Thread:Shadowbolt500/@comment-27480112-20190907044016/@comment-27480112-20191012002301

Here are my thoughts and feelings on IaLR's current state.

Modern IaLR isn't quite working IMO because we put too much emphasis on plot. If you go back to S2a and S1b, you'll see that while there were still plots we needed to follow, we were free to do whatever we want. In modern IaLR, due to years of being acquainted with stories, we've grabbed some of our "story mentality" with us, and as a result we're afraid to deviate from the plot for fear of derailing.

It's because of this emphasis on plot and fear of derailing that IaLR has lost its randomness. Nowadays, with stories being the main focus, randomness is somewhat no longer needed. The only randomness you'll need is the unpredictability of your fellow collaborators. Unfortunately, it's not the same. Randomness is a part of what makes IaLR charming, and I miss that. It's the reason why I still hold on to Dumb Characters, even long after most users (like Redfork and Pea) have dropped the concept altogether.

I can see why Redfork decided to bring in more users, and it's not just because our numbers are decreasing. It's because with less (active) people being around, the roleplay becomes more boring.

I've had that experience before, back in the Trials of Gnomus room. It started out well, but a few days later I left for the PvZ Institute because IaLR wasn't that active anymore, and me and RodimusPrimeHans-Cuff210 seemed to be the only ones active. Days later, I went back because the roleplay started to feel active again, and the rest is history.

Combine that with my previous points and well...we have a problem.

One time, while I was chatting with Fork on RpN (he's still active there), I asked his thoughts on modern IaLR not working out well. He responded with this:

He has some pretty good points, but I have something to say about the last part.

Personally, I don't think you need an interesting plot to have a good episode. Rather, it's the user interactions that matters. If you look at S1a, S1b, and S2a, you'll see that while a chunk of the episodes' plots were either simple or uninteresting on paper, the events, character interactions, and all the other stuff that happened all made it worthwhile. Even if you have the most interesting and flashy plot in all of IaLR, it doesn't matter if the events and interactions are boring.

For example, The Room of Super Mario Galaxy, which Moon Snail considers his favorite episode, was just Super Mario Galaxy, minus the Mario (save for a cameo by me) and plus the IaLR Gang. But with everyone being free to do their own thing and creating crazy situations straight from their head (whilst somewhat sticking to the plot), it made the episode more interesting. I can see why this is Moon Snail's favorite episode.

Another example would be Quadmageddon. Now, it was just posts and posts of Dumb Characters and random acts of randomness we came up with on the fly, but it was still fun, creating all those dumb and crazy ideas!

Now, I'm not saying interesting plots aren't allowed. In fact, an interesting plot might even help in making an episode more interesting! I'm just saying interesting plots alone aren't enough. For example, SitDS may have looked interesting as a concept, but it flopped in Moon Snail's eyes because everyone was too restricted.

I know this was long ago, and I should let go of this "grudge", but I didn't like it when Redfork and PeaVZ acted sarcastic towards me. It felt...mean.