Solo RPGs
A Solo RolePlay Game sounds like
an oxymoron. RolePlay games (not the computer simulations of a vaguely
Tolkien-esque warriors whacking elves and orcs with swords) could probably be
best described as collaborative improvisational fiction. They frequently use
funny-shaped dice, sometimes small figurines, and they almost always use rules.
(Sometimes many MANY rules.) The idea of a solo RPG just sounds ludicrous.
Defenders often suggest that one should just consider it as a form of a writing
exercise. I can see that, except that I've never cared for writing exercises. While
they can sometimes get the juices flowing, they rarely (if ever?) produce
anything I'd actually want to read. Besides, I have my own system for writing novels.
I
successfully did NaNoWriMo 9 1/2 years in a row. I've finished at least 6
full-length novels and have numerous others in various states of completion.
I've most likely written around a million words, writing exercises seem like
wasted effort... except... the more I read about solo RPGs, the more interested I've
become.
It began with a rare but crippling bout of writer's block following some
serious PTSD. Since then, I've been stuck on a novel titled The Awakened which
I've occasionally described as:
Imagine if the Light and Dark sides of the Force were semi-sentient pan-dimensional life forces engaged in a proxy war where they recruit combatants by infecting them, granting them amazing powers which enevitably destroy their warriors.I'm excited and committed to this story, but I can't seem to get my hands around it. There's too much to grip. Conceived as a tight third-person POV, I may have to broaden it. After listening to the audiobooks of JC (Wildbow) McCrae's serialized novels Worm and Ward and Twig, I've considered doing something much the same. But I've got to write it first.
So why Solo RPGs?
Thinking back to when all we had in the RPG field was the basic D&D box set and the Advanced books, we spent a lot of time planning games that didn't always get played due to lack of players. The Lone-wolf books sometimes helped fill the void and, where it didn't, we'd use the random dungeon generator in the back of the DMG, a TRS80 Microcomputer, a little BASIC knowledge and create our own procedurally generated adventures much like the later Wizardry games.
In some sense, Solo RPGs feel a little like we've come full circle. If nothing else it feels a little more like venturing out into the unknown rather than re-treading the same ground over and over again. Scrolling through forums and reading about yet another Tolkien-esque/D&D clone game session makes me shudder. And while real magic can happen around a table of 4 or 5 other players, it's harder to escape cliches when others are involved, and no story generated by a committee is ever worth reading.
Also, I like procedurally generated things. I'm fascinated by the phenomenon of emergent complexity--surprising complex behaviors generated by simple rules --and lately I've been reading a lot about human cognition and various approaches to behavioral simulation like MircoPsi and OpenPsi
I'm also fascinated by the mechanics of how stories work. And while I wasn't looking, the indie RPG community has made great strides catching up to some advanced narrative theory, while the Solo RPG community has come up with some really interesting tools that can at least suggest some of the procedural approaches used elsewhere.
Perhaps Solo RPGs are simply a thing whose time has come, or perhaps I'm just distracting myself from the real job of writing, or maybe I'll find a way out of this inexplicable creative blockage. Either way, I'm assembling my tools and preparing to experiment. We'll see what happens.
