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RPGs In The 'Real World'

Posted by Zonk on Fri Dec 02, 2005 09:30 PM
from the where-are-the-cheetos dept.
Role Playing (Games)
As more and more people realize the fun they're denying themselves by turning away from orc-bashing and dragon-baiting, mainstream businesses and media are paying more attention to RPGs. Sam the Giant writes "Barnes & Noble University is offering a free 8 hour on-line course titled 'Discover Dungeons & Dragons: Becoming a D&D Player'. The free course is described as follows: 'As a beginning player, this course will guide you in understanding how D&D works, explaining the various worlds and characters types that it is based on, creating a D&D role for yourself, and understanding how your player role interacts in the world and with other characters. You will learn the extent of your abilities and the possibilities that lie ahead for your player, including magical spells, mythic quests, and epic battles with incredible monsters.' It's free to enroll." In the same vein, NPR's great reporting turns to World of Warcraft. Dragoonmac writes "All Things Considered recently ran a feature about WoW communities, farmers, and a humorous review of real-life. A Slashdotter's must hear."
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  • Ain't Real World (Score:5, Insightful)

    by gbulmash (688770) * <semi_famousNO@SPAMyahoo.com> on Friday December 02 2005, @09:33PM (#14171388) Homepage Journal
    Real world?????

    IMO, if I'm not rolling a 20-sided die, it's virtual. Actually, even if I am rolling a 20-sided die, it's virtual.

    If I think "real world" in relation to an RPG, I think of physically playing the game, such as an assasination game or something like that. To me, RPGs around a table or the flickering light of a monitor are virtual. Before I ever touched a computer, D&D was a form of VR where your imagination was the interface, a module was the software, and the dungeonmaster (along with a number of dice) was the CPU.

    - Greg

    • Re:Ain't Real World (Score:5, Insightful)

      by MoonFog (586818) on Friday December 02 2005, @09:35PM (#14171408)
      Isn't that the wonder of it? Even with today's tools that will allow us to really visualise the game, most of us prefer the old fashion way of playing RPGs. We each have our own perception on how the world should look, and we picture it ourselves. No game or movie can replace that.
    • Leisure is real. What you are doing is a leisure activity, there. A real one. With real people. Structured around a fiction implemented as a game, yes. But a real game.

      • Re:Ain't Real World (Score:4, Funny)

        by Deekin_Scalesinger (755062) on Saturday December 03 2005, @01:44AM (#14172256)
        Please, no 733+ sword is going to do 10 points of damage. Come on. You get 10 points of damage with like a dry sponge, or a fistful of leaves flung at someone. Expect a mega-reet longsword in D&D to do over 100 points of damage, once all the enchantments and criticals are taken into account (you didn't forget about the critical hits, did you?) Think outside the bun, man.
  • I thought DND was something that 'happened' to you? Like an anti-choice.

    What about "Barnes & Noble University" Can I get a degree?

    • Re:Life is a party, I wonder how I keep myself thi (Score:4, Funny)

      by richdun (672214) on Friday December 02 2005, @09:54PM (#14171489)
      Can I get a degree?

      Nope, not from B&N, Amazon filed a patent yesterday for "a piece of paper denoting completion of a series of related educational courses with the intention of impressing those without said piece of paper to make more money than them. In another application, a collection of these pieces of paper are used to add every letter of the alphabet to the end of one's name, again in an attempt to compensate for inadequacies or impress those without the letters. When combined with user feedback and recommendations, a multi-million dollar 'non-profit' industry is created."
    • You mean like all those Israelite slaves playing "Dungeon Draggin" back in the pyramid building days?

    • When history looks back (Score:4, Informative)

      by suso (153703) * on Friday December 02 2005, @10:15PM (#14171563) Homepage Journal
      You know what? I think that DnD and the rest of RPGs will go on for a long time and eventually be an old pastime like playing chess, go or even Monopoly and Scrabble. When people read about the history of these RPG games, there will be a small note about its early history like this:

      "When Dungeons and Dragons was originally released over 100 years ago, it caused quite a social stirring among parents concerned over their childrens activities. It was used as a scapegoat for otherwise normal social problems. Now its a game that is enjoyed by the whole family and is generally accepted as a great way to build many mental feats."

        • Re:When history looks back (Score:4, Interesting)

          by suso (153703) * on Saturday December 03 2005, @12:41AM (#14172052) Homepage Journal
          I think that role playing games help you visualize space in your head as well as build vocabulary and reading skills. Maybe not so much when you are an adult. But when you are 13, you can become really engrossed in reading through players handbooks and so on and learn a lot of new words. Plus, it is a good practice of organizational skills. One of the little aspects I find enjoyable about playing RPGs is organizing everything.
  • Obligatory Quote:

    "RRR....PPPP.....GGGG........" -Blackhawk Down

    Sorry. Couldn't resist.

