What even is a game?
Pbeidy
After having written nearly 2500 words about my journey towards tabletop and Deep Nerd gaming from childhood to middle age, I realized that I should probably step back and answer the existential question that has been thoroughly answered, but as ever nihil sub sole novum, before I continue exploring the various nooks and crannies.
Namely: what even is a game? Its one of those things that has been both meticulously defined yet persistently gets redefined as mechanics, concepts and ludonarrative frameworks (I use BIG words!!) get stuffed in a bag and shaken up to reveal something new. As I am a lazy git and serially disinterested in reading the blogs and white papers of veteran game designers with decades of experience or Ad executives who are trying to misuse the core loops as a means of farming engagement in the pursuit of dubious KPIs, I started where everyone does: Wikipedia.
There a game is defined as:
A game is an activity defined by a challenge and a set of rules, typically done for enjoyment, competition, or development.
The source is listed as Game Design Essentials by Briar Lee Mitchell. Never heard of her and a quick scan of her book shows it is a guide to creating video games specifically, which means it is inherently restricted by the confines of the medium. But I like this definition a lot, as it very simply encompasses the inherent nature of games while neatly excising the numerous ways in which games have been abused in the last twenty years in the venal pursuit of productivity and Effie Awards.
So now that we have our definition of what a game, another question leaps to mind, bright eyed and bushy tailed: Why did we need to define gaming? Mostly it was to provide a literary framework to talk about what I find to be the Categorical Imperative-esque essence of gaming that under-gird tabletop gaming specifically. (I promise I will not engage in any further Kantian musings.)
They are engines of human growth.
Every game requires one to engage in a meta loop outside those of the core gameplay. That meta loop consists of:
- Curiosity/Exploration
- Experimentation
- Application
- Mastery
Engaging in this meta loop is prerequisite to engage in even the most basic form of gaming. They outline, in the most basic form, the act of development that occurs when one develops an interest in a game and makes to learn how the motor that drives it functions. This cycle of learning, application and mastery is primal in nature. Humans will invent games from nothing more than a few stones and a plank of wood, and use those scraps to teach each other everything from crop management to battlefield strategy. Or even better what the optimum combination of drinks and snacks is for your tea stall that exclusively caters to gay dragons. No matter if one chooses to go deep (committing oneself to total mastery of a system) or broad (learning lots of new games to play during a weekend with friends), the intellectual and well being benefits are substantial. In fact the deeper one goes, the more challenging this meta loop becomes and the greater the rewards. Going from light board games > medium board games > heavy board games > role playing games > wargames, each rung of the ladder adds layers of complexity that demand the development of additional skills.
With rpgs for instance, the players are required to learn how to put themselves into a new personality (essentially it is rudimentary acting) and engaging in a complex social interaction that is part power fantasy, disassociation and Noh theater. The personalities of the players, the GM and even those of the characters that are being played must be considered, weighed and planned for. Dedicated, years long players of role playing games be some of the most deft hands of managing social networks (the actual, interpersonal ties that form the bedrock of human civilization rather than the digital advertising networks dedicating to disrupting them for obscene profit), thus spitting in the face of the still lingering cliche of gamers as soap shy, friendless misanthropes. In fact it is this social layer that exists to varying degrees in all forms of tabletop gaming that manages to elevate it a step over many forms of video gaming.*Modern wargaming adds artistic skill into its list of requirements for participation. Naturally, player made art forms a significant part in role playing games, but it is far from a necessary element. One can murder all the citizens of Waterdeep without even drawing the most basic stick figure of ones character. Unless one is willing to deploy significant financial resources, you have to assemble your miniatures yourself. As filled with frustration, glued together fingers and hazardous fume inhalations the process may be, it is inherently worthy for the patience it teaches, and the creativity it invites through personalization and kitbashing. From there, ones skills and wallet are further challenged give painting a try. Painting the models is in no way a requirement to engage in the game perse, but it is the sub-activity to incubates the greatest growth. From basic, tournament required 3-color-minimums to the most divine expressions of Blanchitsu or cartoon cel style models that clog hobby Instagram feeds, the ocean of possible artistic expression is fathomless and all participants are free to explore and experiment as they wish. Taking into account that it is a not inconsiderable financial commitment, it is one of the few activities beyond intramural sports where each motion, each conscious decisions is one that drives human value.
So there we have it, my freshman level ideation of why gaming, in particular tabletop gaming is such a valuable activity, an road to the ultimate “end in and of itself” which is human growth and betterment. I hope it was at least moderately insightful. Next up is my musings around playing rpgs.*I should clarify that I am not an adherent of the philosophy that tabletop players are somehow members of a Glorious Cardboard and Plastic Gaming Master Race. As stated in my previous post, I have gamed on consoles and computers for longer than the majority of TikTok users have been alive and continue to do so with abundant glee. Playing with friends, be it in competitive formats such as MOBAs, head-to-head bouts of fighting games, friendslop, battle royale or just faffing about with friends in a strategy game has always been core to the video gaming experience. The proliferation of Roll20 and Discord have even allowed TTRPGs to the online realm. Even so, the standard video gamer more often than not finds themselves physically alone when engaging in any of these activities. LAN parties and all night Street Fighter sessions with a gaggle of friends on the couch are more exception than rule. Additionally, the infestation of gambling mechanics and social network and streaming functions into gaming software packages have steadily driven the physical, mental and emotional isolation of gamers while having them be in contact with everyone on the planet. This is nakedly for the purposes of generating more profit. After all an isolated human is far more easily convinced to hand out cash than one who has their peeps and peers around them. Humans are haptic creatures, and the sensation of high fiving your friend as you plot to steal all their sheep is not one a vibrating Xbox controller is capable of emulating.