So - how old are you, what do you do for a living, and do you feel that the stereotype is justified, and feel free to add whatever you'd like? I'll be pointing my wife to this thread, and hopefully break her preconceived notions a bit.
Please PLEASE don't turn this into a flaming thread, that's not what I'm after at all. Just some honest self-opinion.
For the record, I'm 37, father of 5, last one born just a few weeks ago, she's adorable.
I'm a software engineer.i work in videogames and visual fx production for film/tv.
she works in the finance department of a movie/production studio.
no children...yet ;)
I am an Apple Service Engineer... which is a fancy way of saying i fix computers... and i have one Son who has just gone 2 months old.
when working, usually I work at an auto parts store. It's like customer service gone wrong combined with auto repair.
I do not feel the stereotype is entirely -unjustified- as I am abit anti social by some people's standards.. but then again the friends I do have, are friends that are like family to me. I have a few acquaintances here and there.
How ever I have seen quite a few people I feel fit the stereotype to the tee.
But usually most people don't.
I've got glasses, that's about the biggest thing I have in common with the stereotype. Other than I'm a geek. (but what man isn't really.) I'm a car geek, a gaming geek, novelist geek.
I only recently started playing d&d(about 4 years now), but I have been gaming in one form or another since I was 3.
I think the stereotype of gamers is much like any stereotype: it can be proven true in many cases, but it can just as easily be proven false in many cases.
I think one thing I've noticed after seeing many threads of this nature is that either a)D&D players are often involved in computer related fields, or b)People that hang out on message boards are often involved in computer related fields. This thread further supports this with 4 out of 5 people having careers or degrees related to computers.
What does that mean? Nothing. That's the other thing about stereotypes. Sometimes the link has nothing to do with what you think it does.
Did you suddenly become something else once you started gaming again? Did you sprout glasses and stop taking baths? Did you suddenly start talking about technical or obscure things that most people don't care about?
If the answer is no or that you were doing one or any of these things before you became a gamer again, that's further evidence that gaming has nothing to do with those things.
Sorry for my disjointed rant.:P
*snip*
Did you suddenly become something else once you started gaming again? Did you sprout glasses and stop taking baths? Did you suddenly start talking about technical or obscure things that most people don't care about?
*snip*
*gasp* you mean...*low ominous music*...like a...WERENERD?!?!?
Let me add one more question - of the people you game with, how many of them do you feel fit the stereotype? Also, what's the average age of your group?
Thanks again
I'll be taking the wife to her very first Gen Con this year so it will certainly be time to get her used to the gamer stereotype ;)
32 male, animator
27 female, admin. assistant
32 female, IT
40 male, general contractor
i don't think any of them would fit the stereotype...especially the girls...at all.
I've been playing D&D since I was 8; so that's about 25 years now.
My gaming group includes a chef and his wife (who's a nurse), a software engineer, a lab technician, and a guy who works at Wal-Mart.
The guy who works at Wal-Mart fits the stereotype pretty well, everyone else not really.
I don't exactly fit the stereotype (I guess general contractor covers that.) I have lots of "nerdy" hobbies, but I don't really get along with the "stereotypical" fan.
So - how old are you, what do you do for a living, and do you feel that the stereotype is justified, and feel free to add whatever you'd like?
I'm 40, a husband and father, and I own a small company which creates custom web-based software for businesses. To do further harm to the stereotype, most of my career has involved interacting with people, customers, end users, etc. While in college, I gave a 15 minute oral presentation as part of a business communication course and was given one of highest grades that instructor had handed out in more than a decade.
Is the stereotype justified? Well, no, not at all. Are stereotypes ever justified?
My wife is 39 and works in insurance. She's a gamer too, though admittedly her introduction to it came via me.
As for my gaming group, We are all between 30-50 and all but one of us are married and hold pretty decent jobs. The computer field is over represented in my group, since it includes another programmer and an IT technician, but it also includes a bank teller and a factory worker. Only one of us lives with our mom, and even in his case it is because she is old, frail and needs someone to take care of her, rather than because he has no skills for dealing with the real world.
Overall, I don't think our group fits the 'socially maladroit slacker' gamer stereotype at all.
*gasp* you mean...*low ominous music*...like a...WERENERD?!?!?
Yes. YES!!!
:P
Thanks for the responses so far, much appreciated.
Let me add one more question - of the people you game with, how many of them do you feel fit the stereotype? Also, what's the average age of your group?
Thanks again
My first group of 5 at the time was between 20 and 24, with me being 21ish(I'm 24 now). I would say 3 of the 5 fit quite a few of the stereotypes, but no one fit all of them. 3 had glasses, 2 were without girlfriends(for a while), but none were the smelly guy. We all had friends in and out of work(we all worked together). Only one of us was really shy/semi non-social. Etc.
So like I said previously, you can find people that fit the stereotype(or some of the many stereotypes gamers have), but you also have people that fit none or very few of them.
My current group of 4 is between 19 and 24(me being oldest) and none of us really fit any of the stereotypes. We are all in relationships. None of us wear glasses. We bath regularly. We are all very outgoing and have any friends. None of us live in basements(ditto for my first group; though we don't have basements in the houses where I live:P). Me and my cousin would be the "nerdiest", though we are both far from your classical nerd.
Just 3 more people that play against type in my current group, but again you will find people that fit the standard tropes and those that don't.
I did fit the stereotype in school but after 10 years in the army I grew out of it.
Due to the new edition I am currently DMing for three different groups. The age range is 14 to 25 years.
I have played with my son 21, am teaching my step-son 12, and can't wait to teach my grandkids (when they arrive). Stereotype be damned.
At the moment I'm healing up at home and trying to decide if I want to go to law school or give the Army another go. In the meantime I'm trying to find a job. I live in West Virginia so this is easier said than done.
No current significant other and no children.
For my entire life I've been rather the odd man out for my love of roleplaying games. I haven't ever found another person in my area, or the small college I attended, that plays them. The books are pretty well stocked at my local Borders so someone is buying them, but I've never actually been able to find anyone. So, unfortunately I've never actually gotten to play DnD in the traditional sense. Doesn't keep me from highly enjoying the books and messing around with the game mechanics.
My wife is the same age, and she heads up shipping for (SHAMELESS PLUG) The Battery Clinic.
Wife, 30, accountant
Son, 12, knucklehead
Employee, 33, divorced (male)
Wife's friend, 32, married (female)
I'm not so sure about stereotypes. I played football in high school, joined the Army at a young age, been married twice, divorced once, two kids. I'm not "into" computers. I don't wear glasses. I'm 5'10", weigh 190 lbs., and can bench-press 250 lbs. I used to be a fat kid in school, but the Army took care of that. I just try to maintain a fit level...but my wife's a really good cook, so it's hard.
I started gaming when I was 14. I started DMing (poorly) around the same time. Youngest person I've DMed for was around 13 (a friend's younger brother). Oldest was in their mid/late 20s.
My current group consists mostly of college friends. Oldest is mid/late 20s (old friend from my first game group). Group contains one couple, one guy who gets dates regularly, and one guy who has a girlfriend, in addition to a few single folks. My girlfriend doesn't play DnD, but she gets the hobby and plays in my friend's VtM game.
My main group:
26, male, group attendant at a home for mentally disabled and disturbed adults.
26, male, seminary student/missionary.
27, male, diesel mechanic
24, male, DNR agent
27, male, not sure what he does for a living now, former marine.
27, male, paramedic.
19, male, FLGS clerk.
18, male, unemployed.
22, male, laser tech.
Only one of us fits the stereotype, total sausagefest at the table though.
Is it any wonder that my main character is a Paladin?
As for my group...
Paladin (Human Male) is played by me a Chaplain's Assistant (29/Male)
Fighter (Human Male) is played by an Infantry Officer (31/Male)
Rogue (Halfling Female) is played by a Supply Specialist (19/Female)
Ranger (Elf Male) is played by a Ranger Sniper (23/Male)
Cleric (Dwarf Female) is played by a Field Medic who is an R.O.T.C. Caditiot at the moment (28/Female)
Wizard (Human Male) is played by an Intel Analyst (21/Male)
I know, talk about type-casting, but the group at least know what their roles are backwards and forwards better than probably any team out there!
As for stereotyping...
Well, I wear glasses until this coming December... that is the only way I fit.
I am married to a gamer chick who is hot and looks like the classic elf.
I am in the military and consistently pull 270's on my PT tests (out of 300).
