Middle aged/older characters?

[shaobadman]

30 minutes ago, nateX said:

I and some friends roleplay characters in their late 30s or early 40s. I find it more engaging and interesting to roleplay someone of age instead of a teenager or young adult, gives more free room and more interesting conversations with randoms.

Call me a casual but I get a lot of RP inspiration from TV/movies (which is never perfect, but it's something) and it helps me do exactly what you're describing with older characters. I find it enjoyable even though I'm not that age myself. It's an alternative perspective in the server. 

21 minutes ago, Koko said:

This, but it doesn't help that your average old man plays the "Old Man Yells At Cloud" trope and your average 50 year old woman is described as looking 30.

Caricatures are generally a problem on this server, I think we can all name some that even go beyond age characters. I don't really mind the "perfect" appearances too much if their portrayal and interaction is at least decent and entertaining. 

Edited July 25, 2021 by shaobadman

[Birdie]

49 minutes ago, Rhy Rhy said:

Its either you roleplay a older man and get called boomer or you try roleplaying a older woman and get a 16 year old on a bike driving by you calling you a MILF.

 

I've personally never experienced this as a problem. The characters I roleplay are generally over the age of 30 with a few exceptions. One of my current ones is even 50+ (And yes, also looks like 50+)

 

In my opinion it's very enjoyable to do so. There's a big difference in interaction and how you are treated. I've never been so nicely treated as my 74 yo "aunty" that lived back in the south last year. (apparently gangbangers can be very pleasant and respectful too, who would've known?!) Playing an older character is definitely worth it and more people should do it.

 

Now I do admit, it is sometimes a little difficult to go out and meet people, especially because there are clubs and bars open in the evenings and that's not really a location most would go to at that age. But, if you put in some effort and take your time then you'll have a great time.

[Planters80mm]

I actually always preferred to roleplay older characters. I think that the physical flaws actually fuel the roleplay. Although the problem is still to meet people your age. Going to loud "boom boom clubs" doesn't fit older characters. I personally found it easier to be in the county area as an older character. 

 

Also it seems that most characters above 35 are usually males. I rarely seen women above 35. I still don't know why most women on this server are super hot and attractive girls with the perfect body.

 

But playing with an older char is really fun and enjoyable. You can use older expressions and fashion yourself like the 80s/90s. More should try it! 

 

Oh and being a boomer is fun. It really makes some interaction with younger people funny. Especially if.you.roleplay a character that has difficulty with technology.

Edited July 25, 2021 by Planters80mm

[shaobadman]

31 minutes ago, Birdie said:

 

I've personally never experienced this as a problem. The characters I roleplay are generally over the age of 30 with a few exceptions. One of my current ones is even 50+ (And yes, also looks like 50+)

 

In my opinion it's very enjoyable to do so. There's a big difference in interaction and how you are treated. I've never been so nicely treated as my 74 yo "aunty" that lived back in the south last year. (apparently gangbangers can be very pleasant and respectful too, who would've known?!) Playing an older character is definitely worth it and more people should do it.

 

Now I do admit, it is sometimes a little difficult to go out and meet people, especially because there are clubs and bars open in the evenings and that's not really a location most would go to at that age. But, if you put in some effort and take your time then you'll have a great time.

I can understand a senior citizen having a polite experience since many would find it hard to resist or call them names, but what's it been like on your other characters between 30 and 50? I'm not saying I haven't had positive experiences before when I had these characters in their prime years ago, it's just different this time around.

[lambchops]

Roleplaying 50+ is quite fun but I personally identified an issue where there do not seem any openly social opportunities where my older character could go without standing out like a skier in the desert.

[shaobadman]

13 minutes ago, lambchops said:

Roleplaying 50+ is quite fun but I personally identified an issue where there do not seem any openly social opportunities where my older character could go without standing out like a skier in the desert.

Even in 2018 I needed a group just to RP on my older characters.

 

This wasn't necessarily a group of fellow old characters, just people I knew I could rely on to skip all the "aren't you old?" stuff and accept that there's a middle aged person there. It helps a lot.

Edited July 25, 2021 by shaobadman

[Birdie]

20 minutes ago, shaobadman said:

I can understand a senior citizen having a polite experience since many would find it hard to resist or call them names, but what's it been like on your other characters between 30 and 50? I'm not saying I haven't had positive experiences before when I had these characters in their prime years ago, it's just different this time around.

 

One of my characters had taken in a boy from the south, she ended up adopting him in the end but that's a different story.

He had a lot of "bad" friends and drug problems (dealing and using, involved with gangs, etc.)  

 

His friends always came over and took over my character's home to hang out. Of course there was some typical teenage dramas going on, plus the fact many of them tried to push against her to test boundaries so it wasn't always polite and respectful, as it shouldn't, but it was really great in regards to the roleplay.

It had all been by pure chance and effort to try and find some roleplay for my character in question. I didn't know the person prior to that out of character so nothing was set up but it turned out to be one of the best experiences I've had on the server and we still roleplay together on different characters. Now actually related by blood. 

 

So personally, I've had nothing but good encounters on the "older" characters I've had(30+). Get creative, there's more roleplay to be initiated than just in game. I've send IC letters over the forums to a random person to initiate roleplay, I've used posts people put on facebrowser to initiate roleplay. I've leased a property to initiate roleplay. There are options, sure, maybe a bit more effort, but it's really worth it.

 

 

[shaobadman]

31 minutes ago, Birdie said:

 

One of my characters had taken in a boy from the south, she ended up adopting him in the end but that's a different story.

He had a lot of "bad" friends and drug problems (dealing and using, involved with gangs, etc.)  

 

His friends always came over and took over my character's home to hang out. Of course there was some typical teenage dramas going on, plus the fact many of them tried to push against her to test boundaries so it wasn't always polite and respectful, as it shouldn't, but it was really great in regards to the roleplay.

It had all been by pure chance and effort to try and find some roleplay for my character in question. I didn't know the person prior to that out of character so nothing was set up but it turned out to be one of the best experiences I've had on the server and we still roleplay together on different characters. Now actually related by blood. 

 

So personally, I've had nothing but good encounters on the "older" characters I've had(30+). Get creative, there's more roleplay to be initiated than just in game. I've send IC letters over the forums to a random person to initiate roleplay, I've used posts people put on facebrowser to initiate roleplay. I've leased a property to initiate roleplay. There are options, sure, maybe a bit more effort, but it's really worth it.

 

 

Good points, thanks for your input and thank you for staying on topic.

[Koko]

This topic actually inspired me to make a 60 year old character for South Central RP that still has reasonable connections to younger characters, so we'll see how that goes!

 

https://forum.gta.world/en/topic/55655-reginald-washington/

[Welsh]

Alright,

 

Who is up for starting a retirement community, where we can all sit and share stories of the 70s