What Kills a Good RP ?

[Brendanfp]

The question I have is what factors lead to a great RP dying out and how to prevent them?

Why do I ask such a question?

Well, the answer is simple. I, like many others on Rpnation, am looking to start up an RP soon. However, I have watched many of my favorite RPs die before the story could even begin. So I thought to consult the public on why this happens and what I can do to best prevent it as a future Gm. This will greatly benefit me as well as others who wish to start an RP here

Thank you to everyone who shares their opinion :3

 

[Seahomie]

For me, it's when OOC isn't frequent. Whether or not it's about the plot or personal life, I believe OOC chat keeps people connected and interested in continuation.

It also depends on style and the type of roleplay you have. Make sure both you and your partner have an understanding on what you two expect from each other. Be on the same page.
That's just what keeps me interested anyway
I hope that helps somewhat.

 

[Brendanfp]

For me, it's when OOC isn't frequent. Whether or not it's about the plot or personal life, I believe OOC chat keeps people connected and interested in continuation.

It also depends on style and the type of roleplay you have. Make sure both you and your partner have an understanding on what you two expect from each other. Be on the same page.
That's just what keeps me interested anyway
I hope that helps somewhat.

Thank you for the feedback!

Still trying to learn all the ins and outs of Gming from people who have been doing this a lot longer than me :3
So any feedback is a great help :3

 

[InsaneAsylum]

I myself have never been a GM, but what helps with activity is in fact, the OOC like what was said before. Just talking with the people you’re role playing with on a nearly daily basis helps keep the rp alive. I know I’m driven to post when I feel like I know the people I’m rping with.

Another thing that I’d think helps keep roleplays alive is character bonding and such. Bringing characters together within the first few posts should be a necessity imo. It’s not as fun to role play by yourself as opposed to with others, ya know?

Just a few things I think help get a role play off to a good start.

It takes more than a good GM to keep a role play alive though. Hopefully you get people that are willing to invest some time into making your role play active and fun!

 

[Brendanfp]

I myself have never been a GM, but what helps with activity is in fact, the OOC like what was said before. Just talking with the people you’re role playing with on a nearly daily basis helps keep the rp alive. I know I’m driven to post when I feel like I know the people I’m rping with.

Another thing that I’d think helps keep roleplays alive is character bonding and such. Bringing characters together within the first few posts should be a necessity imo. It’s not as fun to role play by yourself as opposed to with others, ya know?

Just a few things I think help get a role play off to a good start.

It takes more than a good GM to keep a role play alive though. Hopefully you get people that are willing to invest some time into making your role play active and fun!

Thank you for your feedback!

I didn't think the OOC would be such an important part of this. However it makes sense, I do love to get to know the people I RP with, and the better I know them the more I want to RP. Also bringing characters together is definitely important, I have personally been in RPs where it seemed like the characters would never meet up as they were miles away from each other, to begin with.

Thanks for the Insight :3

 

[Raku]

As someone who's been the GM of several role-plays, a few of which have gone quite a ways, I believe it depends on general activity. Whether it be in the IC or the OOC, there has to be activity. If the RP begins to grow inactive and players are posting less and less, people begin to lose interest. As said above as well, characters getting to know each other and forming relationships, wether they be romantic of not, helps keep a roleplay moving. The GM isn't fully responsible for keeping the RP alive too. The players involved play a huge factor as well. Whenever I post an interest check, I make sure to put, "Looking for dedicated players", right in it.

 

[Brendanfp]

As someone who's been the GM of several role-plays, a few of which have gone quite a ways, I believe it depends on general activity. Whether it be in the IC or the OOC, there has to be activity. If the RP begins to grow inactive and players are posting less and less, people begin to lose interest. As said above as well, characters getting to know each other and forming relationships, wether they be romantic of not, helps keep a roleplay moving. The GM isn't fully responsible for keeping the RP alive too. The players involved play a huge factor as well. Whenever I post an interest check, I make sure to put, "Looking for dedicated players", right in it.

Thanks for your feedback!

I see so do you think the OCC and the IC are equally important to the longevity of an RP?

 

[Raku]

Thanks for your feedback!

I see so do you think the OCC and the IC are equally important to the longevity of an RP?

No, I don't think the OOC and IC are equally important. The IC is more important than the OOC because, well, you need an IC thread to actually have a rp right?

