Role-playing Game

From Modpedia

From Modpedia, the Bionicle encyclopedia Redirected from Mask of Destiny

This article is about games played by playing the role of a character.

A role-playing game (RPG, often roleplaying game) is a type of game in which the participants assume the roles of characters and collaboratively create stories. Participants determine the actions of their characters based on their characterization, and the actions succeed or fail according to a formal system of rules and guidelines. Within the rules, they may improvise freely; their choices shape the direction and outcome of the games.

A role-playing game rarely has winners or losers. This makes role-playing games fundamentally different from board games, card games, sports and most other types of games. Like novels or films, roleplaying games appeal because they engage the imagination. Role-playing games are typically more collaborative and social than competitive. A typical role-playing game unites its participants into a single team, known as a "party", that plays as a group.

Concept

At their core, roleplaying games are a form of interactive and collaborative storytelling. Simple forms of roleplaying exist in traditional children's games such as "cops and robbers", "cowboys and Indians" and "playing house". Roleplaying games add a level of sophistication to this basic idea; unlike a child who just wants to feel like a cowboy for a few minutes, a group of adults in roleplaying game will generate specific characters and an ongoing plot. A consistent system of rules and realistic setting in games aids suspension of disbelief. The level of realism in games ranges from just enough internal consistency to set up a believable story or credible challenge to full-blown simulations of real-world processes.

Role-playing games are rarely played to "win". The goal for many RPGs is to reproduce the enjoyment of a film or a novel. Like serials or novel sequences, these episodic games are often played in weekly sessions over a period of months or even years, although some gamers prefer playing one session games. Some find other reasons to play. According to to Andrew Rilstone, the purpose of role-playing games is to create stories[1]; whereas according Tracy Hickman, roleplaying is an exploration of ethical choice.[2]

Interactivity is the crucial difference between roleplaying games and traditional fiction. Whereas a viewer of a television show is a passive observer, a player at a roleplaying game makes choices that propel the action. Such role-playing games extend an older tradition of storytelling games where a small party of friends collaborates on a unique adventure.

References

1. Ultimate War
2. Lost (RPG)
3. Miraka Nui