Gaming and Your Significant Other

[Gilladian]

Gaming is for family. My husband and I met at a game club meeting, and have played together ever since. My older brother got me into gaming, and at family gatherings we, my parents and younger brother all frequently indulge in a family session of slaughtering orcs...

 

[wedgeski]

My girlfriend -- now wife -- decided pretty quickly to join in the gaming when she realised how important it was to me. She's been a die-hard ever since, playing in every one of the campaigns I run or play in myself. It's awesome.

 

[Lhorgrim]

My wife is most definitely not a gamer.

She tolerates my gaming, but I wouldn't say that she is overly supportive. I game 4 hours a week. Every other Saturday I DM a 4E game, and on the other Saturday I play in a Star Wars Saga game.

If she were more supportive, I would try to run or play in a game during the week as well.

 

[bento]

RPGing is my "poker night" my S-O is supportive of, but does not do. She has social things she enjoys (volunteering at a local theatre) so we take turns watching the kids while the other is out enjoying their activity.

We've tried RPGing together a couple of times but she's expressed that she likes us to do other activities (other types of games, puzzles, hobbies) instead. I'm fine with that.

 

[roguerouge]

No idea what the sticky situation the OP may be referring to.

Generally, the genre involves either a SO convinced that couples must do everything together even if one of them hates it, a SO jealous of another player for no reason, or an SO that can't draw boundaries between in-game and out-of-game actions. The genre's performances tend include melodrama, energy-sucking lassitude or ineptitude, favoritism and irrational jealousies, insecurities and hatreds. Extra bonus soap opera points goes to tables that hear, "If you loved me, you'd _____ ."

 

[Nightchilde-2]

My wife wasn't a gamer when we met, but she quickly got interested in it and joined our 3.0 D&D game. Once she had our youngest daughter, she got disinterested in it for the most part. She plays in my 4e monthly game (as does my oldest daughter from my first marriage), and tolerates my gaming quite well (I run once a week), but she's nowhere near as hardcore as I am.

 

[Aristotle]

My current girlfriend is not a gamer. Neither are most of my former. I dated one girl that I met at a game and it ended a month later in drama and heartache. I've had my own games disrupted or even put on hold because of three other relationships where both members were in the group and the relationship ended.

Despite all of that: I still have the geek-girl fantasy. The idea of meeting a woman who enjoys tabletop gaming, MMO and FPS computer games, sci-fi/fantasy books and movies, and so on... I convinced myself years ago though that while hot geek girls certainly do exist, they are almost always already involved... and sometimes with guys who aren't geeks themselves. *horror*

 

[scruffygrognard]

My wife used to game, when we first started dating. That ended after a few months.

 

[soulcatcher78]

The spousal unit does not game. I schedule my game nights when I know she has other things to do (even if it's just a night of television that she prefers). Having seperate intrests (I hate antique shopping for instance so she doesn't ask for me to participate...just carry, lol) is healthy and avoids what the OP describes as "sticky situations".

 

[megamania]

My wife is not big on it. She tried gaming a few times but it never clicked with her. So long as family comes first however she allows me to do anything I want. There was a time where I gamed 6 times a month but now I'm down to once every so often as the family has grown and includes kid's sports and activities.

There are times I am envious of couples whom both game. But how many couples camp, hike, kayak, go to theatre and so on together. I'm content with where we are.

But it would be nice.....