The Big Game

[neversremedy8]

I finally know what gaming geeks lack that team sports have: televised games. If we could just convince millions of people to get crazed out of their gourds every time someone misses a swing on an Orc or stumbles into the alien hive on an MMORPG, we could start getting contracts, signing bonuses, and bragging rights ... Outside of the circles of the other players.

Imagine some guys playing football or basketball and one of them is going on about his latest score to friends who weren't ... and the listeners just shrugged him off, rolled their eyes, and changed the subject.

I used to waste giant trolls and floating eyes with my mind, had people throwing gold at my feet to give them bonuses, became the best guild ambassador Norrath ever saw and in less than a month had a guild of my own with major connections and a huge following. I walked the desert barefoot without complaint, shot wyverns out of the sky with a single arrow, looked the undead in the face and did not cower ... and I did it all while wearing a yellow apprentice's robe and some enchanted jewelry as armor.

In Middle Earth I climbed a rope to the top and stood at the edge of one of the great statues of the kings of old just to take in the view, and then wiped out an entire encampment of cannibalistic halflings all before afternoon tea.

What do those men of sports get paid millions to do? Run around, chasing after a ball.

You might say, "But online games take no skill. It's just a matter of pushing buttons."

No. Gaming is an art. At a convention I attended, I ended up stumbling into a situation where a vampire prince won me in auction (long story), and finding him detestable, proceeded to convince him he'd be better off ending his life ... Out of a desire to gain something. He wasn't depressed or suicidal, I just convinced him he was missing out on something amazing.

Roleplaying* takes skill, and if not for the kids, I'd be signing some major deals for all of mine.

*No offense to power gamers or hack-and-slashers, your styles have their place in the gaming world, but playing the game to win points or level up doesn't draw the fans like building up a character's backstory and playing it true within the context of the larger game ... that'll win the big bucks. Or it ought to; if only we could get the sponsors.