At 02:21 PM 4/13/98 -0400, Greg Lindahl wrote:
>> Greg,
>
>My name in the game is Oleg. Please learn to use character names; that
>enhances this role-playing game for everyone.
>
Well, I've really found this whole Azrian discussion quite tedious, but,
even though this may anger some, I had to comment on something...
I think you're laboring under a misconception here, Greg. Namely, this is
not a roleplaying game. It's a wargame, and roleplaying is optional (and
not particulary wanted by me, though I am but one player). So, if I deal
with you in this game (and it hasn't happened yet, and possably never
will), I'm going to refer to you as 'Greg', because that's who I'd be
dealing with, not some fictional being known as 'Oleg'. Well, OK, I might
make concede this a bit if I wanted to be polite, but that depends on the
situation. And I'd much prefer players referring to me (if they have
occassion to do so) to call me 'Brian', or by the name of my faction, and
not by the name of any of my characters. After all, my characters are just
a collection of database fields that serve my ends (to do well in this
game, and have some fun) through the order interface, and I am not any of
them.
Yes, if someone feels the need to insult a faction, they should make clear
it's the faction they're insulting, and not the player. But, even then, I
see no need to use character names (using the faction name does well
enough). Personally, on the few occassions I've gotten 'in character'
messages in this type of game, I've found it somewhat irritating, but if
I've never dealt with the other player before, I'll let it pass. Anyways,
the point being, I don't roleplay. I don't want to roleplay. And, yes, it
could be that I'm alone in this feeling in this game, but you did say
'everyone'.
So, if you want to call yourself 'Oleg', whatever. But don't expect
everyone else to do so.
Brian Enright