Experiences What entices you to respond to an interest check?

[A Sparkling Zombie]

Obviously, the ideas/genres/fandoms presented, the expected posting frequency, and the desired response size are generally important factors, but are there others that dial your excitement up from a 7 to a 10? Thinking back to some examples, was it the way the idea was presented? A detailed lore or an openness to players putting their own creative spins on the setting? The accompanying images?

We're talking both groups and 1x1.

To give an example, I love when the person shows humor. I enjoy heavy topics at times, but it's still nice to imbue humor in the game/story at times and balance out the IC stuff with lighthearted jests OOC.

 

[BestHelicopter]

someone who seems laid back. like who doesn't think it's their way or the highway. isn't going to jump on every tiny mistake, that type of thing.

Someone who says they want to/can play side characters and NPC. to me it seems so obvious that they're required but they seem to be a point of contention. I don't understand how can people can do long term roleplays without side characters. So to have someone who says it up front is nice.

someone who likes ooc chat. it's not a deal breaker, and i'm more than happy to focus exclusively on the roleplay but I like ooc chat. it's nice to know the human and not just the writing machine!

Someone who wants to collaborate. Who listens to ideas and comes up with their own. nothing worse than someone's who basically got the story written out already or just 'yep' to everything you say.

Seeing someone from my country is nice. I won't rp with someone just because of that (or ignore someone who isn't) but it's nice because 1. it's relatively rare and 2. it's also nice to be a similar time zone as you're less likely to be waiting for responses etc.

 

[Syntra]

When the person seems excited about the idea and friendly. Oh, and when they look like they know what they want! Can't stand working with lukewarm-ness. Oh, and when the coding isn't annoying to read on mobile. Tbh, the less coding the better, for me.

 

[Idea]

Truth be told, I evaluate RPs mostly on a process of elimination than one of how interested I am in them, albeit a level of interest is required for me to ever take a look (if nothing else, interest in the genre). Once I find an RP with an idea that interests me, it's just a matter of nothing about it specifically turning me off from it. That being said, I am picky enough that that's actually pretty rare. My personal circumstances are one of the major factors here, however there's plenty of other things, mainly not fitting with my RP style, or the GM not seeming to have their priorities straight (huge unnecessary info dumps in the interest check are a big turn-off), among other things. Just today I checked out an interest check from someone I've been thinking I'd like to RP with, however that roleplay wanted a type of approach to its genre that is not my cup of tea and in my opinion doesn't even really belong in that genre. It should be noted as I've expressed before that while being this picky does indeed cut off a ton of roleplays for me, it's not only helped me manage my time with roleplays it's also helped ensure those roleplays I do participate in are more enjoyable.

Now, all of this said, there are indeed things which really do make me excited for an interest check, and they can get me to give a bit more leeway. Firstly, one of the most common ones is an interest check that gets my gears turning. Having an outlet for my creativity and sharing what I come up with others is one of the main reasons I RP, and thus if an RP gets my imagination working, if just from reading the interest check I am already excitedly coming up with potential plot ideas or character concepts, that's one big plus for that roleplay in my eyes.

The second thing is scarcity. Simply put, there's something I'm craving and I likely have craved for a long time, but there's really too few opportunities to do it. Dice roleplays, some fandoms, or RPs whose GMs (or potential partner) seem exceptionally keen on a writing style that fits my own preferences all fall under this category. When there's low supply, more concessions can be made to take advantage of the opportunity, especially if it's the kind of thing where for one reason or another it won't work if I make it myself. Anime-related stuff, especially the type that plays with tropes, is one of my favorites among this type.

A third thing would be really neat coding, I suppose. I know it's kind of shallow, but it does help having that kind of eye candy to make staring at the text a more enjoyable experience. I have no dislike for reading of course, but if I have to read a lot of text or look at something for a long time for any reason (for instance if I'm pondering whether or not something is worth my time) it certainly helps that it is at least nice to look at, and they might be the type who is more appreciative of me using code as well (not that it matters that much to me either way, as I use code because I myself like it).

Mainly on 1x1 RPs but also on group to a lesser extent, is the sense that me and the poster really share interests, and other values. For instance, even if the poster isn't specifically asking for any anime-related plots or fandoms, if they end up using weeb language or anime gifs or the like, I could be reasonably confident they like anime as well. If they are really into anime that's some common ground for things we can talk about, and possibly types of stories and aesthetics we both enjoy. I prefer to work with people on a friendlier level than a distant partnership, so if it really sounds like we can get along that's reason to get excited about potentially working with someone.




