Explaining the Game

[Queen_Dopplepopolis]

I went out to lunch with a girlfriend last Friday and, while we were eatting, we started talking about our hobbies. Needless to say, they're very different. When I confessed my love of role playing, she asked me to explain what exactly it is.

I dove into my normal speech comparing the game to popular movies such as Lord of the Rings and computer games. However, she had not seen or experienced any of it. She had never seen or read LotR (or any other fantasy for that matter - cartoon, live action, nothing!), she's never played a computer game, and (for the most part) only reads political journals.

My initial reaction was to dodge and avoid trying to explaining it b/c I didn't figure that she was actually interested, but the more I tried to change the subject, the more she attempted to change it back.

Grasping, I attempted to explain the game without any typical pop culture references that I would normall use, but it was SO difficult. I felt as if my ship had crashed and I had nothing to stay afloat.

After about an hour of talking, I think she finally understood the essence of the game, but she lacked any potential visualization. It was an incredibly bizarre experience.

There have been lots of threads about how you explain the game, but how do you go about doing it to someone that has nothing to compare it with or to?

 

[diaglo]

cops and robbers
monopoly
poker
dress up

other movies:

sleeping beauty


there are many other venues to explain "Lets pretend. Or Make Believe"

D&D does it too.

 

[rogueattorney]

It's a game. Generally speaking the participants of the game are made up of one judge/referee/master and more than one "player". The players have "characters", which are like individualized playing pieces. The judge sets up a scenario of some sort, commonly called an adventure, and the players negotiate their characters through the various challenges presented in the adventure. Sometimes the characters and adventure site are represented by some sort of playing pieces and game board, but as often as not the characters are nothing more than words and numbers on a page, and all the action takes place in the participants' heads. "Winning" and "losing" are pretty un-defined terms, essentially coming down to whether the players are satisfied with the result of the adventure or not. All in all, it's sort of a slightly more organized version of "let's play pretend."

Maybe the best way to tell her is to show her. Even if she's not a fantasy fan, she has to have some interest that's been made into an rpg at one time or another. Westerns, spy-flicks, cartoons, etc., etc.

R.A.

 

[Whimsical]

Get the movie The Gamers and show it to her.

Interestingly, the creators of the movie have their own "What is Gaming" articles.

 

[Henry]

If they're willing to play along, you can run someone through a "meta-RPG" at any time, even over a lunch conversation.

Say she's a murder mystery fan or a fan of those Lifetime Network dramas; you might say she's "(insert name here), police detective," and has been hired to find a killer who always leaves pink carnations on his victims in alleys in a certain district of town. Ask her if SHE were the police detective, what would she investigate first. Run her through the flower shops, the district of town (use your home town for familiarity), through some suspects (Mr. Smith, Mr. Jones, etc.) Totally statless, just "what do you do?" Any calls for backup? That's where the other players come in - they would be the partners, the buddy in the crime lab, etc.

Is she a sports fan? Describe the extreme rock climber climbing a mountain, with few tools, and having to determine along the way if she faces any challenges, e.g. slippery footing, crumbling handholds, decisions on tougher and quicker paths versus slower but safer, etc.

Fan of Spy thrillers? You've got it made.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

The short version for me:

It's a game based on group-storytelling, but with rules.

 

[lonesoldier]

It's a game based on group-storytelling, but with rules.

Set in fantasy or modern settings, usually with fantastical creatures or events.

 

[Thanee]

There have been lots of threads about how you explain the game, but how do you go about doing it to someone that has nothing to compare it with or to?

Give her a few fantasy/sci-fi novels with a strong political background and explain it to her after she has read them.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Vraille Darkfang]

Explain to her it's just like when your husband plays "Naughty Schoolgirl"

 

[Aeson]

Explain to her it's just like when your husband plays "Naughty Schoolgirl"

That may not be the best idea especially if he's the naughty schoolgirl.