D&D 5E What does D&D mean to you? Why do you play it?

[Irda Ranger]

Social seems a popular choice, but that's not why I play D&D. I would be social anyway. I was social during the years I didn't play D&D. I play D&D because I enjoy the D&D parts of it! So I voted Tactical, Versus, and Fantasy.

Those seem like unpopular choices, but they're the reason I play D&D as opposed to some other social activity.

 

[77IM]

Why you play as opposed to other RPGs. I.e., it's easier to find people to play D&D than, say, WFRP 1e or RIFTS or something.

I feel like most people were not answering it that way. Reading the responses, it looks like most people are comparing pen&paper role-playing versus other forms of entertainment.

There are a couple of responses mentioning "product" as a reason for playing D&D versus other RPGs. This is one of the main reason I play D&D; the product support, including 3rd-party products, is astounding. The other reason (not listed in the survey) is the huge player base. It's super easy to find D&D players and just sit down and play. This is similar to "social aspect." I'd also say that D&D does "fantasy aspect" better than most other RPGs; the long legacy of settings, novels, and lore make it super easy to shift your imagination into D&D mode.

When compared to other RPGs, the idea of playing D&D for "co-op" or "storytelling" is laughable -- so many other RPGs do those things much, much better. I mean, you can absolutely have fun doing those things in D&D (and I do), but they are not a coherent reason to choose D&D over other RPGs. I suspect many of the people who answered that way choose RPGs for "co-op" or "storytelling," and choose D&D for other reasons, and it just happens to be sufficient for their "co-op" or "storytelling" needs.

 

[rgoodbb]

As a kid player 34 years ago, It would have been Fantasy (escapism) and Social (needing to have a safe place in the world). Now as a DM and player it is more about the co-op and the storytelling.That is what gives me joy.

 

[pogre]

Other - Having a captive audience that I force to admire my latest painted miniatures and terrain.

I agree with many other posters that there are at least a couple of question embedded in here: why do you play TTRPGs and why do you play D&D?

I run D&D because it is a popular game with rules I can live with.

I run rpgs because I enjoy the social and tactical aspect of - stories automatically occur, which is cool too.