gaming culture in north america

[cadboy]

now i\'m sure there\'s no shortage of things like this on the net, but there was some debate earlier on, on why north american painters may not be on par with those in europe. i\'m not going to even comment about that. i\'m just providing a link to the world on all the lovely support we get over here.

view here

 

[supervike]

So, what is your take on this?

I found it pretty funny.

But I think that sort of \'stereotyping\' is prevalent everywhere. I do believe that Europe and England seem to be a generation or two ahead of North America in regards to acceptance of the hobby, but I assume it is not considered normal by anymeans.

I find it ironic that every fall hundreds of thousands of people meet at bars, in houses, etcetra to have Fantasy Football draft parties. It is just as geeky as wargaming, but seems to be socially acceptable.

 

[cadboy]

well, i laughed pretty hard at this, and just wanted to share it with everyone.

it actually came from a friend of mine who mass emailed it to my gaming group because he always likes to take jabs at us, but only because he\'s not that far removed from our common interests. he just doesn\'t do the gaming bit.

i only find it unfortunate that the only time gaming gets press is in the form of a joke. at least the media got past the satanist bent.

i also wonder if colbert really had a paladin, or if his writers just came up with this?

 

[No Such Agency]

Originally posted by cadboy
at least the media got past the satanist bent.

While a lack of data never stopped the media from going apeshit about a harmless subculture before, the utter lack of evidence that RPG\'s have anything to do with Satanism or witchcraft or delinquency of any kind pretty much did that one in for all but the die-hards with a religious axe to grind.

RPGing is simply not physical enough to be a respected activity in North American culture. \"We\" have a fundamental distrust and contempt for thinking/imaginitive people, and an excessive worship of unthinking action (even by proxy). It\'s bizarre that this still somehow makes a grossly obese football fan who couldn\'t rush two yards \"normal\" but a LARPer who can walk around the woods all day carrying a papier-mache Beholder a \"freak\".

Colbert should know better than to pick on gamers, he after all is the one who just ripped the POTUS, king of \"unthinking action\" and uninformed decisions, to shreds in public.

 

[supervike]

I can\'t say he was poking fun AT gamers. I think if anything, it was a self deprecating piece at himself, as a gamer.

Maybe the stigma about RPGamers and wargamers is more about subject matter than anything else.

I mean, for instance, if I were to tell someone I was building a little mountain with a stream so my HO scale railroad could run over it, it would be a \'neat hobby\'.

But, on the other hand, if I were to say I was building the same little mountain, with a stream, so my 20th level Wizard could slay Trogdor the mighty Fire Drake....well then it does sound a odd, and may look that way as well....

 

[No Such Agency]

Originally posted by supervike
...if I were to say I was building the same little mountain, with a stream, so my 20th level Wizard could slay Trogdor the mighty Fire Drake....well then it does sound a odd, and may look that way as well....

Trogdor is a BURNINATOR. If you\'re going to post here, at least get your facts straight! A burninator is totally different from a fire drake. Fire drakes do not have consummate V\'s.

 

[supervike]

TROGDOR!!

 

[Wren]

Originally posted by No Such Agency
While a lack of data never stopped the media from going apeshit about a harmless subculture before, the utter lack of evidence that RPG\'s have anything to do with Satanism or witchcraft or delinquency of any kind pretty much did that one in for all but the die-hards with a religious axe to grind.

Sadly, the memory lives on. I work at a game store, and one which is located in one of the two major indoor malls in the smallish city where I live. There are a range of reactions from people who come in the store. There was the 30ish woman who asked in a mildly curious way \'Oh I thought that had something to do with Satan or a cult or something?\" and was happy to be corrected about her misconceptions of years gone by. There was also the woman telling her child \'we don\'t go in there because that\'s the evil Satan store\', and the older gentleman gearing up to give my heavy metal looking coworker a good lecture who was deflated when the answer to his question of \'are you a Christian?\' was met with an emphatic yes, so all the guy was left with was vague mumbling to be careful about some of the stuff we sell. Then there was the guy who didn\'t care from Satan but almost ran out of the store when he got about half way back (the front half of the store is party games and puzzles, the back half RPGs, minis and so on) crying out to his girlfriend to get out, it was a nerd store. (Like who even _says_ nerd anymore?)

