Sandbox RPG: help me understand

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lol, did you just compare in-character immersion to torture?
When used in games? It wasn't a hypothetical example; it was used by a larp. And yeah, I think that probably is a higher level of immersion than anything I've ever done, I'm just good with that.
 
I mean, different strokes for different folks. I have no desire for my personal tastes to be popular, let alone (shudder) mainstream, I just am happy to be able to get small game groups together that (mostly) share my tastes. I'd be fine even if I was alone in the world with this weird thing I like.
 
When used in games? It wasn't a hypothetical example; it was used by a larp. And yeah, I think that probably is a higher level of immersion than anything I've ever done, I'm just good with that.

You mean they literally waterboarded each other in order to better immerse themselves in a LARP? If so, wow. Dedication is the best word I can use to describe that.

One thing regarding character portrayal, I find it easier to portray a variety of characters by not always speaking in first person. I certainly do it at times, but other times it makes more sense to me to think of them as not me. I realize this kind of runs counter to the idea of immersion, but for me it works much better.

When I GM, though, I always address the character. I don’t mind of the player responds in first or third person, but I always phrase the prompt to be directed at the character.
 
You mean they literally waterboarded each other in order to better immerse themselves in a LARP? If so, wow. Dedication is the best word I can use to describe that.

Yep. Obviously not full waterboarding but head under water to give the sensation of drowning. I can't find which larp that was though, just people referencing it. Although I did find this.

Vreden (2004) was, at the time, considered to be a quite hardcore larp, since players received almost no food, lived in muddy and wet trenches, were subject to sleep deprivation, regular attacks (gunfire and pyrotechnics) and had to withstand both physical and psychological abuse by their superiors.

That is a remarkable feat of understatement. "It was quite hardcore I guess, for its time at least".
 
Yep. Obviously not full waterboarding but head under water to give the sensation of drowning. I can't find which larp that was though, just people referencing it. Although I did find this.



That is a remarkable feat of understatement. "It was quite hardcore I guess, for its time at least".

Hah that’s nuts.

I think there’s a Laurence Olivier quote that applies here!
 
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As a player, the big thing that "takes me out" is when players encounter a situation and then sit around for what seems like forever (to me) planning what they are going to do. Once I am "in-character", there isn't any planning involved, I know immediately how I would act in a situation, even if it isn't the "optimal" choice - and that immediacy is me responding to the situation as I'm in the thick of it.

As a GM, the only thing I really demand of players is that they don't use OOC information. I will nudge them towards eventually communicating in first-person, though I understand this is a hurdle or uncomfortable for some folks at first, so I'm not hard-edged about it, it's ore a "teach by doing" thing, and if they are taking too long talking when things are actually happening i the game in front of them I will interrupt them.
Since Old Geezer/Gronan isn't here, I'll respond the way I think he would.

They can talk amongst themselves all they want, as long as they realize their characters are taking that long, and that die I'm idly rolling is for Random Encounters.
 
Because there's no safe word in the Army?
But think of the immersion factor:shade:!

Also, going that far might well bring me out of immersion, when the actions dictated by my elaytiminen clash with the LARP's rules.
Unless there was no rule against attacking superiors...which would have opened a whole new can of worms:devil:!
 
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