Over the past few months, I've noticed both a decrease in games (new and reboots) as well as a decrease in GM wanted as well.

I'm wondering.

Was PBP ever really "Mainstream"?

By the time of the last big spike in RPG's popularity, playing on some sort of chat-function was popular, and then after that Discord or Zoom or whatever was the thing.

It's also the summer, and a lot of people do other stuff in the summer.

I think it ebbs and flows.  Certainly, I see more games advertised in non-pbp specific places on mostly Discord.  It doesn't work for me and although others may correct me I don't think it supports the way I write or play games.  I wonder if the Discord medium is better suited to people who are more likely to game / write on their phone rather than a laptop.  It may be that younger people are more inclined to use phone friendly mediums rather than sit and type at a keyboard.  I don't know, I am projecting a little.

Whilst there seems few new games at the moment I think this place has periods where there is lots of visible activity then it seems it's the same five adverts.  I suppose we should be grateful for those still posting their games.  It perhaps does have a self-fulfilling element to it - if there seems little new games or ideas for games people lose interest and look elsewhere, which leads to less traffic.  As far as I know, rpol doesn't have a large presence elsewhere so it's got to be something that is found word of mouth too.

I also suspect it reflects the industry too - once something hits big, people want to play it and it drives traffic and new players and GMs

Summer lull. I'd blame it on the summer lull. Which is related to the holiday lull, only the weather's nicer.

The other six months of the year, RPoL is usually pretty hopping. I think you might be seeing an additional 'decline' right now that isn't really a true decline, based on what seemed to be an increase in activity during the first year, year and a half of the pandemic. People were bored. People were stuck at home. People made and played in more games because they were bored and stuck at home. Now those same people aren't bored and stuck at home (or at least not stuck, probably, even if still bored), so there's not as much time to make and play in games.

That's my theory, at least.
This message was last edited by the user at 20:44, Tue 12 July 2022.

In reply to SunRuanEr (msg # 4):

Yeah, summer lull makes sense.  I've lost my sense of time/seasons since I've been on disability; so I guess I should have figured it was something like that.

I can only speak for myself. I've played tabletop for 40 years and had never even heard of PbP until about six months ago. Since then I've joined this site, am playing in five very active games, and getting ready to start one of my own. So the site, and the pastime, is alive and well in some quarters.

No, we few, we typing few, are the outliers.

I am an older player.. it took  me and my brother years  for find a 'real DM"  that lasted  about 2  years, i ended up  GMing a campaign  using SAdvanced Wizard and  Advanced  Wizrd  as  our  system, and we never looked back.

 but? there wasn't  anyone who played?.. I   played football and  in softball league s Bowled  ect ect..no one admit they game there... My Kids learned to play, but they moved on as well.

 This is the place  to have the best gaming... no 'wondering who is going to show up"..don't have to worry if you 'stay too long"

 you can jump i  any time of day to make a post... people will come as they, too, run out of RL  FTF games.

For me play-by-post is about time zones.  Discord, Roll20 etc everyone has to be online at the same time.  Most of my players on RPoL are in different continents which makes any kind of real time chat options useless, PbP you can log in and post anytime you want.  I have bigger playing groups here than I would in a face to face or real time format.

For me it's that I can spend 30 minutes a day updating the games I play in instead of finding a four-six hour block the same day every week, with everyone else in the game.

Or sometimes update while I'm working!  Now that's efficient time usage!  Being paid to play.

I think I see one of these threads at least once a year...

The answer is yes and no, depending on who you ask.  But, more directly, radio didn't die with MTV starting up in the 80s, despite many predicting that would happen.  The rise of Amazon still hasn't resulted in the demise of brick-and-mortar outlets.  Despite their best efforts, streaming services haven't killed off movie theaters.  Neither did home video, decades earlier...

And while there are other options for role-playing online...newer, fancier, shinier...they still don't function in the same way RPOL does, which means that a significant percentage of RPOL users aren't interested in them, for a variety of reasons (several of which have already been listed.)