    Reading the NPR article now. Hope that might make up for the Karma burning. Interesting graph of WoW Gold versus USD rate. I've always wondered about that. I remember when EQ first came out and EQ Plats were trading at a better rate than the Euro (or was it Franc) was at that time. I thought it was absurd... until the eBay character sales.

    • While I realize this site is about news for nerds,
      How does a title like RPGs In The 'Real World'
      Not make you immediately think of things asploding?

      http://science.howstuffworks.com/rpg.htm/printable [howstuffworks.com]
      To keep this semi-ontopic, howstuffworks does discuss
      RPG Basics
      Tactics: How Are RPGs Used?
      RPGs: The Future

      The section on "Firing an RPG-7" might not be so applicable... but I bet it'll beat rolling a 20 sided dice any day.

  • Humourous Review of RL (Score:5, Informative)

    by DrunkenTerror (561616) on Friday December 02 2005, @09:39PM (#14171429) Homepage Journal
    The "humorous review of real-life" is two years old, and can be found here. [gamespot.com] It's pretty funny though.

    pros: Great Graphics, Vast Open-Ended Gameplay
    cons: Random Start, Permadeath

  • RPGs in the real world? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by davidoff404 (764733) on Friday December 02 2005, @09:41PM (#14171437)
    Why not look at Iraq for the ideal guide to how RPGs work in the real world?

  • Getting into D&D? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by MBCook (132727) <foobarsoft@foobarsoft.com> on Friday December 02 2005, @09:44PM (#14171452) Homepage
    I have recently thought about getting into D&D. Does anyone have suggestions on how to get into this game? Is there anything I should do other than "buy the basic set and start playing"?

    • Re:Getting into D&D? (Score:5, Informative)

      by Nightspirit (846159) on Friday December 02 2005, @09:59PM (#14171503)
      First off, ignore the trolls. Many gamers go against stereotype and some are just like "normal" people. For instance, I'm a doctor currently DMing a game, one of my players is a professor, and another is a police officer. We're all sucessful and married. Hardly people living in their parents basement. RPGs can be a great way to be social, make friends, and play a game that can stimulate your mind and imagination. Your location may have a local game shop where they sell RPGs. They should have a bulletin board where people will be looking for gamers. Either contact an ad that looks interesting or put up your information. Make sure you notify the person (or put in your ad) that you are a beginner. Groups are starting up all the time, and IME getting into a game is never a problem. Ignore any games going on at the game store. They can be good for beginners, and some game shops may have excellent games going on, but more likely they are pit stops for desperate gamers, and a breeding ground for bad DMs and players. You will likely be put off if your first impression is from one of these games. Another option is to put your information on the wizards of the coast bulletin board: http://boards1.wizards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=347 [wizards.com] If you go to a game and don't enjoy it, politely notify the DM, and find another. Not all games cater to all people, and while one group may be horrible for you, another may be a perfect match. Have fun!

    • Re:Getting into D&D? (Score:4, Informative)

      by Tackhead (54550) on Friday December 02 2005, @10:03PM (#14171519)
      > Does anyone have suggestions on how to get into this game? Is there anything I should do other than "buy the basic set and start playing"?

      Start off on the good foot. If you're a magic-user, the most important spell is Lvl. 3 Eroticism. Be sure to tell the GM that you would like to "put on your robe and wizard hat" before you learn it, aight? [bash.org]

      If your party ever encounters a gazebo [duke.edu], be sure to ask the GM how many hit dice it has. Be careful - those things have powerful resists.

      And on a more serious note, if you enjoyed either of those links, you're on the right track. Buy a basic set. Find a group of players who recognize a (Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Monty Python, Terry Pratchett, Snow Crash, or any other bit of canonical geek humor) and start playing. If they're not playing D&D, play whatever it is they're playing. All pen-and-paper RPGs are fundamentally the same - if you've got even the slightest inklings of an imagination and a sense of humor, it doesn't matter how introverted you are. You'll have more fun than you ever thought possible.

    • I would suggest that you go to your local independent hobby store in your town and find first, and foremost, the AD&D first edition rule books. Forget about second and third editions for a while. The reasoning behind this is that the old, and I do mean OLD rules are not so constraining as the new rulesets are (and they are not poisoned by the WOtC/Hasbro crap).

      Once you get the books, get the dice, and i mean several DICE (d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, d20) and ROLL out a character...no computer programs pleas
    • The very first thing to do, before buying any books or anything, is find people to play with. This can be friends who are similarly interested, or people who are already playing.

