The Culture: A Recognition That Three Hobbies Use The Same Term

The astute will notice that I avoid using "Role-Playing Game" now.

The reason is simple: this is not what play is about, but rather just one part of it, and how that matters depends upon what subset we're talking about.

• Conventional Play: Filter through which players contend with Fog of War
• Real Hobby: As above, but also the silo within which actional intelligence gets filed away and firewalled off; you as Brick McHardslab don't get to act on what Conan or Skynet knows or has.
• Theater Kid Bullshut Brigade: Attention focus centered upon the perspective of an actor or a writer in a production.

The Tabletop Adventure Campaign hobby is a wargame hobby. The use of personae other than oneself is a form of handicap. You not only have a Fog of War due to only being able to act with information and resources at that persona's command, you also have to act with a perspective other than your own. This is not a hobby for low-IQ people unable to form a Theory of Mind to do exactly that.

The Get Along Gang hobby is a party game hobby, so close to boardgames that they might as well be boardgames (and everyone--and I mean everyone--would be happier and better off if they were). Personae are just excuses to permit or forbid playing pieces in their actions and useable items, including which teams to play on (and when to quit or switch).

Theater Kids do Theater Sports or Mad Lib games. Personae are just tools for acting/writing exercises, and those games only useful when aimed at training the skills needed to be competent professionals in addition to the usual networking/cronyism/nepotism/stupid good luck stories.

None of these things are the same, therefore they should not share the same term.

"RPGs" DO NOT EXIST!

We have three separate and distinct hobbies. It's time to start acting like it.