☽ Arisato Minato (有里 湊) ☾ (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fools_journey) wrote2012-01-19 06:10 pm
fools_journey) wrote2012-01-19 06:10 pm
Entry tags:
On Magicdraft and its upcoming changes
So, I've slept on it, now. I've gone to classes and done other things, and now I am back having mulled it over. And I still don't like it. Oh, sure, like I said in the chat, I've no doubt I'll be able to get used to the changes, and I'm currently just playing Minato, who is nothing if not good with just going along with things. Not that the changes won't have any effect on him, but rather he is good at sucking it up and moving on. However, just because I'll be able to get used to things does not mean I'm happy about them. And here is why.
The primary reason I'm less than thrilled with these changes is that this is not the premise I signed up for. I signed up for having a character attend Hogwarts and possibly wind up helping in the fight against Voldemort. I signed up for a Hogwarts that was still being operated by the good guys, so to speak. I did not sign up for having a character pulled into a Hogwarts under a totalitarian regime with Voldemort having won and made the world a hell of a lot darker place. That there is still school to attend and slice-of-life to be had is irrelevant, because it's different. It's a world with a much darker tone and much less in the way of hope and possibility for victory. It's a world that makes things much, much grey-er in terms of the paths characters can take to try and find ways home. And any slice-of-life that goes in is always going to be under the dark, lingering knowledge that this is not how the world should be, rather than a slice-of-life where characters know that they're trapped but at least it's in a new and interesting world where their main concern is finding a way out rather than surviving a dark, gritty place where those who step out of line are severely punished.
I signed up for something that was more lighthearted than grimdark, and I was actually really excited and happy to get to play character in a Hogwarts setting and sort of -- see how characters'd fare in it. Yeah, okay, sure. Harry Potter gets pretty grimdark towards the end of things, and it's not like this premise didn't have room for there to be dark things. But you know what? I was fine with that, because the plot was not dominated by grimdark. The plot was dominated by the slice-of-life, lets play around in Hogwarts atmosphere. Sure, there are human rights considerations with keeping a bunch of people essentially cooped up on school grounds, but I mean, there is room to expand the world and open it up more without having to resort to a complete game-changer like this. Once characters had been there a certain amount of time or proved themselves reasonably acquainted enough with how things work in the HP world to not go wrecking havoc could get permission to take things outside of Hogwarts & Hogsmede, perhaps. Or there are other ways, too, that don't involve giving this dark, WWII-era feel to everything.
Another side-issue that also contributes to my dissatisfaction with these changes is my own future plans regarding magicdraft. There were two characters I was going to app over the next app round or two that I'm pretty sure I'm not going to, now, because I do not want to play them as I would have to in this new world.
The first one which most know about is Filch. Oh yes, provided he wasn't harassed about being a squib and was allowed to maintain his job, he'd be worlds of happy, because he'd be allowed to administer his corporal punishments. He'd be happy like he was happy with Umbrige. But a large part of the appeal in playing him, to me, was going to be getting to write out his complaining to students and describing things he could have done under a different headmaster. His respectfulness of most teachers coupled with his dissatisfaction with the limits of his job was something interesting to me that I was interested in writing and playing out. This, however, is... not really something I'm interested in playing out with him. It will be lacking much of the particular humor that made the idea of apping Filch appealing to me, because he won't have any reason to complain about not being able to use a cane or hang students by their ankles because he will be allowed to do those things. Oh sure, there will still be other humor with him, but without that particular aspect, he loses a lot of his appeal to me as a player.
The other character is Feanor, from The SIlmarillion. Since I first became aware of Magicdraft, I've actually been toying with the idea of Feanor in Hogwarts, because it would amuse me to have him be a teacher of making magical items, with a special focus on making magical stones. And from the canon point I intended to draw him from - namely before he started going off the deep end - the way he'd react in my eyes is to be irritated and furious with being trapped there but at the same time completely fascinated with this new world and how things work in it. Once he realized the potential of this place, he'd throw a lot of his energy into picking it apart and figuring out how it worked. However, under the new proposed premise, he would instead divert his energy to fighting, because Feanor has an intense rebellious streak in him that would really come out, as all the new things about the world would rub him the wrong way. Oh, sure, he'd still be poking at things and trying to find out how they worked, but his primary response would be 'oh hell no I am not putting up with this.' And then he wouldn't get to poke at things, because it doesn't matter if he can hold his own against a flock of balrogs for a while, he's not invincible, and he couldn't take on everyone and everything all at once. So he would lose what little freedom he had, and I can see where this would go. I can see what he'd do and where it would probably take him, but that's not the path I was wanting to app him for.
