[arg_discuss] Re: Communities and resources

[Adam Martin]

despain at quantumcontent.com wrote:
> The problem as I see it is that some of the things developers might
> say to each other could inadvertently offend the major player base our
> games are aimed at if they are listening in on the conversation.

The ARG SIG was founded explicitly to enable developers to talk freely 
on a large scale (as opposed to the private conversations we tend to 
have on a one-on-one basis at conferences etc). It was strongly felt 
that there wasn't really anywhere else [*] where they could do this.

Players who do listen-in are expected to respect that, and temper their 
reactions appropriately - without, of course, letting it stifle their 
interaction. This was one of the primary fears we had in the first place 
that lead to us moderating all posts - we didn't want to be swamped by 
flames from people who came to the list straight from, say, a UF post, 
and hadn't stopped to read the charter.

This appears not to be a problem - we've been around for 3 months, 
plenty of time for explorative ARG players to have discovered and 
infiltrated us ;), but it seems the overwhelming majority are happy to 
leave us alone to do what we do.

(Incidentally, this is a current concern - that we could do with a few 
more players on the list, as a sounding board, a second opinion, etc. If 
the list membership jumps by a thousand people overnight, I'll regret 
saying this ;), but IMHO it would be good if we could all encourage some 
more "audience participation")

> For example, someone has already said my point of view is "anti-game"
> and I have to wonder if that would affect how those players might
> interact with any games they knew I was involved in.

If the game is good, they will judge it on the game itself, rather than 
on their personal feelings for the designer. Even the mainstream games 
industry hasn't really reached the level of super-stardom where, for 
instance, people will boycott a movie based on objections to the 
lifestyles of the actors.

> Have I shot myself in the foot here?

IMO: If we worry about this too much, then the list is dead. If we have 
the courage to speak freely, the mutual benefits should greatly outweigh 
the risks.

Adam