The RGFA Threefold, GNS, and Channels are all geared to explain one thing: intent. ³Intent,² however, is a slippery concept must be pinned down to be of use. Intent is different than motivation, although both touch on play. What follows is an attempt to pin the term down so that discussion of the various intent and style description theories can be understood fully.
The dictionary defines motivation as:
"1a. The act or process of motivating. b. The state of being motivated. 2. Something that motivates; an inducement."
It defines motivate as:
"To provide with an incentive; move to action; impel"
Motivation is what compels us to play role playing games. Itıs the reason we learn the rules, pick up dice and books, splurge on munchies, and huddle around tables long after bedtime to play.
We can choose to play simply because our friends play. We can play because we really like games and belonging to a group means we get to play games on a regular basis. We can play because we like to compete. We can play because we enjoy stories and want to take part in them. We can play because we enjoy learning about different cultures, whether historical or fictional. We can play simply because it is something to keep us from being bored or having to find something else to do one night a week.
We can also play for a variety of reasons. We are not limited to having a single reason to play. We can have two reasons or three reasons or a whole host of reasons.
Out motivation(s), while compelling us to play, can only hint at what style of play we want to use. To get from motivation to play to an actual play style involves a bit more.
This is where intent comes into the picture. Intent is what drives the decisions we make in play.
Intent is defined as:
"Something that is intended; an aim or purpose."
Intention is defined as:
"1. A course of action that one intends to follow. 2.a. An aim that guides an action; an objective."
Intent, when dealing with role playing game styles, is the aim that guides the decisions. Every time a decision is made, the person making the decision makes it with a particular aim in mind, whether it be to help advance a story line or to increase a challenge or because the outcome could prove amusing. Each decision involves intent, as each decision is made with a specific aim (or two or three or more) in mind.
When dealing with describing styles of play in role playing games, then, one must look to intent first. All decisions are made with an aim in mind. Individual preferences in style are expressions intended to achieve those aims, to get the player the sort of experience that is desired.
That is what intent boils down to--the types of experience the player aims to get from play. An intent to enjoy stories leads to decisions that support the creation of stories in some fashion, whether by providing all the elements from which a story may grow naturally to plotting how the story will play out and working to follow that plot as close as possible.
The Threefold, the first of the Intent Theories, began as an exercise in mapping what leads to decisions made in play by game masters--a close look at intent from the outset. Any theory that purports to cover the same ground as the Threefold deals with intent, and any that seriously purports to describe play styles accurately has to deal with intent, because all decisions made in play involve intent.
Copyright 2003 by Larry D. Hols. All rights reserved.