[Sombalance]

Maybe I'm just paranoid, but I'm much more comfortable with OOC that I can see. I believe that the players who know each other IRL or via other IM type - out of game channels have an advantage over players who are new to a game, don't know the other players and aren't willing to go out of game to IM with them to meet them.

And it seems like a lot of the folks in RPI type games know each other beyond the game, so I can understand why they don't care if the game supports OOC. They don't need it to.

Now, I don't expect RPIs to change. They have a set of guidelines that they want to follow and I can respect that. I personally don't see the advantage, but if it works for them, that's cool. But, if a set of guidelines was hurting the game by making it harder for new players to get involved or if the games seem to stagnate as old players lose interest, then maybe it is time to consider what really makes a difference and what doesn't.

Funny thing though. The first thing I do on a game that has OOC channels is turn them off. I don't like using them and really hate the spam they generate, but I like to know they are there for those who want to use them. Sort of the same way I feel about hobbits.