A "Successful" Role-play

[Sycophant]

for creators, what constitutes as a successful role-play to you? what constitutes as a failure?


many persons i've crossed seem to think that a role-play has "failed" if its overarching plot is not resolved, and by contrast, a role-play has "succeeded" if it reaches the planned dramatic ending that they had in mind, after many pages of adventure.


from a creator standpoint, i have never thought of this idea of "failure". i have always created role-plays where i have guided notes of short-term goals and plot points to address, from beginning to end. it gives me a definite direction in which to guide players so that there is a true sense of progression when the group actually crosses one of these personal milestones. that in itself is a victory, and in reaching even that first accomplishment leaves me with a sense of success, as we were able to reach a point. all points subsequent happen to compound that feeling.


though i've not yet experienced putting out an rp idea that did not get a sufficient number of applicants and begin, i do see dead threads from time to time, barely touched by those other than the "obligatory" sign-ups by the creator's friends or by no one at all. in those cases, a lot of people would call that a failed role-play. i personally view it as an idea that did not generate enough interest for whatever reason, but i would personally call it negligible, as i do not expect so much of my role-plays in the first place to consider that it has "failed". that's how the idea has always come off to me, frankly.


and you?

 

[Do You Know]

An idea that wilted and never went anywhere is a failure, to me. What constitutes a roleplaying flop is if it never goes as far as the creator intended. If it never got off the ground, it failed. If it never finished, in some cases, that is considered a failure.

 

[razorrabbit]

Maybe it's different for me since I just do onexone rps but I only ever considered rps failures if A they aren't fun for me and/or B they finish in a way that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I consider them successful if I have fun with them and can stick to an idea for a while on it. So long as I hit the ideas I'm really into I don't consider it a failure at all. Though I don't think I've ever had any rps that were all that serious, not off the wall goofy either but still not what I'd consider needing to put my serious face on for.


Guess I'm just easy to please in that regard, or have simple tastes, or low standards, or whatever.

 

[Grey]

If I learned nothing, it was a failure. If I learned something, it was, at worst, a setback.

 

[Sycophant]

Guess I'm just easy to please in that regard, or have simple tastes, or low standards, or whatever.

I think going into a role-play with low expectations does save someone from feeling too great a disappointment when the role-play, for whatever reason, ends. The trade-off is that in not expecting much, you can be easily surprised with events by yourself and other participants, which may lead to a view of a working success.


I typically go in with low expectations to rise to the occasion than for me to expect a lot and be disappointed when high standards aren't met.