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Unlike my last article, the highly criticized “The Fall of the Modern RPG Experience”, I hope this article to be somewhat lighthearted and uplifting. I have come to realize in my late time, or the past few months, that RPGs take up a special place in my life. They are not just games to me; they are a release from this hell of a world.
My journey in the RPG world started in 1989. My parents had just split, and I spent some time with my god cousin. At this time I was introduced to Dragon Warrior (Dragon Quest for you translation people). It was a gigantic leap, not like skipping a step on a flight of stairs, but like a Superman type of leap from the games I had been playing before; Back to the Future and Mickey Mouse, etc. These new games were a release from my world that was full of parental conflict and violence. I became engrossed in games like Final Fantasy, Crystalis, and Zelda. The games weren’t just a fun thing to do, they were a way to free myself of discussions of dead beat dads, child support and visitation rights. Trust me, getting the Master Sword in Zelda was much more bearable than hearing how your dad owes more than $5000 dollars in child support.
Next were the Super Nintendo years. I found myself now a little deeper in the gaming world, playing games over all hours of the day. By this time it wasn’t just arguing between my parents, it was my mom arguing with my dad and new step dad. Also, it was not just arguing, it was my mom hurling a statue of Jesus down the stairs attempting to knock my step dad unconscious with it. Yet, when events like this happened(which they really did) I was not thinking of Jesus shattering against the wall, I was thinking about what it would look like to see my Mana Sword smash though Jesus like a Rabite. Which may seem sick or cynical, but it helped me cope. I enjoyed the fact that even though my mom and step dad fought all the time, I could still pull out my trusty Secret of Mana or Breath of Fire to save me from the torment.
Now to the modern days, days of heart break, family deaths, and debt. I may have horrible things happening, like family members dying of cancer, my step dad trying to kill me, or even the University of Maryland trying to send me to Collections, but you know what? Fei Fong Wong, Link, and all those characters I get to name after myself are still sitting in my drawer waiting to take me away from this crappy world. Not even I breaking up with my girlfriend of three years could not be cured by a little Kingdom Hearts time.
I know, some may read this and think, this guy is entirely too wrapped up in this RPG experience, or think I am a dork. But, I will tell you something, I may be too involved with my RPGs and I know I am a dork, but I am seriously alive today because of my games. Mom, Dad, Stepparents, girlfriends, or doctors didn’t get me where I am today, my games and I did. I have no problem standing tall and saying that I love my RPGs and they have shaped and molded me into who I am today.
I hope most readers don’t take this as me ranting about my crappy life, I meant this article portray the importance of RPGs on my life. Dragon Quest, Champions of Norrath, and others are what let me release my stress and anger from the world. I just simply believe that the world would be a horrible place without the RPG experience.
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