fantasy style role-plays and why I dislike them

[Gar]

My favorite book is Watership Down. Its a story about rabbits. From the outside this may seem like a lame and passe story, however, the writing, the character development, the plot, the skillful way that the story is told is what makes it one of the best books I have ever read.

All of the reasons you listed for disliking fantasy are not specifically tied to fantasy. It is the nature of tabletop games, period. This is how tabletop games operate. And, by the way, you can still get a lot of roleplay in while accomplishing objectives. It doesn't have to be a duality of one or the other.

The main point is: the setting where the role-playing takes place hardly matters. It is the story, the character building, and the plot that counts. The genre is just the flavor. You get what you put into it. So if a genre that is known for its imagination seems to lack imagination or is passe, then you probably just need to put more effort into it. Look for roleplay opportunities while we are getting shit done and let it be productive roleplay.

For example. I hate Star Wars with the fury of a thousand suns. I hate the sci fantasy genre. But I can still enjoy role-playing in one because I put effort in digging for objectives to reach, which personally gives me satisfaction as a player.