I have not really been following the "clique" conversation to which Kelley is referring, but I do have some thoughts on events.
"On Soapbox"
First, virtually all of the events at my place are widely posted and the invitations are public. I am in a fortunate situation where I have plenty of parking, enough games for folks to play and a game room which is separate from my home so that my family is not impacted as much. Not everyone has the space or a situation that allows an open invitation. In the case of FliPS, we play in some pretty tight quarters from time to time, but we are also conscious of the space limitations in deciding whether to expand beyond the normal "list" of players. It goes without saying that those decisions are made by the individual hosts based on their knowledge of their situation. So, part of our system relies on people being respectful of the owner (and the owner's family) and the space and games that are offered.
To the best of my knowledge, we have not had anyone abuse the space, games or opportunity that was offered. This may be luck, or it may be the result of making expectations very clear. I do know that when I am invited into someone's home, I am very conscious of the trust that is inherent in being invited into someone's home, and I try my best to merit that trust.
As for competition, there is considerable variation. At FLiPs, we have some events where the competition takes up much of the time and folks play hard to win. Some tournaments are fairly standard, while others are pretty loose. In my case, if I do a tournament, I typically try to set it up so that folks have to play different types and eras of games. On other occasions, there is no tournaments and we just get together and play some pinball and shoot the breeze. I realize that there may be a perception out there that FLiPs is all about hardcore competition, but it really is not. While the competition is important to some folks, it is not all that important to others. There is no doubt in my mind that the opportunity to hang out with fellow pinball folks and shoot the breeze is the top draw for most players.
I know that I attended one of Kelley's events (Avatar) and it was a great time, even though there was no tournament or competition planned. At the Asylum, I have been there for an open play day, and I have been there for tournaments. To me, there is no real difference in how much fun I have, because that is about the people first and the pinball second. So, in making decisions about hosting an event, the key is to know the people and what they want. If you don't know them, then have a free for all event and get to know them a little better. FLiPs started with a mix of events until we figured out what worked for the group. But, please remember that just as the host has a responsibility to their guests, the guests have a responsibility to the host, to act appropriately and follow the house rules.
Off Soapbox,
Ron
