Role Playing Games and Their Evolution from the Paper and Pencil Days

Role playing games got their start from war games sometimes played with miniature figures on a board. Then around 1973 the new role playing games evolved with a game called Chainmail. In 1974 Dungeons and Dragons was created and the role playing game came into its own. D&D set a rigid set of rules but allowed for character development, allowing a player's character to evolve over time and become more than it started out. Dungeons and Dragons was played originally with a paper and pencils and over time many people added maps that miniature characters could be moved along on to keep track of the game.

Other games entered the ring, like Tunnels and Trolls and many others vying for players with the Dungeons and Dragons fans, but few ever managed to survive the start up period.

Each game had its own set of complex rules and regulations to follow. Players got together and gamed when and if all the members could get together in one spot to play.

Now a fan of role playing games no longer has to look for people to play with and hope their schedules will match. Log on to the Internet and millions of others are waiting and ready to delve into what ever game fits their fancy.

Computer games have gone through quite an evolution over the years, causing most of the technology to blossom in their wake as developers looked for ever better ways in which to pull in buyers for their games. Three dimensional graphics and sound are a direct byproduct of gaming and its quest for perfection.

Mmorpg, which is techie for massively multiplayer online role playing game, has exploded and the number of players doubles every couple of years.

Blizzards World of Warcraft is currently the worlds largest Mmorpg with 11.5 million users world wide and has an estimated 62% of all Mmorpg players according to Wikipedia in 2008.

Pbp or play by post games have evolved where players write the game as they go. Wikipedia describes it as catering to both gamers and creative writers, usually played in forums created for and catering to Pbp players and controlled by moderators in the forums.

The future of online gaming is wide open, controlled only by the technology available and the imagination of the people working to improve it. Virtual reality is a very real possibility where players can totally immerse themselves in the game and experience everything it has to offer.

Players are even able to cash in on the economy of the game worlds these days, selling items they find to less fortunate players so that they too can advance in the game, and even selling the currency found in games for real world currency. Most any item for a popular game can be found on eBay or websites set up to cater to people who feel they need those items to survive.

Of course this has also spawned an entire industry of scammers, waiting to part players hard earned real cash for faked or "duped" items some of which even have programs attached to them to steal items and allow access to the buyers game accounts.

The evolution of online games is far from over, and as you can see they have come a long way from the old paper and pencil games made decades ago. Online Mmorpg's are the wave of the future; maybe a tidal wave would be a more appropriate way to state it!

All information was gathered from:
Wikipedia
Shannon Appelcline' site: www.skatos.net/