#34: Speaking in Patterns

[RPGnet Columns]

http://www.rpg.net/columns/physics/physics34.phtml

Summary:

Intuitive languages & expanding the RPG lexicon through game design.

Go to the column (http://www.rpg.net/columns/physics/physics34.phtml) for more information.

[smascrns]

Languages exist to facilitate communication, to allow deeper things to be understood with less effort and cost.
I completely agree with this but unfortunately your column fails in this account, IMO of course. The reason is simple, I think you misuse the concept of intuition. Intuition is a mental process for the aquisition of knowledge. You don't use it in this sense in your column. It took me some time to understant that what you ment by 'intuition' is actually pre-knowledge.

If I understand you correctly what you mean is that the language of the game may or may not be based on a pre-existing, non-gaming language. For players to learn the game they need to learn its language (so far so good, I can only agree since I wrote exactly the same almost five years ago in one of my columns, just check http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/columns/ruleslaw27sep01.html). But their ability to learn the language is dependent on how that language translates into a language they know already. This can be facilitated if the language of the game is itself modeled on the language the players use for most of their communication. In other words, what you call 'intuition' is basically the pre-existing knowledge the players have that facilitates the learning and understanding of the game's language.

While the simplest use of a RPGs language is to communicate with other players, it is also a means for a RPG to teach the players about things beyond the subject of the language
It may be used as such but why should this by a priority? An rpg language is a restricted technical language created for the purposes of the game. Using it for other objectives may be possible but it may also be a poor option. If the players want to deal with those issues they should look forward to languages more approriate for that purpose.

[Wyrmwood]

Sergio,

We've both written significantly on the subject of RPGs as languages. The purpose of this article isn't about that. I perhaps was not clear enough, but when I refer to intuition I do mean a framework for acquiring and organizing knowledge. That is what makes this language of use outside of the context of the RPG itself. And considering that the purpose of this current sequence of articles is designing RPGs for their effects after the games, this is an extremely relevant question.

The objective is to store the intuition into the language, causing the language to continue being of use. So for example, if you impart an intuition for the actual procedures of cinematography, into the language taught by a RPG, then that intuition will be transfered, part or whole, and will allow the former players an improved capacity to understand cinematography in the future.

- Mendel

[smascrns]

I see. A little like the way roleplaying is used as a training tool? (But in this case it is used both to impart a language and a way to behave. Of course, if that's what you have in mind even rpgs can be extended to non-linguistic acts.)