      There are several reasons for this, the first being, there is no point in buying the books for the games if you have no one to play with. This is not the type of game you play by yourself, it requires a group of at least 4 people. That way, you can split the cost of the books (specifically with D&D there are 3 core books ne

    • Suggestion number one: Don't. Get a real roleplaying game. Seriously. Unless of course you're the type of person who likes McDonald's hamburgers, Budweiser beer, and Microsoft operating systems.

      Suggestion number two: Go to a gaming store and look for a message board with available games. Find one that isn't D&D. Join as a player.

      Suggestion number three: In case you want to know what game to play instead of D&D, the answer depends on what you want. There are hundreds of quality games out there, so do
    • Try downloading an abandonware called "Eye of the Beholder II". It's a wonderful game despites its low tech. It really gets you into the D&D mood.
    • By far the best message board about Dungeons & Dragons is ENWorld: http://www.enworld.org/ [enworld.org] It's actually the only forum I know of where the average member is older than 30, for better or worse. They have a specific forum for gamers looking for groups to join. There might be groups in your area, try it out.

    • Re:Getting into D&D? (Score:4, Informative)

      by bytor4232 (304582) on Friday December 02 2005, @10:58PM (#14171711) Homepage Journal
      The basic set is somewhat limiting, and although similar to Dnd 3.5e, its not quite the same, and almost all players are on full 3.5e.

      I'm a registered GM with the RPGA (the organized play arm of WotC), so I can help you out:

      1. Pick up Dungeons and Dragons for Dummies [amazon.com]. I flipped through it, and it was a very good guide for learning Dnd if you know absolutely nothing about the game.

      2. Pick up the Players Handbook [amazon.com]. Make sure you get version 3.5e. You don't actually need the Dungeon Master's guide and Monster Manual right away, but do get them some day. Each of the core set can be had for around 20 bucks from Amazon, but if you can afford a little extra, buy them from a local game shop. Its important to support them.

      3. Find a place to play. I would recommend a local hobby and/or game shop. Its the most popular game out there, and the oldest, chances are someone out there is playing it. Ask the shopkeep how to find a game. If you can't, you can always start with an online version of the game. The largest and most popular way to play Dnd online is play by post. One of the best sites for that is DNDOG [dndonlinegames.com]. They have a great community and plenty of people who would love to get another player into the game.

      Good luck! Your welcome to email me at dm@aerthon.com [mailto] if you have any additional questions.

  • nothing to do with a backlog, really .... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Shaleh (1050) <shaleh.speakeasy@net> on Friday December 02 2005, @09:50PM (#14171477)
    The book stores are glutted with D&D books. My read is they are just trying to move 'em. At least the couple here near me seem to have this problem.

  • Caveat! (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Regnard (803869)

    I've taken courses from the Barnes & Noble University and they usually "recommend" a book that goes along with their course, sort of like a textbook.

    This may not totally affect the course itself but sometimes, the course material refers to the book.

    • Of course, in this case, it'd be awfully hard to actually play D&D without a Player's Handbook at the very least. The course seems to be basically a guide to reading and understanding the PHB, so we can hardly fault them for saying "... and you might want to buy this book."

      Granted, I use my DM's extras in my weekly game, but that's only because my own books are currently on the other side of the country.
  • Did I miss something? When did they [bn.com] get their own University?

    Or is this kind of like "TD Waterhouse Center" or "Verizon Stadium", where a big company sponsors something and thus gets naming rights?

  • Can I test out? (Score:3, Funny)

    by ThePuceGuardian (898399) on Friday December 02 2005, @09:56PM (#14171493)
    Though I am very interested in taking the intermediate course: Finding A Game Group (That Doesn't Suck). Until then, all my books will just gather dust..
    • I've been part of a couple of clans, but they're now defunct. The groups that manage to stay together are "rah-rah, aren't we grand" kind of groups. They inflate numbers by counting everyone that's ever gamed with them as "a member" even though many of the people haven't shown up for an event in months. The ones that do play for fun don't seem to last. I think that they usually run out of steam because the founders lack org skills.

      Added to the thing, good DM's are hard to come by. How about a class or

  • Oblig. Reno 911 (Score:3, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday December 02 2005, @10:11PM (#14171553)
    "Why did you shoot your friend with an arrow?"

    "I didn't. He opened the chest and set off the arrow trap inside."

    "Sir, did you shoot him with that arrow?"

    "No, it was a trap on the chest. He failed his reflex save and was hit by it."

    "Sir, he's bleeding."

    "He shouldn't have failed his reflex save."