New technology and new applications of existing technology keep coming along.  Every few years, there's a hue and cry about how this latest development is going to be the demise of some other tech/application/whatever...and while it invariably has a significant impact on the older one, rarely does it actually succeed in killing it altogether.  I mean, the closest thing I can think of is cell phones...but we still have landlines in place.  You can even, on rare occasions, stumble across a payphone.

If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone ask if some form of tech/lifestyle/etc was dying or dead, only for it to last years or even decades beyond that question, I would have been able to buy a house a long time ago, rather than still renting...

Ideally this is just people getting wise to the fact that they are just screaming hopelessly into the void.

Hello!  I am a well aged GM of freeform games.  I can say after around 17 yrs of being here and GMing games that there are lulls as others gave said above.  To me personally and only my opinion, Discord is one thing drawing players away.  I have had players do the rude disappearing with no word to the Gm they are leaving.  Only to see them actively playing games on Discord.  But then to each their own if course and someone else will sing its praises!

There are other types if PBP sites too which if you play multiple characters you have to create a login different for each one and log in and out.  I know because I belong to one.  Guess what?  It has tge same lulls in posting at holidays, term exams, and Summer.  In these times families do more together and that’s wonderful!

What I as Freeform GM am seeing in my RTJs and new players though is higher quality writers and I live this trend!  My players are all golden to me and they tell me when they are going to be away.  I see them taking family time this time of year.  Great Stuff!

But the lulls can be depressing when you are waiting to pist.  I know this.  All you can do is keep checking I guess.  The frustrating part is when someone doesn’t tell you then they just disappear.  You deleted them cause you think they ghosted you and 5 months give or take the Rmail you with an apology and want back in….  What would you do??  They caused a lull with their walkabouts!

GMs wanted...to me..is  just 'Players wanted' from the other  view point.

as far as Lady said  about Lulls?  I might not get a RTJ  for   my space game  for  a month or two..and  get one from someone who would  not fit the  game. ( i feel responsible to bring in players that will mesh with others)

 then? suddenly i may get  3 in a week...2 of them great?.. and  1 of them stays the course.

 Heck? I don;'t mind folks 'trying it out"..as long as they are up front  when they leave, by  letting us  know, rather then slip out a window!

Facemaker  says it well... there  seems to be a cycle when a thread like this will start.

 To me?  this is the best of RP worlds. I have players from all over the world, they post when they are able  and   the games  keep moving along..sometimes  we slow because of RL issues. but that happens in Table top as well.

 Lady?... for your last bit there  about  players ghosting... I have, somehting like 5 players  , who are being ravaged  by RL.. i keep them in the back round , until they came   step up.

 I had  folks rage quit...yeah? they aren't coming back

 I have had   folks who  couldn't   post because of , very bad  RL  things, who have   people  , nit even from my game, reach out to me..Yeah!..that player is  going to be welcomed  back..others  who just walk away? they won't be back , unless i really liked the character...

Lulls, such..GMs  can   push the game along,  take control of some   situtaions, even NPC folks for battles...

Funny, I've never had any trouble getting a GM from my Wanted - GMs ads.

I think you summed this up perfectly (and the summer lull, I had 5 players all out on vacations and what have you for the past like six weeks, I myself went away with family).  I'll add that this time of year it is hard to post when all I want to be is outside either on the beach or hiking or something.  That's for me, but come about the return to school and it all seems to quite down.  Posting and playing is a welcomed break so to speak.

::chuckles:: alot has to do with the film and TV industry as well.

I developed my games  from, Movies, books, TV shows, and   things i did as a kid, as far  as using  my army guys, or  miniatures  ectect

everytime a   new  Genre movie pops up..we see a swell in that type of game.

  MCU?..heroes all over the place.

  SCI-FI shows and Movuies.. lots of sci fi

  wait until MArch when the D&D movie hits?... tons of fantasy games will hit the board

 the ebb and Flow is on  players and  GMs... how long will players stay in a game?... and how long  before a GM wants to try something  'new"... either of these, hurts the PBP thing.... I have said many times, i  won't even check out  a game that has  too many deleted games..or , even too many active games?.. I know from my point of view.. i have more time then most?..and 3 games to  run, and a few to play in, is  enough for me.

 as long as there are folks out there  who  are loyal to the site, we'll be fine.

