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Player used Me First

Junier

Junier

Fake Friends Forever (´･ω･`)
    • 1,074
    Posts
    9
    Years
    • Seen Dec 5, 2019
    What are your thoughts, concerns, etc. regarding making reservations for a roleplay?

    I'm personally not fond of placing them because I feel it's ultimately unfair to those who didn't made an immediate decision to sign up. Everyone should be given time to decide, especially if they'll be expected to stay active in a roleplay they felt obligated to rashly apply for before all the given spots were yanked out from under their nose. Not to mention, a reserve does not guarantee an application will follow immediately afterwards and it seems nothing short of frustrating as a game master to have to sit around waiting for that last reserved person to finally get around to finishing up.

    Applications should be posted in a finalized state as to not waste time; that's my opinion. You may as well disagree. State your beliefs below.​
     
    I'm of the mind that "competition breeds innovation". Communication and cooperation follow along, altogether providing a reliable basis for improvement at all times.

    I like expressing interest. I don't like reservations, and I don't like posting works-in-progress. The only exception is when that progress is sufficient for review, and you can have that taken care of in private. For example, when a character's history or personality are complete before other sections, being able to check for consistency (both in itself and in the RP's universe) is worth sending it if you aren't (or don't need to be) asking questions in advance. This adds up to less overall hassle, regardless of how many edits you may have to make in the short term.

    Reservations discourage competition for slots with limited availability, and I feel this method is almost guaranteed to reduce the quality of the final product, this concept of exclusivity causing only stagnation for the applicant. The one who reserves has no pressure whatsoever to deliver besides maybe a deadline. This can be seen all over the place in the technological world's monopolies and oligarchies (e.g. telecoms and ISPs), and it doesn't only apply on that macro scale; it affects personal growth, too.

    If, in the end, a non-reservational approach means that some players' characters-in-the-making?or even a finished character that might need further alteration?will get binned, then so be it. Their effort created a need for the accepted player to excel; and the pressure of another player's character being accepted over theirs drove them to create something better, as well.

    tl;dr Reservations make people lazy.
     
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    Personally, I don't like to make reservations. If I'm interested in joining, and there's an open spot, I'll crank out an SU and post it when it's done. It encourages me to quickly and succinctly sum up my character, so people can easily see what they're like.

    Of course, one downside to this is that my SU's are pretty devoid of ornamentation, and if there are limited options (like starters, titles, or entire chatacters) and someone posts and SU or reserve for that option, I sometimes have to go back and change that aspect of my SU, resulting in rapid improvising and a drastically different character.

    Admittedly, it doesn't usually cause problems, but I elect not to reserve spots, and get a little sore when someone else does and takes my spot while I was busy making a whole SU.
     
    I don't entirely like to make reservations, but I usually have to because otherwise someone will reserve my spot. In my RP, I don't do reservations unless the person can show me a completed application and it needs a bit of work; then, and only then, I reserve the spot for them so that they can fix what needs to be fixed. I'm not a fan of reservations, but they can be pretty useful if you do them right.
     
    I think of It like reserving a spot close to the front of the ooc, not an actual spot.
     
    I never understood reservations for RPs.

    Heck, I didn't even realize it was an option (at least, initially it was) in the RP I was joining and was just planning to write an application before all the spots get filled up. I mean, I never used them before so I don't think I'll ever start now.
     
    It's funny. Months ago reservations were being posted all over the place, which sparked my personal animosity towards them, but nowadays I'm seeing more roleplays ban then and more people speak out against them. I guess that's one trend that's dying out here.

    I don't see the productivity of taking a spot on the first page of a thread. I can see how using reservations to allow those pending applications a chance to right themselves is fair. I can also understand how competition can lead to a drive to create the best character that a person can. Of course, that relies entirely on the individual. Some people do not work well under stress.

    Ultimately, I think the urge to reserve stems from one of three things: a feeling of paranoia that people will snatch a spot before you can get to it, a feeling of self-consciousness?you don't think you have what it takes to "compete" against others for a spot or a feeling of indolence, because you've essentially secured yourself a place among the roster and thus can afford to put things off or work at whatever pace you wish.

    I think a game master themselves can only "limit" that first feeling while the two others stem, again, from the individual. I know I can certainly sympathize with all three. However, I don't see any of them as good reasons for making a reservation. As I noted before, I consider them a way of driving people off.​
     
    • Like
    Reactions: Ech
    At the same time, if a hyped up RP gets posted when you are asleep, and you wake up to find that the GM is already satisfied, that's a bummer ); but that can be helped by the GM at least letting potential players know a minimum time they have to make applications before they start accepting. Not a max limit after which everything is said and done, but just "hey, I won't look at applications before sunday, just so you know. Take your time!"
     
    I would say I too try not to make reservations, though I definitely have in the past, but try to express an interest, more as a way to remind me that I like the RP and would like to be in it if possible. If i don't do that I typically end up forgetting about due to other events or IRL things. I'm also of the mind of trying to post almost, if not fully, completed SUs so as not to keep the RP from stalling out before it ever begins.
     
    Im sure ive done it, but If I dont finish the su within an hour I generally dont decide to join.
     
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