Sunday, April 7, 2013

Alternative Westerns?

So, I'll preface this by saying that I'm a fan of westerns, both of the traditional nature, or the alternative type. (I'll address my definition of alternative western further on in this.) Unfortunately, though, I don't see many of these types of roleplays on this website, so I thought I'd make an interest check to see if anyone else has an interest in this.

What do I mean by alternative western? Well, I'm sure you're all familiar with the traditional western; all of those John Wayne and Clint Eastwood movies that take place in the American West during the 19th century - and sometimes the early 20th. But, those aren't the only types of fiction you can consider a western. In fact, the western genre can be applied to many other types of fiction...

And, without further adieu, I will present a list of ways the western can be used, and by extension, the alternative types of western that I'd be interested in roleplaying.

Space Western/Sci-Fi Western

Science fiction is probably the genre that most easily translates to westerns. The final frontier and all that. I've had a story idea floating around in my head for quite some time, and that would make it easier for me to get things going.

I'd also like to point out the difference between a space western and a sci-fi western. A space western generally takes place in the future where society in general has access to advanced technology and space travel. Whereas, a sci-fi western is a story that takes place during the American West during the 19th century, but there's certain advanced technologies available. Firefly is a good example of a space western while Cowboys vs. Aliens is a good example of a sci-fi western.

I'd be open for either one.

Japanese Western

First of all, I'd like to point out that by 'Japanese', I'm not referring to anime or manga. While I don't have a particular dislike for anime or manga, it's usually safe to say that I'm also not a huge fan of it either.

What I mean by 'Japanese' is more to do with more ancient and traditional Japanese culture. I'll admit that this pair has always intrigued me. If you compare feudal Japan with the American West, you'll find that there are a lot of similarities between the two eras, at least in the manner that they're both romanticized.

Although a space western/sci-fi western might be easier to do than a feudal Japanese style western, in some ways I'm more interested in doing the latter type since it isn't quite as common.

Fantasy/Supernatural Western

While this is an interesting pairing and may be more difficult to pull off than the first two, it's entirely doable in my opinion. You could include races from high fantasy (elves, dwarves, orcs, etc.) into a western-type environment, or it could be set in a western environment where people have the ability to use magic with monsters and other supernatural creatures present. It could even include some horror where a supernatural monster or monsters are after people who are in the American west.

Post-Apocalyptic Western

This too has a range of options available, particularly as far as the definition of post-apocalyptic goes. It could be a natural disaster that destroyed a large portion of the population. It could be a nuclear event that had similar results. Or, it could even be Armageddon where demons and angels wage war on Earth while some of the human population also remains. Some of these post-apocalyptic scenarios could fall under another category, such as sci-fi or fantasy/supernatural.

Now, I hope I haven't bored you with my wall-o-text. If any of these ideas strike your fancy, please feel free to say something. If you have any ideas, questions, or suggestions, you are also more than welcome to voice them.

Thanks for reading!

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RolePlayGateway/~3/lXKw1fZIzaw/viewtopic.php

libya engadget twin towers iPhone 5 9-11 Chris Brown Tattoo Innocence of Muslims

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.