I would say it depends on if your game is character-driven. Personalities can make a game memorable.
In my current pet-project, a rules light pulp system, players create a 6 word sentence to describe character agendas in the campaign (connecting words are free, "the," "and," etc.) And assign a single word to each of 6 categories to provide hooks for background and skills and the like. That's it for background, bonds, flaws, etc.
For so many, simply having a low Int character grunt and say stupid things is the extent of characterization that they can come up with.
I reckon that is another segment that might want personality mechanics. Likely too for people that might well be capable of sophisticated RP but just want some simple/silly limits given to them so they can play a lighter/easier game
You can boil down great memorable characters to a few words. You don't need volumes of text or mechanics.
A three dimensional character only needs 3 unique traits, aka 3 keywords.
If I give you a character sheet that says "Persona: Mysterious, Altruistic, Calm", I'm sure most you would do a great job roleplaying at the table...because I've had no issue with 10 years doing this (after I explained what "altruistic" meant).
If I give you a character sheet that says "Persona: Mysterious, Altruistic, Calm", I'm sure most you would do a great job roleplaying at the table...because I've had no issue with 10 years doing this (after I explained what "altruistic" meant).
Show me. In the game.
...in the end we both get something quicker to make than an elaborate background story that is also easier to use while remaining very flexible. Appearance Passion and Weakness provide great hooks for the DM, while the others primarily help the players ground their choices and descriptions for actions.
I would say it depends on if your game is character-driven. Personalities can make a game memorable.This.
Also, sometimes having those mechanics in place makes that character drama playable in a way that would be hard to pull off otherwise. Games like Pendragon, Masks or Hillfolk, for example, by quantifying things like virtues, personality and emotional states make social interaction as fun and interesting as combat in other games.
I could be wrong about this, but watching games change over the years, it seems to me that character personality has become increasingly codified, and built into game mechanics.It's a strong trend, yes.
I agree that GURPS method is the worst, as it incentives players to pick traits only for the points rewarded and then forget them during play.Also, sometimes having those mechanics in place makes that character drama playable in a way that would be hard to pull off otherwise. Games like Pendragon, Masks or Hillfolk, for example, by quantifying things like virtues, personality and emotional states make social interaction as fun and interesting as combat in other games.
The system used in Pendragon is different from most in that the personality traits and passions in that game are a function of how the character acts. If a character acts in a Worldly fashion, he'll get a check and move his personality trait in that direction. Thus the character is free to grow and change over time as a result of play.
This is completely different from the much more common "Pick a Goal and Pick a Flaw" type of rules. I've found that these restrict character growth too much as a player will only roleplay a character flaw if that flaw is specifically mentioned on their character sheet (a problem made worse in a game like GURPS where the player earned points for taking the flaw). On top of that, if their are rules which limit how often these types of thing can change, certain characters can become tedious and annoying; for example flaws like "kleptomaniac" or "alcoholic". While it might be funny for Rocket Racoon to steal a battery and get the Guardians of the Galaxy in trouble, that really only works in movies. In an RPG, it's infuriating.
The other players turned to look at Accelerator's player in disbelief, "You chose Dr. Destroyer as your hunted?"
This is completely different from the much more common "Pick a Goal and Pick a Flaw" type of rules. I've found that these restrict character growth too much as a player will only roleplay a character flaw if that flaw is specifically mentioned on their character sheet (a problem made worse in a game like GURPS where the player earned points for taking the flaw). On top of that, if their are rules which limit how often these types of thing can change, certain characters can become tedious and annoying; for example flaws like "kleptomaniac" or "alcoholic". While it might be funny for Rocket Racoon to steal a battery and get the Guardians of the Galaxy in trouble, that really only works in movies. In an RPG, it's infuriating.