And then there is my current character, Minato. The great thing about Minato is that he is extremely flexible and can fit and make do in just about any scenario you can think of. This is because he is a silent protagonist, which really gives people playing him a lot of freedom to make minor adjustments. Also, he's just straight up easy-going and go-with-the-flow, so he's easy to just drop into places. And in thinking about it, I can already see multiple possible directions to take him in the new MD, and while they're not what I'd originally intended for him here, they might be fun and interesting to play out. And that's why I'm staying. Because I'm curious about where this will go, and I like the people of Magicdrafted too much to just leave without at least giving the new grimdark whatever a chance.
But I already know of at least two people with whom I have cr that are most likely going to drop with these changes. And that really saddens me. I'm going to miss the light-hearted CR with them. I'm going to miss their characters. And honestly? One of those people was one of the influential factors for me in going ahead and applying to MD. Sans her, I might still have found the comm and applied, but really, I discovered it through her. I don't know how many other people are going to drop with these changes, but I would not be surprised, given how they completely change the focus and feel of the game, if we had more than a couple. And honestly? If I were playing a different character who I could not just as easily write in a grimdark setting as in a light-hearted one, I might be tempted to, as well. Like I said, though, I'm going to give things a chance. See how it goes.
Because honestly? If these new things were a premise that was just handed to me, and I was asked, "Would you want to play in this game?" the answer would probably be yes. Because I have a fondness for stories like these. I'd still be a bit hesitant, because I mean, part of the fun in stories like these is the idea that maybe the main characters can turn things around and eventually overthrow the evil overlord and start building a new world. Sure, sometimes it doesn't work, but it's still -- a plot with a goal and direction.
And one thing that really, really concerns me with this is that there won't be room for that. That we won't be able to get characters together and make changes. That the game will stagnate on this grimdark, characters are truly powerless to change things state, and I just... no. That's hopeless, and part of what I love about writing characters and writing stories and playing video games and such is the ability to change things. I can't change all that much in the real world - I don't have that kind of power. But in role-playing, in writing stories, in playing video games, it's nice to pretend for a while that I can actually do something, even if it's actually the character doing things.
I realize change doesn't come easily in a state like that, and that if characters are going to try to go about making the world they're stuck living in a better place, then there will be casualties. There will be things they must overcome. There will be all sorts of things that must be done and it takes time to mount a real solid resistance and still more time, funds and manpower to pull off a rebellion successfully. I'm going to presume that the reason Dumbledore thrusts everyone forward in time is because he thinks that these magicdrafted will be the key to overturning Voldemort and letting the world take back its freedom. ... even if it's not like the magicdrafted have a real choice about being there and dealing with it and probably all would prefer to just go home.
And okay, I realize this is really rambling and not organized, so I'll just sum up here:
I am not happy with the changes coming down the line.
Reasons?
1) Not the premise I signed up for.
2) Losing CR with people who also are not happy and will drop.
3) Complete change of tone. Gone will be the light-hearted stuff that's going on now, because there will be all this dark stuff hanging over everyone.
4) I worry about the future of where the game will go. I worry that things will stagnate in grimdark and depressing, and there won't be a lot of hope. C'mon, I don't play games to get depressed and discouraged. The real world does that enough.
5) Josses the things I had planned on doing with characters and throws out my reasons for apping two other characters.
6) There are other ways you could have opened up the world and added more of a plot structure without completely changing the game.
... and yes, it is completely changing the game. Oh sure, there's still Hogwarts. There's still magic. It's still the world of Harry Potter, albeit AU. But -- the feel is totally and completely different, and while there still might be light-hearted threads here and there and while there's still slice-of-life going on, that's nowhere near the same as what there is now.
I will, however, deal with it and not drop.
Reasons?
1) If this were a game I was just introduced to with the dark premise, I might actually apply for it. It seems interesting.
2) Minato's not going to stop being fun to play in the new setting.
3) I'm actually really curious where everyone's going to go with this.
4) While I've written things in dark settings and while I've read a ton of books with dark settings like this, I've never actually RPed in one. New experiences.
5) I like the people I've met at Magicdraft too much to drop without giving it a shot.
