What is your view on RP or ERP and why is it so taboo within the community?

[TouchandFeel]

I have no problem with RPing for the most part, it can be very fun and add to the immersion of this or other games.

ERP is not my thing but I don't really care if others do it.

However there are a few things that I have personally encountered multiple times that makes me not always look favorably on portions of the RP community.

First are the people that try to force or engage others in their RP or ERP wantonly , often to the detriment of others' experience. There are the people who randomly try to elicit "sexual" interactions between their character and yours. There are the people who join groups of random other players who did not consent to RPing and then hinder those people's experience, for example I had a person in a DF dungeon once that role-played an "explorer" so they would constantly stop and slowly walk around rooms doing inspect and lookout emotes because they were "looking for hidden treasure and secret passages" even though they knew there weren't any.
These people are very rare and a small part of the RP community, but they leave quite an impact when you run into them.

Second, there is a lot of bad and incredibly unimaginative rp out there, the kind that would make a tween fan-fic live journal seem like Shakespeare. These are the rp'ers that have created backgrounds and personas for their characters that are overt rip-offs of other pop culture IP's, like various Anime, and are utterly lore breaking. These are the Naruto Targaryens, the orphaned love-child of a fox spirit and a dragon born in the form of a cat-person. Okay, I may be over exaggerating a bit, but honestly not by much.

Lastly, there are those that RP that equate playing a role as being extremely theatrical and overly dramatic in their rendition. They lack subtly and artistry to their implementation and instead strut about as if on a stage overacting even the simplest of things as if they need to make sure that everyone knows they are RPing. If you are constantly announcing yourself and your actions in overly flowery prose of questionable quality, you don't come off as an integrated and believable part of the world, you come off as a loud fool that actually is breaking the serenity and immersion of those around you.

While these critiques are undeniably harsh, we all must keep in mind that those that perpetrate such things are a very, very small part of the RP community. However they are by far the most visible and memorable members because well done RP flies under the radar, making it seem like more of the community is like this than is actually the case.

In a ways, this is very much the same as the negative outlooks on other groups within the community, such as the "hardcore" players, the "speedruners", the "casual" players, etc. People let the few bad apples determine their perception of the group as a whole and then they let this ill-conceived perception paint their interactions with anyone they determine to be of that group.

In the end I just compartmentalize the groups into RPers (the quiet majority), which I have no problem with, and bad RPers (the loud minority), which I prefer to avoid as much as possible.

[Rymm]

First...

Second...

Lastly...

If you want in on a secret... most of us RPers don't really like the people who do these things either.

[Elladie]

I've encountered RP-ers in dungeons only once or twice; luckily for me they could spell, clearly had great imaginations, and were hilarious. I remember those few runs very fondly. They inspired the rest of us to join in, and we all had a blast, so there was no griefing about the duty taking too long. I can sympathise though if the RP element interferes with gameplay; dungeons aren't the place to take your Sylvie WHM (though that's a whole other can of worms)

RP done well is very entertaining. I don't RP myself - I don't have the self confidence - or not in FFXIV though I do play DnD in a game that's pretty RP based and it is huge fun. I'm a writer so my character does have a vast and intricate backstory that goes all the way back to pre-Calamity days but I wouldn't feel comfortable expressing any of that in an IC way. But if I encounter RP in /say and it's well done, I'll hang around to enjoy it. Bad RP I walk away, I wouldn't dream of reporting anyone for being bad at typing/writing in cliches/having a mediocre imagination

ERP though? Ewwww no thanks. Keep it to yourselves please. And if you don't, yeah I'll report you

[Rysir]

I dont mind RPers but the ones that run up to me then just start RPing at me and/or follow me to keep trying to get me to RP with them then they will be told to kindly go eat shit. Hate the ones that dont even ask if a person is into RP before laying down their 5 minute long backstory.

[Aylis]

I dont mind RPers but the ones that run up to me then just start RPing at me and/or follow me to keep trying to get me to RP with them then they will be told to kindly go eat shit. Hate the ones that dont even ask if a person is into RP before laying down their 5 minute long backstory.

That's one of the things I feel is what causes people to view rp in a negative light. Believe it or not RP much like everything else in game has its own set of do's and don'ts, its own set of rules and a settled on form of etiquette when dealing with non rp'ers. The ones you just described are what would be considered "green" rp'ers. People generally new to rp. They broke a rule and I'll be the first to admit I broke the same rule when starting out "don't assume everyone you meet is an rp'er" one good example in one of the new to rp guides I read stated "In real life you wouldn't run up to a stranger in a subway station to blab your entire life story and problems to. Don't do it in game unless you're clear they want to talk to you." Really the best way to handle green rp'ers is to suggest they look at the Etiquette Guide to RP and leave it at that.

Ice mages and bards that sing off tune in DF could be also green rp'ers. However they can also be another reason why people view rp'ers negatively. While both are valid as a character in terms of quirks and flaws and dungeon exploring can be a valid platform for rp there are some players that do use rp as a form of immortality shield because they know SE wont take action against rp players, as an excuse to troll. This is also another major rule break in terms of the etiquette guide about bringing outsiders into rp when they may not want to be there. Experienced rp'ers know that if a dungeon is required to build a plot and if they need someone to fill a role out of character they'll ask friends who understand the terms of the dungeon and ones that understand rp so nothing will be taken the wrong way. The best way to learn if they're legitimate green rp'ers or trolls is again to bring up the RP Etiquette Guide. If they understand they made a whoops and broke a rule then all is okay and hopefully they won't do it again. If they keep at it then you may have a valid chat log to file a harassment report at the least.

[missybee]

RP in general is cringe, and ERP is cringe overdrive.

Whatever though - as long as I don't have to see it, it doesn't really bother me (which is why I never play my Balmung alt, RIP).

[Lauront]

RP in general is cringe, and ERP is cringe overdrive.

Whatever though - as long as I don't have to see it, it doesn't really bother me (which is why I never play my Balmung alt, RIP).

I mean most people consider MMOs to be "cringe" in and of themselves, and this is certainly the view held even amongst casual gamers. Hell, they find most games which aren't CoD, CS or Overwatch to be cringe. So your views on this are what the average person sees the MMO player as.

As for ERP, it's just a form of porn, where the person controls how their fantasies play out. Rarely, it's character progression. The amount of people who tune into books like GoT, or shows - again, like GoT - for a sideshow of flesh grinding is not insignificant. My stance on ERP is that as long as it is kept private, it's fine. Many RPers lack tact, which is the issue, IMO, but then again, this is the average MMO player for you, judging by the amount of slutmogs on offer. If you mean places like the Quicksand on Balmung, then yeah, I agree, that is a freakshow and a half.

[missybee]

I mean most people consider MMOs to be "cringe" in and of themselves, and this is certainly the view held even amongst casual gamers.

You think?

I mean, with how much of a juggernaut WoW continues to be, I would think MMOs would be more socially acceptable. Then again, in my advanced age, I don't have any kind of indication as to what is hip and happening with the kids.

That said, if playing pretend with other people online makes people happy - go for it. Who cares about the opinions of a bunch of internet randos?

[Rinuko]

You can RP and eRP as much you want. I have a problem when you do it publicly and makes me cringe so hard.
Keep that shit to your RP LS/FC and keep it from /say/shout/yell and/or any other public chat

[Naunet]

You can RP and eRP as much you want. I have a problem when you do it publicly and makes me cringe so hard.
Keep that shit to your RP LS/FC and keep it from /say/shout/yell and/or any other public chat

I really wish I was on your server so I could RP in public around you. ^^