The Drama of Online Roleplaying Games

Millions of people every year log on to games like World of Warcraft, EverQuest or Neverwinter Nights just pretend to be some one they're not. Someone better. Someone taller or thinner. Someone who can run faster, use cool weapons and speak obsure, and realitivly unknown (or some times just made up) langauges. But to do this, you have to buy the game, then buy the subscription to the server, then update your computer graphics card or your processer so your device can handle the load. Too much money, right?

For those RPGers who still desire the advantage of playing a cool character, there is an alternative. Its called Forum RPing or forum roleplaying. Its the same roleplaying, only now you have to be more creative. There is no instant pictures for you chose from when picking your character. There are no buttons that make your characters do actions. There is only a empty text box in which you have to fill.

Some forums have small character sheet like forums when you sign up, which roughly describe your character's traits like their race, their class and their patron deity, but the rest is up to you. You have to take the time and describe your character. You have to not only describe yourself, but your actions. Its a lot more difficult than it seems. You have to be careful that you don't do anyone's actions for them and that you follow the rule of the forum. Many online roleplaying games have moderators, but moderators for RPG forums have it the most difficult. There are tons of posts to go through and make sure everyone is following the rules.

I am one of those moderators. I have to edit the posts and then tell the person why it has been edited. The hardest thing for a moderator to do is to edit the post of someone who has take thier rpg life and their real life and have melded the two together.

Often times you will notice the friends you develop online will momentarily forget that the rpg isn't real. They will forget that some of the realtionships aren't real. For instance, if your character in a game marries someone else's character in the same game and you two become real life online freinds, does that mean that you two are in an actual real life relationship? By that I mean, should you take the same risks and make the same sacrifices that you would if you were in a real life, face-to-face relationship? I think not. But many people do it any way. They cannot seperate the person they really are from the character they created.

This is all true for many rpgers. Not all, but many. Its sad really. It makes me want shake them and go "WHO ARE YOU? DO YOU KNOW? ARE YOU CONFUSED?"