Those are the kinds of things that can get me excited, but there are also other things that I like to see. These are less excitement, and more borderline "do the opposite of this and I'm out".

-----> I like it when it's clear the partner of GM has a concrete idea of what they want and how they want things to be. If they doing things, making rules and other decisions half-heartedly

-----> I like not being an afterthought and the GM or partner being willing to work with the players/myself. It's only natural that the GM's main interest in the RP is their plot or world, but this doesn't mean it's ok to treat players as secondary. Me and my characters being treated as disposable tokens replaceable by essentially anyone is one of the things I tend to despise most, and I also can't trust a GM who arbitrarily makes unwritten rules to restrict aspects of character creation just because they don't like some aspect of a character. A partner in a 1x1 who's open to planning or a GM that's visibly willing to work with the players and incorporate their stories and characters rather than just insert them, that is something I really appreciate.


I have a feeling there are more things I could say and I'm going to enter the shower and just randomly remember what they are, but for now, this is it. Hopefully this helps or at least satisfies your curiosity, to the extent it can

Happy roleplaying!

 

[Inno]

The person seems overall friendly and is actually looking for a partner to write a story with.

Someone who doesn't mention ghosting or anything to it right off the bat. I get it, ghosting sucks but if that needs to be mentioned constantly I am not interested.

Reasonable posting expectations as in NOT posts everyday or several times in a day.

Compromise. The I don't play side characters or I only play female main characters is really off putting.

No fancy coding that can't be looked at on mobile.

Keeping roleplays and PM discussions on site instead of taking everything to discord.

Person seems to enjoy details and descriptions, character thoughts, and writing more than a paragraph like I do.

Someone who doesn't think sharing the occasional writing sample is elitist.

 

[Onmyoji]

For me compatibility in themes/ideas, schedules/post frequency and writing style are like 90% of success. Since I'm into some not too common fandoms, if I see those fandoms mentioned I'll be on lookout already. But of course, having only those fandoms won't be enough. ALL these things must align at once for me to get excited about the thread and even consider contacting the person about it.

For anything extra, I'd say overall tone matters. If it's friendly and lighthearted, and the structure of search thread is clear and you can immediately understand what the person wants from the rp. It's hard to explain, more on a 'personal vibes' level.
Also a couple bonus points if the person mentions similar time zone or at least periods of activity that would somewhat match mine. It's not really important, I've had amazing partners from the opposite side of the world, but it's nice to have some online time compatibility to discuss things real-time, even if it's just a little.

 

[GojiBean]

For muhself, and this is going to sound extremely elitist, if the first sentence of the premise of the RP doesn't instantly spark an idea for a character, either a visual of what they look like or an idea of a backstory, then I immediately move to the next interest check.

I know it might sound odd to base my interest on such a brief window of opportunity. However, I'm a firm believer that the best RP's are the ones where the first sentence of the premise is all one needs to determine whether or not it's for them.

It's exceedingly rare that I'll give an Interest Check more than the first sentence to inspire me. If I clicked on the IC in the first place, the name of the RP already sparked curiosity. So now I'm beyond that and looking for inspiration once I open the IC proper. If it doesn't happen immediately, I'm out.

Again, that probably sounds elitist. But it's how my aging brain operates.

Cheers!

 

[Inno]

For muhself, and this is going to sound extremely elitist, if the first sentence of the premise of the RP doesn't instantly spark an idea for a character, either a visual of what they look like or an idea of a backstory, then I immediately move to the next interest check.

I know it might sound odd to base my interest on such a brief window of opportunity. However, I'm a firm believer that the best RP's are the ones where the first sentence of the premise is all one needs to determine whether or not it's for them.

It's exceedingly rare that I'll give an Interest Check more than the first sentence to inspire me. If I clicked on the IC in the first place, the name of the RP already sparked curiosity. So now I'm beyond that and looking for inspiration once I open the IC proper. If it doesn't happen immediately, I'm out.

Again, that probably sounds elitist. But it's how my aging brain operates.

Cheers!

Is this for 1x1s or groups? Just curious. Does it work out for you?

 

[Murdergurl]

Aside from the genre of it (as you already mentioned), the presentation of an idea is what gets me to really become interested or not. Extra fancy BBcode will turn me off almost immediately. Tabs are fine, and other minor stuff. But when you have those boxes in boxes with moving animations, etc. I feel like you are making up for substance with flashy distractions. Your idea should sell itself, not your fancy BBcode. Another thing I like, is when the character roles are not shoehorned into some specific role they have to take on. Like, I don't want to HAVE to be one of a bunch of Knights summoned to save the realm, for example. I'd rather be free to make my own character dynamic in the worldbuild presented. Like, what if I would rather be a Goblin bandit?