People\'s memories for bad press are very, very long. In the 70\'s there was a problem in the US with one brand of contraceptive IUD that resulted in some injuries, deaths and entopic pregnancies. The problem was specific to this particular brand and was also linked to improper sterilization procedures, but nothing to do with the method of contraception in general. The US stopped using the IUD completely for some years, and even now there are only two models available and it is one of the least popular forms of birth control in the US. Worldwide it is one of the most popular. It amazes me sometimes that Tylenol ever recovered from the whole poisoned bottle incident.

 

[vincegamer]

can\'t see the video.
I have this humorous image in my head now of a guy yelling to his girlfriend \"Nerds!\" and the two of them running for dear life as though nerd meant \"they have the bird flu\".

My only experience with this misconception was from the Society for Creative Anachronism. If you don\'t know, it\'s a medieval reenactment group. I tend to think of it like Civil War reenactors only we don\'t know who is going to win the battle and we actually hit each other.
Anyway, my local group was having a meeting in a public library and a woman wanted to know what was going on. When told a little about it she said: \"It\'s not related to that Satanic Dungeons and Dragons is it?\"

 

[RedSevenBlue]

Originally posted by Wren

Originally posted by No Such Agency
While a lack of data never stopped the media from going apeshit about a harmless subculture before, the utter lack of evidence that RPG\'s have anything to do with Satanism or witchcraft or delinquency of any kind pretty much did that one in for all but the die-hards with a religious axe to grind.

Sadly, the memory lives on. I work at a game store, and one which is located in one of the two major indoor malls in the smallish city where I live. There are a range of reactions from people who come in the store. There was the 30ish woman who asked in a mildly curious way \'Oh I thought that had something to do with Satan or a cult or something?\" and was happy to be corrected about her misconceptions of years gone by. There was also the woman telling her child \'we don\'t go in there because that\'s the evil Satan store\', and the older gentleman gearing up to give my heavy metal looking coworker a good lecture who was deflated when the answer to his question of \'are you a Christian?\' was met with an emphatic yes, so all the guy was left with was vague mumbling to be careful about some of the stuff we sell. Then there was the guy who didn\'t care from Satan but almost ran out of the store when he got about half way back (the front half of the store is party games and puzzles, the back half RPGs, minis and so on) crying out to his girlfriend to get out, it was a nerd store. (Like who even _says_ nerd anymore?)

People\'s memories for bad press are very, very long. In the 70\'s there was a problem in the US with one brand of contraceptive IUD that resulted in some injuries, deaths and entopic pregnancies. The problem was specific to this particular brand and was also linked to improper sterilization procedures, but nothing to do with the method of contraception in general. The US stopped using the IUD completely for some years, and even now there are only two models available and it is one of the least popular forms of birth control in the US. Worldwide it is one of the most popular. It amazes me sometimes that Tylenol ever recovered from the whole poisoned bottle incident.

Hmmm, sounds like how me and my friends are trying to get our local school gaming resource back on its feet (Not at all sports related) because of last years incident of a kid saying \'demon\' infront of his mom and he was in the school gaming club, the mother tried filing a lawsuit against the school for the club preaching satanism. The club was shut down and the lawsuit left unfiled. All that was done was the kid watched a game of D&D, only one demon popped up the whole adventure. We are curently trying to come to a level playing ground with the board of education, so far, so good.

 

[Baltius]

Originally posted by supervike


I find it ironic that every fall hundreds of thousands of people meet at bars, in houses, etcetra to have Fantasy Football draft parties. It is just as geeky as wargaming, but seems to be socially acceptable.

