Dicing with Dragons
Aug. 21st, 2004 09:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ggreigToday Radio 4 broadcast a programme, Dicing with Dragons, looking back at thirty years of roleplaying. I've just listened to it on the BBC web site, and it was fair enough but a bit depressing to listen to. As a retrospective, it mostly spoke to people who played then but thirty years on aren't active players. The impression given was of a hobby which has declined, which is fair enough, but it would have been nice to hear some recruiting propaganda rather than a balanced report! :-)
Someone who's recently taken roleplaying up was interviewed briefly and, positively, she was female. The other interviewees were, unsurprisingly, predominantly male. However, Louise Yeoman was involved in researching it and Cheryl Morgan was also interviewed.
It presented reasonably, if not compellingly, why roleplaying appeals to its players, and it also covered some of the history. The only significant flaw in the programme is one that I wouldn't have picked up myself, as I'm not involved, but reaction mailed around after the programme aired suggests that a more positive view of roleplaying's current state would have resulted from looking at the phenomenon of roleplaying online.
Someone who's recently taken roleplaying up was interviewed briefly and, positively, she was female. The other interviewees were, unsurprisingly, predominantly male. However, Louise Yeoman was involved in researching it and Cheryl Morgan was also interviewed.
It presented reasonably, if not compellingly, why roleplaying appeals to its players, and it also covered some of the history. The only significant flaw in the programme is one that I wouldn't have picked up myself, as I'm not involved, but reaction mailed around after the programme aired suggests that a more positive view of roleplaying's current state would have resulted from looking at the phenomenon of roleplaying online.
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no subject
Date: 2004-08-23 04:39 pm (UTC)Having tried the last couple of days looking for places to buy RP accessories I would have to agree that RP is in decline. (I realize this just as I get up enough courage to try it.) **sigh** Four of the five stores I knew of had closed and that is only in the last 5 months. Furthermore the closest Wizards of the Coast store is not even within 50 miles of where I live. (I live in SoCal!)
Umm...sorry to take up blog space with all that.
Anyway I would like to quickly say that I have been enjoying your recent gaming posts! :)
**waves goodbye**
no subject
Date: 2004-08-23 06:02 pm (UTC)There aren't any gaming stores within a straightforward journey of where I am either, but the Internet is a great place to find stuff.
Don't be afraid to give roleplaying a try. I am still playing with the group I first joined nearly twenty years ago, when I was the youngest member. The group has changed a bit since then, as people moved away or came to the area, but the ones who have moved away are still in touch and every once in a while we still get a game together.
Whether you prefer to be a GM or a player is very much up to you, and you don't necessarily need to be right on top of the rules to play - a good GM will be happy to tell you what to do until you're used to it. Although I have dabbled a bit in GMing, I am a player by preference and often need reminded of rules even now...