I thought I roleplayed a lot, but OMG some of the folks at RollPlay have managed to turn their lives into constant RPG fun time (and I am probably jealous of that). In the last 2 years I've really been impressed with the online live-streaming revolution that has tied in with not only video games, but also the popular resurgence of Dungeons and Dragons.
The crew at RollPlay are on YouTube via itmeJP (with links to the channels and social media of the other people who play in their games):
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQj4ZJd2QxRHwVYQbMvcKdQ
I'm a fan of their West Marches series; here's a link to the playlist for the series:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGxPvdeKQuo&index=1&list=PL-oTJHKXHicSxKhs57c2hYuoPcayPoBJc
The idea of the "West Marches" style of game came from a blog entry in which a DM explained how he had modified a gaming group that he ran:
http://arsludi.lamemage.com/index.php/78/grand-experiments-west-marches/
The core "West Marches" tenets explained in the blog include:
*no regular gaming schedule, thus forcing players to schedule the sessions;
*no set party, thus not depending on the same group of people showing up to play;
*no set plot, thus focusing on exploration and using clues for opportunities;
*no danger in the base city, thus having a safe base;
*no NPC support, thus forcing the players to empower themselves;
*no endings without finishing an outing, thus returning everyone to base by the end of the session.
Something I found funny about the RollPlay series doing the West Marches style game was that the weekly groups tended to just go with the first adventure hook they spotted, instead of waiting for more rumors/options/choices (which would be one of the great benefits of being a player in that style of game). The setup clearly seems to work for a drop in/drop out sort of public play experience (like Adventurer's League).
It's interesting to have a set world with different players coming and going, influencing the world for people who come after them. I like seeing different play styles and how different characters interact in different ways. DM Steven stands out as a good DM who seems like just an average dude (not costumed, not a voice actor, and not a Wizards of the Coast employee).
If you wanted to nitpick, I'm sure there are little things you could criticize, but I find the Rollplay West Marches series entertaining. My main concern was finding the series after so many episodes had already been made; it's a lot of material to watch and "catch up" on; but it makes me realize how much entertainment is changing in our society. Instead of people watching TV, it's much more likely that future generations will watch live-streaming like Twitch and YouTube for entertainment.
I would especially recommend this series for people learning D&D 5E because DM Steven was literally teaching people how to play the new edition when the stream started and they properly take time in the sessions to explain rules or how abilities work. The future of online roleplaying is strong.
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