The Roots of Modern Role Playing Games

By

Jamie Lake

English 12

Mrs. Moneypenny / Mr. Hovatter

May 17, 2009 Lake i

Have you ever played a role-playing game? Think carefully – you may be surprised to find that you probably have without realizing it. This is because not every role-playing game has the crowd or the and computers normally associated with the genre. In fact, every game is, in effect, a role playing game, because you are assuming a role to achieve some purpose. The crowd doesn’t end there – did you know that strategists used to use the earliest form of role- playing games to plan out and practice how battlefield scenarios might work? (Darlington) Even actors, who perform for people on stage every day, have achieved a core concept in modern role- playing games – taking up an imaginary stance for the sake of having fun.

Even if this connection didn’t exist, we are surrounded by news of what is going on in the role-playing field every day. , a popular comedy show, has parodied games such as

Pokémon and World of Warcraft. (Parker, Stone). The man heralded by many as the father of modern role-playing, , had an article posted about him worldwide when he died as well.

Gygax himself was very unusual in his history and personality. His parents emigrated from Germany before he was born. He was a high school dropout, without even a GED to his name. He was obsessed with worlds that existed in the works of writers of his time; Jack

Vance and L. Sprague de Camp, popular fantasy and writers lined his bookshelves from a relatively young age. He was a buff of Middle Age mythology, and he loved many of the beliefs and superstitions of that era. (Gale)

Later in life, these would become inspiration for Gygax’s success story. He would read almost any science fiction or fantasy writings placed in front of him, save for one author which

Gygax detested with an almost fiery passion: J.R.R. Tolkien. Gygax constantly told people that

Tolkien was not a bad writer, by any means, but he was not the least bit believable in what he Lake ii

wrote about. Gygax felt that Tolkien lacked a historical accuracy that could tie his myths into a believable state and make readers feel that his world was real. (Gale)

Gygax created his first game, Chainmail, in 1968. It was focused in a realistic setting, somewhere amongst the chaos of the Middle Ages. It was a game, as were many games of the time, with a number of flexible points to allow for players to come up with their own campaigns. It was not popular at first, but slowly caught on at the local scale and spread out enough to give Gygax enough confidence to want to make games for a living. This alone, however, would never be enough to place Gygax in the annals of role-playing history, if not for a man he met at a wargaming conference in 1968, a man named . (Darlington)

Arneson was unknown when Gygax met him at the conference. He was just a player of

Chainmail who had come up with his own variation. What made Arneson’s idea unique was that players, instead of relinquishing everything they had gained at the end of a campaign, could keep their characters, armies, and land. These retained items could be taken from campaign to campaign, increasing in strength and ability. The people attending this conference, Gygax among them, were very impressed, and Gygax offered Arneson a deal to create a game with him. This game was finally named just before the first rulebook was published. It was Dungeons and

Dragons, and it was quite possibly the biggest turning point in role-playing history. (Darlington)

Dungeons and Dragons was released just in time to cash in on the craze generated from the release of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. All of the fans of this story wanted some way to act out the events in this plot, and D&D (short for Dungeons and Dragons) was there to deliver. It was immersive, it was cooperative, it allowed for characters to be created and kept for just about any purpose, and it was generally regarded as very frustrating to learn the rules to. (Darlington) Lake iii

Gygax never intended for new players to pick up his game and play it. Rather, he expected war gamers who had previously enjoyed Arneson’s variation on Chainmail to play, which caused the rules to rely on prior experience. The original D&D rulebook purportedly had statements mentioning that this or that works like it does in other games without really going into detail. The end result was that there was no “right” way to play D&D. Fan newsletters and magazines began nationwide in an attempt to present what each person thought was the best possible way to play the game. (Darlington)

Meanwhile, strife between Gygax and Arneson, primarily over unpaid royalties, caused the couple to split. Arneson’s contributions to D&D’s development were almost entirely struck from the record, a fact evident through the lack of name recognition amongst modern players.