While the trend may be away from the PbP format, there are a Lot of people in the target market. There will be "enough" for quite a while still.

I agree that in time I have seen the activity slowly decline on this site, especially if you don't play.run D&D5e... it's OK. I never really made an effort to be mainstream.

Yeah, Discord seems to be more attractive for younger and newer players. One PBEM GM I know has transitioned completely to Discord.

However, TTRPGs seem to be growing in popularity, and as more people get into the hobby, more will likely join PBP games.

I don’t know where RPol is advertised on the World Wide Web except for stumbling on it by searching ‘roleplay games on line’.  I have tried on a couple of game advertisement sites.

I have finally learned to use my phone to post and this new RPol site works for me.  I go to my PC or laptop for more intricate things like game maps, images, etc.  but I only use Discord to contact my players when I need to talk or search for them.  I used to play in Yahoo and Aol chat rooms back in the day.  I then moved on to game sites like Age of Ashes, etc.  then there was Bebo, My Space roleplay, Fandomain etc, but what I hate about those sites is that for every single character you have to make a sign in email.

One day I stumbled onto here around 20 years ago.  WHAT! Just one log in for the site!  FANTASTIC!  How long has this site been around now?  We are doing it right my friends.  Sure there us a lull at times.  Sure there are times it gets too fast paced and some people struggle to keep up and lose interest.  Some people just find other things to spend their spare time on and move on.  But those that love to write and play PBP stay unless their lives get to hectic.  Sometimes they even return.

Summer lull, Exam lull, Holiday lull or call it whatever, it has and always will happen.  No matter what style of games you play or run.  It’s human nature.  Stuff happens to all of us.  But this site goes on.

Now I keep reading how players are put off by a GM running too many active games or have too many deleted games.  If a player can handle GMing multiple games then that gives players an opportunity to play in a game they might like.

Never should a GM be afraid to create a game idea to try and see if there is interest.  Never should a GM be shunned because they did this and for some reason it didn’t take off so they delete the game until maybe another time.  Players should read what the game is about and if they like the setting then try it based on what THAT game is about NOT the number count of games the GM already has, NOT about the amount of characters are in the game, NOT about how many times a GM has sadly deleted a game due to lack of interest!  Your Character is as important to any game as anyone else’s.  You add to the richness of the story.

Yes, GMs need to discuss and talk to the players telling them that it isn’t going well and deleting due to lack of interest before they delete.  But again! Players trying a game should have the decency to tell a GM that they are not happy in a polite way and leave NOT just disappear leaving the GM AND the other players hanging in storylines.

This goes for everyone and ALL styles of games.  Yes, I feel we are mainstream but this site need’s to be advertised more online.  Yes there are ebbs and tides, lulls and fast paced games all the time.

I've said it before (even in this thread) but just to reiterate, there are countless gamers who have never heard of PbP in general, much less RPoL specifically. Even though it's been around for a good while, I think we are likely to see a surge in popularity in this format given (a) the high demand for RPG's, and (b) how hard it is to form and sustain a table-top campaign these days.

Maybe advertising would help. I don't know. I would encourage everyone here to mention PbP and RPoL to their friends in the gaming community, whenever the opportunity presents, just in case someone may not be aware. I am here only because someone mentioned it in the comments section of a gaming blog called Grognardia. And I will be forever indebted.

Whoever did that is a real cool guy  :P

In reply to Radnoff (msg # 23):

Ha! BTW- I thanked you both here and there (and mentioned you by name), but don't ask me where to find those posts now. So let this be the official one. Very grateful, my friend.

To what end?

This isn't a commercial endeavor for jase (as far as I understand), so hustling to grow the Player base really doesn't help his bottom line.  Word of mouth brings in as many as I've seen leave (granted my view is extremely limited not seeing the backend).

Expanded diversity might be nice...

In reply to evileeyore (msg # 25):

First, you didn't quote my full statement.


Second, it wasn't even my suggestion. I was responding to Lady Sharlyne.


This message was last edited by the user at 23:54, Mon 22 Aug 2022.