I am a power lifter who also keeps even tone with swimming and repetition training.
I keep my head shavd (do to premature hair loss because of a really bad sunburn).
I am O.C.D. to a point just before it is just insane (including personal hygene).
I do dress in armor and stuff, but I do so to beat the snot out of other people in armor who are surprised such a muscle-bound lug can move that fast.
I am also in Aikido.
Oh, in high school I played D&D (geek), but also was a team manager for one of the sports teams (uber-geek)...
The Volley Ball team (huh?) and a summer class trained masseuse before I volunteered to, uh, manage their equipment... (God of Geeks).
I'm 36, married for the past year and a half, with one stepson. Yes, I'm in the computer industry, as a software developer, and spend a fair amount of my leisure time playing WoW and Civ 4. I also wear glasses, am interested in science, love music, and am an unrepentant heathen. Whether any of those last three are typical of D&D players, I don't know.
How about my group? I reckon there's at least three or four you wouldn't pick as D&D players if you ran into them.
and buy one here -- it's kind of hard to run a doggy daycare out of a two bedroom apartment. ;)I bathe regularly, have read a number of books that didn't have swords on the cover, have never owned a tee-shirt with a picture of a dragon on it, and am perfectly capable of dropping my keys without screaming "CRITICAL FUMBLE!"
D&D might be my oldest hobby, but it's far from my only one. Some of them even involve leaving the house. I play a mean guitar (mostly blues and 70s punk) and throw an adequate but enthusiastic dart. On a Friday night you're just as likely to see me enjoying a local band or (during hockey season at least) hoisting a better quality beer at a sports bar as you are to see me sitting at someone's kitchen table rolling dice and talking in a funny voice.
I have even, on more than one occasion, spoken to girls without making a complete fool of myself.
I don't currently have a gaming group, but I have in the past gamed with IT professionals, warehouse workers, college students, college professors, guys who you'd need a degree in business just to make any sense of their job titles, office drones, people who I never got around to asking what they did for a living, and a phone sex operator.
The stereotype, just like any other stereotype, does have some basis in reality -- otherwise it wouldn't exist. But it's stupid to assume that all, most, or even a significant percentage of gamers actually fit that stereotype. Again, just like any other stereotype.
My regular gaming buddies range in age from mid-thirties to early forties. The statistical outlier is one friend's teenage son who's been joining us recently. We all have very different personal styles and none of us are particularly nerdy one-on-one, but when we get together we can goob out with the best.
As far as my group goes, our DM, 23, is a former Marine (and, even according to well-versed gamers who play 3 games a week with various other groups, is still reputed to be one of the best DMs ever played with), having served twice in Iraq, and quite recently married. Players consist of 7 others. (We run a large game.) Ages are 18, 21, 28, 19, 25, 20, and 21, with careers ranging from additonal commission salesmen, factory workers, and restaurant servers, at least half of which are in school.
In short, I'd say we're pretty normal, with the extremes of "Hardcore Nerd", "Ladies' Man", and "Typical Jock" mixed into the "Joe Schmos". I apologize if I sound arrogant/conceited/whatever, but I just find that the stereotypes that might have once applied in the past, aren't so much in effect today with the current youth culture, at least the non-close-minded ones (i.e. douchebags). Personally, I find that with older generations (aunts, friends, coworkers), they have the stereotypical gamer idea, as opposed to the younger "Nerd is In" crowd who tend to be more familiar with a larger population of video gamer/sci-fi/fantasy friends. Then again, that could be my own stereotype, and admittedly, I know plently of older gamers and older people in general, who do not harbor those same ideas.
I'd say that the stereotype is partially warranted, but sort of in reverse. Over the years, DnD has become associated with social outcasts and nerds. People who care about their social status tend to avoid the game because of this, so the only people who will touch the game with a 10' pole are the aforementioned outcasts and nerds, who have no real social status to lose. Of course this is all going on in middle/high school, when your popularity level is of ultimate importance for some damn reason. That's the prime time to get into the hobby though.
My wife's a gamer, as is my son.
My regular group:
me, my wife, and my son.
My brother (astronomy professor); maybe a little more nerdy than me, but not much.
His wife, a lawyer and occasional player, two kids.
A (male) currently-unemployed economist, rather athletic, married, no kids.
A (male) hospital computerist, married, no children.
A (male) psych professor, unmarried.
A marketing dude, married, two kids.
So no, we don't really fit the stereotype of unsocial nerds - though some of us fit closer than others. We're all SF/fantasy fans in varying degrees, but all fairly normal productive members of society (and almost all college graduates); as far as I know, none of us lived with parents much beyond high school.
That said, I do think there's a grain of truth in the gamer-nerd stereotype. I look around at local conventions and see a lot of overweight bearded guys in t-shirts (and 'gamer funk' is still a reality). But most gamers I know and hang out with are reasonably responsible, normal citizens.
I think that Imay be the youngest person posting on here so far (that I have bothered to read). I am 21 years old (almost 22) and I have glasses, have interst in science and all things nerdy, and am amatuer novelist. I currently go to college at WSU for a BS in psychology and helping skills. I consider myself a people freindly person. I am a day laborer right now, just got done putting a tilt-o-whirl together for a nearby carnival (read: pig steel is very heavy). I also have a hot girlfreind (seriously, I really, really do
)I game with two groups, one at college (with all people who to college, majors ranging form art history to neuroscience) and one at home. The home group consists of a welder, a fellow college man, my sister who is close in age and also a DnD enthusiast, a navy petty officer, a bank teller, an athlete/jock, a pizza maker, an elderly home caretake, a couple more random people.
Huzzah.
Ohhh, I'm a walking stereotype!
Single (gay, do I get saddled with the "Doesn't talk to girls" stereotype.. I mean, I do have a valid reason and all..), 31, author, worked as a Pharm. Engineer for a while.. hate science and hate intelligent people even more, now I slum it in retail at a plant nursery hauling cow manure all day (people need fertilizer damnit!), live in the lower level of a house with my parents in the upper level (still counts as a stereotype though.. "lower level" might as well read as basement.) Take care of my niece and nephew who live with us. (I go to their parent conferences.. so I demand recognition!). OH, I know.. I'm even overweight. I want my award King of D&D Nerds award.. and how.
Group:
31, Pharmecutical Engineer, Male, Single (Engaged)
30 Analytical Chemist, Male, Single, Ex-military
28 Pharmecutical Engineer, Female, Married, and Hawt (no I'm not sending pictures you pervvy little D&D stereotypes)
27 Insurance, Female, Single, and.. Hawt
Tongue in Cheek aside.. if the stereotypes of female gamers are sex crazed white trash (I've encountered enough to consider it a stereotype) and over-weight tom boys (incidently, also usually sex crazed) then the females of the group actually break the mold significantly.
Though one is rather sex crazed and the other is tom boyish.. one aspect does not a stereotype make methinks.
As for the other males.. hmm.. the military one has the social graces of a dung beetle (less actually), but he's physically fit so there goes porky social misfit. The other is an attractive, fit, successful... NERD. Seriously.. all of us together couldn't be as nerdy as this dude. Please trust.. it infects his life like that funky red plague in the season of transformers that takes place after the movie.. you know, when Optimus Prime comes back.. err... yeah, he's more nerdy that that even.
And to fight off the "anti-social" stigma a bit, I am married, have friends ranging from network executives, blue coller workers, to nerds of all shapes and sizes.
Though I might be one of those "random variants" that always pop up... I did win most popular nerd back in my highschool days.
I'll at least vouch for the fact that being a nerd doesn't make you antisocial, but alot of antisocial people would be considered nerds. Plus isn't D&D a group game? Doesn't that kinda make it so you have to be atleast a little bit social?
My 2 pennies on it.
-Rob
My gaming group growing up was also a mix of jocks and regular guys but we were and still are all geeks :D In my experience I don't think the stereotype is untrue at all. At the peak of our gaming during highschool was probably when we were the most awkward and lacking in other relationships. I attended a few conventions and while there were many friendly and interesting people there it also tended to bring out the most socially awkward people. The comic book guy character from the Simpsons was a stereotype that I met over and over again....
