I, gentle viewers, am a gamer. By which I mean, I play games. Not just wargames, RPGs, board games or video games, but any form of game the happens to tickle my fancy. The reason I bring this up is that last night I played Pathfinder. D&D by any other name. I’ll admit, I had reservations. Even among gamers D&D has a certain reputation. Inscrutable rules, a fantasy world at it’s most clichéd and magical items that can only be described as a “+1 Mace” or “Bag of Holding”. Guess what, I had a great time. I’m ashamed to say I really enjoyed myself. There was a certain knowingness that allowed us to roll with the punches (and the D20’s) and feel like hipsters, playing a game that was so uncool it was cool. It was helped, in part, that we were level 1 and generally inept, making us unable to take ourselves seriously. Especially after Chris was taken out by a tiny goblin…twice. By the power of Gygax, this definitely scratched a gaming itch.
A similar thing happened when Mr Straw and I played our first games of Star Wars: Armada the other day. You may not have heard that we’ve been playing a bit of Guild Ball lately (if you live in a cave). Well as much as we love it there’s a great deal of concentration and strategizing that goes on. Armada gave us a fantastic release of good laughs and Star Wars related fun that was a great way to let off some steam. I feel the same about video games. Sometimes I’m in the mood for some intense online Halo and sometimes I just want to kick back and drive around on GTAV with the radio on.
I think that this is one of the reasons that our gaming group (especially Mr Straw and I) have been getting lured away from 40K. It’s a huge, sprawling game that demands commitment and focus, two things that I sadly lack. Gaming should be about enjoying yourself and by committing to one game alone it can stop being a hobby and become more like a chore. You have to paint those units. You need the new book. There’s no choice.
In short, don’t be afraid to scratch that itch (your gaming itch, you should see a doctor about the other one). Try something new, or something you’ve not played in years. It might even give you a new lease of life in what you’re jaded with at the moment.
What are you fed up with? What do you want to try? Are you one game ’till you die? Let us know and the best comment could win the chance to create their own new game! Without any help or support (financial, moral or otherwise) from us.
Until next time gentle readers.
TheBattlehammer 