So what happens if you game and do a fantasy football draft? Does that make me even geekier? Is that even possible?

 

[supervike]

Originally posted by Baltius

Originally posted by supervike


I find it ironic that every fall hundreds of thousands of people meet at bars, in houses, etcetra to have Fantasy Football draft parties. It is just as geeky as wargaming, but seems to be socially acceptable.

So what happens if you game and do a fantasy football draft? Does that make me even geekier? Is that even possible?

I think the proper term is

geek²

lollol

 

[SebastianRushworth]

Hey, Supervike, I love Trogdor. Maybe you could send the \"green\" to SciEbor and he can cast it up! lollol

 

[DrEvilmonki]

I have no problem with people taking the piss with the things I do. I spend about 90% of my day feeling like a superior fuck compared to most of humanity after all so it\'s just fair really.

 

[generulpoleaxe]

geeks control/rule the world.

these people (jocks/whatever) spend every day of there lives in fear, because of this.

i feel sorry for them, all that wasted bullying, for nothing.

rock hard, and play with the metal, tin metal. lol

 

[supervike]

Originally posted by SebastianRushworth
Hey, Supervike, I love Trogdor. Maybe you could send the \"green\" to SciEbor and he can cast it up! lollol

Yeah, Trogdor rocks...although that isn\'t mine, I just found a picture of that on the intrawebnetthingy....The site has instructions on how to make your very own!

 

[Wren]

Originally posted by vincegamer
I have this humorous image in my head now of a guy yelling to his girlfriend \"Nerds!\" and the two of them running for dear life as though nerd meant \"they have the bird flu\".

Yeah, it wasn\'t quite that extreme, but it was my second funniest work moment in a year and a half there.

Also, Trogdor rules. On of my heirloom Christmas treasures (or would be if I planned to have kids) is a couple of needlepoint Trogdor decorations for the tree. Nothin\' says happy holidays like some good burninatin\'!

 

[Brimshack]

Hmmm, sounds like how me and my friends are trying to get our local school gaming resource back on its feet (Not at all sports related) because of last years incident of a kid saying \'demon\' infront of his mom and he was in the school gaming club, the mother tried filing a lawsuit against the school for the club preaching satanism. The club was shut down and the lawsuit left unfiled. All that was done was the kid watched a game of D&D, only one demon popped up the whole adventure. We are curently trying to come to a level playing ground with the board of education, so far, so good.

This is truly pathetic. If simply mentioning or depicting a \"demon\" means to worship the devil, then many an evangelical Christian would be very surprised to find out who they relaly believe in. But there is little chance this woman would apply such an unreasonable standard in her own circles. If she wishes to keep her son out of the club, that makes perfect sense, but what you described is certainly NOT grounds for a lawsuit. Someone at your school needs to get a spine.

I remember how I learned what a pentagram meant. A \"Christian\" told me about it while explaining what was wrong with listening to Rush.

I remember how I learned what the hook of horns meant. Same story.

What ACDC meant? What an upside down cross meant? Etc.

There is a very real sense in which the anti-Satanic Crowd actually promotes that which they purport to be opposing. I don\'t think it was an accident than animal sacrifices began to occur in my community AFTER the Satanic Experts came out and told everyone how it was done.

 

[Swordwind]

Originally posted by cadboy


i also wonder if colbert really had a paladin, or if his writers just came up with this?

Aside the fact that upuntil the Epic level handbook came out a few years ago the highest level you could get to was 20?


Wow I must be a geek after all! Not only that! A geek who plays D&D! I must be a daemon! BURN ME! PURGE ME! EXORCISE THE DAEMONS!!!

Whenever someone says something and D&D and conections with Satan thats what I say. Very loudly. Nothing better to chase after someone yelling \"Purge me!!!\" down the highstreet lol

 

[Brimshack]

Good book on the subject:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/081269192X/104-4643786-8247146?v=glance&n=283155