I still enjoy RPGs and would love to be able to do it more often but I did notice that that the more my friends became involved with girls and larger social networks the less they gamed. I keep quiet about gaming around my non-gaming friends and even my current and ex-GFs don't know anything about it. My current-GF is a prissy princess who calls me a nerd for playing computer games at 31 so I doubt she'd take too well to adult games of make believe ;)
) I don't think I completely fit the stereotype, but I do tend to annoy some of the others in my gaming group with some of my useless info. The other people in my group I play in are in a nutshell, a lot like me, except most of them have jobs at Fareway, the grocery store, and aren't quite as fascinated with random knowledge. Well, except for one. He fits the stereotype pretty closely, but it doesn't make any difference to us. Besides, he's a great roleplayer.
I meet some of the stereotypes:
-Physics major in college
-I wear glasses for long distance
-I listen to trance (di.fm)
-I have meh hygiene
-I sometimes talk about strange things like DotA builds or how upset I've made some of the people on these forums and why 4e is bad.
-I'm a gamer addict and I spend at least 4 hours a day on these forums on my quest to destroy the unholy abomination that is 4e.
Non nerd stuff
-I run a bit and take stairs 4 at a time
-I go to aikido on sundays
-I'm probably too skinny for my own good (175 lbs 6'0")
After all, I have a lot of 3.x stuff, read the GSL, and . . . I've seen enough opinions about 4e to know that I don't want the game. It's too overly complex for me. 100 pages of Character Building rules in the PHB? INSANE!
As for my group we have 7 people now, I don't know ages really, it is still a fairly new group. But while our DM is a computer programmer and all around nerd he is also training to be a MMA Fighter, and has done well for himself in it. SO the stereotype has roots in our group but doesn't produce much fruit so to speak.
Currently we don't really have a gaming group because we moved to a small town, separating us from the gaming friends we had in the city. I've played dnd since I was about 12 starting with 2nd edition. I absolutely loved the Dark Sun Campaign and I don't want to know the sinful things I'd be willing to do just to see it published for 4e. I stopped playing through 3rd edition although i own a number of the books and spent a lot of time reading them - I liked a lot of the ideas they had but I still think of it as a transition phase that had a lot of balance and design issues to match every great new idea. 4th edition looks to be our cup of tea and we're eager to get back into regular PnP gaming starting with a family game over the summer holidays!
Stereotypes? Well I don't think you'd look at us and be like "those guys are gamers" but after 10 minutes with us its probably going to get really clear. We shower regularly (I don't get why this one is so hard for a lot of gamers), we iron our clothes and we have lots of other interests but our life does indeed revolve around games of all kinds.
To offer up something extra, I have to admit when I was in high school things were a lot different for me. I loved the game but i was always excrutiatingly aware that it carried a pretty unflattering label. Some of my childhood friends who also played were full on stereotype - awkward to the point it made you uncomfortable somehow, poor hygiene, extreme role-players, rolling dice in the halls at lunch time etc. Truth is, I always admired the fact that they didn't really get hung up by people not understanding their interests (although a bath and some hair gel never killed anyone). It wasn't really until I met my wife and some really great friends after high school that I got over my own self consciousness. Now, we make no apologies for our interests - in fact my wife is often at odds with other teachers because she argues to death that things like video games and dnd are not the evils that some people seem to think.
I've played dnd since I was about 12 starting with 2nd edition. I absolutely loved the Dark Sun Campaign and I don't want to know the sinful things I'd be willing to do just to see it published for 4e.
I started playing when I was 9 (I feel embarrassed, I gave the wrong amount of years earlier...) But yeah, I'm with you. If you need any help doing those sinful things to get the Dark Sun setting done for 4th, I'll help.
I did 10 years in the military and am now a disabled vet.
Anyway, for the most part I think the stereotype is justified. If you sit in a game store for a day the number of people that walk in that haven't showered (in a few days) far outnumber the ones that have. You can tell by the hair and the "greasy" clumps.
I play in a group of older people, for the most part - 3 over 40, two mid 30s, a 28 y.o., and a 20 y.o. For the record we were still playing 2E, never switched to 3.X cause we disliked it, and are currently testing 4E. The 20 y.o. doesn't always shower before game day.
As for jobs...
one biker (disabled vet also).
one adolescent shrink
one fireman
one chemist
one MMA (UFC fighter)
two full time college students (myself included).
My gaming group consists of:
26 year old- Director of R&D at internet company
24 year old - Application developer
24 year old - IT support
23 year old - software engineer
23 year old - software engineer
So we definitely fall into the "computer nerd" stereotype, although truthfully not too much since none of use actually LIKE computers much at all :D
I've been in customer service for 7 years, going against that whole "no social skills" stereotype.
Funny story: I started D&D at age 12 and never stopped. At age 14 I started playing football for my junior high, and would have continued playing football all through high school and probably in to college had I not sustained too many severe injuries as a Freshman starting on the varsity offense and defense.
Further shattering stereotypes.
My girlfriend is a certified medical biller.
Our gaming group has consisted of:
4 college students (journalism, I don't know anymore, never asked, and something very business oriented)
3 Cashiers
2 Customer Service Reps for call centers
...and 3 guys that have the social graces of a bag of manure.
Right now the group is much smaller (me, my girl, 2 cashiers, 2 students, and 1 CSR)
Final thing: Stereotypes be damned
Currently unemployed, apparently telling your boss to go **** off and threatening to beat his head in with a car door is a big no no.
Started D&D about three years ago, so yeah I'm a bit of a newbie. Kind of in high school currently, my dumb ass had a bit of an attitude and motivation problem and now I gotta go through secondary school for a bit till I get the credits I missed. My report card was usually this "Smartest kid in class, refuses to do work"..
In a group of about 6 people that play D&D, most of them are 20 years old so no booze unfortunately........okay I'm lieing through my teeth on that. Most of them are in college. As soon as I find this one guys number the group size will probably swell up to 12 or 14.
Kind of fulfill the stereotype but for the most part I am the opositie, need to get back in shape a bit more so I can go back to being able to dominate on the football feild.
41. My group ranges from a young lady of 19-20 (I've never asked) to a woman of about 45 (again, I've never asked). Most of my group are in their thirties, though. Over half of us are married and of those, most have at least one child (me and my wife) or more (the others all have two kids at this point). While none of us are seriously overweight, we all show our years to a certain extent. We are all fairly social people as we are enjoying a fairly social game. I would expect more anti-social tendencies from online RPG players than face to face RPG players. There is a big difference from interacting with people through a computer and interacting across a table.
Oh, I forgot. My gaming history. I've played since about '79 when I got my blue box. One player is my best friend that has been playing RPGs with me on and off for the last (approx) 30 years.
hey hocus just noticed your in north florida, where exactly are you? Im in lakeland.
Panama City Beach
.Just noticed the rest of the questions. My gaming group...its more like a gaming gaggle. You see, I'm on a military base overseas, and theres this placed called the USO (for entertainment of the military community) and we take it over every Friday night. There are probably about 40 of us, so I won't bore you trying to name how old they all are and what they do. Basically, they range from about 19-60. We have a heavy amount of military (soldiers, airmen ect.) because of where we are, but then we have everything from retail to an auto mechanic to investigators to, well, about everything else you could think of (lots of military police*laugh*). The 60(ish) year old gentleman that comes in is one of the lead people at a univeristy over here (like second underneath the dean or something like that).
Do we fit the stereotype? For the most part, no. We're a hygenic bunch, if your not your told to go take a shower. There are some gamers there that aren't the best at socializing. But, I mean, thats not just nerds. For a good part we're mostly all very accomplished, about 3/4 of us have some sort of college degree (some associate's, TONS of bach., a few master's and one Dr.) So, I don't think that really fits stereotype...but I do know the ones you speak of...they're around.
As for age, a special lady never reveals that…
I guess to some I'd be considered a "nerd" and by others a "jock." All in all, I think these stereotypes become meaningless as time goes on -- it seems that your accomplishments in life have more weight, at least to those who matter.
I did martial arts for a while and now go to the gym three times a week.
I shower ever day, including washing my now short hair (used to be long in my teens). I wear glasses and have done since I was about twelve.
I have a reasonable number of friends (going to a mates wedding in Mexico on Saturday – yay!), some of which game.
I’m not in a relationship at the moment, though I am looking, really, really, really hard! Problem is I am a bit shy and I work long hours and my friends keep promising to fix me up, but they never do.
I spent vast hoards of cash on science fiction and fantasy novels as well as American comics, though I have never and will never play online RPGs.
So I half fit, though the norms probably don’t notice. Almost everyone I knows thinks I am a geek though.
