http://www.d20source.com/2006/04/how-important-is-realism-in-fantasy A must-read Dungeons & Dragons blog for dungeon masters, D&D players and game designers. Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:34:31 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 http://www.d20source.com/2006/04/how-important-is-realism-in-fantasy/comment-page-1#comment-76646 Harv Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:45:58 +0000 http://d20.jonnydigital.com/?p=72#comment-76646 I have a theory on this. It originally applied to SF, but is just as relevant to fantasy. We play fantasy games, immerse ourselves in them to experience/imagine what it is like to live in a world like that, to do those heroic deeds, to wield mystical powers. Only problem is, we're not that good - as humans - at judging what is likely, appropriate, or reasonable for the world to contain. We don't even have that good a grasp on real life, let alone a game world that we inhabit only rarely. What we are good at, and have evolved to be good at, is judging other people - their motivations, reactions, moods and capabilities. We can often even take a pretty good guess at what they think about themselves, how they view their own place in the world. So when something amazing or incredible happens in-game, we don't even try to judge the event. Yes, it needs internal consistency, but what really sells it to your audience, be they players, readers, or the viewers at home, is the (N)PC's reaction to it. We base our judgement on their perceived judgement. If they buy it, so do we. I have a theory on this. It originally applied to SF, but is just as relevant to fantasy. We play fantasy games, immerse ourselves in them to experience/imagine what it is like to live in a world like that, to do those heroic deeds, to wield mystical powers. Only problem is, we’re not that good – as humans – at judging what is likely, appropriate, or reasonable for the world to contain. We don’t even have that good a grasp on real life, let alone a game world that we inhabit only rarely. What we are good at, and have evolved to be good at, is judging other people – their motivations, reactions, moods and capabilities. We can often even take a pretty good guess at what they think about themselves, how they view their own place in the world. So when something amazing or incredible happens in-game, we don’t even try to judge the event. Yes, it needs internal consistency, but what really sells it to your audience, be they players, readers, or the viewers at home, is the (N)PC’s reaction to it. We base our judgement on their perceived judgement. If they buy it, so do we.

]]> http://www.d20source.com/2006/04/how-important-is-realism-in-fantasy/comment-page-1#comment-70766 Psychology of the Grognard « Jonathan Drain’s D20 Source: Dungeons & Dragons Blog Mon, 29 Jun 2009 03:11:41 +0000 http://d20.jonnydigital.com/?p=72#comment-70766 [...] consistent, at least within the context of itself. I wrote about this in a 2006 article on the importance of realism in a fantasy setting: The value of making a world internally consistent and reflecting that in what the players [...] [...] consistent, at least within the context of itself. I wrote about this in a 2006 article on the importance of realism in a fantasy setting: The value of making a world internally consistent and reflecting that in what the players [...]

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