In reply to ladysharlyne (msg # 21):

If a player has sufficient interest in the game, they'll stay involved; irregardless of how real life is treating them.   I've had players going through all sorts of real life issues yet choose to stay in the game anyways.

Being disabled myself, I understand why someone might feel uncomfortable speaking up.   Either in regards to leaving or to closing a game.   Sometimes, it's just easier to not say anything and simply disappear; rather than facing a circumstance that we'd rather not.

I struggle with real life myself.  It's not just the autism or the bipolar depression: sometimes just the everyday is just too much.  I've still got more game ideas, but they're probably not going to see the light of day.   I've got character concepts that fall into the same situation; either because they (and/or the system) are simply too esoteric.

RPOL is and has been a good place; because of the work of Jase and others.  I've been here for a very long time, since close to when the site opened.  And even if I put everything else aside, this is one place I'll always feel comfortable.

I'm sure it's been said numerous times already, but I don't think PbP has ever been a main stream medium.  It's always existed to fit the needs/wants of a niche market...gamers who want to play, but who either lack the local contacts to set up a group or whose schedules don't allow for 'regular' gaming (or both).

That niche isn't quite as broad as it used to be, thanks to Discord and similar options...but even though I've been in several games on here that used Discord as part of their gameplay, I've never utilized it.  Discord requires coordinating schedules with other players, and my schedule is erratic during good weeks and nigh impossible during bad ones.  People like me will stick with PbP for the simple fact that nothing else fits our needs for a gaming fix.  As long as that niche exists, PbP will exist in some form (since RPOL seems to do a far superior job, as far as 'scratching the itch' to play, compared to other sites, I suspect it will be the preferred form of PbP for a long, long time to come.)

Honestly, we've had chat almost as long as we've had Play-by-Post (Play-by-Mail admittedly predates it by a bit), so I doubt Discord has had any impact at all.  All Discord has done is usurp the prior preferred text/voice chat setups, which go all the way back to IRC in '88.

Mainstream or not, I'm glad it exists. My irregular schedule makes live games unfeasible for me.

I have just recalled my first play by post game, possibly around 1990.  I didn't last long in it but it involved describing your characters actions and submitting your rolls in an letter and then popping it in an envelope and posting to a GM.  They would then type out a response and mail it back to you every couple of weeks depending on the responses of the players.

In reply to bazhsw (msg # 31):

I ran one of those via email. Actually worked pretty good as I had two separate players in the same setting that encountered each other at the end.

My first online games were in chatrooms, on AOL and IRC, in the early 1990s.

What's relatively new about VTTs, is the visual element - the "tabletop" part, where you have a map, and everyone can move their token around on it.  Especially now, with dynamic lighting and LOS calculations, so there's no more "can I see the creature at X" questions: if you can see it on your screen, then yes, <i>you can see it in the game, too<i>.

I think the thing is for me with this format is, games take WAY too long to actually finish.

    I have been on here for years and have played in many games. Some of them have taken over a year and more of posting to actually end, if they even MAKE it to the end. That is a LONG time to be in involved in something.

    In that time I sometimes just get bored, lose interest, even forget to post because something else gets me busy. I will even admit I forget the game exists if it has been going on a REALLY long time and the posting is slow.

   With things like Discord and VTT sessions, the games are usually on a set schedule and more gets done in the time you do play. That makes it easier to remember about them and not rely on people remembering to post to keep the game going. The games will also finish much faster and are more likely to have an ending.

 So each has its benefits and lucky for us, both are available to fit our current needs. ;-)

I rarely play a game intending for it to 'finish'...I think I've only ever done it maybe three or four times, and only once on here.  And that one, I was actually kind of annoyed when the GM declared it 'done'...I understood why, but I was ready to keep going with those characters and find some new adventures for them.  I'm in a couple of games on here that have been running for a decade or more and while we have some idea of where the game will end, we have absolutely no idea how long it will take us to get there.

I played and GMed on this site from 2001-2019, 18 years of mostly great games and memorable roleplaying moments.