As for my group, I have known most of them for years age range is between 17 and late 50’s, wide range of jobs, in fact the only one’s that don’t work are still in school. Only a couple fit the stereotype well, though I have met lots that really fit it.
Oh, I’m in the UK and have been playing D&D, and many other games, for almost 24 years.
I am married with one child, who is the cutest baby in the whole freakin' world. My wife is a former school teacher.
I have a large number of friends, most of whom don't play RPGs.
My wife says I'm a natural flirt.
Prior to "settling down" I had several girlfriends. Come to think of it, all of them pursued me. I have never asked a girl out on a date in my life - never had to.
Beyond playing RPGs (and my career), I'm a writer and have had some minor successes in getting things published.
I dabble in painting, sculpting and ceramics, such as this:
This is the only thing I can show you ... I mostly do nudes.
I am also a zymurgist (one who studies the process for brewing wines and beers). Mostly I just stick to the brewing of Meads, though.
Oh, and I also sing in my church choir - bass.
.
.
.
I do not live with my parents and haven't since I was 18.
In addition to Gaming, I'm also really into film (De Palma, Tony Scott, and the Coen Bros. are some of my favorite filmmakers) also being from Portland Oregon, I'm kind of a music *****...I love indie rock, punk and anything inbetween.
Though I do have a gut as a result of too many PBR's, but I'm otherwise fairly attractive (perpetual five o'clock shadow and artfully touseled hair) with geek flavored tattoos.
No spouse or girlfriend currently, but I date a lot.
I am terribly, awfully antisocial...but that has more to do with being a snooty hipster and social elitist than a gamer. I didn't start playing D&D until after high school actually.
So as far as the stereotype goes, I'm about halfway there. Those in my gaming group are around the same age, there are military personnel, churchgoers, ex-highschool jocks, finance managers, and one artist/retro-everything enthusiast. None of them virgins.
My wife (who I game with) is an MD/PhD student. No kids.
I currently do the vast majority of my gaming online (or via Xbox, but that's not really the same), with the current games being active at the link in my sig.
I wear glasses, and I'm a bit of an intellectual. Other than that, I played football in high school, trained Karate in college and am outgoing enough that I tend to wind up the ringleader of whatever group I find myself in. You can judge for yourselves whether that fits the stereotypes. ;)
I am systems engineer/database programmer. I also work as an adjunct professor for both local colleges (state and community) teaching the MCSE/Comp Tia/Cisco certification programs and binary/boolean mathematics and logic.
My primary group consists of all tech persons ranging fromt eachers of AI/skynet theory programming to phone help desk support. With the noted exception of the two children who play in that group which are devout republicans, and engaged in highschool.
Don't know if we fit any stereotypes.
love,
malkav
I'd say for me that I do not fit the stereotype of a gamer. I hang out with plenty of people that do however. While I'm very upbeat socially graceful and very capable at relationships (My girlfriend and I have been dating for a year and three months now), most of the people I game with have as I and some of my other friends say "failed at life". They are 40+ and live with their parents or had a child out of wedlock and will now be fighting for custody until he/she is 18. I haven't actually been playing DnD in the past year but I'm trying to get up a new group! I also play Warhammer 40k, so I'm a pretty hardcore geek. I'm terrified to let it show though... :embarrass :
I served as an infantry/recon Marine for 8 years and completed two tours in Iraq. I now work as a contracted consultant for the Intelligence Community. I'm working on my B.A. in History and I'm approaching my senior year. After that, I'll probably pursue my M.B.A. or J.D.
I don't think that I fit the typical gamer sterotype. Though, my wife calls me a closet dork. Granted, I am really too busy to have any personal hobbies outside of gaming, so it's my only hobby at the moment!
The guys I game with fit the typical profile. I won't get into the specifics, but most are overweight (except for one that is super skinny) and a bit anti-social.
Bohica
My group consists on
(DM)M/29/Psychotherapist - Master DM and total headf*ck merchant.
M/30/Bricklayer
M/26/Jeweller
M/22/Carpenter
M/21/Labourer
M/42/Builder - Father of "M/21/Labourer"
Wife is the box office manager of a local non profit arts group (they bring in concerts and such). Same age as me
I met her when she was GMing a group of Champions when I moved into the area. Both of us started D&D before the hardcovers came out.
The age range / professions in our group.
42 - Tattoo artist. Has an art degree, does other artwork, but there is a lot of money doing tatoos. Also a gym rat and health nut.
40 - Finishing Master's in education. Degree in Chemistry. Teacher. Gaming since 78 or so.
39 - Dock lead at a manufacturing plant. Gaming since '77
39 - Cart pusher at Wal-Mart. Wanted a low stress job that got him exercise to lose weight. It worked. Gaming since before the hardcover D&D books too.
19 - Just graduated high school. I am good friends with his parents. His Dad is my age, and he games. The son has been playing D&D since he was old enough to understand it. He joined our group to learn another system (We are a Hero system/ Champions group*).
* The wife and I do D&D solo.
Note that while none of us have the computer field as our jobs, all of us are computer nuts.
One of our group is a computer major and Rennie, another is a (currently) unemployed student, both in their early to mid twenties, so stereotype there. We're losing one guy
a mid-twenties History major who got a job as a teacher near his family in rural Missouri. But we gained two new gamers, both in their mid-to-late 30's. They both are hard-core 2nd Ed. players who never got into 3rd, have started playing 4th Ed. and are loving it.I had a bit of a reunion with my old gaming group recently. That group includes a doctor, 2 lawyers, and a cop.
I have two gaming groups currently, the first, a 4e group
Myself
My wife, 25, a visual designer at the local JC Pennys
My father in law, 51, mechanic, married
And occasional guest players
My second group is a 1e group
Myself
Our DM, male 41, Air Force vet, divorced
gamer 3, male 35, divorced
gamer 4, male 40?
Hobbies: Taekwondo, hunting, fishing, target shooting, archaeology (ok, it's just looking for Native American artifacts, but still!) and going to the bar to hang with the guys
Other (more important): I've been with my fiancee for 4 years now. We've only recently gotten engaged, though. She has a 9 (almost 10) year old son that stays with us 50% of the time. Gotta love shared parenting. Last year we bought a house together.
So, I guess we D&D players do ok. I know I'm happy. Before I settled down, I was at one bar/club or another up to seven days a week. Plenty socialized, ya' know? ;)
My wife, who is not a gamer and does not wish to ever be one, works as a receptionist in a doctor's office. We have no kids, but are planning on having one in the next year or two. (My wife is 13 years younger than me.) I spend most of my free time working on our old house we bought for a song and a dance, but feel like we are in the movie the Money Pit. We also spend a lot of time at the stables where my wife keeps her horse. We used to go to the clubs a lot on weekends until they changed the style of music, so we don't go anymore. (We love darkwave) I think my wife and I are normal, along with our small group of friends. We do a lot of activities with them that is in no way game involved. I have a lot of varied interests.
The group I DM for is pretty diverse. We have HS students,undergrad & grad students, a postal worker, a couple of T&I people, and another person who works in the same field as I do. Actually about half the group comes from the same lab.
I play d&d as an excuse to sit around and eat junk food while making jokes. Its a lot of fun of course too.
The stereotype is sometimes justified. There are also big geeks that are socially well adjusted too.
D&D is a guy's night out kind of thing for me, so I suppose that lives up to stereotypes too. My girlfriends think its kind of funny but don't really mind one way or the other.
I've been playing these sorts of games all my life, or at least since I was able. I would say that the stereotype was fitting for me in my highschool days but now that I socialize with adults it doesn't matter.
My wife (who I game with) is an MD/PhD student. No kids.
Can I still post?
I'm 25, newly married and going to school. I started playing magic in junior high and in college that led to my boyfriend introducing me to D&D. So I guess I fit one stereotype in that I was introduced to it by a boyfriend... but he wasn't antisocial in anyway. I'm pretty busy with school, but I do agility with my dog as really my only other hobby right now.
The only games I play in person are with my husband and my nephew (12). Only one person in our online group might fit the sterotypes.
It looks like the typical stereotype isn't even close to accurate for many gamers, although obviously there is some basis for it, since stereotypes don't get created from thin air, but tend to be distortions towards the extreme of existing trends. My experience has been that many gamers tend to be shy and somewhat socially awkward, and that basis has been turned into the rather offensive stereotype that exists today.