Gygax , along with a group of investors, created his company Tactical Studies Rules (TSR, for short) in 1973. This company picked up production of D&D even as Arneson quit his partnership with Gygax. D&D’s popularity increased quickly, guaranteeing success for the budding company. (Gale)

Many other games, similar in style to D&D, sprouted up and in turn influenced other game creators. Tunnels and Trolls, released by Ken St. Andre in 1975, introduced clear-cut rules for role-playing games to follow. Traveller, released just as Star Wars hit theatres, is hailed even now as having an amazing design, with the ability to create anything from a single item to an entire universe to play in. Perhaps the most notable game from this time frame, however, was

Chivalry and Sorcery, (Darlington)

As one historian has noted: “There is no denying it is realistic: the rules and the style are designed to recreate France in the late 12th century, rather than D&D’s weak approximation of

Tolkien’s pseudo-medieval setting. In particular, they described not just a world, but a society; Lake iv

players had to fit their characters into a detailed feudal code complete with , serfs, and the huge presence of the Catholic Church.” [sic] (Darlington, 1998) The rules may have been a little too specific. A single campaign couldn’t be played out in just a couple sessions, like most games of the time. It took anywhere from a week to a couple months to play out. There wasn’t any dungeon crawling, as players of D&D were used to, but there was an endless amount of work that had to be done just to stay in character. Players could spend hours just building up popularity with a lord to gain a new title. Overall, it was just too time consuming to be fun, and disappeared almost entirely in the mid-eighties. (Darlington)

Individual RPG gamers slowly began to realize that they weren’t alone in their hobby, and began to unify as a unique subculture that exists even today. Nobody had to be alone when there were all of these people, however widespread, that seemed to enjoy the same things.

Conventions sprang up, some large, some small. Game developers realized that they had a tangible market, and society as a whole began to wonder what it was that made these people so happy. The players stopped being oddities and enigmas, becoming more along the lines of “those geeks… who [carry] around all those little dice.” (Darlington)

Thus, D&D, along with TSR, progressed. It had only two other major obstacles to overcome, which hit at almost the same time. In 1979, Dallas Egbert, a teenage prodigy attending Michigan State University, ran off. He left behind a nearly incoherent note, indicating that he was considering suicide, that he was going to the steam tunnels around the University, and something unintelligible about D&D. Fortunately, Egbert was found, but bad press about the incident led to D&D being blamed when, a year later, he committed suicide. While, even now,

D&D’s influence can’t really be refuted, Egbert was under a lot of stress, doing drugs, and Lake v

notably unstable. These contributing factors, however, were neither known nor publicized until much later. (Darlington)

D&D was immediately blamed for the entire situation. Presses rolled nationwide – D&D is a cult, made to destroy your home and children, led by that evil Gary Gygax. Everyone in the

RPG field did what they could to deny these claims, but the irreparable scar of D&D as a cult following had been made. There were book burnings, churches and schools banned the game and anything related to it from their grounds and, perhaps the worst thing, many hobbyist dealers with D&D in their store were boycotted into bankruptcy. Things only needed a small nudge to go over the edge, and that nudge came at a landslide from Irving Pulling. (Darlington)

Pulling’s case was similar to Egbert’s in that he was unstable and under stress. This culminated in his suicide in June of 1982, when he used his mother’s gun to take his own life.

His mother, Pat Pulling, blamed D&D for her son’s death. She began an initiative to have D&D banned once and for all. (Darlington)

Mz. Pulling began by accusing her son’s teacher of placing a hex on him while playing

D&D one night. She called the teacher to court, but, with little substantial evidence, the case was dismissed. Mz. Pulling went on to form a group named Bothered About Dungeons and Dragons

(BADD). BADD began a campaign against Dungeons and Dragons, with everything from pamphlets and fliers to radio and talk show appearances. (Molitor)

In 1984, BADD finally found a foothold to step into with Darren Molitor. Molitor was on trial for murdering a girl during a Halloween prank. Pat Pulling, representing BADD, had several

“experts” in D&D testify that it had a major effect on the crime. The testimony was apparently so convincing that Molitor himself believed it. He wrote an essay discussing D&D’s influence on unprepared minds, and BADD didn’t hesitate to have it published nationwide. Molitor later Lake vi

admitted that he wrote the article in confusion and stress, but BADD was unwilling to stop by that time. (Molitor)

