Look who made the big time

Dirigible · Oct 26, 2003

What, no input from te G-man himself yet? Mebbe he's too modest.

LightPhoenix · Oct 26, 2003

Dirigible said:
What, no input from te G-man himself yet? Mebbe he's too modest.

Or he realizes that dragging up ages old issues and animosity is just plain dumb. Especially in a thread as potentially flame-ridden as this one.

jgbrowning · Oct 26, 2003

LightPhoenix said:
Or he realizes that dragging up ages old issues and animosity is just plain dumb. Especially in a thread as potentially flame-ridden as this one.

Ladies and gent! We have a winner!

No point getting involved, would just be wasted time.

joe b.

Particle_Man · Oct 27, 2003

alsih2o said:
what?!?!

i quote from the website- "He is now reviled by D&D players today for what he did to the game."

i haven't seen hide nor hair of this opinion.

I agree, that does seem odd. Even if everything Frank Trollman said were true (and "Frank"ly, I have to take with a grain of salt anything said by someone with "Troll" in his moniker)

, that would only explain why, at one time (like, 20 years or so ago), he was reviled by (some) D&D players -- not why he would be reviled by D&D players today. Why would younger gamers care about what happened 20 years ago? As for older gamers, the idea of some middle-aged gamer holding a grudge against Gygax for decades on end seems a trifle odd to me. I have this vision of an old lady at a Con that Gary is at going "booo! booo! booo!" a la The Princess Bride (and I don't mean just Lorraine Williams)

Interestingly, I think William Shatner went through a similer period (loved -- then reviled (by some) -- then loved again). So did Joe Clark (for you Canadians out there) and John Deifenbaker (for you OLD Canadians out there) and John A MacDonald (for you old, DEAD Canadians out there).

I think as far as most gamers are concerned today, if they think of Gary Gygax at all, it is as "The Dude who, like, invented the Game. Now pass me a Mountain Dew!" I am not going to get into a debate as to whether most people would be correct to think this (orange juice is healthier, after all), but I do think that is how most people who play D&D think of Gygax, if they are even aware of him. "Reviling" him seems a very strange thing for the average contemporary gamer to do.

Personally, I think of him as a Rock Star (well, sort of). His past foibles are irrelevant to me -- he is in the D&D Pantheon as a Greater God (and Eric Noah, you get to be a Saint).

LightPhoenix · Oct 27, 2003

jgbrowning said:
Ladies and gent! We have a winner!

No point getting involved, would just be wasted time.

Do I get a prize? Maybe I could get a job instead?

Liminal Syzygy · Oct 27, 2003

Why is being featured on this Web site "making the big time"? :/

Thresher · Oct 27, 2003

Cordo said:
Why is being featured on this Web site "making the big time"? :/

Got me buggered why either?

I mean, its the internet, any moron can use a program to make a website.
Nobel prizes are big time, top 10 most wanted on Interpol is big time, featured on some gimps website is 'meh factor 10' regardless of the amount of hits.

But to be fair, GG seems like a nice enough fella from what Ive read elsewhere and bless him for starting the phenomenon we all love.

LcKedovan · Oct 27, 2003

MerakSpielman said:
Ah. They must be referring to him INVENTING THE GAME TO BEGIN WITH! I'm sure D&D players will never forgive him that heinous sin.

Surely you mean Jack Chick will never forgive him.

-W.

Henry · Oct 27, 2003

Dirigible said:
What, no input from the G-man himself yet? Mebbe he's too modest.

To put it a different way: who do you think Monte Cook learned his rules on "commenting on criticism" from?

Particle_Man said:
...I have to take with a grain of salt anything said by someone with "Troll" in his moniker)

It's his real name. Let's leave it be, please.

Particle_Man said:
Personally, I think of him as a Rock Star (well, sort of).

I don't think Gary would prefer to be thought of as a "Keith Richards" type - but I imagine he'd like to have Keith's physical immortality!

Personally, I've met Gary, back at Gencon 99, when he was a Guest of Honor, and corresponded with him many times on the internet. In 1999, a room of hundreds of D&D fans gave him a spontaneous standing ovation, something the other guests didn't get, unless I'm misremembering. I can't speak for all D&D fans, but there are a LOT of them out there who still think of him fondly, and who remember his previous D&D work with reminiscence of some awesome childhood times. I'm one of them. Gary gave my friends and I some awesome material to work with.

Rashak Mani · Oct 27, 2003

Well anyone who helped create D&D and RPGs deserves applause... no matter what later crimes they commited. I am even sorry to see the "TSR" name dissapear since for me its part of the origins of D&D. I can't even imagine how life was before dice and RPGs....