  • Scam? (Score:2, Funny)

    by aj1 (935405)
    Sure the 8 hour introductory course is free... But how much will the 80 hour Overcoming D&D addiction course cost? Sounds a lot like legal drugs too me! Of course who am I to say anything. This is one drug I use frequently.
  • How did they get through an article about "RPGs in the Real World" without mentioning LARPers? Come on, show those pitiful people some love...

    ...although I guess being a cosplayer myself I don't have room to talk...


    Magic: the Gathering 4ever!

  • Having been playing D&D in one form or another for almost 30 years (possibly more), It should be easy to Ace this "class."

    Actually, it might be cool to take it, since it concentrates on the 3rd edition rules, which I've not learned, even though I have the book.

    H.
  • An RPG is a shoulder-launched unguided anti-tank rocket of soviet russian design. It won't do much to an M1 Abrams, but will take out a HumVee.

    And back in the dark ages of computing there was a programming language called Report Program Generator (RPG)

    This post bought to you on behalf of the Association for the Abolition of Ambighous Acronyms (AAAA)
  • As much as I love D&D, this is nothing more than a Barnes and Noble press release. Of course, the more people who play it the better, but I just want to call em as I see em.

    Now, one of the things I've been wondering is...since I just left college last year, and am now in "the real world" with a job and very little free time (most of which isn't free due to fun chores), I've found myself losing most of my interest in D&D in favor of computer RPGs that give me more bang for my buck time wise.

    Can anyb

  • What next, "Roller Disco for Beginners"?

  • even i admit- role playing is fun! (Score:4, Interesting)

    by RevAaron (125240) <revaaron&hotmail,com> on Saturday December 03 2005, @12:40AM (#14172047) Homepage
    I always thought gaming (RPGing, role playing) wouldn't really be much fun. Especially considering, I'm really not into fantasy at all. I think most of it is cheesy as hell and pretty lame. But I thought "what the hell!" when a friend wanted to initiate me and my also non-rpging girlfriend into the wide world of gaming. I figured it'd be a good way to learn the ropes before I found some other folks to play a less dorky tabletop rpg like the Babylon 5 or Star Wars RPG, or hell even Star Trek or anything else more sci-fi than wizards, elves and orcs.

    But, it turns out, gaming is fun, and so far I've found it fun even when the actual subject matter of the fictional universe isn't my thing. I've played some Vampire - The Masquerade and PlaneScape/DND 3.5. Both have been a blast, much to my honest surprise. So, even for you types out there that may think you're "above" the cheesiness of fantasy or even both fantasy and science fiction, give it a chance.

    So... yeah. I reccomend trying it. I just hope you don't get spoiled by playing with some anal retentive person who is obsessed about being 100% in character and having every word float past your lips be part of the role play. I know not everyone is in my camp, but I'm of the mind that an activity like gaming should be about fun- the fun of telling a story with a few friends over a few beers, some laughs and some clever tricks- not work or stick-in-butt sort of stuff. To each her own, but for a n00b, try to find someone more light harded. :)

    • Re:even i admit- role playing is fun! (Score:4, Informative)

      by Jesus_666 (702802) on Saturday December 03 2005, @07:37AM (#14173051)
      Besides, D&D is not the be-all-end-all of roleplaying*. For example, Shadowrun is a good choice if you don't want to play in a clichéd pseudo-medieval world - the fact that your character can throw fireballs is nice, but it doesn't quite impress the flame-resistant sentry gun aiming at you. You can play a secret agent or the baddest mutha on the block or a delivery guy with an autocannon mounted on his car. If you want to your character can run around with a cyber-torso with chrome finishing and an open hawaii shirt. Probably the gratest thing about Shadowrun is that it gives you full control over your character's style. Hell, if you want to play a dwarf with a neon green afro, blinking cybernetic eyes and a penchant for rocket launchers nothing except the GM will stop you. Or you run around with a bow and arrows filled with a plastic explosive, giggling every time you hear an explosion. Or you play a civil servant gone bad, armed with a pumpgun and his enemies' death certificates (filled out in triplicate). Try that with D&D.


      * Actually, I'd call it the stereotypical role-playing game that I wouldn't want to be caught dead with. Over here in Germany we have a similar but different default system [thedarkeyerpg.com], which features an extremely detailed world and a nice way of handling skill checks. Unfortunately it's also very good-vs-evil-centric and the fourth edition (the first one also released in English) suffers from skill cancer, giving you a selection of about 200 skills which your character can have, including separate skills for stuff like attacking from behind. A common joke among TDE players is that the fifth edition will include skills for "walking up stairs" and "walking down stairs", with separate skills for wooden and stone stairs. Don't play this with unmodified rules.

