Why do you like RPGs ?

[Holy Bovine]

Man, I checked just about all the choices except GF plays so I tag along, Other and Not good with girls (I don't know if I am good with girls but since I met my fiancee through gaming I must have don;e something right )

So many things go into why i game and this poll hit the major ones right on the nose. Good poll!

 

[arcseed]

Because the oral storytelling tradition, as such, is all but dead. Because storytelling is what I most enjoy doing. Because I don't have the time or discipline to write. So I DM.

 

[Nightfall]

Well sure it beats trying to become the Anti-christ! Or commit random acts of terrorism.

 

[Wuxia]

Real life is not enjoyable. I want a magic sword.

I'd go for a magic world.

 

[Rashak Mani]

Should I have put other options ?

Maybe because you can eat Junk Food and nobody thinks your wrong ?

You like to collect dice ?

By the way thanks Holy Bovine... question thou is it normal for Americans to find dates and chicks in games ? This is pretty rare in Brazil...

 

[Kichwas]

Other: I enjoy making fictional worlds and then bringing them to life.

Don't get anything out of combat.
Don't get anything out of being in charge.
No problems with dating (does anyone actually really use this one?) or other social issues.
Enjoy the roleplay but not as much as bringing the worlds to life.

If this were the 30's and 40's I'd probably be joining up with whatever group of people Tolkien and later Marr Barker (sp?) came out of and working on the whole linguist angle just so I could get an excuse to make up 'fairy tale worlds'.

Sometimes I suspect roleplaying actually stunts my creativity by giving it an easy out. If Tolkien had been a gamer Middle Earth might not have been seen by anyone beyond his players.

Not that I have that level of dedication; but I wonder if I or any other world-maker DMs would have if I didn't have a quick fix to rely on.

 

[arcseed]

Sometimes I suspect roleplaying actually stunts my creativity by giving it an easy out. If Tolkien had been a gamer Middle Earth might not have been seen by anyone beyond his players.

Not that I have that level of dedication; but I wonder if I or any other world-maker DMs would have if I didn't have a quick fix to rely on.

I suspect it's the other way around; for a lot of us DMing provides an outlet for creativity that would otherwise be frustrated. But you might be right, and I might be writing if I weren't able to DM.

 

[Howling Coyote]

Seems to me that RPGing is one of the best excuses to hang out with others. No matter who's the GM and what kind of a game he's running, all are more than eager to join in. And of course two thirds of the gaming time always goes to idle chatter instead of RPGing.

 

[Holy Bovine]

Should I have put other options ?

Maybe because you can eat Junk Food and nobody thinks your wrong ?

You like to collect dice ?

By the way thanks Holy Bovine... question thou is it normal for Americans to find dates and chicks in games ? This is pretty rare in Brazil...

Well, I'm Canadian (not that you would have known that) so I can't speak for Americans. Nearly my entire circle of friends is linked in some ways to gaming. Some relationships have started from it too. I doubt this is 'normal' but its been my experience that you can meet girls through RPGs.

Oh and I do like eating junk food during games and I have a small hoard of dice (and want more, more, more!)

 

[Darklone]

Uh well

Hmm. Voted other. Since I cannot decide. It's all.

About dating through gaming... no idea. Never had a longterm relationship with a gaming girl but some friends of mine always say: If you want sex, go to a LARP.

So I suppose it's possible but gaming is just another way to make social contacts. I mean, guys with problems wo meet girls will have the same problems when meeting a gaming girl.

Why do I roleplay? I don't. I play myself. Over and over again. I test my limits and emotions.

I have often heard that guys who always play themselves are real bad and boring roleplayers. I disagree. The most wonderful gamers I ever met all said they play themselves. It's just that they play themselves what they would be if they would have grown up or been treated like the NPC they roleplay.

I like to be boss. But I don't push guys around, I discuss with them why things happen. I like to think about what actions produce what results.

About that creativity problem... Right. Many DMs spent years of time working on homemade worlds and getting nothing but grumbling players from it. What would they have achieved if they had done something else? I am not sure.

I think roleplaying is all about getting accustomed to yourself. In one way or the other. You learn to express yourself. You learn about how others react to your actions. You learn how others think. That's what I like.