Expectations

[GrimFinger]

So my question would be, do play by mail games have any basic expectations about them that a player starting a new game would recognize as uniquely play by mail? And if so, what are they? Yes, I know what I think. But I'm curious if anyone will reply and what you are thinking if you do.

For myself, the very first thing that came to mind for basic expectations for a player starting a new game that rises to the level of being uniquely play by mail (or perhaps I should say distinctly play by mail, for it really stands out about game splayed via the postal medium), is something called anticipation.

First and foremost, playing games via the postal service tend to yield a lot of anticipation, building up like magma in a volcano. Positive tension is generated by this anticipation in a recurring manner, turn by turn by turn. The wait, itself, between turns, combined with the stimulating effect that it tends to have on the human imagination, is what causes explosions of fun for PBM gamers. The inherent nature of the medium that is gaming via the postal service, which requires days or even weeks between turn results, effectively guarantees that anticipation will form in the PBM players' minds.