REVERB GAMERS 2012, #2: What is it about gaming that you enjoy the most? Why do you game? Is it the adrenaline rush, the social aspect, or something else? (Courtesy of Atlas Games. Visit us at www.atlas-games.com)
This question, posed on Reverb Gamers’ Facebook page, has a complex answer, as far as my impetus for gaming – complex enough that to answer it fully would require more than a blog. Nonetheless, here is the abridged answer.
Adrenaline rush? Sure, I get them often when I game. Social aspect? Absolutely; it’s no coincidence that my players are also my closest friends. But it’s very much the something else mentioned in the question.
I game to exercise my imagination, to delve into worlds unknown, to live as another person. Imagination and creativity are a very important aspect in my love of gaming. I am not a very artistic person, and gaming affords me that creative outlet. I love creating new worlds, populating them with the people with whom the player characters will interact, learning about these people’s personalities, motives, dreams and desires, uncovering the schemes plotted by them, and so on. Then, I love seeing my players’ reactions to this world, as well as the peoples’ reactions to the player characters.
I game to exercise my mind. There is a lot of math involved in most role-playing games. Picking apart the rules, seeing how they interact, and using them in ways to create the unexpected. Also beautiful to me is hacking the rules – changing them where I see problems, sanding off the rough edges, or cutting off the warts. That is fun!
I game to get together with my friends. We catch up on the happenings in each other’s lives. We discuss current events. We share our personal triumphs and tragedies. And, of course, we game, working together to write the story of our characters and the worlds they inhabit.
Why do I game? Because of who I am: a gamer.
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