As two of the more active mods and mafia community members, we would like to host a discussion that aims to reach a consensus on defining the game categories currently in use at f.ds. By doing this, everyone benefits: mods will know what is expected of them and their games if they want it to be in a certain category; players will be know what to expect to be included (or not) when they sign up. What follows is a breakdown of the game categories, with the defining elements as agreed upon by the two of us. We think they are good starting points for finding a consensus.
Bastard
We're starting with the furthest out instead of with normal, because it's actually easier to define things by what they include, not by what they do not. We feel that a game must be classified as a Bastard Game (BM) if they include any of the following:
--"false" roles (most famously millers, but also jesters, false PRs that are actually VTs, etc.)
--alignment changing, other than traitors or survivors (i.e., Cults)
--mod lying of any kind
--posting restrictions
--balance alterations mid-game (such as adding roles, modifiers, etc. for the purpose of messing with the progress of a game)
If your game includes any of the above, it is automatically a BM game. If you can safely say it contains none of the above, move on to the next category.
Role Madness
Role Madness (RMM) is a category that generally includes more roles, variety, and creativity than a normal game. It's defining factor is the interaction of the players through their role actions, usually but not only at night. The line between Role Madness and Normal is fuzzy, but generally these characteristics would classify your game as RMM:
--nights take center stage in the game to diminishment of days
--no "vanilla" roles such as Vanilla Townie or Mafia Goon
--minor alignment changes, specifically traitors and survivors
--greater focus on "fun" even at a cost to "balance"
--frequent role interaction above and beyond the "normal" investigation/protection/killing triad
The keystone to an RMM game is how the players use their roles to affect the outcome of the game. This is in contrast to a normal game, where good scumhunting during the day will always be enough for town to win.
Normal
And we come to normal games. These are the hardest to define in spite of being the most restrictive category. Normal games focus on the days, and the "essence" of social deception games. The roles and their actions should not overshadow good scumhunting, normal interaction during the day in the game thread, or be able to thwart great town or scum play in thread. The list for this category includes what "may" be part of the game, as opposed to the restrictive nature of the two categories above.
--may use a prepared set-up such as C9++
--may have fewer power roles than vanilla roles
--may be an "open" or "semi-open" set-up with all information available to the players ahead of time
Generally, if you've ruled out RMM or BM, you've got a normal game. You should work through it in that manner, though. Rule out the more complicated categories first, then settle here.
There are three other categories on f.ds, which are Blitz, Newbie, and Drunk. They are self-explanatory. We would note only that "Blitz" games are generally always "normal" games on fast forward.
We look forward to a civil discussion on these categories, and how to better define them. We clearly disagree with most of you, so hopefully this will help.
Best,
ashersky and yuma
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Topic: Mafia Game Category Standards (Read 14104 times)