Railroading

JSwing · 2001-01-03T21:23:15

The following article is taken from the online magazine Critical Miss (www.criticalmiss.com). It''s more aimed at pen and paper RPGs, but I think it''s a good one to read for the folks who want to craft a linear story: =============================================== What Is Railroading? How''s this for a definition: Railroading is when the GM creates a scenario whose plot is so linear that it offers the player characters only one route through. Any attempt by the player characters to perform an action that doesn''t fit into the GMs preconceived idea of how the scenario should develop will be blocked out of hand. Why Do We Railroad? Because it makes GMing easier. There is no way the GM can create a scenario which allows full freedom of action to the player characters, yet also takes account of every possible action that they might perform. In a railroaded scenario the GM can work out each action that the player characters might perform and create, in advance, a descriptive, fully worked-out response. Is It Always Bad? So, if railroading can make a GMs job easier, is there any "good" way in which we can use it? Perhaps. A railroaded scenario is one in which the player characters can only perform certain actions. What you need to look at is the key element that is preventing them from performing the other actions. If this element is believable, reasonable, matches the motivations of the characters, and fits neatly within the reality of the setting, then players will readily accept it. If this element is arbitrary, makes no sense within the setting, does not match the motivations of the characters, and is clearly there to make the GMs job easier, players will resent it. And if there isn''t really any reason at all, and the GM is simply using emotional blackmail to force the players to make their characters pick the desired option - the players will probably just get up and leave. Some Examples Of Bad Railroading "CURIOROSITY DOESN''T KILL THE CAT - ALRIGHT?" The player character group is journeying from a small town to the capital city, carrying a valuable cargo of furs that they have been contracted to deliver to a trader. As they journey down the road they pass a mysterious cave... So what? Why should they care? Why on earth would they divert themselves from their journey and risk losing their valuable cargo, just to go poking around a hole in the ground that is most likely nothing more than a hole in the ground? Because the GM will keep on repeating his description of the "mysterious cave" - that''s why. As players, we know that something is significant simply because it is mentioned. But to our characters it''s just one more cave that we have passed. Give us some reason to go in there, other than mere curiosity. THE SLAMMING DOOR Carefully the thief hammers the stout iron spike into the stone floor. Only when he is satisfied that the door is securely held open does he follow his comrades into the room. Then, err... the spike kindof breaks, and the door, like swings shut. And locks itself. This is the worst kind of railroading. The GM has written the scenario on the assumption that an event will occur (in this case a door slamming shut behind the players) but this has been foiled by them taking precautions (in this case spiking the door open). But he ignores what the players have done, and just makes the event happen anyway. Some Examples Of Good Railroading MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS / AIRSHIP "Well, I guess I''ll wonder around looking for somewhere to get a drink." "There''s only one bar, on the upper deck with views of the ground below." "I''ll go there, order a drink, and see if I can strike up a conversation." "There is a single other passenger there, a Colonel Drendal... you get talking... suddenly he stands up clutching his chest and falls to the floor." If you set your scenario within a contained location, this will constrain the actions that the players can take. You don''t need to worry about a character going off to buy some kind of wonder gadget that will trash your plot. You don''t need to worry about them getting bored and wondering somewhere else, just as your intricate storyline is about to unfold. ''Cous they''ve got nowhere to go. SPACE PATROL "Patrol Group 3, your orders are to travel immediately to the Deltacron system at full speed." "Ok." If your campaign''s theme involves the player character group having some kind of overall motivation or task, you''ll find it much easier to write scenarios. The classic example here is the Star Wars roleplaying game (from West End Games, with a new version out soon from Wizards of the Coast). Since the player characters are all members of the rebellion, you can create scenarios that have as a hook the mere fact that the Empire is doing something bad (which the characters will obviously want to stop). Conclusion Creating scenarios which are written in such a way that there are only a finite number of avenues that the players can take, is good. Nobody likes an ad-libbing GM, umming and ahhing and floundering. But remember two things: Give the players some choices. Put your constraints within the reality of the game world.

Writing for Games Game Design

Started by JSwing December 28, 2000 04:26 AM

10 comments, last by JSwing 23 years, 11 months ago

Wavinator

2,020

January 03, 2001 09:11 PM

quote: Original post by kseh

I keep forgetting about the value of replay value. But still, a firecracker is only entertaing the first time it''s lit.

Yes, but nitro, nukes, and dynamite in dozens of different combinations can be VERY entertaining.

(Meaning the sum of all the interactions is greater than a single part. )

quote:
In a CRPG a player is more likely to get away with using pre-existing knowledge. Yeah you can experiment and make sure that you have the stuff you need when the time comes... but you''re still limited to the interface and what the programmers planned for.

You''re right. I guess what I''m talking about is more the kind of gameplay you get from combinatorics. I keep thinking about Starcraft as one shining example. Incredible longevity, simple graphics, and great gameplay because the permutations were so interesting (esp. against another human).

The strength (for me) is that you get to do the experimenting. You get to try to control the outcome. The gameplay is made up of tons of interesting decisions you make as you try to control how things turn out.

quote:
I guess that illusion I mentioned before is just that suspension of disbelief thing mentioned so many times before. If it''s there, then the player is gonna think he''s in control.

Yeah, I think that if your illusion is REALLY good then you can encourage players NOT to peek behind the curtain. But I was just pointing out that that''s pretty hard to do for the segment out there that wants control, and wants to experiment, AND wants it to have a significant impact on the game.

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Just waiting for the mothership...

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Nazrix

307

January 03, 2001 09:23 PM

quote: Original post by Wavinator
Yes, but nitro, nukes, and dynamite in dozens of different combinations can be VERY entertaining. (Meaning the sum of all the interactions is greater than a single part. )

Yeah, the combination thing is the key.

quote:

Yeah, I think that if your illusion is REALLY good then you can encourage players NOT to peek behind the curtain. But I was just pointing out that that''s pretty hard to do for the segment out there that wants control, and wants to experiment, AND wants it to have a significant impact on the game.

I don''t believe in that whole illusion thing when it comes to non-linearity. If you lead the player to believe that there''s very much divergence, and there isn''t any they''re going to notice. If you design the game to lead them to believe that they will have little divergence then they''ll understand that, but trying to trick them into something in between is just a bad idea IMO.

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Railroading

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Railroading

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