Up until very recently I’d say that I vastly preferred playing tabletop role-playing games in-person around a physical table as opposed to playing online. I can admit that Google Plus Hangouts, Skype, Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, and other applications make gaming online pretty slick and offer some really neat tools to enhance the game. Still, how can you possibly substitute gathering around a real, physical table, sharing a meal or a bowl of chips, and sharing the space and intimacy of a dining room or basement rec-room? Before I weigh-in to heavily on that question, let’s talk about some of the advantages of each way of gaming.
Traditional RPGing around Ye Olde Gaming Table
For me the ideal situation is gathering a group of friends and gaming in your own home or in the home a friend or family member. I should say I actually know people who prefer gaming in a shop, and I’m sure the atmosphere of a convention can be a lot of fun too, but the intimacy of a home where you can really relax and get to know one another is hard to beat in my eyes. In a home it seems we can more easily let down our guard, take our shoes off, pet the dog or cat, or perhaps show off the latest home improvement project. In the same physical space we can see the dice rolling, read body language and facial expressions better, hug a friend or slap them on the back, and technical problems are less likely to detract from the game (as long as your friends can keep their darn phones away! – We’re trying to infiltrate the barbarian stronghold for the love of Pelor, you don’t need to check Instagram! . . . Ahem . . . sorry). To summarize, I love gaming at the table and I’d almost always prefer it. It’s hard to beat the intimacy of being in the same physical space as your fellow gamers.
RPGing Online
My online experience has been pretty limited as I’ve mainly used Google Plus Hangouts. Hangouts (and Skype is similar) make it simple to talk with a group of people, and, well that’s pretty much all you need to get your RPG on! I have explored Roll20 a bit and I ran a game session for a friend with it last summer. I actually really liked it and I can see some advantages there. It’s easy to get really nice looking maps for free on the internet, you can seamlessly integrate music into your game, there are lots of pawns to choose from, and even if you pay for the premium version you’d be saving a lot of money over buying the equivalent miniatures and terrain in physical form. Another tool, Fantasy Grounds, is one I’ve never used before, but from what I have seen it’s an incredible way to play games that has some really nice features. It seems to have far more features than Roll20 (though a GM does have to pay for it) and I’d hazard a guess there are many who prefer it to any other method of playing RPGs.
Other than the great features offered by the above tools, I find gaming online is often just more convenient. Games can get thrown together at a moments notice, you don’t have to leave the comfort of your couch or office chair, and you can smoke a cigar while I cut my nails while the DM holds his cat (which our rogue happens to be allergic to)! Ain’t it beautiful? In my situation gaming online allows me to play while my kids are sleeping without having to consider a babysitter, and my wife always appreciates me leaving the house less. Online role-playing is also very easy to broadcast so that an audience can enjoy and we can go back and watch past sessions.
I’m aware there are other ways to play games online, but my purpose here is not to give a run down of every tool available. I’ll sum it up by saying that despite the great features of some of the more advanced tools, I prefer Google Plus Hangouts. Playing games in the Theater of the Mind is easy, flexible, and great fun. Besides, I find setting up an online game can often be complicated enough without messing with maps and tokens. I could go on about many other benefits, but let’s get back to the central question.
The Verdict – It’s the PEOPLE!
The question was: How can playing RPGs online possibly replace gathering around a real, physical table, sharing a meal or a bowl of chips, and sharing the space and intimacy of a dining room or basement rec-room? I suppose you still can’t in my mind, but the choice is more complex than I once realized. Here’s why: it’s become quite clear to me that the biggest factor in the enjoyment I get from a game is not the location or format, but the people I play with.
Gaming online enables me to game with people I normally would not be able to. If you live in a remote area, if you play a niche game system, if you prefer a certain style that local friends do not, gaming online is a great way to hook up with like-minded individuals and dive into gaming in a way you otherwise wouldn’t be able to. Yep, I’m lookin’ at you Provokers! If it weren’t for gaming online I never would have met this group of guys I now consider my great friends, friends who will be with me through thick and thin. While I’d love to meet these guys in person and game around a table, being spread across the U.S. makes that pretty difficult. I’m sure it’ll happen eventually, but until then gaming with them online is far preferable to any in-person gaming I’ve done. And it doesn’t stop with them. I’ve had the privilege of playing online with other fine people too. The reality is I’d have a hard time finding such amazing gamers (and people) so easily in my local area. A couple months back I even got to introduce my brother to D&D without having to take a 6 hour flight to Portland, Oregon. The point is gaming online opens the doors to way more people – amazing people – perhaps even real friends.
To conclude, If all else was the same, I’d probably prefer to play RPGs in a home around a table. But the people come first, and gaming online is simply the only realistic way to connect with some of them.
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A very good and GRAND read… I agree the people make the experience of gaming all the while, I have had several groups but non of them come close to the games I have had in the last 2 months, the immersion has been so great I have had to step up my role play techniques and learn from others to help make the games great for my fellow gamers.
That’s a great point, Gabe. One that I didn’t even mention. When we observe and play with gamers from other areas we are exposed to different styles of play and it pushes us to improve and re-think the way we play.
I will back all sentiments in this article. Although I do have both sets of gaming groups.
And should anyone want to try out Fantasy Grounds without having to buy anything there is an online convention coming up next weekend that for the duration of the con all license of FG are set to allow all players to connect using just the demo version. So download and install the demo and you can sign up for a game session.
http://www.fg-con.com/
Cool. Thanks for taking the time to read, and that’s good to be aware of.
Great article man,keep it going.
Thanks for stopping by to read!
Indeed a good article. I think I’ll always land firmly on ‘physical table’ play but I admit it’s good to know there’s options… just in case. Keep the articles coming!
Thanks!
Great article, Nate! (sorry for performing necromancy on the thread ;-)). I agree that it is definitely the people and not the medium that makes it interesting and fun. I credit online gaming with my renewed interest in the hobby and being able to DM for a dear friend of mine is who is now 3 states away. Thanks to you, Matt, Tim, Barker and others for getting me excited again about this great hobby!
I agree with this! Despite the awesome accessibility and resources playing online provides, I will always favor an in person session, even if it means a long drive / extra cost. I feel like there is just something primal and richly human about playing d&d around an atmospheric table top.. To me it is the modern equivalent of telling stories around the campfire.. It provides a certain something that technology just replace entirely. That being said, using tech and the Internet to enhance a live session is something I am all for. Play some music and pull npc face cards up on the big screen, or some images of the swamp we are in. Just like minis, grids, and pen and paper, I feel tech is just another tool to enrich the atmosphere and overall game play.