Wondering, as I find these are particularly prone to railroading both in detail (sceneification) and at the macro level (PCs basically have the adventure thrust upon them) which I don't think is necessarily representative of how a given RPG is played.
On the other hand, people have paid good money and devoted time to playing in the event, which they could be spending elsewhere at the con. So I feel there's some obligation to ensure the session is more than just dicking around. Or is there, if everyone is having fun?
The next con I run games at, I am going to try an experiment. I'll be running a game across multiple 4-hour slots that will be sandbox, just to see how it goes.
Because from what I have seen, it is the 4-hour slots are what really limits play in convention gaming.
Good ventilation and plenty of air fresheners.
Haha. Ask not for whom the air freshens...ahem.
The recent time I ran a game at a con, I came out of it thinking it was a prototype for a sort of "accelerated sandbox", with micro adventures and frequent chances to use experience. It was BRP so the limiting factor was the "reflection period" where you made your skill improvement rolls in a "safe place." In D&D I think it'd be a little different because even if you complete a micro-adventure and go home, you don't have enough XP usually to level up. But you could still heal, shop, and get magical loot analyzed. The other accelerated element is to speed up or rather telescope the "world in motion". Players basically declare actions for a week at a time, events are triggered or tracked, and then any resulting adventure/activity is played out. If nothing much happens, you move on directly to the next event.
I expect a focused adventure that has been playtested to the point that it can be reasonably completed within the time allotted There are exceptions, such as Primetime Adventures, in which making the setting is an important part of the play experience and a single session can be quite fast. But those are the exceptions, not the rule. And yes, I expect the adventure to be more "railroady" than a typical IRL session because of the time constraints.
Unless character generation is incredibly quick and simple, such as in Dread or Don't Rest Your Head, I expect there to be a variety of pregens to pick from. We only have four hours, and I'd rather not spend 1 to 2 of them just to make a character I'm going to use once and throw away.
Unless it is an RPGA or similar organized event, I expect there to be no calculating of xp or dividing of loot at the end of the adventure. I'm never going to play this character again, so I don't care one bit about whether it levels up or gains some new gear or anything else to this effect. The character had its turn, and now it's time to dispose of it.
The other players should want to be there, and should act like it. They should not be inebriated to the point that they have trouble playing, though being a little tired is perfectly understandable if it's the 2nd or later day of the convention. Not tired to the point that you can't stay awake or play the game, of course, but not getting enough sleep is pretty much par for the course during conventions and is to be expected.
1. Is this a GM I've encountered before?
2. Is this a game I've been wanting to try out for a while?
3. Does the premise of the game sound interesting?
1. Let's say not.
2. Maybe it's a game you want to try out, maybe it's a game you know. Interested in answer for either or both.
3. If it didn't, why would you sign up?
Well, typically at Con's, I'm running games the entire time I'm there.
But...what I generally look for is:
1) New game that I've been wanting to try out (i.e. Serenity and BASH, come to mind)
2) Old favorites, that don't get as much play as I'd like with my groups (d6 Star Wars & Call of Cthulu)
Oddly, I tend to veer away from any D&D games at a Con, because I've had such bad luck with them (bad setup, poor execution, railroady story GM, etc).
Quote from: Elliot Wilen;6359461. Let's say not.
Okay. That's kind of my number one priority. If I've played with the GM before/they are my friends I don't normally get to play with etc...
Quote2. Maybe it's a game you want to try out, maybe it's a game you know. Interested in answer for either or both.
I mostly go for games I've been wanting to try. I try to do all new stuff at cons unless #1 above comes into play.
Quote3. If it didn't, why would you sign up?
If #1 and or #2 come into play. Maybe it's an old buddy from out of town running or it's a system I've been really wanting to try out, then I'll play regardless of the set up.
The dealer room. Anything else is secondary.
Okay, to clarify let's say you've signed up for a con game. The GM hands out pregens and lets you select from among them. Aside from that, what are you expecting to be different from a session of your home game? Some things I've heard:
more focused, linear plot that lets you "complete" a discrete adventure or dramatic arc in the timeslot
different system from the usual
getting to play with people you don't usually play with (that you know you enjoy playing with)
Does everyone agree with all of those?
Point being that the first item makes the con game a very specialized form. But without that, are the other two items, or anything else, enough to make it worthwhile?
Not quite answering the original question, but I like to see RPG cons catering for kids to play.
I have 2 kids, 10 and 12, who I run lots of RPGs for and I don't really want t goto a con without them now, as RPG cons are a great experience for kids.
Seeing as many RPGs are just glorified playing "cowboys and indians" it make sense to cater for the next generation of Roleplayers.
Actually I'm going to a con in a week or so and I asked if they catered for kids games and they said well not specifically as they'd never had kids come to their con before.
But they were cool about it and I offered to run some kids orientated RPGs as well if there was nothing suitable for kids.
Obviously I will be responsible for my kids tho, I'm not expecting the con to babysit mine. Also my kids at least are mature enough to take part in RPGs.
I ran a couple of mini cons in the UK, we had a rule that under 16s had to be accompanied by a responsible adult, which worked well.
Quote from: danskmacabre;635970Not quite answering the original question, but I like to see RPG cons catering for kids to play.
I have 2 kids, 10 and 12, who I run lots of RPGs for and I don't really want t goto a con without them now, as RPG cons are a great experience for kids.
Seeing as many RPGs are just glorified playing "cowboys and indians" it make sense to cater for the next generation of Roleplayers.
Actually I'm going to a con in a week or so and I asked if they catered for kids games and they said well not specifically as they'd never had kids come to their con before.
But they were cool about it and I offered to run some kids orientated RPGs as well if there was nothing suitable for kids.
Obviously I will be responsible for my kids tho, I'm not expecting the con to babysit mine. Also my kids at least are mature enough to take part in RPGs.
I ran a couple of mini cons in the UK, we had a rule that under 16s had to be accompanied by a responsible adult, which worked well.
The cons in Denver both have a "Con Jr." section. It's staffed by volunteers (and I believe a child care professional) who run games and do various activities with kids the whole weekend.
Always seemed like a cool thing for families.
Quote from: Piestrio;635981The cons in Denver both have a "Con Jr." section. It's staffed by volunteers (and I believe a child care professional) who run games and do various activities with kids the whole weekend.
Always seemed like a cool thing for families.
That's a great idea. Although having a dedicated area for kids and a professional child care person (who would have to be police checked) would probably cost money unless you're lucky enough to get a volunteer to be there who already had these qualifications and checks.
So just saying all kids need to be accompanied by an adult makes things easier.
Also, if you have badly behaved kids coming to an event, you can call their parent/guardian down on them.
Quote from: danskmacabre;636008That's a great idea. Although having a dedicated area for kids and a professional child care person (who would have to be police checked) would probably cost money unless you're lucky enough to get a volunteer to be there who already had these qualifications and checks.
It is a paid "event" if I'm not mistaken. But I think it's fairly reasonable and the sessions are all day.
Quote from: Piestrio;636009It is a paid "event" if I'm not mistaken. But I think it's fairly reasonable and the sessions are all day.
OK, if you can take in enough to pay for a professional, that'd be great.
The mini con a friend and I ran was at a community centre and we charged 3 pounds entry, barely enough to cover the hall hire and other expenses (we had about 25 people attending). so paying a professional child carer would have been out of the question.
The only kids who came to that anyway were mine and the other guy who was organising it, so we were responsible for them anyway, still if other parents had turned up with kids, they would have been welcome as long as the parents stuck around to keep an eye on their kids.