 

[Zinai]

A good roleplay needs dedicated players. It is either you find these dedicated players, or you make them into dedicated roleplayers. You do that by trying to keep the hype up, getting the OOC active, and getting to know them. However, there are exceptions who simply disappear even after doing all that. You have to keep trying and I'm sure you'll find a dedicated crowd to accompany you with your roleplay journey.

 

[Brendanfp]

No, I don't think the OOC and IC are equally important. The IC is more important than the OOC because, well, you need an IC thread to actually have a rp right?

That is true...

Can't argue with the logic :3

 

[Brendanfp]

A good roleplay needs dedicated players. It is either you find these dedicated players, or you make them into dedicated roleplayers. You do that by trying to keep the hype up, getting the OOC active, and getting to know them. However, there are exceptions who simply disappear even after doing all that. You have to keep trying and I'm sure you'll find a dedicated crowd to accompany you with your roleplay journey.

Thank's for the feedback!

That makes sense. I mean the players are kinda the essence of the RP, but is there a way too feel out RPers before the Rp even starts, or is it just luck?

I love your profile picture by the way :3

 

[Zinai]

Thank's for the feedback!

That makes sense. I mean the players are kinda the essence of the RP, but is there a way too feel out RPers before the Rp even starts, or is it just luck?

I love your profile picture by the way :3

Thank you, KFC and anime makes a great combo.

For me, I tried to feel players out by stalking their profiles and looking at the past roleplays they've been invested in, to see their activity and decide then if I wish to invite/accept them or not. That sort of feature was available in some other roleplay sites I've gone on, not sure about this one. Honestly though, it's mostly luck. But that'll fade away as you keep trying. There may be times where you could burn out and completely lose motivation to continue roleplaying, like how I once felt. It could make you quit if you just focus on creating roleplays and making sure they become a success. I'm sure if you have an active roleplay to continue writing in, there'll be no worries about any complete loss of motivation. Just keep trying and you'll find that crowd!

 

[Brendanfp]

Thank you, KFC and anime make a great combo.

You're not wrong :3

For me, I tried to feel players out by stalking their profiles and looking at the past roleplays they've been invested in, to see their activity and decide then if I wish to invite/accept them or not. That sort of feature was available in some other roleplay sites I've gone on, not sure about this one. Honestly though, it's mostly luck. But that'll fade away as you keep trying. There may be times where you could burn out and completely lose motivation to continue roleplaying, like how I once felt. It could make you quit if you just focus on creating roleplays and making sure they become a success. I'm sure if you have an active roleplay to continue writing in, there'll be no worries about any complete loss of motivation. Just keep trying and you'll find that crowd!

Yes, the stalking option is available here lol.
As for the burnout, I can totally relate to that it's never fun when you are RPing more as a chore than as a hobby.

 

[Zinai]

You're not wrong :3



Yes, the stalking option is available here lol.
As for the burnout, I can totally relate to that it's never fun when you are RPing more as a chore than as a hobby.

Okay that's good, it means I can keep up with my surveillance habits when developing RPs haha. Yeah don't let RPing become a chore. Often happens when people become interested in creating their own worlds with the help of strangers online.

 

[Brendanfp]

Yeah don't let RPing become a chore. Often happens when people become interesting in creating their own worlds with the help of strangers online.

Well said :3

 

[SilverFlight]

There are many different reasons an RP goes quiet, I have a bit of experience writing as a player and leading threads.
I think the number 1 killer of threads is that the gm expects people to stay once they join. From a few years experience, this doesn't happen, and my longest and best threads have always had a high turnover. The reason I phrased it like that is, I don't think players leaving is actually what ends it, the gm either becomes discouraged or loses interest, if that happens the players often follow very quickly.

I'm going to flip this now and give you a list of things that in my experience have kept threads alive:

1. Recruit practically all the time.
Even the best-made character sheets can be made by people to lose interest, sometimes after one or two posts. Don't stop recruiting once you have your desired number, because there will be people who leave. Restart the recruitment threads as people generally get intimidated by high post counts. Run an updates section to help new players catch up with the story.

2. If you find yourself losing inspiration, go find some more!
Reading books, comics, watching movies, even going outside, if you find your inspiration is flagging try and kickstart it. Writers block in my opinion has seen to a lot of threads slowing down.

