Post originally by Dan Hemmens at 2004-10-16 04:53:22
Converted from Phorums BB System

"RPG = Role Playing Game = Game in which you play the role of a character, taking on a different persona than your own."

"While this isn't an official definition of RPG, it is close enough to a literal definition."

However it's kind of wide of the mark. Many people (hell, I'd almost go so far as to say most people) in a roleplaying game wind up playing characters that are, if not just them in a silly hat, then at least contain strong elements of their personality.

What you seem to be reacting against is Paranoia's metagame mechanics. Players in a roleplaying game often react to things from an Out of Character (or, to use Forge terminology, Authorial) stance. Paranoia just codifies that.

I'd also point out that if you consider "roleplaying" with "playing a character", then this means that the GM is never actually roleplaying, despite being an active participant in a roleplaying game.

I adctually use the opposite definition to you. You say "a roleplaying game is a game in which you roleplay". This then leads to you making some quite big assumptions about what "roleplaying" is. I define "roleplaying" as "the act of participating in a roleplaying game" (which, of course, leads to me making huge assumptions about what "a roleplaying game" is).