There is a certain intimacy that in Face to Face gaming that you don't get with most Online / Hangout / VTT sessions. It's also easier to see if your players are distracted or fading.
Online offers a much larger pool of players for your group. Our current group consists of players ranging from the east coast of North America to the west coast, from Florida to Canada and in between. Kinda impossible to pull that off Face to Face.
Running sessions online also cuts down on time lost to commuting to the game site. Oh, and you only have to clean up after yourself ;)
Both methods have pros and cons, and in the ideal situation I think I'd prefer face to face. That being said, my ideal gaming group spans 3 times zones and two countries, so I'll take the ideal group over the ideal method in this case :)
Face to Face or Online? Which is it for you?
GURPS House Rule: You're A Natural
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I've been using this rule, or close to it, since my 3rd edition GURPS
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I prefer the intimacy made possible by face to face but I've had a lot of fun with both G+ and PbP.
ReplyDeleteI do find that as my leisure time becomes more precious playing online using G+ or PbP is easier to maintain.
My knee jerk response is to say, "Face to Face" but I have been playing with a small group online lately and I must say that I am really enjoying the game. A lot more than I thought I would. We laugh, we cut up ... we socialize ... and we play. The amount we seem to "accomplish" each session playing online certainly feels smaller than in face to face gaming, but I actually think that right now, I like my weekly online session better than my weekly face to face session. So, I think I am going to surprise myself and say ... at least for now: online. But, I think it really boils down to the campaign and the players more than the venue.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Jeff Moore
Why is this even a question?
ReplyDeleteBecause Erik has to make his post quota for that day ;)
DeleteSurprisingly enough Jason, FtF is not everyone's preferred method to play ;)
DeleteR.J., I've been slowing down with the posting ;P
I cry 'Bullshit' on that. 'Bullshit' I say. Good gaming is like good sex, best FtF and with at least 5 players.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree.
DeleteI like text-chat play like my Dragonsfoot campaigns (Yggsburgh etc) but I can't imagine wanting to play by remote-audio. Either way, face to face tabletop is the best for most sorts of game.
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ReplyDeleteFace to face, but I am hoping to try some on-line stuff in the near future.
ReplyDeleteAlways face-to-face, the social gathering is as much part of the enjoyment of the evening as the gaming itself (although the game is always king!).
ReplyDeleteTo be honest never tried gaming over G+/Skype etc, kinda makes me nervous and being in the UK I can never figure the time differences to the States. It usually seems I'd be required to start gaming around midnight and I'm waaaaayyyy too old for that now ;)
My experiences with online gaming (Fantasy Grounds, Skype, G+ and others) have been pretty boring, uncomfortable or otherwise unpleasant, but I also haven't really tried it often enough to figure out a good routine. The one time I tried it as a DM I really enjoyed it (I used Fantasy Grounds) but it seemed like it was a lot less payoff in terms of time:gamew ratio....people in front of a PC seemed to be a lot easier to distract, so the game simply didn't flow well. I am sure if I ran games regularly that would change, but then I have to figure out why I'm doing them online when I already have more face to face gaming options than I have time for.
ReplyDeleteI love FtF but I played a Roll20 with some guys from the BFRPG forums with Chris (Solo) DM'ing and it was a blast. So if its a good group online can be fun too..
ReplyDeleteWhatever method that lets me game with my friends.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Rob.
ReplyDeleteI have two F2F games, one I GM and one I play in. The groups are very different, and while I love them, they are sometimes difficult to focus on gaming and instead the socializing takes over at odd times. I have also been running an online game for about 3 years now, and it is with groups of friends who live several hundred miles away from me, and they used to be F2F gamers long ago. They get a lot of rp done, but it is very hard to judge reactions since we don't use a cam when we talk using Skype. It is interesting, it always is regardless of what format the rp takes place.
ReplyDeleteOnce you get past the awkwardness of online gaming, the only downside is keeping the technology working for everybody. Otherwise, I have just as much fun with online as I do FtF. We crack jokes, eat, drink beer, and have a blast. It also exponentially increases your pool of players and the number of games you can play. I currently have three weekly online games, and one FtF.
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