Bay 12 Games Forum

Finally... => Forum Games and Roleplaying => Topic started by: RoseHeart on April 16, 2018, 06:56:08 am

Title: Origin of Games
Post by: RoseHeart on April 16, 2018, 06:56:08 am
In this thread we put on our Darwin beards and theorize where various forum games evolved from. Perhaps speculate their future?

This is a focus on forum games in relation to each other. Also, if a game draws from multiple others, emphasis will be made on the obectively strongest influence.

Ideally the tree that forms, will have the most simplictic game types at the base, and branch out and specialize.

(see next post for simplified example)

The Forum Game Tree
Quote from: Play-by-Post (rules in first post)

  • Above Post (response)

    Quote from: Roleplaying (story telling)

    • God Game (massive scale)

      Quote from: RPG (active host arbitration)

      • Fire Emblem on Forums (large team)

        Mafia (random role)

        Roll-to-Dodge (overshoot)

        Quote from: Suggestion Game (popular vote)

        • Arms Race (factions)

          Quote from: You Are A ____ (single character)

          • RTD SG (overshoot)

            Quote from: CYOA (limited choices)

            • SPAM (use dice)







Note: Entries can greatly change from their ancestors. The connection means it is the closest, baser gameform.

Note: Entries should be a commonly(formerly or presently) occurring game format.

Note: While game types may often encorperate other elements, it is important to find where it's most base version offshoots.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: RoseHeart on April 16, 2018, 06:56:46 am
Example:

Forum Game

In this example we see the lineage of SPAM. Note that dice are mentioned. While previous expressions could use dice, SPAM will use dice.
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: RoseHeart on April 16, 2018, 06:57:14 am
Spoiler: bin (click to show/hide)
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: RoseHeart on April 16, 2018, 06:57:46 am
Reserved. You may now theorize!
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: IndigoFenix on April 16, 2018, 07:42:35 am
Some brainstorming

Story-based games
    Suggestion/Spam vs Multiplayer RPG
    Soft rules (GM makes up everything) vs Hard rules (RTD, well-defined rules explained at the beginning)

Among Multiplayer games, there is varying emphasis on cooperation vs competition.  However, competitive games are almost always "hard rules".

Some typical classifications of story-driven games:
Adventure games
God games
Fire Emblem style
Evolution games

Everyone is John is an unusual crossbreed between suggestion and competitive multiplayer.
Destroy the Godmodder has notably extremely soft rules.
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: Glass on April 16, 2018, 07:59:16 am
Godgames likely evolved from civ-management games, which themselves kind of derive themselves from games meant to boil warfare down to a (semi-)simplified version, such as chess or Risk.
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: KittyTac on April 16, 2018, 08:19:15 am
Multiplayer RPGs most likely evolved from SGs, or tabletop RPGs when someone thought: Hey, let's make a multiplayer SG/Run a tabletop on a forum.
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: Maximum Spin on April 16, 2018, 08:43:24 am
The true origins are clear.
(http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/158/329/9189283.jpg)
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: Glass on April 16, 2018, 08:47:49 am
Quote from: Maximum Spin on April 16, 2018, 08:43:24 am
The true origins are clear.
(http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/158/329/9189283.jpg)
Goddamn it we should have been an alien-worshipping cult in YaaCL.
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: Rockeater on April 16, 2018, 09:28:44 am
I think it reasonable to think that games with close parallel in the real world from before forums popularity (Multiplayer RPG, Mafia,FEF and so on) came from their original moved to forums.
Title: Re: Origin of Games
Post by: RoseHeart on April 16, 2018, 03:09:36 pm
Quote from: Rockeater on April 16, 2018, 09:28:44 am
I think it reasonable to think that games with close parallel in the real world from before forums popularity (Multiplayer RPG, Mafia,FEF and so on) came from their original moved to forums.

Absolutely, for example Mafia was conceived in a classroom(so legend goes). But we can still web root connections within the forum game pantheon.

More of an issue may be how old games take on elements of newer ones. This convergent evolution is often why archaic gameforms stay relavent, but could be called something else today, but haven't.


Here is a venn diagram, which demonstrates some overlap:

(http://i.imgur.com/1pBVqww.jpg)


Quote from: Fenix
Everyone is John is an unusual crossbreed between suggestion and competitive multiplayer.
That's an interesting way to look at it. But I feel a fundamental element of any suggestion game is popular vote. The take turn nature on a mechanical level is more traditional RPG, with a shared character gimmick.

Quote from: Fenix
Soft rules (GM makes up everything) vs Hard rules (RTD, well-defined rules explained at the beginning)
This is an important distinction, hard and soft. I will call them roleplaying and RPG. I see RPG as an extension of RP rather than a different branch.

Quote from: Glass
Godgames likely evolved from civ-management games, which themselves kind of derive themselves from games meant to boil warfare down to a (semi-)simplified version, such as chess or Risk.
The proposed "massive scale" grouping is noteworthy, but may not be so fundamental after all. While there are some games that are always on this scale, and some that never are, there are also those that may transition from single character focus to large scale rule.

Many games of either scale could be reinturrprited in the other. Without fundamental changes for game mechanics, thus it is more a "theme".


I will be shifting this type of inquiry here (http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=170308.0), for the reasons explained there-in.

You are free to discuss historical connections here.