I cannot speak for Kirathel on their behalf, but I can give you my reasoning. Though before I dribble on about that, I’ll clarify that I am not leaving the RP as of yet. After all, I designed Malaco* to not require much effort on my part, so it’s not like I’m losing too much time here. So let’s get to it.
Confusing, potentially false advertising.
From the start, the game appears to have lied about itself. But can such an accusation stand, if we were told nothing?
So we’re told again and again in the beginning, but that doesn’t mean anything other than trying to sell us on a mystery. But by this type of mystery, there are only a few ways this could end; dream or reality, perhaps both. A player goal, not really a character one. Making me wonder not how my character will figure out, nor if I can solve it as I have no interest in it, but how such a vision will be executed.
But it looked as though, by signup requirements, to be character focused. Later confirmed on that front as well:
If written to draw in players to figure out a mystery, how is this going to align?
From that line, it is vague how exactly it will start but it gave me an idea. If player and character are aligned, then perhaps all the characters started off separate, in their own dream. Maybe just the ending section before waking up in a location they expected to be in. Only to look in the mirror, see something odd (nightmare mutation), rub their eyes and things appear normal again and dismiss it as odd sleepiness. Small instances like that, or perhaps large for some, occasional interrupting. Before everything goes far off the rails.
A later clarification seems to support this idea.
We know the dreams will met together. In other posts Winger indicated that there’s a party, so all the player character have to come together somehow. However, the method for doing so was not known.
Perhaps, in the seemingly normal world, only each character could see their dream/nightmare melding or popping into “reality,” while the others cannot. For an inciting incident, a mass panic of people freaking out over different things that no one else can see aside from the one. Bring the party together by accident in this panic and deciding to resolve this mystery. Even if their own visions are also making them seem insane. Only for things to grow worse as they start seeing each other’s dreams/nightmares as things went along.
Or all the dreams are melding that way near the start. Still with the more subtle notions, it’s just others can also see the strange mutations that occasionally pop up. Or stay for awhile, it can vary. But something that makes it still seem like the dream is just yours, makes you think you woke up, only for reality to go mad and figure out if you ever really woke up. But perhaps that is too similar to several movies.
Which brings me to the start of the game proper.
Without your post Ghid, I would have had no idea what to respond to with that first post. And as a quick aside, the same goes for character creation. Due to the vagueness of the signups outside of drug’n dreamy fun, I still was unsure of what characters were being sought after. Even now I can’t say I know for sure, other than a small list of what isn’t wanted.
But immediately, even though this opening post gives me zero to work with, I understand what’s happening. All the characters have just been thrust together. Mutation, changes, etc., it’s all just there.
Should I care at all? Why should any character be concerned? Certainly, it could be the opposite of what was expected. Instead of normality going to madness, it’s madness becoming more mad and that’s just reality now. Or there is a reality to escape to but I really don’t care now. Just a bunch of kidnapped kids thrown into a closet and told to be nice to each other.
Boring.
Snoozefest.
You’ve lost me instantly and I already didn’t have much investment. Then, for seemingly no reason, continued to keep the characters trapped in the closet. It can be argued dream logic, or another player’s lack of activity, but it sure is frustrating for a physically strong character like Eve was unable to just open a door.
So what was the point of forcing everyone to start out in a small closet? Where the characters supposed to just think/dream it open? The rules don’t make that sound viable. Not sure what all we can do period, this doesn’t come off as a tutorial or practice area to learn reality.
It just seems like the GM had no idea how to really get all the characters together and early interactions. Thus finding this to be the cheapest option, may to add character confusion and mystery. Uncompelling, uninteresting.
Perhaps this statement was to say that GM involvement was to be minimal. And heavily specific opening scenarios I presented early was too much work. But for something so character driven, they were immediately put in a situation where they don’t have agency and can’t really do anything without heavy GM activity. What are we supposed to do when we’re in a tiny world that ends with the GM?
Did it lie? Well, technically no. The characters did wake up in a place that may or may not be reality. But it started in a way no one expected and likely not in a positive one. I imagine others had very different ideas for how it would begin and this was not it.
So is this dream worth it? Not at all so far, but I’m merciful and patient, I’m willing to let it prove me wrong.
*- For those curious, in a lot of RPs I join, my first character is the envelope pusher. Not something that I think wouldn’t be allowed, but certainly bend the limitations. Testing GMs and players alike, gauging reaction and resolve. Malaco is a joke, but I can write decently compelling absurdities on the fly.
This is also why my second characters tend to be more serious. Ole Villy Blund has a lot more pre-thought and planning in his design. Not to say Malaco has no thought or intention behind his design. You have no idea the amount of references he’s pulling.