The other thing that really helps is a solid sell on the worldbuilding. If the req comes with a decent amount of setting background so I can actually formulate a character and tie them into the setting, you are much more likely to get my participation. If I have to be asking all kinds of BASIC questions about your setting just to get my own character started, I feel like the whole idea is very half-cocked and the person running the show didn't give it much thought before throwing it out for everyone else to participate in.

Oh, and have a fucking CS template ready to go (or at least state the basics of what you want in a CS if you don't care about the format). They are pretty standard. And basically, a necessity nowadays in order to get started. It's a stupid thing to leave out for people that want to get a jump on things. You're only hurting yourself and your RP by causing delay in character creation by not bothering to add one in with your request. I see some people state that they don't want to throw in too much work before they generate a certain amount of interest in the RP. But that to me is indicative that they aren't going into the RP with the dedication that it will take to run it.

 

[Natasha4E]

I respond to partner who has characters that match mine, and who have some ideas so I know they won't let me do all the planning. They can tell me what they want from me, but their ideas should leave me room to come up with ideas as well. If people have the entire story planned out, and/or they tell me exactly who to play, I'm not interested. I have had a lot of partners who wanted me to do all the worldbuilding, so they could create a character that fits in, and I am not especially interested in that, either. Basically I want us to do it together. That's the fun of it for me. (I only do 1X1) In the past I've had some really good partners whom I had great chemistry with.
I like partners who seem laid back and who don't make romance the focus of a role play because that bores me.
I won't role play with people who will count my words. Of course I want my partner to contribute to the story, and of course I will do this as well. But I won't force myself to write a certain amount of paragraphs, or whatever. What we write should fit the story and it should be fun, and still doable with our daily lives.
Also I prefer role playing with people who are around my own age. I just don't have much interests in common with people 20 years younger than me.
And I want my partner to do fade to black.
Oh yeah and they should be willing to play both males and females, and also background characters. I played males to someone's female for too long, and when I have to play all the background characters it feels like I am the DM, which is not what I want.

 

[Pneuma]

I enjoy when I can see a touch of personality come through in the writeup. Not too much, granted - I'm not looking for a Netlfix comedy special. Just something that will give me some idea of the person behind the screen. From there I can decide if they seem like the kind of person I can get along with on at least a surface level.

Beyond that, I like:

- Brevity
- Simple documentation
- Examples, initiative shown

 

[Waterbelon]

Clear expectations.

Genre, theme, character sheet formats, and lore are all good, but I think it's more important for GMs who have very clear expectations on the more "meta" aspects of roleplay.

Pacing and post length is one good expectation - how often are players expected to post? Do posts have a set order, is it random, what happens when it's someone's turn and they're gone? What happens when a player is inactive or can't be reached?

Force / power level is also a good thing, esp. in fantasy/sci fi settings. What kind of conflict can players expect from an rp? Is it going to be fistfights in an alley, or continent-shattering pvp? Is the conflict going to all be spy-esque stealth and snooping around, or is it more of medieval intrigue and politicking, or is it people shooting lasers at each other?

Plot responsibility is also very important. Is the GM responsible for writing for all the events that happen to the characters? Are players also expected to push the plot forward? Can players contribute to the worldbuilding or development of NPCs, or does the GM handle all of it?

A lot of roleplay interest checks I've seen go on for paragraphs about lore and rules, but don't usually provide basic details like the above. Those are very very important to me, when browsing interest checks - and I think these should be among the first things a check should mention.

 

[bastion]

Honestly, for me it's more about seeing if I'm actually interested when I start reading the post than about getting excited. I tend to only click on interest checks with titles that actually give a clear indication on what's inside (I don't understand the random quote titles that only seen to be aesthetic.)

For the post's content, I'm mostly looking to see if we'll be compatible in all regards. This means writing styles, interests, and as people. If all of that checks out, then I'll usually message the person. Although if I'm not specifically approaching then with my own plot or such, it is important that they have one that in their post that is actually a plot and not just a list of pairings.

 

[candyrain]

I guess just anyone who has the same interests as me and who seems chill! but then again i’d be too shy to send a message lol

 

[simulationanomaly]

If the guy posting is flexible with word limits, understanding of people having lives, and doesn't expect romance to be a mandatory inclusion, they automatically have my attention. Even if it turns out that their plots/fandoms don't match what I'm looking for, I will read much more carefully than I would otherwise. I work long hours, sometimes I can't muster a novella's worth of response at the end of the night.