Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
White Dwarf Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Nest
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions, OSR, & D&D Variants
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
EN Publishing
Twitter
BlueSky
Facebook
Instagram
EN World
BlueSky
YouTube
Facebook
Twitter
Twitch
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions, OSR, & D&D Variants
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
What is player agency to you?
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="FrogReaver" data-source="post: 9125092" data-attributes="member: 6795602"><p>For this tangent I’m going to be speaking under the assumption that different games have differing amounts of agency.</p><p></p><p>1) Particular game rules make for different games</p><p>2) particular game rules make for differing amounts of agency</p><p></p><p>Thus, To change the game rules is to change both the game and the agency it offers.</p><p></p><p>This next piece I think is why [USER=71699]@clearstream[/USER] has been working towards. Given that all games limit agency to some degree in order to be a game - then there should be games with more agency than PbtA or burning wheel or etc (and if they don’t currently exist then they theoretically do so as we can all imagine them). In short the posters saying they prefer higher agency games aren’t actually looking for the highest agency possible (shouldn’t be controversial). Instead they are content with the amount and types PbtA and others offer them. It’s not simply a desire for high agency - it’s also a desire for particular types of game rules.</p><p></p><p>What this and the points above together show - agency and game rules are inseparable. To be content with a certain level of agency is to be content with the rules of that game and to be content with the rules of a game means you are content with the level and types of agency it provides. This conception of agency in relation to playing games is a tautology - and that’s what was trying to be conveyed.</p><p></p><p>To add a bit of nuance - a game that can be played a few different ways under the same rules can clearly have a higher agency method and lower agency method of play. Linear adventure paths vs sandbox campaigns come to mind. In this comparison sandboxes offer more freedom of choice, more direction over outcome and more direction over play than linear adventures.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="FrogReaver, post: 9125092, member: 6795602"] For this tangent I’m going to be speaking under the assumption that different games have differing amounts of agency. 1) Particular game rules make for different games 2) particular game rules make for differing amounts of agency Thus, To change the game rules is to change both the game and the agency it offers. This next piece I think is why [USER=71699]@clearstream[/USER] has been working towards. Given that all games limit agency to some degree in order to be a game - then there should be games with more agency than PbtA or burning wheel or etc (and if they don’t currently exist then they theoretically do so as we can all imagine them). In short the posters saying they prefer higher agency games aren’t actually looking for the highest agency possible (shouldn’t be controversial). Instead they are content with the amount and types PbtA and others offer them. It’s not simply a desire for high agency - it’s also a desire for particular types of game rules. What this and the points above together show - agency and game rules are inseparable. To be content with a certain level of agency is to be content with the rules of that game and to be content with the rules of a game means you are content with the level and types of agency it provides. This conception of agency in relation to playing games is a tautology - and that’s what was trying to be conveyed. To add a bit of nuance - a game that can be played a few different ways under the same rules can clearly have a higher agency method and lower agency method of play. Linear adventure paths vs sandbox campaigns come to mind. In this comparison sandboxes offer more freedom of choice, more direction over outcome and more direction over play than linear adventures. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
What is player agency to you?
Top