BADD, using Molitor’s essay as a driving point, began a campaign to have a notice placed on RPG kits with similar connotations to modern “Parental Advisory” stickers. Pat

Pulling published a book entitled The Devil’s Web, and Rona Jeff published a book entitled

Mazes and Monsters (later adapted into a movie starring Tom Hanks), linking D&D with

Satanism and occult practices. Though almost entirely unfounded, these books added a false credibility to what Mz. Pulling and the members of BADD said. (Darlington)

BADD’s petition led to an investigation to see if there was any reason to believe that

D&D could have been harmful. The investigation actually found the opposite – the escape from everyday stress is healthy in the dose that most players take it in, and therefore the claims are unfounded. The people backing the investigation decided, however, not to stop at that. They began an investigation into BADD, and discovered that BADD not only lied and manipulated to get what it wanted from the public, but also brainwashed people into following what the group’s beliefs were. This was published and caused BADD to dissolve to the point where it no longer exists today. (Darlington)

This trial by fire left a terrible mark on RPGs for the rest of history. Here, roughly 20 years later, many places still ban the game for the same reasons provided back then. Worse than that, the game is still associated with demonic and cult-like practices that encourage suicide, but this doesn’t mean that Pulling and BADD’s actions were entirely unhealthy for the RPG genre.

Things were indeed going downhill, and, with time and misfortune, may have very well ended up in a cult craze. The end of all this misery was a union of long term players like no other. These older players modernly help make the rules and guide the community. Lake vii

TSR fought back as hard as it could when BADD’s flood of protest began to recede. The first edition of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons, the system still in use today, was released just after the crisis was over. It had clearer rules, more flexibility, and was overall more forgiving to beginners who just wanted to try the game. TSR hired two writers, and Tracy

Hickman, to write a series of fantasy novels later known as . These books helped drive D&D’s popularity and appeal back up, and the series was the first fantasy series as a whole to make ’ Best Seller List. (Gale)

While TSR, long since split by internal conflict and bought out by , was the basic foundation for modern role-playing, it is also important to note that a large amount of success has been garnered in the videogame branch of roleplaying. The major companies, inspired and embodied in Gygax’s dream, have a shockwave and influence just as apparent as

Gygax’s. These are innovators and creators, and several are worth mention when considering the state of the market today. (Darlington)

The one Computer Role Playing Game (CRPG) that most people will recognize the name of, Final Fantasy, almost didn’t end up being developed. A small company in Japan, known for a few minor successes that weren’t worth much mention, had almost run itself into the ground. The company’s bigwigs had sold off most of the assets to stay afloat, and were seriously considering cutting their losses and using the rest of the returns to pay off their investors. One of the developers, however, had had a game that had already been started, which was slated to be the last game for his design team. As a small, inside joke, they named the game “Final Fantasy” –a reference to the director saying that his last game would be a fantasy game.

Something that shocked everyone at the company happened when this game was released, however. Despite the lack of publicity and the lack of funding, it sold out. Beyond that, Lake viii

it sold enough to perpetuate its own production into a reasonable profit margin. The bigwigs at this company to stick with it and to see what might happen to them. This same company,

Squaresoft, has gone on to worldwide recognition and success, and has even merged in more recent years with another Japanese giant, Enix, to form the modern Square Enix, producers of such hits as Chrono Trigger (recently rereleased for the Nintendo DS console), Final Fantasy VII

(often cited for the depth of the story at the time), and Dragon Warrior (the origin of the turn based battle system used in many CRPG’s today). (“Final Fantasy”)

