Take responsibility

by Alan De Smet

More GM tips

Take responsibility

You are the GM, you create worlds. With that power comes great responsibility. If your players aren't enjoying your game, you are responsible. If you don't take responsibility, your players will leave. Like it or not, you're the leader. If you're unwilling to take this responsibility, you're on the wrong side of the GM screen.

Now, brief periods of unhappy players happen in every game. But, if most of the time most your players are unhappy, you need to change. (Mind you, this has nothing to do with making characters happy. It's possible for players to be happy and characters to be miserable.)

If you simply cannot give the players what they want (perhaps because you wouldn't enjoy it), then it's your responsibility to end the game. Players will often stay in a game they dislike because they like the people or out of a sense of responsibility. Free them to seek out games that they will enjoy more. If the group wants to continue hanging out, maybe you should look into something besides role-playing.

Part of this responsibility is realizing that you can't be all things to all people. Sometimes things aren't going to work out and you need to accept that. If you're determined to run gothic horror, but your players demand slapstick comedy, maybe you're not compatible as GM and players. Do look for a compromise, first! Are you sure you wouldn't enjoy running slapstick comedy? Maybe your players would be willing to give a session of gothic horror a try? If it doesn't work out, look at other options. Maybe it's time to turn over the GM screen to a player and join in as a player?

Sometimes the majority of a group works fine, but some of the players present problems. Perhaps the player hates the game or the genre, making it impossible for them to enjoy your sessions. Perhaps two players cannot stand each other. A player may simply be sullen at every session for no particular reason. A problem player tends to spread resentment through the group, places everyone on edge, and generally hampers enjoying yourselves. Whatever the reason, if a subset of your players are harming the game it's your responsibility to address the issue. It might be a minor problem that be sorted out; maybe it's time for a new character. But not every problem can be worked out. If you can't find a better solution, it's your responsibility to ask the problematic player to leave. Telling a friend that you don't want them in your group is very hard, but leaving a problematic player in your group is worse. This isn't about disliking someone, this is about the group as a whole not working.