6) I know the mods are really trying hard to make this a game they'd enjoy running and that they'd want to put the work in, and... I mean, they're the ones running the game. It's up to you guys what happens in the game, in the end, and if this is the direction you want to take it - especially since y'all aren't the original mod team who created the game - then so be it.
So... yeah. I'm totally open to discussing this as a whole. I just... wanted to get my current thoughts out.
The primary reason I'm less than thrilled with these changes is that this is not the premise I signed up for. I signed up for having a character attend Hogwarts and possibly wind up helping in the fight against Voldemort. I signed up for a Hogwarts that was still being operated by the good guys, so to speak. I did not sign up for having a character pulled into a Hogwarts under a totalitarian regime with Voldemort having won and made the world a hell of a lot darker place. That there is still school to attend and slice-of-life to be had is irrelevant, because it's different. It's a world with a much darker tone and much less in the way of hope and possibility for victory. It's a world that makes things much, much grey-er in terms of the paths characters can take to try and find ways home. And any slice-of-life that goes in is always going to be under the dark, lingering knowledge that this is not how the world should be, rather than a slice-of-life where characters know that they're trapped but at least it's in a new and interesting world where their main concern is finding a way out rather than surviving a dark, gritty place where those who step out of line are severely punished.
I signed up for something that was more lighthearted than grimdark, and I was actually really excited and happy to get to play character in a Hogwarts setting and sort of -- see how characters'd fare in it. Yeah, okay, sure. Harry Potter gets pretty grimdark towards the end of things, and it's not like this premise didn't have room for there to be dark things. But you know what? I was fine with that, because the plot was not dominated by grimdark. The plot was dominated by the slice-of-life, lets play around in Hogwarts atmosphere. Sure, there are human rights considerations with keeping a bunch of people essentially cooped up on school grounds, but I mean, there is room to expand the world and open it up more without having to resort to a complete game-changer like this. Once characters had been there a certain amount of time or proved themselves reasonably acquainted enough with how things work in the HP world to not go wrecking havoc could get permission to take things outside of Hogwarts & Hogsmede, perhaps. Or there are other ways, too, that don't involve giving this dark, WWII-era feel to everything.
Another side-issue that also contributes to my dissatisfaction with these changes is my own future plans regarding magicdraft. There were two characters I was going to app over the next app round or two that I'm pretty sure I'm not going to, now, because I do not want to play them as I would have to in this new world.
The first one which most know about is Filch. Oh yes, provided he wasn't harassed about being a squib and was allowed to maintain his job, he'd be worlds of happy, because he'd be allowed to administer his corporal punishments. He'd be happy like he was happy with Umbrige. But a large part of the appeal in playing him, to me, was going to be getting to write out his complaining to students and describing things he could have done under a different headmaster. His respectfulness of most teachers coupled with his dissatisfaction with the limits of his job was something interesting to me that I was interested in writing and playing out. This, however, is... not really something I'm interested in playing out with him. It will be lacking much of the particular humor that made the idea of apping Filch appealing to me, because he won't have any reason to complain about not being able to use a cane or hang students by their ankles because he will be allowed to do those things. Oh sure, there will still be other humor with him, but without that particular aspect, he loses a lot of his appeal to me as a player.
The other character is Feanor, from The SIlmarillion. Since I first became aware of Magicdraft, I've actually been toying with the idea of Feanor in Hogwarts, because it would amuse me to have him be a teacher of making magical items, with a special focus on making magical stones. And from the canon point I intended to draw him from - namely before he started going off the deep end - the way he'd react in my eyes is to be irritated and furious with being trapped there but at the same time completely fascinated with this new world and how things work in it. Once he realized the potential of this place, he'd throw a lot of his energy into picking it apart and figuring out how it worked. However, under the new proposed premise, he would instead divert his energy to fighting, because Feanor has an intense rebellious streak in him that would really come out, as all the new things about the world would rub him the wrong way. Oh, sure, he'd still be poking at things and trying to find out how they worked, but his primary response would be 'oh hell no I am not putting up with this.' And then he wouldn't get to poke at things, because it doesn't matter if he can hold his own against a flock of balrogs for a while, he's not invincible, and he couldn't take on everyone and everything all at once. So he would lose what little freedom he had, and I can see where this would go. I can see what he'd do and where it would probably take him, but that's not the path I was wanting to app him for.
