View Topic

Since we're trying to get a game going, I thought it'd be a good time to have some Werewolf discussion.

It's no secret that Werewolf is a big time and energy investment, especially when playing on a forum. Games can last weeks, and can involve hundreds of posts a day. So what makes you want to play? What makes you excited for new games, and makes the games fun for you while you play? What's fun about it for you?

Curious to see what people's feelings are!

This is a nice question that deserves at least once answer, so I shall provide one.

When I play Mafia (Werewolf), I am typically pursuing at least one of the following three objectives:

1) Scratch the puzzle-solving itch that is uniquely sated by the forum version of this game, given the healthy amount of time available and the teamwork that is made possible by the game's unique social elements.

2) Maintain and sustain the vibrance of Mafia as an Internet community. I am an administrator for a dedicated Mafia website, and I am loosely associated with the championship tournament on MU. I have been playing for a very long time. More than the game itself, I appreciate the communal character of Mafia culture. People from all over the place can become acquainted in a trial by fire, and really neat relationships can be forged in that environment. It's worth celebrating and holding onto.

3) To show what the Internet itself can be if people just let it. Mafia can sometimes, by nature of its conflict-driven structure, have a way of bringing out the worst in us. We forget ourselves, and we forget that our teammates and opponents alike are human beings with flaws, feelings, and talents. So I set out to make Mafia something else, at least as much as I can, because it doesn't have to be that way. Through the veils of anonymity and competition we may still breed a culture of respect and admiration, something that the game of Mafia and the entire Internet at large need more of. I try to be the change I want to see in the world, I suppose.

I should answer this when my brain is more... clear and I can think better

@JaggedJimmyJay: That is a really thoughtful answer.

I guess being a more casual player who mostly plays with friends, I never stopped to think that it could foster friendship and community on its own. It's just something Wintreath has always offered for fun, like we offer many other things. But your third answer resonates a lot with what Wintreath is, too...we come from an online game that has a tendency to bring out the worst in people, a nation simulator called NationStates. And we have a stated purpose of building a cooperative community of friends...I'll admit, there have been times where we've failed in those ideals, but we continue to strive for. To me, Wintreath should be an example of what the internet could be...the same sort of respect and admiration and even caring.

You've given me a new perspective on Werewolf's potential role in Wintreath.

I'm a huge fan of forums in general. I came of age on the internet in the time of InvisionFree and other services where just about everything had a forum. But it's hard to keep a forum active these days. Most NationStates communities don't even use them anymore in favor of Discord. And forum Werewolf is about the same...I was just talking to someone about how another NationStates region, 10000 Islands, used to always have Werewolf games on their forums too, but not anymore. I hear even most Werewolf games in most NS communities are done through Discord...games that can be played in an hour or two. I can't imagine it's the same as forum Werewolf though. =/

@JaggedJimmyJay: That is a really thoughtful answer.

I guess being a more casual player who mostly plays with friends, I never stopped to think that it could foster friendship and community on its own. It's just something Wintreath has always offered for fun, like we offer many other things. But your third answer resonates a lot with what Wintreath is, too...we come from an online game that has a tendency to bring out the worst in people, a nation simulator called NationStates. And we have a stated purpose of building a cooperative community of friends...I'll admit, there have been times where we've failed in those ideals, but we continue to strive for. To me, Wintreath should be an example of what the internet could be...the same sort of respect and admiration and even caring.

You've given me a new perspective on Werewolf's potential role in Wintreath.

I'm a huge fan of forums in general. I came of age on the internet in the time of InvisionFree and other services where just about everything had a forum. But it's hard to keep a forum active these days. Most NationStates communities don't even use them anymore in favor of Discord. And forum Werewolf is about the same...I was just talking to someone about how another NationStates region, 10000 Islands, used to always have Werewolf games on their forums too, but not anymore. I hear even most Werewolf games in most NS communities are done through Discord...games that can be played in an hour or two. I can't imagine it's the same as forum Werewolf though. =/

Green: You're well on your way simply for setting your ambitions toward the right goals. While it will never be perfect, a community that makes it explicit that caring for one another is valued will care for one another more than a community that does not. I firmly believe that. Keep building that culture, and take pride in your people that help build it with you.

Orange: I understand. I joined my first message board forum in 2005, and forums have been a part of my life ever since. I had come to take them for granted as a sort of permanent object in the Internet landscape, and we're seeing now that this is not necessarily so. It's just the truth that forums are not as popular as they once were. For most Internet functions, this forum technology and interface has become more or less obsolete. Social media and efficient chat software have all but eliminated any need for an online "bulletin board". However, I don't think that necessarily has to spell doom for forum Mafia. It may change, and it may never quite boast the active population that it once did, but as long as people like you and I exist there is a market for this game in this setting. One way that I try to sustain the vibrance of forum mafia is to play the game in a way that really emphasizes the unique capacities offered in the forum environment. Indeed, the way I've color-coded this post is an example of that! Anything that offers text-based communication can function for Mafia, but not anything can do so in a manner that facilitates deep, thorough assessment almost as a science in the way that a forum can (or at the pace a forum allows). And let's face it: this is perhaps a nerdy application of the game. Where there are nerds, there may be forum Mafia. My best guess tells me that nerds aren't going anywhere for a while.

Green: You're well on your way simply for setting your ambitions toward the right goals. While it will never be perfect, a community that makes it explicit that caring for one another is valued will care for one another more than a community that does not. I firmly believe that. Keep building that culture, and take pride in your people that help build it with you.

Orange: I understand. I joined my first message board forum in 2005, and forums have been a part of my life ever since. I had come to take them for granted as a sort of permanent object in the Internet landscape, and we're seeing now that this is not necessarily so. It's just the truth that forums are not as popular as they once were. For most Internet functions, this forum technology and interface has become more or less obsolete. Social media and efficient chat software have all but eliminated any need for an online "bulletin board". However, I don't think that necessarily has to spell doom for forum Mafia. It may change, and it may never quite boast the active population that it once did, but as long as people like you and I exist there is a market for this game in this setting. One way that I try to sustain the vibrance of forum mafia is to play the game in a way that really emphasizes the unique capacities offered in the forum environment. Indeed, the way I've color-coded this post is an example of that! Anything that offers text-based communication can function for Mafia, but not anything can do so in a manner that facilitates deep, thorough assessment almost as a science in the way that a forum can (or at the pace a forum allows). And let's face it: this is perhaps a nerdy application of the game. Where there are nerds, there may be forum Mafia. My best guess tells me that nerds aren't going anywhere for a while.

You're right, and I feel like Wintreath has always been a special community for it. At the same time though, I've learned the hard way that it's not that simple either. We've had periods of conflict in the community, like any other I suppose...cases where we were all well-meaning but failed to care for people in the way that was needed, and those have been some pretty painful lessons to learn. Because of that we're kinda rebuilding Wintreath even now...but we're building it back better for it.

I don't know...I still think there's something to be said for forums. I still like being able to reply to posts in my own time, and stop and think about what I'm posting before I do so. There's a sort of mindfulness in it...something that seems to be lacking in Discord chat. But you're probably right when it comes to Mafia...even if there aren't as many people as there used to be, it'll still exist somewhere. And the fact is, for the last few years most of Wintreath's posts have been Werewolf games. It would be a good opportunity to get new players too, since we get people coming in for something else but they might end up wanting to give this a try.

I enjoy your colour-coding, by the way...I've never seen anyone do that before.