Save/Promote the Hobby!? Use ENWorld

[Belen]

Actually, I have a bit more evidence than ENWorld. I visit a variety of game stores every month and attend the local game days at a university. According to store owners, they average age of people purchasing books for D&D or other pen and paper games is 28-35. They rarely see anyone in the 14-22 range.

I also run at least 2 D&D demos per month and only 17% (1 of 6) of the people who play in those demos fall into the 14-22 range and are new to the game. I find this troubling.

 

[Umbran]

Actually, I have a bit more evidence than ENWorld.

That's still only local data, though. Difficult to justify expanding that to gamerdom in general.

The basic issue I come down to is one of funding:

While some folks are willing to let a bunch of EN Worlders into their home for a gameday, allowing a bunch of complete strangers from off the street is another matter. So, you can't have the thing at a private home. That means finding another space. And other spaces generally cost $$.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Actually, I have a bit more evidence than ENWorld. I visit a variety of game stores every month and attend the local game days at a university. According to store owners, they average age of people purchasing books for D&D or other pen and paper games is 28-35. They rarely see anyone in the 14-22 range.

I also run at least 2 D&D demos per month and only 17% (1 of 6) of the people who play in those demos fall into the 14-22 range and are new to the game. I find this troubling.

Well, from what I saw of most of the younger players, they DON'T get involved with things like that. If they buy books, its usually just the Core books and they don't go out and play Demos, cons, etc.

They have their group of friends, play D&D with them, and that's it.

Now, I tried to encourage most of them to get out and try other things more, but I think there's a good amount that still worry about it being a stupid hobby or their parent's will yell at them or something similar...so they don't go around talking about it, playing with others, etc.

Give them a chance to grow up, and I promise you they'll be just as large an RPG community as there is now, if not larger.

 

[mcrow]

I don't buy "the hobby is going to die" thing @ all. If new/young players were going down less and less stores would be carrying RPGs. This may be a local thing but more gaming stores keep opening in my area (and staying open). Not to mention every book store carries RPGs now. i can think of 4 gaming stores in my area that have a sizable RPG player group in 12-20 year old range.

If you are lokking to expand the 12-18 year old player base in your area you should talk to your local junior or senior highschools. Set up a RPG night, most schools (you will find) would be glad give you playing space and would even help organize it. I have also found that church groups are fairly open to it as well.

 

[diaglo]

most schools (you will find) would be glad give you playing space and would even help organize it. I have also found that church groups are fairly open to it as well.

actually most schools won't. at least not to outsiders on a regular basis.

due to insurance issues. overtime for school employees. esp janitorial staff. and having a teacher or school rep present to be responsible.

churches are. as long as you can slip The Word in before, during or after meetings.

 

[Wayside]

According to store owners, they average age of people purchasing books for D&D or other pen and paper games is 28-35. They rarely see anyone in the 14-22 range.

When I was still in this range a couple years ago, I a) wasn't interested in generic gaming, by which I mean playing outside my group of friends or hanging out at an FLCS, and b) wouldn't pay FLCS prices for books anyway, so I had no reason to go there in the first place. I bet that's pretty common. And I'm with arnwyn in that I still have no interest in gaming as a "hobby," otherwise I'd go to gamedays and such.

 

[Kanegrundar]

I don't think that gaming is going anywhere. Just because you don't see young gamers here, on RPG.net, or in your local gaming store doesn't mean they aren't there. Games are expensive. Kids in the 14-22 range not only don't tend to have much money to get anything beyond the core rules, but most kids also have other things going on in their lives in addition to gaming (dating, hanging out, sports, other hobbies). It wasn't until I was about out of college that really had any money to go out and start buying the new books coming out. I played all the time, but the LGS didn't know me from anyone else because I simply didn't have the cash.

The hobby isn't going anywhere. That's not to say that i thik your idea is silly, Belen, it's just I don't think that you have to worry about this nearly as much as you do. I wish you luck in whatever you get started here, however.

Kane

 

[mcrow]

I suspect that larger city schools would be more difficult to get something like this set up. I used to run a regular gaming night @ the highschool in the my hometown but it is a small town and I knew all the teachers since 1st grade. We had a teach who was willing to donate his time and lock up the school after we were done. Maybe this is not possible in all places.

 

[jmucchiello]

B, don't take this the wrong way but how many times are you going to complain about the monster eating the airplane's wing? No one seems to pick up your cause when you post these threads. And yet you march on against the windmills. Someone with search could probably find more of these threads than I, but with just sorting by thread starter, I've found these threads where you pine about the hobby fading away and how we need to promote it.

http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=67680
http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=89411
http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=119972

For the most part, we don't agree with you. Haven't since '03. Still don't. I'm sorry your sky is falling and no one will fight the wolf now that they're inured to your cries of "Wolf". And I'll stop now that I'm out of cliches to mangle.

 

[Dr Awkward]

I'm always up for helping with spreading the word and strengthening the hobby. Let me know if there's anything you'd like me to put up on my site, or anything else I can help with. I've also started a forum of my own recently with one section devoted to "Recruitment & Reenlistment": http://www.kazorum.com/theescapist.html