Time to Speak Out with my Geek Out… Role-Playing Games in my case!

Well that should come as no surprise… Past post and the theme of the blog should be a dead giveaway. But this is supposed to be a post about why I love my geeky hobby and possibly an introduction to someone who wants to know what role-playing games are and may want to try their hand at it. So here is my post…

When I first read about the Speak Out with your Geek Out I was intrigued. As I wrote recently I am a big proponent of sharing my love of the role-playing hobby, showing other people how to play, and supporting gaming groups locally. For these reasons we have a local group called Puerto Rico Role Players and through posting in this blog I feel ever closer to the greater gaming community.

So to the question at hand, why do I love role-playing games?

As a kid I used to watch TV programs and fantasize about how I would do things differently if I was the protagonist.  Eventually I began turning off the TV before the program ended and playing out my version of the ending.

See I have always loved stories. I am lucky because my family read to me constantly as a child even before I was able to hold a book. In kindergarten I had a Star Wars picture book that I took with me to school every day. I could not read and my 5 year old mind could not recall every detail about the movie, so I would use the book to tell a different story every day with the same characters. Every time I opened the book the characters were having a new adventure.

Back then I developed a love of telling stories. I would keep telling stories to my friends and neighbors through the years. My family and teachers fostered my love of writing and I discovered another way to share what I imagined with my friends. I remember the thrill of seeing someone enjoy the stories I told them or what I wrote. I also distinctly remember wishing I could share the thrill of creating the story with them. Maybe not is so many words but I remember wishing they were not passive observers but active participants in the story.

That is why discovering role-playing was such a turning point in my life. I could create stories like the ones I loved to watch or read about, and then share them with my friends. They could be the protagonists of their own adventures, the heroes on their own tale.

I still feel the thrill of telling a story every time I get together with my friends, even after twenty plus years at it. I love imagining situations and challenges to present to my players. I love when they surprise me with an unexpected plan or become so involved with the action that we forget these are just characters and think they are real, if even just for a few minutes.

If you have ever wanted to tell your own stories with your friends, if you have ever screamed at the protagonist of a book or movie not to do that, and you are sure you could do better, if you want to go beyond a scripted computer or console game, the mission of an MMO and want to explore the outer limits of your imagination, role-playing games might be for you.

On the odd chance this is the very first time you hear about role-playing games, there are plenty of resources out there that can show you what RPGs are about. Search for them. This blog can help you. Me, my fellow writers and the greater community formed by our contributors and readers are here to help. Try out a game tonight. You just might like it!

To our regular readers, I have said it before and I’ll say it again. Share your love about games with others. Do what you can to support your local gaming community. One great way is the Speak Out with your Geek Out campaign. Follow the link and participate in the initiative, no matter what your geeky pastime is, or how you do it. Speak out, I dare you, I double dare you!

PS – Thanks to all our readers, especially to those who commented on the Caught Unaware post, I paraphrased some of your ideas while writing this post.