The reason I stopped: with the popularity of D&D 5e, it's easy to find face-to-face games in English (I live in Switzerland)

Many fond memories, and still check the site regularly, but with only a limited amount of time to devote to RPGs I get more bang for my buck playing round a table.

I'm the flip side of the coin from Swiss Vinny. Table top games dried up and that drove me to PbP. Been here less than a year but I'm playing multiple games and absolutely loving it. So thrilled to have found this place.

Yeah...most people I know who game live an hour or so away from me, or they've already got so many people in their games that I feel awkward being invited into the game.  And I have weird, irregular schedule issues...I've been working weekends for the last two months.  I'm working every Wednesday night.  When I start working on my next show, I'll be busy pretty much every night for most of a month.  It makes things difficult for face-to-face gaming...

But PbP?  Doesn't matter what time I get done with shows, I can respond.  I can post at work on Wednesday nights.  The "whenever you've got free time" nature of PbP is the only reason I still game at all.

In reply to facemaker329 (msg # 38):

I have a distinctive lack of transportation, which makes finding...nevermind regularly attending...tabletop nearly impossible.

I see a slowdown in getting new players but I don't feel that PBP like we have here will ever die.  As for my games I plan no end for them they are all ongoing freeform stories that we all weave together.  I have seen some go to Discord and what is right for one is not what works for others so there is no Yes or no.  It comes in waves and always has.  Great site, Great Player, and Great GMs so what more could one ask for?

I had   437... Skald  got a pretty  pin point  as to my start date as ... "Before 08:00, Sun 23 Oct 2005".  Old school.  ;>

above is from when Skald was tellind

 people when they started here. For the first  3 years i just played..games  died  one game is running , but  the GM has a  tough schedule and the players, are alot like mine, scattered across the  real world.

 I started  GMing  around 2008, all my games still run.here  are what  i figure , is the Strength  of PBP is.

1.... as  Facemaker said.. you get on  and post as you are able. this is not a  medium where you can lock your players into.

2...As Lady said, there  is a slowing of new players, but tis is an Ebb and flow of time, and  even outside   influences ( Movies, Books , TV  shows ) i went  months without a RTJ and maybe one or two that didn't bother to  follow up after the interview... then 'bang'  a few new players in  each game. its the Ebb and flow.

3...::chuckles::  wait until the D&D movie comes out? The boards  will be flooded  with new  and/or resurrected  fantasy games


 last bit of advice? If you are looking for a game  with an  'end' look foir games  that advertise  modules , or even arena games

 if you want  solid lasting RP, look for campaigns.

It isn't mainstream, it won't ever be mainstream. Interestingly enough in person games have reached critical mass in the mainstream. There is room for a PBP as a niche interest, and that's okay.

This, for me, is the single best thing about RPoL.

I'm old. I've had to juggle kids, jobs with weird hours, travel, all of those things that regularly contribute to an inability to do /anything/ (not just game!) on a regular, set schedule. I can't even manage to regularly watch a single TV show without relying on a DVR.

PbP is great. Without it, I'd have no gaming at all.

You said it perfectly for me SunRuanEr. Exactly my case.

Ditto!

They can finish much faster. My Discord+VTT game has just entered its 4th year; and the end is still much further away than I expected it would be by this point!

Once ran an Amber game on here.  Figured it would last a year or two.

Then five maybe.

Finished up lasting 14 years, with some of the original cast in at the end, and a successful conclusion to the story (ie: the PCs found a way to end a war, and save the whole Universe from destruction).

Daamn, now that's the kind of success story I can only aspire to.

I have a Star Trek game on another site that has been going strong since 2009. That said, we're only on our 15th episode (13 in the first season), although I have outlines ready for another dozen.

We started with Decipher's CODA system and moved to Modiphius' Star Trek Adventures once it had been published. One of my players contributes official content for the current game.

all 3 of my games have been around for  a while, the space game is closing in on 12 years, the other  two games  are up there   as well, so it will be a couple years before i catch that '14".

  If you stick to runnign your game, and you gather good players, it  can go on and on.

In reply to Hunter (msg # 1):

I don't think it's ever been mainstream.

But I do think it meets the definition of cult following. :D

In time, it may see a renaissance.