RPG v FPS v ASL

[unkated]

RPGs first for me.

Would you accept ATS rather than ASL (or similar low-tactical level boardgame)? I have no interest in starting an ATS vs ASL vs LnL or anything else argument, but I have my preferences. I like a tactical level (Lieutenant's or Captain's or Major's problem) game.

FPSs for me rank last; I have never been great at hand-eye coordination. My son plays Battlefield & Medal of Honor & Call of Duty. Too many buttons on the controller for me to use effectively. These (from my point of view) tend to suffer from a lack of ability to coordinate/cooperate, and in some cases the goals seem... pointless (die/respawn/die/respawn). Yes, I know, the play's the thing, and the rewards are the speed at which one unlocks new toys.

I do like World of Tanks - but the controls are simpler: one hand drives, the other points and shoots. It does suffer from the goal issue above, but at least in a given fight, a destroyed tank stays destroyed (usually).

Uncle Ted

[Cdnwolf]

Originally Posted by unkated

I do like World of Tanks - but the controls are simpler: one hand drives, the other points and shoots. It does suffer from the goal issue above, but at least in a given fight, a destroyed tank stays destroyed (usually).

Uncle Ted

Bet you play skycancer in WOT lol. Got my IS 7 and now grinding the JadgTiger towards JgPz E100 so I can camp and one shot you all.

[Targan]

I would play tabletop RPGs all day every day if I could. I lean heavily towards gritty and realistic. I'm currently running a campaign in the Harn setting using HarnMaster Gold. In recent years I've also run a D&D 5e campaign for my wife and some friends, and in the (sometimes long) stretches between HarnMaster sessions, I also run a Palladium Games Heroes Unlimited campaign with some of the same players. It's totally off the wall and players can drop in and out as their schedules allow.

I play a fair bit of first person shooters, but not much in the way of competitive online stuff anymore. I can't devote enough time to keep up my skills to compete with all the kids and dwells-in-their-mother's-basement neckbeards that play 16 hours a day. My PC is still pretty powerful, I play games on high settings in 4K resolution. Fallout 4, Skyrim, that sort of thing. I'm PCMR all the way. I'm not into consoles. You could say I'm inconsolable.

Never played ASL. I've played other wargames in the past, none seriously. I wouldn't mind getting into them, but I've only got so much free time.

RPG
FPS
ASL

[Adm.Lee]

For me:
1. hex & counter wargames
1. RPGs

8. FPS

It's much easier to find players for tabletop RPGs, especially D&D or similar. Military ones like T2k, or even sci-fi, are much harder to recruit for.
FPS, or nearly any computer game, seem to require much more time than I'd like to give them, or money that I don't want to spend on a machine. I play Civilization about once a week, and little else.

I prefer operational or strategic level games to tactical ones like ASL, but I'll play them now and again. (I guess I'd rather be a general than a captain?) My brother and I played old Squad Leader, all 4 boxes, then bought ASL when it came out. We decided to stick with the old rules, rather than learn everything anew. I believe my brother sold the barely-used rulebook when I went to college, but we kept the Polish/minor Allies box, so we could use the counters & scenarios with the old rules. I remember when I interviewed for an ROTC scholarship and mentioned that I liked wargames, that was the one system they asked me about.

Some years ago, I joined a boardgaming club, and started hanging out with the wargaming clique. I found that I could play a game or two of ASL per year, and not have to commit to buying stuff or reading the "new" rules. Tactics is tactics, I could play the game and let the other guy work the rulebook.

Fast-forward a few years, and my new boss is both a packrat and a scavenger, and our job is sometimes cleaning up messy houses or estates. He hands me a Post Office box, saying, "Here, I think you play these games, right?" It's full of ASL, the 1986 rulebook, most of the late-80s modules, tons of counters, and only one scenario(!). So, I have it again. It even included some guy's Army enlistment papers from 1992 (I shredded those, 'cause there's some SSNs on them), I think I know where they came from.

I've sorted the counters, but my current regular wargaming group prefers big operational-level games like OCS, and so I haven't played ASL in about 10 years. It's still a great system.

[swaghauler]

I mostly play FPS games in the truck because I can access them easier than other types of games. Insurgency is my favorite FPS but I like Red October 2 and Steel Beasts too. I'm also into Squad and Ground Branch (currently in Alpha design).

RPGs come next because I like the personal story-telling aspect of them.

ASL comes last as I prefer more "theater" in my combats.