And then there is my current character, Minato. The great thing about Minato is that he is extremely flexible and can fit and make do in just about any scenario you can think of. This is because he is a silent protagonist, which really gives people playing him a lot of freedom to make minor adjustments. Also, he's just straight up easy-going and go-with-the-flow, so he's easy to just drop into places. And in thinking about it, I can already see multiple possible directions to take him in the new MD, and while they're not what I'd originally intended for him here, they might be fun and interesting to play out. And that's why I'm staying. Because I'm curious about where this will go, and I like the people of Magicdrafted too much to just leave without at least giving the new grimdark whatever a chance.
But I already know of at least two people with whom I have cr that are most likely going to drop with these changes. And that really saddens me. I'm going to miss the light-hearted CR with them. I'm going to miss their characters. And honestly? One of those people was one of the influential factors for me in going ahead and applying to MD. Sans her, I might still have found the comm and applied, but really, I discovered it through her. I don't know how many other people are going to drop with these changes, but I would not be surprised, given how they completely change the focus and feel of the game, if we had more than a couple. And honestly? If I were playing a different character who I could not just as easily write in a grimdark setting as in a light-hearted one, I might be tempted to, as well. Like I said, though, I'm going to give things a chance. See how it goes.
Because honestly? If these new things were a premise that was just handed to me, and I was asked, "Would you want to play in this game?" the answer would probably be yes. Because I have a fondness for stories like these. I'd still be a bit hesitant, because I mean, part of the fun in stories like these is the idea that maybe the main characters can turn things around and eventually overthrow the evil overlord and start building a new world. Sure, sometimes it doesn't work, but it's still -- a plot with a goal and direction.
And one thing that really, really concerns me with this is that there won't be room for that. That we won't be able to get characters together and make changes. That the game will stagnate on this grimdark, characters are truly powerless to change things state, and I just... no. That's hopeless, and part of what I love about writing characters and writing stories and playing video games and such is the ability to change things. I can't change all that much in the real world - I don't have that kind of power. But in role-playing, in writing stories, in playing video games, it's nice to pretend for a while that I can actually do something, even if it's actually the character doing things.
I realize change doesn't come easily in a state like that, and that if characters are going to try to go about making the world they're stuck living in a better place, then there will be casualties. There will be things they must overcome. There will be all sorts of things that must be done and it takes time to mount a real solid resistance and still more time, funds and manpower to pull off a rebellion successfully. I'm going to presume that the reason Dumbledore thrusts everyone forward in time is because he thinks that these magicdrafted will be the key to overturning Voldemort and letting the world take back its freedom. ... even if it's not like the magicdrafted have a real choice about being there and dealing with it and probably all would prefer to just go home.
And okay, I realize this is really rambling and not organized, so I'll just sum up here:
I am not happy with the changes coming down the line.
Reasons?
1) Not the premise I signed up for.
2) Losing CR with people who also are not happy and will drop.
3) Complete change of tone. Gone will be the light-hearted stuff that's going on now, because there will be all this dark stuff hanging over everyone.
4) I worry about the future of where the game will go. I worry that things will stagnate in grimdark and depressing, and there won't be a lot of hope. C'mon, I don't play games to get depressed and discouraged. The real world does that enough.
5) Josses the things I had planned on doing with characters and throws out my reasons for apping two other characters.
6) There are other ways you could have opened up the world and added more of a plot structure without completely changing the game.
... and yes, it is completely changing the game. Oh sure, there's still Hogwarts. There's still magic. It's still the world of Harry Potter, albeit AU. But -- the feel is totally and completely different, and while there still might be light-hearted threads here and there and while there's still slice-of-life going on, that's nowhere near the same as what there is now.
I will, however, deal with it and not drop.
Reasons?
1) If this were a game I was just introduced to with the dark premise, I might actually apply for it. It seems interesting.
2) Minato's not going to stop being fun to play in the new setting.
3) I'm actually really curious where everyone's going to go with this.
4) While I've written things in dark settings and while I've read a ton of books with dark settings like this, I've never actually RPed in one. New experiences.
5) I like the people I've met at Magicdraft too much to drop without giving it a shot.
6) I know the mods are really trying hard to make this a game they'd enjoy running and that they'd want to put the work in, and... I mean, they're the ones running the game. It's up to you guys what happens in the game, in the end, and if this is the direction you want to take it - especially since y'all aren't the original mod team who created the game - then so be it.
So... yeah. I'm totally open to discussing this as a whole. I just... wanted to get my current thoughts out.