Are you in the RPG closet?

[Odhanan]

Like the edition wars and 5e discussions thar plague this site.

Absolutely.

 

[lamia]

I'm very open about it. I'm very open about pretty much everything!

I honestly get more raised eyebrows when people find out I practice reiki than play pen and paper.

Being open about it also helps me bring in new players. My current group would have never formed if I hadn't talked about it at work and piqued some people's interest.

Running a game for new players is just wonderful. Watching folks do all of the things that have become old hat for us keeps everything fresh and fun for me. I might annoy some people by talking about it, but I think it's worth it to find those new players!

 

[Holy Bovine]

Like the edition wars and 5e discussions thar plague this site.

What? What does that have to do with the discussion at hand? This is just a bizarre tangent now.

 

[francisca]

What? What does that have to do with the discussion at hand?

Well, it deflects attention from his wrongful assertion that D&D isn't for us "normal" people.

 

[Diamond Cross]

It simply is not for normal people. If you play D&D you are not normal, period.

It doesn't matter if you pretend to do normal things.

We must all be normal and conform to the one true way of being normal.

Whatever that means.

 

[WizarDru]

It simply is not for normal people. If you play D&D you are not normal, period.

It doesn't matter if you pretend to do normal things.

We must all be normal and conform to the one true way of being normal.

Whatever that means.

If you don't know what normal means, how can you be certain who is and who isn't? Who makes that determination? If you don't want to self-identify as "normal", which appears to be a loaded pejorative for you, that's fine. But don't assume that you're speaking universal truth, because a lot of us don't see it that way. Many gamers, in fact, have spent decades fighting that very notion very publicly.

 

[Holy Bovine]

It simply is not for normal people. If you play D&D you are not normal, period.

It doesn't matter if you pretend to do normal things.

We must all be normal and conform to the one true way of being normal.

Whatever that means.

This is sounding more and more like something you want to believe is true rather than it being something that is true. "Pretend to do normal things"? What the hell does that even mean?

 

[Jeff Wilder]

It sounds to me like somebody's caught in the event horizon of a tautology.

If you define "playing D&D" as "abnormal behavior," then of course D&D players are abnormal.

But that kind of definition discards the (already minimal) usefulness of the word "normal."

Still if you absolutely insist on that definition, I can say this: "I know plenty of people who are normal ... except that they play D&D." (I'm not one of them; I'm just too much of a pop-culture nerd.)

 

[EnochSeven]

Unfortunately, I am in the closet. I don't like it.

I have always been very self conscious. I'm not sure why I care what other people think, and it drives me nuts.

I've only been playing for two years after a 25 year break, but I'm beginning to realize this isn't just a hobby phase I'm going through, so I'm trying to open up about my hobby that I have been loving so much.

It's a slow process, I'm trying.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Regarding the initial question: Yes & No for me.

Everyone around me long enough knows I play. They can't help but see the books & minis or hear how I'm going over to someone's house to play. And if there is a reason for me to bring it up, I do. For instance, I was being complemented on my strong roleplaying skills in a series of training exercises I was a part of the past week+. I told the person it was probably due to years playing D&D. (Which, BTW, she had never heard of, so I had some esplainin' to do.)

However, its not something I make a point of telling everyone. Casual acquaintances of mine know I have a "guys night out" every other Tuesday, but they don't necessarily know what it involves.