So, let's change the course of the discussion a bit. We know the stereotype exists, and we know from at least a small sampling (this thread) that it's not accurate for at least some roleplayers, although it IS accurate for some as well. How does it affect you, if at all? Do you ever find yourself not sharing the fact that you're a roleplayer when you might share that you're a golfer?
This has been very interesting so far.
When I do share gaming with non-gamers, I like to emphasize the creativity and imagination involved with these types of games.
So, let's change the course of the discussion a bit. We know the stereotype exists, and we know from at least a small sampling (this thread) that it's not accurate for at least some roleplayers, although it IS accurate for some as well. How does it affect you, if at all? Do you ever find yourself not sharing the fact that you're a roleplayer when you might share that you're a golfer?
I share this with people who would recognizably understand me. Living in the Bible-Belt, with a church on three out of the four sides of my property and a preacher living on the fourth side, I have to be careful not to bring down the Holy wrath. That, and the fact that I'm Wiccan doesn't help anything, either. Most of the newer people I play with I have met through MySpace contacts, as I can find local people interested in RPGs without putting out a public notice. Would I ever tell someone I just met on the street that I play D&D? No. Not in this area, anyway. When I lived in Atlanta and Austin, it was different. Tiny towns are the worst things for roleplayers.
[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"]So, let's change the course of the discussion a bit. We know the stereotype exists, and we know from at least a small sampling (this thread) that it's not accurate for at least some roleplayers, although it IS accurate for some as well. How does it affect you, if at all? Do you ever find yourself not sharing the fact that you're a roleplayer when you might share that you're a golfer?
I have a long held belief in just saying whatever I feel like it. Not to say I'm insulting people, but if someone asks me a question I answer truthfully and completely. If hobbies come up, I'll even tell someone about my RPG bookshelf that holds several thousand dollars worth of books on it.
Or my bookshelf full of manga.
Or my HTPC(home theater pc) that was solely built to watch fansubbed anime.
I have so many "stereotyped" hobbies that I just don't care. If they are going to judge me by it after meeting me, then they are close-minded idiots anyway.
Friends, let me tell you, that stinks.
I can't imagine having to feel like I'm keeping my hobby a secret. It must be very frustrating. I think everyone I know knows I'm a gamer, and with the exception of maybe one or two people, no one really cares.I hope things turn around for you - in this day and age a gamer should not have to live in the darkness!!!
except of course, those of us who like it there. . . :D
i'm a computer specialist, have a girlfriend but, sadly, no kid.
all my players (i'm DMing) are social guys also.
Certainly, there are some people who fit into the stereotype, but I've known many gamers who were successful, social responsible people.
I do fit the stereotype, slightly, I am a little overweight, but I'm working on it. I read a lot, and play video games, but I do have social skills. I DM for two groups the first is my parents and brother. My dad is a mechanic for American Airlines, my mom works for a soccer association, not sure exactly what she does. My brother is a sophomore in High school. My second group consists of two to three of my friends, we literally just started, yesterday. Matt is 19 he works at a pharmacy, Wendy is 19 and is in Texas State. I'm not sure if the third person is going to play yet.
Oops forgot to mention that I work in a Grocery store.
My group goes like this,
25 years old, male, Jeweller too (Friend from when i studied)
23 years old, female, that's my girlfriend, Jeweller too.
24 years old, male, no apparent job, still in school studying psychologie, specialising in sexe, and this guy is the total opposite of the stereotype. But been playing with me since the beginning.
23 years old, male, no job. Fall more in the antisocial stereotype, but hate everything that sounds nerd to him.
31 years old, male, unemployed for now due to health problem. This one is the stereotype.
Other games i've plyed with, goes from 16 years old to 43 years old. Every one of them have different degree of scholarship. Half male, half female. Most of them didn't fall in the stereotype of the geeky, anti-social gamer. But i msut admit that we made a great deal of effort to keep that kind of people out of our games. We like gaming but really doesn't like the stereotypes that comes with it.
Haven't played in a LONG time, but now that I am almost done with my
masters degree I would really like to learn the ropes again.
(And this was in a high tech company that produced equipment for thin films and semi conductors.)
Did you work for Novellas by chance? If so I'm going to laugh heartily, not because of you of course, but because I'm a level 1 certified technician on their thin films sputtering machines and that would be a heck of a coincidence.
Anyway, anyone who knows me at all, knows that I am a proud geek....I mean c'mon...we're the last true subculture. When asked I never shy away from my love of gaming or comics. At work, when I'm not in the lab I can be found in the bullpen reading the 4E books, or whatever graphic novel that I brought in to wile away the hours.
Most girls that I've dated (none of them gamers, except for one who enjoyed V:TM larps which I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole...sorry Vampire fans) found my interests to be cute and endearing.
I do get a lot of people who ask me about D&D...the general populace is pretty mystified as to what the gameplay itself actually entails. Since no explanation I could ever offer would do the game justice...I usually describe it as a boardgame with a bad reputation. Or my favorite "It's like monopoly...only you get to name the shoe and the banker is constantly trying to kill you."
Incidentally, what I'm wondering is if the negative stigma and stereotypes about roleplayers are as strong as they were 20 years ago? I mean, with the advent of MMO's like World of Warcraft and Everquest and the Popularity of the LoTR, Narnia and Harry Potter movies, I don't think that fantasy gaming is seen as something that only a fringe element of socially maladjusted, satan worshipping metalheads are into.
Furthermore, are there not hardcore sports fans that are just as obese, unhygienic, socially inept and obsessed with obscure trivia?
I think that gamers as a whole are as varied and diverse as any community of people with like interests.
@ Hocus and Andron.
Friends, let me tell you, that stinks.
I hope things turn around for you - in this day and age a gamer should not have to live in the darkness!!!
except of course, those of us who like it there. . . :D
I still have plenty to talk to people about like sports, farming, politics, etc... so I do not feel like I am missing out on anything. Once people get to know me, they know what my beliefs and likes are, I just do not volunteer particular bits of information beforehand. The guys I work with know I play D&D and whatnot and they do not care. But in general the people at the lab are clueless and I prefer to keep it that way. If I feel like talking comics, games, music, I go to these and other boards, or find my friends at work that are interested in the same things and talk.
I don't really keep my geek-traits a secret. I even have a shirt I wear with a few of them on it, nice and listed. By the same token, I don't go out and evangelize it to the masses. I actually am more introverted because of my physical build than any sort of social stigma. I'm 6'5" tall, 320 lbs or so, and have shoulders wide enough to fill most doorways, so I've always been very careful around people. It doesn't take much for me to knowck someone around. As a result, my personal bubble, especially around women, is in-proportionally large, and I can come off as being fairly meek when I first get to know people. Which is really funny, because I start off as being kind of scary, what with my size and some gnarly scarring on my hands and legs (I had an ATV accident my freshman year of HS.)
I had a friend like that. He was probably a hair smaller (though not much) and had long red-blonde hair. We called him Thor. But he was one of the nicest, most soft-spoken people I've ever known, even if he could carry a wooden futon frame up 3 flights of stairs by himself, and more than likely snap me in half (and while not big, I'm not exactly small myself (5'10" 180 lbs, mostly muscle)
Edit: and to comment on his awesome geek hobbies, he used to play in my D&D games, before he moved to California and started working as a VG tester.
Did you work for Novellas by chance? If so I'm going to laugh heartily, not because of you of course, but because I'm a level 1 certified technician on their thin films sputtering machines and that would be a heck of a coincidence.
I worked for a company called CVC for years, which then became VEECO. But when I worked on our equipment that was near the Novellas equipment I would check it out closely when I had the chance. I spent most of my time pulling duty out in San Jose at the IBM campus or at the Seagate plant in Minneapolis.
I do not think the harshness of the stereotype is as present as it used to be especially since the stories of leading to Satan worship, suicide over the loss of your favorite character, the movie Mazes and Monsters, all died down in the late 80s. But it is still there. Just look at all the fervor over the WW Vampire game in Florida a few years ago when those kids killed eachother. But at the same time, I do not believe there is as harsh stereotype for those that play online games, or other hardcore fans of whatever hobby as there is for the rpg PnP player. Here's a flow chart that is funny, but at the same time very believable: http://bp1.blogger.com/_BGrfTE7rwvU/Rrej2S-LZJI/AAAAAAAAAJQ/OAmeQqcxtDY/s1600-h/geekchart2.gif
I worked for a company called CVC for years, which then became VEECO. But when I worked on our equipment that was near the Novellas equipment I would check it out closely when I had the chance. I spent most of my time pulling duty out in San Jose at the IBM campus or at the Seagate plant in Minneapolis.
