The Reasons to Play Role Playing Games
Whether it's for the holidays or the weekend gamer, role playing games offer a rich and detailed gaming experience that can be set in any time, any setting, and any situation. These games develop numerous skills all while providing hours and hours of entertainment.
What Are Role Playing Games?
Role playing games are a genre of games where players assume the role of a character, much like an actor in a play. The player is then expected to take charge and make decisions, helping to influence and unfold the narrative. Role playing games may be further divided into live-action, tabletop, and video games. Live-action role play is the most like acting. Players decide on their characters ahead of time and meet with other players to act out scenes. Props, costumes, and scenery may all play a large role in the game. This type of gaming, often called LARPing for live-action role play, is mediated by a gamemaster called an arranger. The arranger manages all of the rules and logistics and serves as an organizational aide rather than the person in charge of the narrative. This style of gaming is player-driven, focusing on interactions between players and NPCs, or non-player characters. Because LARPing is similar to acting, there are numerous things that may be required before beginning. Costumes are among the most important items for maintaining character, but props like foam weapons can add a decidedly physical aspect to the role play. Tabletop role play is perhaps the classic form of role play. During play, players control characters as above but do so sitting at a table with character sheets, miniature models,dice, books, and maps. The gamemaster, often called a dungeon master or storyteller, delivers the primary narrative and takes on the role of all NPCs and enemies encountered. Players perform their characters much like radio drama where actions are spoken and dialogue drives the game forward. Settings can be enormous in scale like those created by major gaming companies or can be homebrewed, left to the imagination of the gamemaster. This style of play does not require fancy props, but it does require a method of record-keeping to balance statistics and track progress. If tabletop role play is the classic method, then video gamesare certainly the most famous. These RPGs can range from MUD-style gaming where text provides all of the details to intense graphical displays, common to both offline single-player style of play and MMOs. Single-player RPGs typically have the player assume the role of the hero and complete quests while progressing through the story. Along the way, the player picks up allies working towards the same goal and identifies a major threat to fight against. Combat may be relatively strategic or action-oriented. Decision-making may also play a large role in the game, leading to multiple outcomes based on player-derived choices. MMOs are massively-multiplayer games where players connect online with other players to team up and fight monsters, complete quests, and fight against other factions of players. Many MMOs require a monthly subscription, but there are some that are free to play. For many players, the social experience is the most important aspect of online gaming though some live for the thrill of creating character builds that test the limits of the game.
1. Role Playing Games Teach Imagination
One of the principal benefits of role playing games is that they help spark imagination. Whether it's creating a backstory for a character, developing the setting, or formulating a response in-character, role play forces a person to think, "What would my character do?" The requirement of leaving behind the player's own perceptions, experiences, and lifestyle choices to imagine an entirely new being is excellent for developing empathy, perception, and tolerance. Role playing blends the imaginative traits of both the author and the actor, forcing players to craft their own realities. While video games may put the player on more rails than a tabletop experience, they still require a certain suspension of belief that marries open-mindedness and reason. Role playing environments may have pre-developed structures, but game manufacturers encourage imagination above all and instruct players to toss out rules that hinder this process.
2. Role Playing Games Develop Reasoning
Part of answering "What would my character do?" is using logic and observation to deduce what others have done before. If the player adopts the mantle of a noble warrior with a single-minded devotion to the law, the question of bending the law in favor of a virtuous act may arise. The player may be inclined to choose the virtuous act at the expense of the law, but the player must also reason what his or her character would do in the situation. To this end, players also toy with morality, balancing law and chaos with good and evil. Reasoning doesn't end in the mind though. Combat encounters are an intrinsic part of role playing games, and anticipating attacks, tracking enemy movement, and developing counter-strategies are all necessary to gain tactical advantage. These types of games help players to recognize patterns and devise methods of succeeding against them.
3. Role Playing Games Offer a Rich Social Experience
One of the largest reasons for playing, role playing games offer a rewarding social experience. Interaction between players is the primary way to drive a narrative forward, and while single-player video games may not bring a lot in this regard, every other method of role play has it in spades. Whether players work together to accomplish a common goal or serve as adversaries to one another, they nevertheless engage in the same types of social interactions others do on a daily basis. Role play forces players to analyze these interactions to determine what is the most logical or effective means of communication, which in turn makes these players better communicators outside of gaming.
4. Role Playing Games Bring Detailed Narrative
Without an over-arching narrative, the only thing players have is conversation. Everything from how the characters know one another to what they're fighting against is derived from or impacting the narrative. Playing a role playing game is almost like diving into an interactive novel. Players assume character roles and take up identities they would likely never have in reality. Plot progresses in ways that may be of their choosing but is often unexpected, much like real life. For gamemasters, developing narrative is an excellent mental exercise, requiring creativity and logic balanced with fairness for all parties while still retaining a challenge.
5. Role Playing Games Reward Decision-Making
Whether it's choosing one faction's safety over another or timing an attack, role playing games are all about decision-making. The choices a player makes forever changes the landscape of the game, altering outcomes or determining success in battle. By making decisions in the game, players learn how to predict outcomes, balance those outcomes, and develop confidence in their own decision-making skills. Players active in the role play community are often more comfortable taking charge of situations and communicating with others on a group level to determine the best course of action.
6. Role Playing Games Assist With Planning Skills
Part of decision-making is planning. Many role playing games offer combat encounters or social situations that benefit from careful planning. Successfully using the terrain against an enemy can turn the tide of combat, and navigating a conversation through pre-established fail-safes ensures a favorable outcome. When players see their plans come to fruition, it gives them confidence to adopt this kind of planning in their daily lives, and when plans go awry, it allows players to think on their feet and quickly recover to make a new decision.
7. Role Playing Games Offer Escapism Safely
Finally, there are moments where people wish they could be someone else, and role playing games allow this within the safety of their own setting. If a player always wanted to know what it was like to be the villain, he or she can do so without actual harm to others. Maybe a male player wants to try and understand the female psyche through playing a female character and having others interact with him as a woman. Whatever the interest, role playing games provide a safe and anonymous way to imagine life as it never was.
Conclusion
Role playing games offer one of the most human experiences in gaming. Whether the aim is to improve confidence, decision-making, or social skills, role playing games allow players to embrace their imagination all within the safety of a comfortable social setting.
