I can see both points of view on this. I probably prefer creating my own characters as opposed to running with randomly generated ones. I like the idea of thinking about the setting, and trying to flesh out certain philosophies, themes, and/or game mechanics. I love that kind of thing.
I can enjoy randomly generated characters too. As GM of a D&D game that is turning two in February, I often have to ad lib or use quickly generated characters when the players decide to take the game a different direction. Some of those quirky NPCs turn out to be the favorites of the party. Being forced into a role you didn't come up with entirely yourself can give you a new perspective, especially when others interact with the role in ways you didn't anticipate.
I have considered doing a mad lib kind of character creation for one-off tabletop games, for a quick and light way to jump into a game.
To me it is one of those things that I never would have assumed until I actually tried it - I definitely thought I was in the "more options during char gen the better" camp, and kind of scoffed at the old school random char gen methods. Then I actually tried some out in the past decade as I became something of a student of the history of D&D and I quickly realized that in practice, there are some really amazing benefits to random char gen. Not for everyone of course, but coupled with a rules-lite system that allows most of the "character customization" to come just from role playing and improvising within the very minimal guidelines of the rules, random char gen has led to the best gaming experiences of my life. Certainly I play all sorts of styles and am not slavishly adhering to this method at all times and for all purposes, but it was just kind of eye opening to realize that sometimes constricting choices actually spurs creativity, and not the opposite.
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