Ahh...we might use some of your machines. I work at the Intel Ronler Acres Campus in Hillsboro, OR.
But this is all horribly off topic so we'd best stop geeking out over the semiconductor industry.
-I sometimes talk about strange things like DotA builds or how upset I've made some of the people on these forums and why 4e is bad.
-I'm a gamer addict and I spend at least 4 hours a day on these forums on my quest to destroy the unholy abomination that is 4e.
You know what game I can't stand?
World of Darkness. I hate everything about it; the mechanics, the fluff, even the core concept.
You know what I do about it?
I stay the hell away from the White Wolf forums and let them have their fun without my negative input...because I recognize that I would have nothing of value to add to their discussions of the game.
You would do well to heed my example.
Looks like I'm much older than all of you.
Not that it really matters.
I have a doctorate in solid state physics with minors in lasers and quantum mechanics. I finished a military career (30 years) quite some time ago, and now work for a very high-tech, mid-sized corporation supporting some of the quieter sides of the federal government. I suppose you'd say I'm an odd mix of athlete and geek -- both a strong intellectual side and, until old age caught up, a serious sports enthusiasm (participation). Of course, a long military career preceded by both baseball and football will keep you physically fit ... until the damage catches up. ;)
I have several gaming groups, with people of both sexes and all ages. As to occupations, they are also all over the map. My personal experience tells me that gamers ... at least D&D gamers ... just don't fit any stereotype.
I've been playing D&D since 'just before it began' (my standard answer when asked). I was into serious wargaming as an intellectual exercise associated with my military profession when I ran into a little set of rules called Chainmail. And then came D&D. It's been a nice escape from the stress of my professional life.
My personal advice: play any and every Edition you enjoy. Don't let yourself be shoe-horned into any box of any sort. Life is far too short for that. :D
That said, I do feel that more than half the time the stereotype of the typical D&D gamer fits. Just go to a gaming Convention and make a slow 360 degree circle.
Devin
I have 3 gaming groups.
Group 1 (the oldest group) ranges from 27 to 30.
DM is a repair technician for airplanes as well as in a band called ashborne.
player 1 fits most stereotypes for the hobby
player 2 and 3 work in maintance 1 is a big wow guy the other is stuck in NWN 1 online play
player 4 is really quite and loves Japanese culture.
player 5 is in maintance for a high school and is completely whipped by his wife.
Group 2 (The out of high school group) ranges from 21-23.
DM is me
Player 1 & 2 Walmart stockman
Player 3 Walmart Unloader
Player 4 Pizza hut cook
Player 5 hair dresser (our only female player)
Player 6 Truck driver for the same company as me.
Group 3 (the scary crazy group) 14-15
Player 1-4 all teenage girls one of which is my little sister.
Really out of the group of 14 people only 2 really fit the image other than myself and though I am very open with my geek side I am very sociable.
.
In 40s:
video game designer, pretty extroverted
airplane engineer, definitely a "party guy"
30s:
me, staff management/computer engineer
actress, my wife
county health inspector + priest
masseuse, his wife
pizza shop owner, very popular guy
actual rocket scientist, friendly extrovert
single mom, works in real estate
20s:
nurse, she's outgoing
actor, he's a leader and manager, good social skills
mechanic, kind of aloof sometimes but warms up quick
waiter, popular with ladies
game tester, gets along well with everyone
teens and tweens:
students of course, a few female, more male, from a variety of cliques at schools (jocks/cheerleader to punks/heshers)
Of them most have spouses or boy/girlfriends and they span a broad spectrum. None live in their mom's basement though and while many are into computer games also they do tend to have social lives.
My wife is thirty-two and also games. She's been gaming nearly as long.
Our daughter is seven and started when she was four.
Well, I make Linux boxes for a living, my wife works childcare and homeschools our daughter.
I don't know the rest of the group to be certain of ages and occupations, but we have at least two programmers and two artists in our group as well.
The powers-that-be seem to have banished my thread to the bowels of Off-topicism... guess the thread is over.
Huh. I thought it started in Off-Topic. Well, beats arguing politics.
I like alot of nerd stuff but I actually cant stand stereotypical nerds.
Were all metal heads :D, well except albert, he likes rap.
The house I'm currently living in belonged to my parents. When they moved from London (Ontario, Canada) to Montreal, they sold the house to me, my wife, and newborn son. All was good for about 6 years, then they decided to move back to London. At the time the housing market was crazy ($200,000 for a 2 bedroom house, like the one they sold me), so we talked and we decided to build an extension with a granny flat. So, yes, I lived with my parents.
Now, for the basement part. When we found out my wife was pregnant
we realized our old room was not big enough for bed + existing stuff + baby stuff. We decided to use what was going to be "The Game Room". It was bigger and had a bathroom. So, after installing the basics (hard wood floor, wall mounted 32" HD LCD, king sized bed, change table for baby, etc), we move our bedroom to the basement. So, I (sort of) live in my parents basement. :D
You know, now that I type it out, it's even funnier.
Well, funny to me, anyway. 
I'm 38, married to a semi gamer wife (she's more into board, card, and minis games), have two kids (1 boy 8yrs, and 1 girl 15 days old) and, true to stereotype, I work in IT, am over weight, and wear glasses. I even live in my parents basement. Let me explain...
Congratulations on the newborn.
I'm a geek metalhead that doesn't look like either. I am actually quite preppy.oddly, it actually makes me feel fairly safe at night - most of the people who others are afraid of, i've helped them, or someone they know, find a house, or get a job, or get off drugs or something, so they are ok with me
I WAS about 250lbs. I'm now down to 160lbs, so i'm not the geek classic (a combo of gym, swimming, walking to work, healthy eating, and hypnotherapy). I'm also balding and have a beard (or goatee, or VERY occasionally a moustache, but it's a BAD look). I do wear glasses, however, and go for "geek chique" classes
my "main" gameing group is mostly people in my age group and career-bracket. My boyfriend isn't a gamer & thinks it's wierd that a 33 year old man with a mortgage "plays at being a fairy queen"
For work study I work in the technical office of our school. Repairs, networking, etc.
I like to write so I play D&D for the characters and storylines (and combat, combat is fun).
I feel that, while many D&Ders do conform to the stereotype (I kinda do), a huge number don't.
NOTES: Surprised to see I am in the top 7 oldest gamers in this thread so far. Had no idea there were so many of us older gamers out there.
GAMING SINCE: 1976
WHAT I DO: DM, Web Design and Internet Marketing
*****
see, it's FATE!
By the way, GamerDad, you may want to mention to your wife that Vin Diesel is a known gamer geek.
As is Tim Duncan (NBA player),
and actors Robin Williams, Matthew Lillard (Scream and Scooby Doo), Mike Myers (Austin Powers), Patton Oswalt (Comedian), Wil Wheaton (The kid from Star Trek Next Gen).
Musicians Moby, and Scott Ian (Anthrax)
and most importantly Stephen Colbert (of the Colbert Report)
I originally got into gaming just over ten years ago, and continued until around 2001. D&D was my favourite RPG out of everything but I played a number of others, too. After that, I drifted out of gaming, largely due to the need to focus in university. Also, my gaming friends weren’t all the nicest of people and some experiences really hurt me emotionally for years to come. I’m currently experiencing a renewed interest in D&D and fantasy stuff in general, so I’m hoping to get back in, and find a group of people with whom I’m well suited.
Otherwise, I’m a total oddball with all kinds of various interests or traits other than gaming, like weightlifting, yoga, cooking, dancing (salsa) and foreign films. I write very archaic-sounding traditional lyric poetry. I enjoy shopping for clothes at consignment shops. I get obsessed with my hair. I’m pretty environmentally conscious and really try to live as eco-friendly as a I can. I listen to mostly alt and prog rock. I’m a sensitive and romantic fellow but can be on shy side sometimes.
And my real name is Percival (though most people call me Percy), which is awesome.
In my younger years I was involved in the performing arts. I was a dancer/dance instructor and a lighting and sound technician at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center. I waited tables to support my theatre habit.
I don't think I fit the stereotype.
My regular group includes the following people:
Male Age 29 - Sales manager at a software design firm.
Male Age 32 - Software engineer.
Male Age 28 - Network specialist for a non-profit that provides online education oportunities for those who are not able to complete a traditional high school program.