  • RPGs vs MMOs (Score:4, Interesting)

    by yoshi_mon (172895) on Saturday December 03 2005, @01:58AM (#14172299)
    I realize that the OP is not really trying to draw any similarities between RPGs and MMORPGs but this is something I've been thinking about for a while now that I've had my 1st experience with a MMORPG; that being WoW.

    MMORPGs are not really RPGs in much the same way that driving a car simulator is not the same as actually driving a car. A lot of the elements are present in the simulator but a large number are still missing.

    This is not to say that MMORPGs aren't fun or don't have a place, but the more I've played WoW the more I find myself not really playing a RPG but more of an RPG simulator. Sure at times it feels like I'm playing an RPG but then I go and play something like Gothic, a good NWN module, etc and I'm reminded of all the elements I'm missing in that MMO.

    For the record, yeah I cut my teeth back in the day on PnP AD&D, Carwars, Star Frontiers, along with a number of others. I won't even deny that a PnP RPG is the "true" RPG vs a CRPG but for me the convenience factor of being able to play around my schedule is key.

    In closing I just wanted to put this out there since it was on my mind and this thread seemed as good a place as any. WoW bashing and it's flaws has it's place but that is not what I'm going for here, rather just wanted to make the observation that there is a hierarchy of RPG elements among the types.

  • Our Gaming group is all professionals (Score:3, Informative)

    by joelsanda (619660) on Saturday December 03 2005, @02:11AM (#14172333) Homepage

    Our D&D gaming group, which meets every two weeks, is comprised of people with the following day jobs:

    • Mental Health Therapist
    • Software Analyst/Designer
    • Finance Group V.P.
    • Two software developers
    • Asst. Attorney General
    • Paralegal

    I'm glad to see D&D becoming more mainstream. It was a haven from a rather boring world as a child, and as an adult is a haven from a rather boring world ;-) There were two women in the group - but one had to leave to finalize her job search (she's a professor of law).

  • RPGs and Muds are "Real World" (Score:4, Interesting)

    by lloy0076 (624338) on Saturday December 03 2005, @02:39AM (#14172404) Homepage

    I play the MUD Achaea [achaea.com] and have been doing so for about a year and a half now. During that time I've risen from a mere young adventurer to a Ministerial position in my city and a reasonably high rank in my Order.

    It is so easy to see people who have never played an RPG:

    • They talk l1k3 l33t haXX0rs
    • They talk about things like keyboards and Internet

    I don't know about other people "playing the game" but I certainly try to stay in character, at least in public. When I am "in character", the world is very real to me. The characters are very real, the people are very real and I actually look on my "alter ego" as being me.

    RPGs do have a different frame of mind than first person, shoot'em up type games. I can see that a course introducing people about RPGs would be very useful whether they're D&D in "real life" or MUDs in "cyber space".

  • Only interesting thing was the gold graph... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by garylian (870843) on Saturday December 03 2005, @10:30AM (#14173546)
    The article wasn't "must read". It was pretty much common sense that most folks have figured out long ago. About the only interesting thing in the whole thing was the WoW gold vs. real world price graph, and that was only cool because I won't want to waste my time doing the research necessary to create the darn thing.

    If a game has an economy, folks are going to abuse it. It is almost typical nowadays to covet items in games, instead of wanting to have the satisfaction of earning it. At low levels, it can make sense to slip that new toon a little gold and let them get some better equipment. I've taken my lvl 60 rogue through Deadmines at least a dozen times, getting some nice gear for a new toon I am creating. At high levels though, just go out and earn it. It's why you play the game: to level up, see places, and get better gear.

    Many games today are just awful for that. Seeing a new EQ (first version) walking around with nearly maxed out stats because someone threw 50K plat at it was just silly. And, it forces the game creators to modify how they approach the game's future development, as well as forcing them to retro-fit the older portions of the game.

    Encounters have to be made harder for lower level areas, because the characters are tougher than they should be. By the time Planes of Power (PoP) came out for EQ, it was extremely difficult to be a new-to-EQ player, unless you had friends that would shower you with gifts. It was even harder than EQ was when it first came out, when a full set of Bronze armor made you feel like you were getting somewhere. Because now, that full set of Bronze wasn't good enough to keep you alive.

    But many players don't care about that. We live in the era of entitlization, where folks think they deserve to be able to have a character with godly gear on it from the outset. How dare developers put level limits on gear, and restrict access to places based on levels!

    I guess that's why I went back and started playing CoH/CoV again. Sure, it's often repetitive, but no economy to really abuse, so it's quieter.

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