPers are waiting for events and more information on the future of the game before putting too much effort into it again. There are still a handful who play regularly, and RP regularly, but they are mostly quiet and mind their own business, rather than making as much noise as some of the PvP crowd do, so they are less noticable. They are still there, though.

I would also like to point out that RP and PvP are not mutually exclusive. RPers participate in OP battles, and the conflicts are an important part of the RP on Aris.

Hopefully we'll hear in this thread from some of the real RPers. (Not just semi-RP types like me.)

[vonzuben]

I have to agree with the majority here who said RP is not in any way shunned. If there are people who do that I have never noticed it happening.

I consider myself a semi-RPer because on a daily basis I talk about things in relation to the lore. But I admit that I do it in a distorted wacky sort of way. I’m the daughter of Jena after all. I also have fun making up some of my own lore in Ring Scenarios. I’d like to try real RP but just have never ended up in situations permitting it.

I think conflict and evil in lore is important and so don’t see why you would see PvP related play style as something going against RPing. I’d love to see more RP. I’d love to see more PvP. Even more so I’d love to see the two happening together!

To answer some of your questions in a general way… it’s because it’s what the players make of the games. It’s what the majority want. The larger games can partially cater to different play styles by having for example, a server specifically for RP. Real RPers who come to Ryzom definitely lack that option. They would have trouble finding many people to RP with, but they would not find they are unwelcome on Aris.

[katriell]

Heavy-roleplayer checking in. Note, however, that I'm an elitist jerk and my opinions do not represent those of other roleplayers. In some ways, my views diverge severely from most roleplayers'.

- Like others who have posted here, I've rarely if ever seen disrespect toward roleplayers on Arispotle.

- Frankly I can't stand semi-RP, because I perceive roleplaying in a left-brained way: Either you do or you don't, and anything in between is annoying because its parameters aren't clearly defined. But, I have nothing against semi-RPers. A lot of them are good people. My feeling about semi-RP is largely my fault, anyway; I'm not willing to suck it up and attempt to apply a mental filter to discern what I should take as IC and what is probably OOC. Because even if I do that, false assumptions would be made on both sides and sooner or later the troublesome results would sneak up and slap me in the face.

- As has been stated before time and time again, RP and PvP are not mutually exclusive. To illustrate, I have never known of an anti-PvP roleplayer or RP group on Arispotle.

- Even in its current state, Arispotle is better off than Leanon in regard to RP, IMO. I left Leanon partly because the best RP guild it has to offer seems to act as if roleplaying is merely something to do when there's nothing else to do.

[beaut666]

I don't think RP is dead, at all.

You should see the response I got from my "Immersion Project!"

I think certain RULES of RP are dead, like "Thou must speak in Olde' English, despite the setting of the game.."

Roleplayers have some responsibility to recognize when someone is doing a "good job" RP'ing, even if they are not speaking perfectly. I have seen RP'ers be jerks to people because they were not roleplaying "correctly". I've also seen non-rpers be jerks to ppeople because they were attempting to do something with their character.

One girl in another game laughed at me because I was walking. She thought I was an NPC.

It seems to me the most successful RP is one that doesn't place such strict "guidelines" on speech, character development and all that. That can be reserved for the "deeper" roleplayers.

Also, it doesn't help that almost every RP'er is SOOOOOO serious sometimes. My characters have always proudly been every-men, common people living in extraordinary circumstances. My Homin is nothing special, and just often finds himself in the middle of a mess!

Beau

[katriell]

I think certain RULES of RP are dead, like "Thou must speak in Olde' English, despite the setting of the game.."

That was never a rule, only a misconception.

[beaut666]

That was never a rule, only a misconception.

Oh, trust me, it's a rule in many mmo's! lol EQ2, LOTRO, WoW....all of them. lol

Also, I was mainly saying that Roleplayers can look down on players that are not using speech that fits in exactly with the lore.

In real life, there are wierdos that show up and make wierd stuff up all the time.

Watch:

"Kubbie Herj Huuure!"

I JUST said Merry Holidays!

My point is, while I mainly try to stay away from "this life" references, other than that, things can be explained as things that cannot be explained..if that makes sense.

For example, my character in Vanguard was a private eye. At first, he ran a shipping business, but then turned to being a gumshoe when he noticed that he went to so many places that he could help people find lost loved ones. And of ALL places to lose someone, a fantasy setting is one of the most likely.
But, I didn't call him a "gumshoe" because, although there was NO mention of gum in the lore (there could have been gum, or not) it just felt too much like a "this life" reference...so I called him an investigator in game.

I take cues from the NPC's, too. Most if them speak in rather plain tones, and like I said, if you are playing something more noble, play that, but I have seen a ton of roleplayers "looking down" at someone playing a "normal" person because roleplayers sometimes (some of them! lol ) think that characters default to some kind of sane, well-spoken character.

This is a great thread, btw!

Beau

[mirrorgate]

I would have to agree that RP is a dying art. It's not just Ryzom though but all of the MMO's I have tried. In WoW where I would mostly play on RP servers even there with the entire server dedicated to RP it was only really 'accepted' rather than commonly done.

I think one of the main reasons for this is that many people don't even understand what RP actually is. As Beau points out some people actually believe to RP properly you have to use Olde English! I'm encountered this mentality often in my travels and to be honest the only place that might be required for RP is in Age of Camelot or similar themes. Ryzom NPCs speak fairly normally so they provide the benchmark for RP in the world of Ryzom.

As for how PvP influences RP I think a vocal minority might give the impression PvP and RP might be mutually exclusive, however I believe the majority use PvP to enhance any RP they engage in. I think the real enemy of RP immersion is the net lingo common to all MMO's. It's hard to type out things in full and especially in the heat of combat if you don't use a little jargon here and there a party can wipe. There's ways regular Rpers can get around these limitations but only the more dedicated RPer's take the time to keybind custom emotes and macros. Then there's names but that's an issue I don't want to start flames with.

As for RP dying on Arispotle. Well, I don't think that's true. Like on any other MMO I've played in RPers are almost an underground cult but there are many groups on the server that keep RP alive and well. I love seeing Rpers in action around the stables just chatting. It gives me a warm fuzzy to see RPers engaging in a craft that has been a passion of mine for decades now. I think it would be great for the RPers out there to bring their art more into the public eye, using says and emotes freely so others will be drawn into the RP experience. Although I have had some very negative comments from non-RPers they are a minority and I do believe most people on the server are Rp friendly.

All in all the gaming experience must be a fun experience. Some people find RP fun, some people find ganking people who are AFK fun. Both points of view are valid and the rise of one does not mean the death of another. Rp is still alive and will remain so with or without the influence of PvP. Ryzom is no better or worse for RP than any other MMO I have found and although there is less RP than I would like to see it's still possible to find that quality RP time with people.

[fiach]

Just a quick observation.

Im glad to see so many experienced RP-ers post positively here.

To be honest, I personally would be quite disappointed if any players felt dis-enfranchised or unwelcome on Arispotle for any reason and had to go and play on a different server, because I think we have an awesome community here