My main group consisits of
Male 17, Red hair and rather outgoing, he is quite the ladies man, for no apparent reason
Male 17, kinda short, with some what of a inferiority complex(he never looks you in the face) but hes still pretty cool most of the time.
Male 17, kinda tall with glasses and a shaved head, pretty cool, kind of a nerd.
And then theres me, whos 6'3, broad, and kinda timid around new people, but I love to make people laugh.
1 - Geology student, going for his masters
2 - Call centre operator
3 - Butcher
4 - Unemployed guy
This is for V3.5 only though, if you want to know why http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=1053875].
My normal gaming group consists of my wife (28, Graphics designer) and our friends, another married couple (He's a 30 yr old Computer programmer, She's a 27 year old Cellular phone network technician).
I have known a lot of gamers who fit (or did at the time) the sterotype. We don't game with them, because they can't handle grouping with people of the other gender. It's a bit sad.
However, that being said, it does really seem to me that the demographics of gaming are changing. More women and more socialized guys, less basement dwelling 40 year old virgins.
Is the stereotype justified? I suppose it can be. In high school I was very much a loner aside from the people in my group. I spent a lot of time reading, playing D&D, and that sort of thing. Now I tend to be very outgoing, as is everyone in my group. I think gamers have the rep as being introverts because we can have just as much, if not more, fun staying in on a Friday night pretending we are half-elven rangers as going out to the bar.
And I have a young one to take care of most of the day.
The stereotype of D&D nerds is an accurate, albeit one-dimensional, depiction of a few people I've encountered, but most of the people I've gamed with live well-rounded lives.
I also have an (almost unhealthy) obsession with Japanese history and anime, especially anything involving the ninja (look at my sig and you'll see). I also like cosplay and will be attending some anime conventions within the next year or two.
I'm considered overweight, but I'm fairly solid overall. I walk 8 to 10 miles a day and I watch what I eat (a lot).
Oh yeah, no girlfriend. Millions of acquaintances, some friends. I get a lot of mixed company, though I don't care one way or the other (okay, okay, I'll take the women, you take the guys ;) )
I got back into D&D last year after being away from it for a long time, so I'm still fairly new to the whole thing. Unfortunately, since I graduated, I no longer have a gaming group, and with grad school coming, gaming won't be done very often. I'd rather have my face glued to a PHB than to a text on medical lingo, but hey, it's good money and worth doing in the long run.
I'd be inclined to go against the stereotype because of every one in my gaming group (5 students, male, varying majors), 3 had girlfriends (all hot to boot), and we all had plenty of people around us, though I do admit, I did like my alone time every now and then. I'm pretty nerdy, but not full-blown.
I am a Database admin, Coldfusion programmer and web designer by practice, but I am an English Comp & Lit Teacher by profession.
Married with 3 children all of which play, ages 7, 10 and 11.
I do not have a group sadly living out in the middle of no where, so I became DM for my kids and sometimes their friends.
I've been playing since 78, and have never really fit the stereotype, but I will admit...I have run away from many groups in my time that did and did so to an extreme.
The folks I have played with, spanning across my entire time, have included HS football QB, a few linemen, a karate student later instructor, a doctor, a comic book store manager, a chemical engineer and a few musicians.
Out of the people I can truly say I gamed with, one one of them fits the profile.
Is the stereotype justified? Oh, I don't know. At a guess I'd say its probably close to the mark. I don't think the majority of players have no social life, I just think they're just outside the normal social norm (those in the social norm might say that makes them weird). And I'm not saying all D&D players are strange/weird/antisocial, I just think it would describe a majority of them from the eyes of non-D&D players.
I have been playing dungeons and dragons off and on since 1980 and I still love it. Some years get more dnd love than others obviously. Excited about 4th edition because it just seems more like the old style game to me in some ways and this new option to play it online is going to allow for my old high school group to get some games in again for the first time in over 20 years.
So, let's change the course of the discussion a bit. We know the stereotype exists, and we know from at least a small sampling (this thread) that it's not accurate for at least some roleplayers, although it IS accurate for some as well. How does it affect you, if at all? Do you ever find yourself not sharing the fact that you're a roleplayer when you might share that you're a golfer?
Well, my dad thinks D&D = evil thanks to '80s propaganda, living in the Bible Belt when he was around 9 or 10 years old, and the fact that a friend's suicide was blamed on D&D when they were kids (it wasn't, of course, according to my uncle). He didn't want me to get into That Game so to keep gaming I've had to make excuses to be at friends' houses for a few hours and hide all my books; I mostly get PDF books from DriveThruRPG. It's the kind of situation where it's an irrational hatred that he could get over if he really took a look at it...but if I brought it up he'd ask why I ask after all 10 years or so, and that wouldn't be good.
So no, I don't exactly shout it to the world.
Fortunately, I'm heading off to college in August, so things should improve then.I'm 29 years old, male, head of ad sales for a major media company, used to be a musician (I've had songs on the radio), and though I love a lot of "nerdy" things, I don't think I've ever been considered that kind of stereotype. I played sports (I used to be an excellent baseball player), played rock music, and 99.9% of my friends are not into video games, D&D, and other stereotypically "nerd" activities.
I've been playing with my twin brother since the first edition of Dungeons and Dragons came out many, many years ago and have played every version since.
My group:
I've found it difficult to meet other D&D players. None of my ex-girlfriends played nor do any of my friends (outside of the list below) play.
(29 Male) - My twin brother. Ex-Army officer, does bodybuilding, top-level administrator at a major energy company. Very outgoing, confident, likes going to clubs. Not the stereotype at all.
(26 Male) - My younger brother. Works in Customer Support in the insurance industry. He's probably the "nerdiest" out of all of us, loves comics, fantasy, zombies, medieval weapons, etc. Still he is super outgoing, a good looking guy, and has no difficulties with the opposite sex. So definitely far from the stereotype.
(26 Male) - My brother's best friend. Accountant. Lifts weights, was a good baseball player, has a girlfriend, outgoing, confident... again not the stereotype at all.
(31 Male) - One of my oldest friends. Works in Home Finance. Introduced us to D&D while we were in grade school. Loves video games. Used to be an excellent chef. Married to a great gal, about to have a kid.
I went to GenCon a long time ago, and you definitely do see plenty of the stereotypical D&D players as well, but I'm sure there are lots of people who love the game but don't let it consume their lives. We unfortunately only get to play like once a month.
Most of us (myself and the first three gentlemen) will all be at the Indy GenCon this year, though. First time in about 10 years since we've been to one.
jb
* Is unemployed, but hoping to change that.
I think the sterotype should be taken on a case by case basis, because I know a couple of guys that became like Cartman and the other southpark kids on that World of Warcraft episode, and I know a lot more guys that only play on a weekly or monthly basis, mostly if I'm there to DM, and we never refer to ourselves by character names unless we are actually in game.
I do understand where your wife is coming from though, at first I felt this was the biggest nerd game ever, but it is actually a much more social game.
I run two groups, one made up of family members from my wife's side, and the other college students who belong to my guild in WoW. I love creating campaign elements (towns and maps mostly), and I've been playing D&D since I was 13, stopped after high school (so I mercifully missed 2e ;)) and started back up with some co-workers in 2001.
I call 'Disbelieve' on half of these, on general principles. :P
I was given the Basic Box Set (the revised red one) when I was 8 and shortly after screamed for the Expert Box Set (the revised blue one) and have been hooked ever since. I had left D&D after the AD&D days to go mess around with other RPGs (Robotech, Star Wars, Car Wars, Shadowrun, Mutants & Masterminds) and returned to D&D with a new group right after 3.5 was released and have been hooked again ever since. My current group is all in their mid 30s. They are:
An actor who works at a medical distribution center while waiting for his big break.
An actor who works as a restaurant manager while waiting for his big break.
A manager in a TV/Film Post-Production house.
(Hey, it's Hollywood, baby!)
My group (I DM) consists of four others ranging in age from 24-37. They are an actor, a sign artist, a student, and a butcher. We have a blast every week.
My gaming group consists of mainly other students from the same university as myself.
I DM a group of 5, including me. Two other dudes who are as old as I am. One dude who's a year older than I am, and finally a dude who's two years older than me and going to the university this fall.
Two in my group have never had girlfriends, but all of us are socially competent, all of us are intelligent and none of us really fits the sterotype (usually. A recent bus-strike in the city turned one of the guys into a hermit due to inability to get into the city, and during that time he didn't shower since he felt he had no need. We ranted at him quite a lot for not showering.)
