More about metagaming
Jul 27th, 2008 by Eve
If you’ve roleplayed for any length of time, at some point, no matter how perfect you are, you’re going to make an IC reference to something which your character has no way of knowing. It could be something you read in a forum post. It could be something you observed in live RP while playing another character. It could be something sent to a public chat room in a whisper which your character wasn’t really close enough to hear. It could even be a deliberate reference made in an attempt to start a new story.
This is metagaming. And knowing that it is inevitable, I don’t mind if someone metagames using something I’ve written – with certain caveats:
- Get it right. No matter how detailed, chat logs, profiles, wiki entries and posts do not tell you everything there is to know about a situation. If you’re not sure you understand what you’ve read, ask before you screw things up by acting on an incorrect assumption.
- Have a reasonable explanation. At the time you put your metagamed information into play, show how your character came by that information – and understand that I get to decide if your explanation is reasonable or not.
- Respect my character. Don’t attempt to use metagamed information to force some non-consensual adverse roleplay on me. If you’re attempting to use that information to threaten, control, incapacitate, imprison, or kill off my character, I’m not likely to go along with it.
I’ve been burned on all three of those. Allowing deliberately metagamed information into play did further some scenes and character development, but ultimately I ended up making compromises I wasn’t happy about. It was a learning experience.
I find that the longer I’ve been roleplaying with the same people in the same environment, the harder it is for me to keep from metagaming.
If you’re someone who is very conscientious about avoiding metagaming, what are your tips for keeping what you’ve read separate and distinct from your character?
I try not to meta game. I really do, but I believe Panther said it and a few others have to–where there are acceptable slip ups that can happen between two/three/group of trusted role players that aren’t such a big no no.
Generally, having a really, really poor memory helps me from using anything I’ve read in play. Also, I use the system above–if there’s no logic reason for my character knowing whatever it is I am reading/without player permission? There’s just no way my character would know.
If there’s a situation where I think I may be tempted to metagame, like if someone wants to reveal some stuff OOCly but not ICly, I’ll just tell them not to tell me, because I can’t guarantee that I won’t play with it.
I do metagame a bit in that if I see through something written outside of live RP (on a forum, or logs, for instance)that someone is playing something I don’t care for, I’ll keep my character away from them… I mean, my character wouldn’t know to stay away from them, it’s me putting my own OOC dislike of something out there.
I’ll be posting about something of this nature soon, but I will say this: Sometimes, by sheer accident, metagaming happens–and usually, when it does, I ping someone with an IM, and try to correct them. Because everyone makes mistakes.
But I have, on several occasions, had people SEEMINGLY metagame, and then turn around with an excuse for it.
One such example was someone saying, ICly, that they had ‘information and informants’ about my character, and then turned around and said, “Oh, she was just lying”. and aslkflkdj AUGH. That, to me…is unacceptable. I mean, if you want to do that, could I at least get a warning first? ::Rip hair out.::