Role-playing fun

I'm a gamer. Yes, the crowning jewel of my nerdliness is getting together with the guys for a little DnD (ie Dungeons and Dragons), or GURPS (Generic Universal Role-Playing System), or whatever the system is. Yesterday we had a great session. It was zounds of fun. For those of you who don't know why anyone would play such a game allow me to give some insight.

First of all, it's a chance for a bunch of friends to come over, hang out and have something fun to do. Most people would call that a party. It's a major social function for those who like playing.

Next, it's a chance to forget about anything in the real world that's worrying you and immerse yourself in another world. That makes it on par with reading a book or watching TV. For those that would contend that reading a book is way better than watching TV (I would agree), I would like to point out that due to the fact that roleplaying is creative and interactive, it beats the pants off of reading a book. Recreation and creative development. (yay!)

Of course for those interested in the fine details it's pretty fun to do a careful analysis of what the most advantageous way to build their character is. That involves some degree of problem solving, math, and all sorts of other things that are just plain old good for the mind.

Finally, for those ambitious enough it can be a major creative outlet. In my own case I use it to field ideas for characters and plots and worlds that might someday be the make up of an actual book that I might write. It gets me to think about what might be the motives behind the characters, what might be their flaws or foibles. All of that forces me to pay close attention to other people and in the end makes me more compassionate.

These are my reasons for role-playing: fun, creativity, recreation, mental exercise, and sociality.