Another modern influence on many games released today, both inside and outside of role playing, is Shigaesto Itoi’s CRPG series, Mother. What makes this series unique is that it takes place in modern times. Weapons aren’t axes, swords, and bows – they’re bats, frying pans, and yo-yo’s. It has a post-modern feel to it, with a sense of humor that reflected Japan’s views of culture. Sadly, the first was never released outside of Japan, though the second was released with minor success, most likely due to the ad campaign (the slogan was “This game stinks!”). Though a third game was released in the series, it was never officially released outside of Japan; a fan translation is available for anyone interested. Despite the fact that most of the series never left Japan, Mother laid the groundwork for later hits with both post modern and even modern settings, such as Metal Gear Solid and Halo. (Mandelin)

Though these are only a few people and their companies from role playing history, they are some of the roots that the genre owes itself to. It doesn’t mean that these companies will even stay the same forever; several former members of Square Enix have moved on to become an animation company, for example. (Trifonovitch) As the appeal of video games has slowly increased, colleges have begun to use role playing games as a tool to teach programming because of the complexities involved in creating them. (“Dungeons, Dragons, and Degrees”) For a genre Lake ix

that started out as less than a niche, the RPG genre has come a long way and will continue to grow as more minds pour their work into it.

Lake x

Works Cited

Darlington, Steve. “A History of Role-Playing.” Places to Go, People to Be. Feb 1998. 1

Mar 2009 .

“Dungeons, Dragons, and Degrees.” New Jersey Business News. Vol 16, Iss 19 (12 May

2003): 3. Reproduced Regional Business News. EBSCO. Pickett Library, Philippi,

WV. 19 Mar 2009.

“Final Fantasy.” Encyclopaedia Brittanica. 2009. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. 19

March 2009.

Gale, Thomas. “E. Gary Gygax.” Authors and Artists for Young Adults. Vol 65. 2005.

Reprinted Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2009.

http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC

Linde, Aaron. “Earthbotched: A History of Nintendo Vs. Starmen.” Shacknews. 6 May

2008. Shacknews LTD. 25 Apr 2009

Mandelin, Clyde. “Earthbound’s Marketing Campaign.” Earthbound Central. 21 Jan 2009.

24 Apr 2009.

campaign/>

Parish, Jeremy. “Retronauts 5: Earthbound from 1UP.com.” 1UP. 13 Apr 2006. UGO

Entertainment. 24 Apr 2009.

Parker, Trey and . “Make Love, Not Warcraft.” South Park. Comedy Central. 4

Oct 2006. Lake xi

Parker, Trey. “Chinpokomon.” South Park. Dir Eric Stough. Comedy Central. 3 Nov 1999.

Rice, Fredrick, and Darren Molitor. “The Following is an Essay Written by Darren

Molitor, a Former D+D Player.” Skeptic Tank Text Archive File. 1 June 2001. 24 Apr

2009.

Trifonovitch, Kelli Abe. “The Soul of Square.” Hawaii Business Vol 48, Iss 12 (June

2003): 43. Reproduced Regional Business News. EBSCO. Pickett Library, Philippi,

WV. 19 Mar 2009. Lake, i

Outline

Thesis: Role playing games have a rich history that continues to grow today.

I. Role playing games are all around us. A. Every game is a role playing game. 1. You associate yourself into a role to accomplish something. 2. You become the icon, character, or whatever it is to do so. B. Role playing games exist in history. 1. Strategist used to use maps with models to simulate battles. 2. Actors, in a sense, are fulfilling one of the core concepts of role playing. C. The media contains a lot of information about more modern role playing games. 1. South Park, a popular adult comedy show, has parodied World of Warcraft and Pokemon both in separate episodes. 2. News about developers occurs on a regular basis. i. Squaresoft advertises on posters about upcoming games. ii. Gary Gygax had an article published about him worldwide when he died. II. Gary Gygax, Arneson, and Chainmail are the roots of modern role playing games. A. Gygax was a unique individual. 1. His parents were German immigrants. 2. He dropped out of high school. 3. He had a fascination with writers of the time. i. L Sprague de Camp, a science fiction writer, was one of his favorite authors. ii. He loved the Middle Ages, especially all of the mythology involved in the stories and beliefs of that very age. B. Gygax had inspiration for his creations. 1. All of them draw from his favorite authors for inspiration. 2. He hated J.R.R. Tolkien, not because Tolkien wrote bad stories or even because he wrote poorly, but because the world he created felt so fake when Gygax read about it. 3. He was a devout reader of all fantasy and science fiction of his time. C. Gygax’s first game was Chainmail . 1. Chainmail focuses on a realistic setting, inside the Middle Ages. 2. It is a , with modified rules to allow custom campaigns. 3. It was fairly popular on a local scale, and it garnered Gygax enough success to want to design more games. D. Arneson is the chief reason that Dungeons and Dragons was conceived. 1. Arneson was a major fan of Chainmail , and played it passionately. 2. Gygax attended a convention, upon request, where Arneson was introducing his own twist on Chainmail . Lake, ii