About the sterotype, I feel that it isn't D&D that makes people into geeks, but it's geeks who choose to play D&D. Just make sure that the kids get out and socialize with people once in a while and nothing will happen. If anything D&D will make people more creative, better tacticians, better actors and better at abstract thinking, while encouraging social interaction.
I'm 18 and headed to collage.
Aren't we all?
Really, isn't that the sum of every life?
*****
The folks in my group are around my age and are: a programmer, a buyer/improv comedian, a theoretical physicist (yes, that's his real job title), and a sculpture student/retail clerk.
We're stealth nerds... we all pass for "normal" in our regular lives. ;)
Aren't we all?
Really, isn't that the sum of every life?
*****
D'oh! Lousy public school edujamacashun!
I just want to legitimately help people out. If i can make your day a little better, or a little easier then i've done my job.
Before you ask, i'm not into religion... i do come off sounding like a fundamentalist christian (with the emphasis on mental), but i'm not.
Also, just to be fair, I haven't been that (except as of late) active in dnd because there's no circle for the game in my area, save for a couple of my friends.
He is 35yr/Diamond Driller and I am a 40yr/Administrative Medical Secretary.
On a side note we have 5 kids, one of them had a difficult time in school. We started him in the old Marvel/Superheros game. After 6 month's of game play all of his grades had gone up. We now cannot get his nose out of any books, he loves drafting and wants to be an engineer when he grows up. Everyone in the family has played and finds it a great way to safely escape pressures from work etc. All of our kids are out of the house now and are doing well in school, work and social lives.
The stigmatism of role player's is still very strong, however I found that it helped my family learn to socialize in a variety of scenarios. At least they can talk to people face to face, I have a neighbour who cannot get his kids away from the TV or game console, when they go out he says the kids are skittish and do not want to talk to anyone. The only way they talk to anyone is online or through text.
In my current D&D group I have;
A 21 year old male hotel manager.
A 21 year old male security guard.
A 23 year old male apprentice electrician.
A 20-something (I don't know his age) male carer at a retirement home.
As regards stereotypes we're reasonably geeky. We like our computer games, watching stargate, history channel documentaries or surfing the internet. We don't mind discussing science or other topics that are a bit unusual to casually chat about these days.
Still, that aside we're not the fat slobs living in the parent's basement doing nothing but gaming that the stereotype might describe. We all live independently and all have a stable job. Two of our group are in stable relationships, while another just broke up with his girlfriend. The other two of us are currently single but have had long-term relationships in the past. We stay active and all do martial arts.
I DM for a group who all work in the Player Support department of the same game, we all work evening shifts so it's hard to play with outsiders.
I've got A-levels in Drama and Performing Arts but I doubt I will ever use them in a career. XD
Edit: Oh, I don't think I fit the stereotype at all. I'm a good build for my height (I'm quite short at like 5'8) and can do well in most social situations. I have a beautiful girlfriend who isn't a massive fan of D&D (she can't get past the stereotype sadly) and I'm into things like going to the gym, cars, etc.
My group consists of 1 girl and 5 guys.
I'm divorced and remarried with two sons and a step-son aged 4, 7 and 9.
I don't beleive in the stereotypes insofar as we are ALL like that. No doubt quite a few of us are, but not by some overwhelming majority.
Any gamers in the Big Bend area of Texas????
will probably just do relief teaching, good money and you do nothing all day hehe.
love dnd, wizard fan.
I work at an office supply store.Been playing since '99
My group consists of:
19 year old male stock boy
23 year old male college student
18 year old male in-between-high-school-and-college student
17 year old male musician
17 year old male drama club
My wife is uninterested in my hobby, but not hostile towards it. I've been playing D&D off and on since 1982, starting with the basic set in college, moving up to AD&D 1st edition while stationed in Korea, and 2nd Edition while at Fort Leonard Wood, MO. My family thinks I'm a little odd for playing this game every weekend, and I am happy to agree with them.
I'd say the stereotypes aren't completely justified, but there's some truth to it. Honestly I wouldn't call myself a big social person. I can be, but most of the time being too social can be draining, I need the 'me' time to recoop.
My group is made of 3 (soon to be 5 or 6) other people who are:
17, male. Still one more year to go of high school.
18, male. Going to William & Mary nearby (you can guess where I live) to major in psychology and wants to become a psychiatrist (ie: slavemaster)
14, male. 17 male's younger brother.
another 18, male, but he's going off to the air force.
I'm single, which is good and bad at the same time.
SO RONERY
also: I'm an INFP
I've always considered myself quite the pugilist, blessed with a strong sense of justice and a moral compass that never wavers from true north.
On my way home from school one day, I came across some guys beating on some poor joker, so I convinced them to stop. I started to help the guy gather his books and he had the Monster Manual with him. He tried to grab it before I could see it, but I thought it looked cool. I've always been a fan of video game RPGs. I asked him about it and looked at some of the monsters.
I remember being totally fascinated by the arcane entries that I later came to call "stat blocks". I was hooked before I knew what hit me. He invited me to their game and I loved it so much I bought my own set and started DMing for my family.
Interestingly enough, I already had the dice because I saw them at a hobby shop and thought they were super cool even though I had no idea what they were for.
That group separated for college not too long after I joined, but my family and I still play as often as we all can.
My current group is me (DM), my mom and my brother and sister.
40 years old, AVP and Lead analyst for Wachovia Bank. Been playing since I was a teenager. Yes I'm a geek but so far my work, my wife, my 2 children (3 and 6), and the rest of the world seem fairly ok with that fact.
My group:
DM - 34 - Male - married - works in education
Sorcerer - 33 - Female - married - head editor
Ranger - 35 - Male - dating - civil engineer
Fighter - 44 - Male - dating - electrical engineer
Bard - 33 - Male - single - asst. manager retail
In all the years of playing most folks I ran across were well adjusted hard working and friendly. I have seen a few of the "stereotype" gamers but they are not the norm by far.
One of the guys in my group went to college to be a music conductor (I forget the actual title he used), then a theologian, then an electrician, and now is a manager in a book store and has never been more content.
I'm married, my wife is 32 and she's a french teacher.
We have a son, age 4.
My group :
Elf, Cleric of Pelor - My wife
Elf, Ranger - 28, computer scientist
Human, Fighter - 40, customs officer
Elf, Rogue - 36, policeman
Eladrin, Wizard - 26, salesperson
Dragonborn, Paladin - 35, researcher
I play most often with my wife and friends, none fits the standard stereotypes.
Heck, one of my players is a gorgeous Barmaid, so....
Though there are those who fit the stereotype (as is true with any stereotype), my group in particular is nowhere near lacking in social skills. In fact, we're all rather social creatures, which is why we play an RPG
Average age in my group is just about 27. Some older, some younger.
That's me. Anything else?
My group consists of:
14 year old Cleric
10 year old Paladin (the clerics brother)
11 year old wizard (my sister)
My job is hard to explain but let me try:
I'm employed by a land surveyor company that does legal surveys and survey for mining, oil and gas sectors. My job is Draftsperson and I use AutoCAD and Excel. I create plans and maps for what needs to be done. I also do alot of work on Data Entry and maintaining Databases. Currently I'm on a multi-million dollar pipeline construction job maintaining data.
Most of the people I play with are a bit older than I am with one exception.
Two Teachers, Two in Sales, One Computer Repair/IT, one a Security Watchman.
interestingly, market surveys show D&D players as, generally, college educated and making over $70K a year.
I'm 37, I've almost completed three degrees. I'm a veteran teacher and will hopefully be a principal by this time next year.
.No kids, actually a virgin despite my perverse nature
Currently in a long distance relationship, not like "lives in another country", but she's a good two or three hour drive away..
Never even passed highscool (yet make a pretty good income HAHAH! guess I showed the system..)
Security Guard
Myself: 18 Planning on being a teacher of social sciences
Male A: 18 No idea--stereotypical D&D player
Male B: 17 Planning on being a computer technition
Male C: 18 Planning on being a chemical engineer
Male D: 17 Going into the Navy as a Special Ops or Electrical Engineer
Out of all of us only 2 are really stereotypical D&D players. I run track, male C is a baseball player and male D is a horndog. A does nothing except eat, breath and D&D, he's the guy who had the 4E PH memorized a day after it came out. B is in the school band and is somewhat of a typcial "nerd."