That would cover stuff like not stepping on another PC's niche, not engaging in PvP, treating PC's as friends even if they don't really have any in-character reason to do so, etc.
What about practical elements of actaully hosting the game? Who's house do you play in?Who buys the food?
I think that noting how rigid the rules will be is important. Some people like to do things by the book and some don't. While I myself feel it is important to let the system fade into the background there are some people who don't like to be in the dark about how things work. I don't think system should be left entirely out of what a group decides is it's "social contract."
Other than that, Player/GM expectations kind of covers a wide variety of elements. In fact campaign tone could be lumped in with those two points pretty easily.
Actually even my comment about the level of system adherence could be lumped into GM/Player expectations. Finding out what everyone wants, showing respect for their feelings, and still maintaining your own sense of enjoyment. That's really what you need to do to ensure a fun time is had by all.
Of course some people are more rigid and demanding than others and that's where difficulties come from.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TristanH
Odd that I have never had a discussion in any group I've ever been in about any of these things. We just showed up and played.
This is interesting.
Same here really. This is the first time I've really given thought to something like this. "Social contract" kind of sounds awkward to me.
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Odd that I have never had a discussion in any group I've ever been in about any of these things. We just showed up and played.
This is interesting.
I think that social contracts are one of those things you often have without actually discussing them. There are many rules for social interaction in different circumstances (not just gaming by any means), but they are not generally spoken of; people just seem to pick them up by imitation.
The competitiveness level expected and accepted between the GM and players. Is the GM an ally of the players in creating maximum shared coolness, or is the GM expected to leverage his authorial control and the system itself to create an adversarial (but "beatable") environment?
The balance of power between players, GM and game materials (system and setting) -- who trumps whom?
Expected spotlight time per player. Some may want/need more than others.
How frequent and how long each session will be.
Who needs to be at each session.
Level of expected immersion. Worded differently: level of respect for the "sanctity of the game space" for lack of a better term (i.e. issues of table talk, food/smoke breaks, IC vs OOC conversation, strategizing).
Expected narrative structure: Will there be a plot? Will there be an open-ended setting? If the setting is open-ended, will players be able to explore in good faith? Will there be punishments for wandering off-course? Will the GM provide the plot and require the characters to adapt to it, or will the GM adapt the plot/setting to what the players have provided via characters and talk?
Just off the top of my head. Most of these probably fall under "what is expected of the GM" and "what is expected of the players."
Rules of conduct? Granted that fits into the two "what"s, generally, but if you've ever had seven people try to talk with you and each other at once, this one may need it's own easy-to-find section.
grimjack, good GM/bad GM
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I think that social contracts are one of those things you often have without actually discussing them. There are many rules for social interaction in different circumstances (not just gaming by any means), but they are not generally spoken of; people just seem to pick them up by imitation.
You know, at first I wanted to say something like "The less you know the people you play with, the more you'll probably discuss something like this" but when haldfway through the post I realized that, in my experinece, the complete opposite has been the case. The only time I've really discussed the whole "Social Contract" thing was with my very best friends and I think it was because I trust them enough not to start arguing with me when I say "This and that really ruins my fun and I'd prefer not to have it in my games". Discussing this whole thing instead of relying on assumptions and tradition is often hard and uncomfortable, but i think my games have been better and richer for it.
I could be an exception, though.
M
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I think that social contracts are one of those things you often have without actually discussing them. There are many rules for social interaction in different circumstances (not just gaming by any means), but they are not generally spoken of; people just seem to pick them up by imitation.
Quite possible. I mean, if we showed up to play D&D or something similar, and the GM broke out Star Frontiers we'd...
Lord Minx hits the nail on the head when he says: "Discussing this whole thing instead of relying on assumptions and tradition is often hard and uncomfortable, but i think my games have been better and richer for it."
That's been the case for me, even when GMing with long time friends. When I began my IK campaign a couple years ago, one of the players -- someone I've known for years -- treated the game like it was a "One Tree Hill" episode and wasn't connecting at all with an adventure-gaming aspect. Bizarre.
Another instance: a gaming group I started last year -- they were all recruited for the group -- faltered when it became clear that different players were embracing different tone (one was a pulp fan, the other was into Alias-style conspiracy, etc.); they had no intention of driving the storyline though that's what I was looking for -- even PvP eventually developed. Oy.
In both cases, I hadn't worked out a social contract. It's nothing I'll ever type up and pass out -- that's too formal for me -- but if I can at least assemble a page of talking points, I think I'll be able to deal with a lot of assumptions and expectations.
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