If you’re going to get the most out of playing by post, you should commit to checking in on the game at least once a day and posting as quickly as possible once it’s your turn or during open role-playing periods. Over time, however, most games slow down dramatically due to a variety of factors such as real life commitments, a drop in enthusiasm, or waiting for a specific player to post. Often players post quite frequently at the beginning, which may make it seem as though the game will move quickly. PbP games can be painfully slow and erratic. However, there are a few traits that can help you find success with play-by-post.įirst, and most importantly, you must be tenacious. Even veteran RPG players may struggle to adapt to the vastly different style. Let’s be honest right at the outset: play-by-post isn’t for everybody. This article will hopefully help you navigate your first few steps into this unique niche. This is not to say that PbP games are identical to tabletop play: quite the opposite! Play-by-post can be equally rewarding, but it’s worth knowing what you’re getting into before you start. The ability to play on any device from any location at any time is one of the best aspects of play-by-post. Character-focused games benefit from the somewhat slower, often introspective feel of online play, as well as the ability to easily reference story information from previous posts. In RPGs, the play-by-post format really hit its stride. Accordingly, role-playing games started to gain prominence, as players could interact with each other much more quickly games are limited only by how frequently the players can respond to the previous post.

In many cases, the results would be printed in a single place, such as a magazine, which the players would have to obtain in order to see what happened.Īs the digital world has evolved, the old method of playing by mail shifted to online forums, allowing for a somewhat quicker pace and making it easier to run more complicated games. It originated before the advent of the Internet as a way to play turn-based board games by mail, when players would mail a letter containing their orders for each turn to a central organizer who would combine those submissions and provide a final tally of the turn’s events. Though most of that gaming takes the form of mobile board game apps, lately another form of online play has captured my interest: play-by-post role-playing games (PbP RPGs).īroadly speaking, play-by-post is any method of playing games in which each player submits their actions remotely. Having the option to play on my own schedule and from any location is a huge advantage. If you’ve been considering PbP, this article will help you find the treasure stuck in the Web.Īs someone who’s moved across the country twice in the last five years in addition to becoming a stay-at-home dad, I find myself increasingly turning to online games. Play-by-post role-playing can seem daunting, yet offers rich rewards.

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