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Would questions about Aye Dark Overlord be on topic?

It's certainly role-playing, but it's more method acting than dice rolling.

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We don't want to exclude story games, diceless games, or non-traditional RPGs do we? I've never played Aye Dark Overlord, but It seems like a card-drive RPG to me, albeit one I have pretty much no interest in.

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    \$\begingroup\$ From this review it sounds like a gateway RPG disguised as a card game. I think this is a weird border case which should not set a precedent from its superficial card-game-y-ness, but should be on-topic. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Oct 15, 2010 at 18:37
  • \$\begingroup\$ Border cases are fine. \$\endgroup\$
    – mxyzplk Mod
    Commented Oct 16, 2010 at 17:36
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I think that if something has any RP elements in it, it counts. So we take diceless, LARP, stupidly complex board games, war games that allow control of individuals, etc. RPG is such a broad term.

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    \$\begingroup\$ Sorry, Brian, but I disagree. The parent site's FAQ explicitly defines this as an area for tabletop, pen-and-paper RPGs. So, that would exclude LARPs and board games. \$\endgroup\$
    – Iszi
    Commented Oct 15, 2010 at 4:47
  • \$\begingroup\$ Board games certainly, but board games with RP elements (castle ravenloft being one of the best exemplars of grey area) could have questions that impact here. LARPs, on the other hand /are/ pencil and paper role playing games. They merely move the timing of the table. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Oct 15, 2010 at 5:19
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    \$\begingroup\$ Castle Ravenloft has been tested and rejected ( so far… ). Also, I wouldn't judge Pit an RPG, even though it relies almost exclusively on social interaction rather than mechanics. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Oct 15, 2010 at 18:41
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    \$\begingroup\$ For new users, the main discussion of what is on-topic and what is off-topic is here. It's not set in stone (rather in highly-mutable magnetic storage), so go poke it with a stick! \$\endgroup\$ Commented Oct 15, 2010 at 18:45
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As the site is currently defined, I believe this would be off-topic. The game, from what I've researched of it, appears to be a card game and does not really fit in with other RPGs.

Particularly, this site's FAQ specifies that it is meant for pen-and-paper tabletop RPGs. See the quote below.

Role-playing Games Stack Exchange is for players and gamemasters of tabletop role-playing games. If you play or run Dungeons & Dragons, Shadowrun, World of Darkness, or any of the thousands of other pen-and-paper RPGs, then you're in the right place to ask your question!

https://rpg.stackexchange.com/faq

So, unless we want to broaden the scope of our site definition, and update the FAQ accordingly, "Aye, Dark Overlord!" would not fit in here.

Other, notable differences from commonly-recognized RPGs (specifically D&D, but I'm sure this applies to many others):

  • No persistent characters/world - Every session is a one-off.
  • No character creation/generation. (In part due to bullet #1.)
  • No unique background story, or much room to make one - Every session follows identical theme and play.
  • No actual "world" involved - Games take place in a single room, the Overlord's lair.

Perhaps the "pen-and-paper" stipulation mentioned above may be removed or modified (see this thread for discussion), but even if that were not an issue, Aye! Dark Overlord still does not IMHO qualify as an RPG for the purposes of this board.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ A strict reading of that would exclude Everway too, which is uncontroversially counted as an RPG. \$\endgroup\$ Commented Oct 15, 2010 at 18:38
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    \$\begingroup\$ Aye Dark Overlord tells you what you have to play. It's storytelling, but it's far less of an RPG than Battlestations, Everway or Car Wars... You have no defined character. You have only the cards that you have to thump other players with, and the ones that you pick from to "make your excuse." And it's not (usually) terribly interactive between players... \$\endgroup\$
    – aramis
    Commented Oct 19, 2010 at 8:04
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    \$\begingroup\$ If edge cases and experimental games that deliberately push the boundaries of the form are OK, I don't see why this would be excluded. You absolutely have defined characters (the Overlord's cringing minions), a built-in situation, it is totally a game where you play a role. Everything beyond that is doctrinaire semantics. \$\endgroup\$
    – Jmstar
    Commented Oct 19, 2010 at 14:51

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