Your favourite format

PhoenixHero

Banned

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Mar 20, 2014

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• Jan 21, 2015

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• #1

What's your favourite format for AARs? History book, narrative, gameplay etc.

 

Mr. Capiatlist

Mademoiselle Gothique (she/her/hers)

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• Jan 21, 2015

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• #2

PhoenixHero said:

What's your favourite format for AARs? History book, narrative, gameplay etc.

Click to expand...

Narrative. Always narrative. I'd be writing more of them here, but I've been working on my first novel for over a year now. Nearly complete, too.

Actually LPs have been creeping up for me because I can listen while I am at work.

 

delpiero1234

WritAAR

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• Jan 21, 2015

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• #3

I enjoy reading comedy AARs like Glory for Ulm.

 

Enewald

Enewald Enewald Enewald

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• Jan 22, 2015

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• #4

Good narrative, interesting history book or insane gameplay.

 

• 1

Reactions:

LordTempest

Starmtrooper for hire

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• Jan 22, 2015

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• #5

Historybook, although apart from Narratives I enjoy reading AARs of all styles.

 

coz1

GunslingAAR

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• Jan 22, 2015

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• #6

For me, narrative will always be king, but that does not mean I don't enjoy other styles. I've written straight gameplays and find them the easiest to do and I've done history book which is harder than it might seem. I've tried comedy which is even harder. But narrative is the toughest to do which is why I find it the most rewarding when one does it well. Thank God we have all styles here for every taste!

 

Mr. Capiatlist

Mademoiselle Gothique (she/her/hers)

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• Jan 23, 2015

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• #7

coz1 said:

For me, narrative will always be king, but that does not mean I don't enjoy other styles. I've written straight gameplays and find them the easiest to do and I've done history book which is harder than it might seem. I've tried comedy which is even harder. But narrative is the toughest to do which is why I find it the most rewarding when one does it well. Thank God we have all styles here for every taste!

Click to expand...

Comedy is the hardest, that is for sure. We must cherish every good comedic AAR for what it is: a gem in so many piles of rock.

 

Tommy4ever

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• Jan 23, 2015

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• #8

History Book every day of the week for me. Narrative and Comedy AARs can be great too, but as others have said its incredibly difficult to hit the nail on the head with those ones - it takes a lot of skill and for the AARs to be to your tastes for them to work.

 

Director

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• Jan 23, 2015

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• #9

I think the most successful thing I've done, for personal satisfaction, is Building a Better Bremen (use Inkwell link in my sig). It is written in essay form, grouping stories around topics rather than by date. That aside, a mix of narrative and historical treatise seems to be my 'voice'.

 

der Kriegsherr

Simp for the Constitution

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• Jan 31, 2015

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• #10

Probably history book: It's what I'm the best and and most familiar with, in no small part due to the fact that I intend to be a good portion of my future career.

I've also experimented with narrative styles, even a memoir one, but I wasn't as happy with it as I thought I'd be.

 

The B

Major

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• Jan 31, 2015

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• #11

History book, both to write and read.

 

Gormytorysh

Captain

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• Feb 6, 2015

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• #12

To read I'd prefer history book or narrative AARs and to write I like to mix it a bit with those two and sometimes a little bit of role play.

 

Tufto

Orientalist boondoggle

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• Feb 6, 2015

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• #13

Hmm... I'd have to say narrative, very closely followed by history-book. Comedies can also be excellent, but there are less good ones around (they are extremely hard to write). I never read gameplay ones- I can play the game if I want gameplay, and I read AARs here to see how people can turn their historical-simulator games into stories or histories.

 

Stuyvesant

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• Feb 6, 2015

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• #14

A good narrative is a wonderful find, and my favorite genre if I have the time: just as I imagine they take a lot of effort to write, it also takes more effort to comment on them (as opposed to leaving a straightforward comment along the lines of "You walloped the Turks/French/Russians good! Attaboy!") - at least, if I want to leave a comment that digs into the story and the characters' actions.

So when I'm shorter on time, I gravitate towards gameplay and history book AARs. Gameplay per se doesn't interest me a ton (although it is nice to read about the game in action, since I hardly ever play the blasted things...), but if there's a nice hook, such as CatKnight's Random World Order, it makes for an entertaining ride. History book is nice because hey, I like history, and it's always nice to see how the game world diverges from our known history - and see people attempt valiantly to explain why early medieval France occupying the Scottish Highlands is a rational thing to do.

Comedy is nice and there are some AARs that might not be comedic masterpieces for the ages, but still are fun to drop in on, much like a daily comic. Finding AARs that sustain a high level of comedy throughout their run is a rare treat, though.

 

Nikolai

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Jun 17, 2001

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• Feb 13, 2015

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• #15

When an AAR is really good, it's often a narrative. But it's a larger chance for me to enjoy a history book AAR than a narrative AAR, as the latter demands a lot from the writer.

 

volksmarschall

Chasing Mountains, Brews, Books, and Byron

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• Feb 14, 2015

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• #16

Narrative. Narrative is what brought me into the forum in the first place. Too bad they've fallen by the wayside. A very good history book suffices though.

 

DensleyBlair

UP THE EUROVILLA!! (they/them)

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• Feb 15, 2015

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• #17

If you had asked me about two years ago, I would have said narrative without hesitation. Now, however, it is my opinion that one cannot beat a well-crafted history book – unless a narrative is both phenomenally good and I happen to have the requisite time to hand that it deserves.

As for the other genres, I'm generally with Stuyvesant – gameplays are great when I'm short on time, but more often than not need a hook of some sort to sustain my interest to a high degree (whether that be via the gameplay itself or some sort of great presentational skill.) Comedies can be similarly entertaining – especially when they're not simply amusing gameplays and are genuinely funny.

On most occasions, however, I will happily read anything.