I took a while to reflect upon this loss before sharing my thoughts…

I feel the need to comment on the passing of Gary Gygax for two reasons. I know that this is no longer breaking news - Chris shared this with you last month. However, I have a more personal interest, so I hope that he doesn’t mind me yammering on for a while. On one hand, Gary Gygax had an immeasurable impact on gaming and videogames as well. On the other hand, I feel the need to address how D&D was vilified in the late 70s and early 80s. It seems so relevant considering what videogames currently are experiencing. All of this is bundled rather tightly in my chest right now because I was an avid D&D player in my youth and I know what a positive experience it was for me and my friends.

As for impact, Gygax was the man who applied probability to practical gaming and found a way to help us navigate the fantasy worlds of our imaginations.  He understood what it meant to explore. He also recognized the creative power of the mind. Gygax and his contemporaries tried to simulate the potential unpredictability of experiencing adventures by quantifying probabilities to be determined by the roll of a few dice. The original rule sets and tables were available through publications like The Dragon, and later were collected, revised, and bound in handbooks and manuals. These became the foundation from which videogames could eventually build code to simulate these experiences in immersive interactive electronic form. These concepts were just as crucial to older games like Temple of Apshai and Dungeon Master as they are to more recent titles like Champions of Norrath and World of Warcraft.

We owe it all to Gary Gygax and his colleagues.

At the same time, back in the day things were not always peaches and cream. As the game grew in popularity with high school and college students, many parents began to take notice. Some over-reacted and accused Gygax and others for creating a form of cult that had satanic overtones. The use of spells and the presence of demons and non-Christian gods was the source of the concern. Many a PTO meeting revolved around the perceived occult behavior associated with this popular pastime. In 1982 the movie Mazes and Monsters was released and it told the story of a young man who lost himself in the fantasy world that he played.

Does any of this sound slightly familiar?

As parents, we have the right to look out for our children. Yet, this right includes the obligation to understand their interests and activities as fully as we can. We have grown past throwing rocks at the moon. Though we often fear the unknown, we have the tools to transform the unknown into the known. Through understanding our children’s interests, we better understand our children. Through better understanding our children, we come to know ourselves.

I believe that Gygax wanted to share the excitement of discovery with others. Through these virtual adventures, many were able to discover important things about themselves. I know that I did, as did my friends.

I have no shortage of D&D references to send him off, but I’m afraid that I cannot be that glib. My life would not be as rich, nor many of my friendships as deep were it not for Gygax and his vision. I hope that he is at peace and that his spirit can feel the joy and the sense of awe that he provided so many of us through his work.