3. Create an rp with a bit of lore and structure
Too little structure and people might not know how to approach the thread. You need to begin the ideas that will get people creating. Put in a few guidelines on how the world works but try not to limit people too much in what they can choose to play.

4. Give the players enough freedom to develop the characters and backstories they are interested in
This is more for gms, I've been in a few rps where the entire plot is centered around the gm's character or a very specific set of character rules, with little to no freedom given to develop their own ideas. This is bad. People come on this site to be creative, if they feel controlled, they're not going to stay. That being said, try your best to provide that freedom within the framework you've created.

 

[Brendanfp]

There are many different reasons an RP goes quiet, I have a bit of experience writing as a player and leading threads.
I think the number 1 killer of threads is that the gm expects people to stay once they join. From a few years experience, this doesn't happen, and my longest and best threads have always had a high turnover. The reason I phrased it like that is, I don't think players leaving is actually what ends it, the gm either becomes discouraged or loses interest, if that happens the players often follow very quickly.

I'm going to flip this now and give you a list of things that in my experience have kept threads alive:

1. Recruit practically all the time.
Even the best-made character sheets can be made by people to lose interest, sometimes after one or two posts. Don't stop recruiting once you have your desired number, because there will be people who leave. Restart the recruitment threads as people generally get intimidated by high post counts. Run an updates section to help new players catch up with the story.

2. If you find yourself losing inspiration, go find some more!
Reading books, comics, watching movies, even going outside, if you find your inspiration is flagging try and kickstart it. Writers block in my opinion has seen to a lot of threads slowing down.

3. Create an rp with a bit of lore and structure
Too little structure and people might not know how to approach the thread. You need to begin the ideas that will get people creating. Put in a few guidelines on how the world works but try not to limit people too much in what they can choose to play.

4. Give the players enough freedom to develop the characters and backstories they are interested in
This is more for gms, I've been in a few rps where the entire plot is centered around the gm's character or a very specific set of character rules, with little to no freedom given to develop their own ideas. This is bad. People come on this site to be creative, if they feel controlled, they're not going to stay. That being said, try your best to provide that freedom within the framework you've created.

Thanks a bunch for the feedback!

It felt awesome waking up to such a in depth post. So just to summarize.

1. Never stop recruiting, because people always leave. I agree with this the two larger RP I am apart of right now implement this rule and have been some of the longest RP I've worked on.

2. I didn't think GM's got writers block, but it makes sense to always have the creative juices flowing.

3. Give Rpers enough structure to know what their getting in to.

4. Don't drown the other characters in your vision. Makes sense.

Thanks you again for posting your thoughts, I'm super happy that I'm actually getting some responses on here :3

 

[Idea]

Shouldn't this be in roleplay discussion?

 

[Brendanfp]

Shouldn't this be in roleplay discussion?

Erm... I have no... Idea
hehe

 

[CrewlessCaptain]

Number one rp killer, lack of motivation. If no one has the drive to post they always wait for someone else to pick it up, then starts an endless cycle of waiting.

 

[DrTrollinski]

Characters that are a pure reflection of the writer and therefore feel entitled to be involved in everything and liked by everyone.

 

[marshmarrow]

Lack of communication can kill RP threads relatively quickly. If a GM doesn't inquire about anyone's status regarding activity, no one will. I hate being left in the dark about absences and quitters, but I will always respect their decision if they notify me about leaving or quitting.

 

[huihui-]

For me these are the following :

1. Inactivity. It's hard to have a good flow going if you / your partner are gone away for too long and rp for too short. I understand IRL could be overwhelming but make an effort to at least reply twice or once a week ? Or if it's impossible notify the partner so you wouldn't leave them hanging.
2. Unplanned plotlines. Usually RPs are planned up until to the certain point though sometimes RPs tend diverge from the planned plotlines (which is alright but too much is nah) and you gotta re route to go back to the main plotline. I kinda don't like it,especially if you're time bounded, because it makes the RP unnecessarily long and hard to finish imo.
3. Romance. Yezus this is the one I don't like the most. When someone inserts the romance genre in an RP. I tried doing this and it ended up in a total disaster so nope, not the one for me. It adds the unneeded drama and most romance plots are overrated/cliche no offense.

 

[kaiiton]

I myself always forget to answer, or have no motivation, so it just depends on the person ig

 

[Arlie]

I feel like lack of motivation for sure, or a lose plot line.