Hmmm, that's an interesting question. We are essentially all participating in a work of creative art put out by Square-Enix, but as roleplayers we are actively contributing to that art and reclaiming some of it as our own. However, in a legal sense, Square-Enix still owns it. For example, if we were roleplaying and came up with a novel-length story in the process, we couldn't ever sell it as our own work of literary art.
I think it's definitely a spontaneous form of creative collaboration, but whether or not there is an intent to make "art," I think that it is largely situational and depends on the individual or the group actively pursuing the game as an art form rather than as a hobby or a way to relax.
I would say that a group of players who write out skits and perform them on a schedule at locations inside the game, in character, are acting more as artists than a group that logs in and plays the game in-character. The first group is actively creating a style of performance art while the second is actively playing a game that has already been created.
I think it's definitely a spontaneous form of creative collaboration, but whether or not there is an intent to make "art," I think that it is largely situational and depends on the individual or the group actively pursuing the game as an art form rather than as a hobby or a way to relax.
I would say that a group of players who write out skits and perform them on a schedule at locations inside the game, in character, are acting more as artists than a group that logs in and plays the game in-character. The first group is actively creating a style of performance art while the second is actively playing a game that has already been created.
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