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A phrase used by Ron Edwards to describe Simulationism within the GNS Model. See also Celebration for alternate explanations of GNS Simulationism. His initial explanation was: My interpretation of what you're describing lies in what might be called "constructive denial." Some people call this "suspension of disbelief" but that term has never been useful for me. I have just invented the new term in order to stay specific to Simulationist role-playing.
By your definitions, anything and everything we imagine together in role-playing is "subjective." However, in Simulationist play, there must be an ongoing, reinforced agreement about a set of information that cannot be threatened. This is our shared understanding of what we bring into the imagined events of play, and it must be seen as a complete package - not only the five components of Exploration, but also any thematic or other emergent content.
A great deal of the aesthetic power of Simulationist play, as I see it (and I mean that literally), lies in (a) adding to or developing that package, and (b) enjoying its resiliency against potential violation. At its least extreme, this is pure emulation. At its most extreme, it is parody. In between, you get modifications like "Lovecraft on a starship" or "steampunk fantasy" and so on. In each case, the goals are just as I've stated with (a) and (b).
In a later thread, Adam Dray summarized this as follows: Sim involves not just figuring out what can go into the fiction (and how) but a whole lot of people insisting what cannot go into the fiction (and how). This ties into the "Right to Dream" in that people are using this right to deny stuff because they don't feel it's right. It upsets the Dream, so cross it out.
The "stuff" that people deny includes fictional elements of all kinds -- basically system, setting, character, situation, and color. The "realism" thing is generally denial of setting (because the player feels the element does not fit "realistically" into the setting) or denial of system (because the player feels the system does not adequately provide a vehicle for "realistic" play). Realism here really means credibility -- something credible doesn't upset the Dream.
A game can be said to support Simulationism if it provides player tools for constructive denial. Sim games approach this in different ways. GURPS, for example, seems to provide a variety of optional rules that players can use, or not, as they like in order to create the players' Dream. A game like Universalis offers strong rules for determining exactly what the elements of the game are going to be, or not be, through its token system; that is, you have currency for purchasing constructive denial abilities, more or less.
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