3. This twist allowed players to develop characters across different campaigns. 4. It was very popular and very good, which eventually led to Gygax getting the idea to make a game focusing more on this idea than the wargame did. III. Tactical Studies Rules (TSR) was a major accomplishment in role playing history, which can be felt even today. 1. Using a joint investment of around a thousand dollars, Gygax and Arneson create a company known as TSR to develop and publish their idea. 2. This is known as the first iteration of Dungeons and Dragons, often referred to as Basic or First Edition Dungeons and Dragons. 3. It had magic, warriors, intrigue, and many things that made it feel like Tolkien, who was just becoming famous, may have very well wrote it all. IV. People wanted a piece of the fame found in TSR’s work. A. Chivalry and Sorcery is released in 1976, only a couple of years after Dungeons and Dragons. 1. It’s very realistic and it takes place in France in the 12th century. 2. The game was based on a whole society, not just the concept of a dungeon that you have to fight your way through. 3. It has a very complex system and very difficult rules which stressed a dedication to realism rather than fantasy. 4. This destroyed the game’s appeal. It died out because it was too time consuming to set up and play a game of it. B. Traveller was the first real science fiction RPG. 1. It had a backstory that, if read today, seems like it was ripping off of the fouth episode of Star Wars . However, it was released before Starwars, and was around at just the right time to cash in on its success. 2. It was very flexible and original in its structure. You could make a whole race, planet, or even a solar system if you wanted to. V. Geeks begin to unify, leading to an overall explosion of role playing culture. A. Many groups started conventions. 1. This leads to the people involved realizing that they’re not alone in this seemingly crazy hobby. They come together and start to share ideas with one another. 2. The conventions start the very beginning of the role playing subculture, which still exists today. B. This unity led to a further proof of a potential market, and a classification to go with it. 1. People began to wonder what was so great about this hobby that people came together just to meet each other. This led to more customers for the games involved. 2. “Now role-players weren’t ciphers – they were those geeks… who carried around all those little dice.” Lake, iii

VI. Dungeons and Dragons was almost destroyed by bad publicity. A. Dallas Egbert left a vague indentation on D&D’s reputation, which paved the way for something else to ruin it. B. Pat Pulling (and her son) tore D&D to near shreds. 1. Pat was incited by her son’s suicide. 2. Pat began BADD. 3. BADD smeared D&D at all corners. 4. BADD destroyed itself. C. D&D rose from this trial stronger than it was before it. 1. The players stopped to consider the culture as a whole. 2. Developers starting seeing the flaws in their work. 3. TSR fought back at the end with the release of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons. VII. Final Fantasy is one of the first computer role playing games to really start a ground for creators in the market. A. It was seriously supposed to be the final fantasy for the company. 1. The company owner sold a great deal of assets before the idea came to him of this game. 2. It was going to be the last. They had enough done to form up a skeleton before the company became endangered of bankruptcy, so they decided to finish it and release it. B. Final Fantasy hit like a bombshell. 1. It sold really well for a game not in any common field at the time. 2. It led to the developers having enough money to decide that maybe a sequel was in order. 3. A sequel was indeed made, and sold well enough to establish this obscure company, Squaresoft, as a major player in the CRPG field, from that point to modern day. VIII. Mother was another innovation in CRPG history. A. It was never officially released in the United States, or in English. B. It was the first game to successfully take place in modern times. C. The sequel was released stateside, but failed due to poor marketing.