In 1974, Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson released their rules for a new kind of war game. They called it Dungeons & Dragons (D&D). Instead of focusing on large armies in tactical warfare, Gary and Dave zoomed in on the adventures of a handful of heroes, allowing players to take up the role of a fighting man, magic-user, or elf. The idea was revolutionary, and created a genre of games that had not existed prior to this point in time. The roleplaying game (RPG) was born.

In the 30 years since, roleplaying games have evolved and grown in popularity. In the 1980's they crossed over from the tabletop to the computer. Unfortunately, computer roleplaying games (CRPGs) didn't allow for the multiplayer experience that playing D&D around a table with friends did.

At least not until 1991, when AOL released Neverwinter Nights, which used the engine from the popular SSI "gold box" series of D&D games. AOL subscribers could finally interact with each other online in a graphical environment just like they could around their kitchen tables.

The historical influence of D&D upon modern massively multiplayer online roleplaying games (MMORPGs) is obvious and undeniable. However, even as RPGs have evolved, it's interesting to note how closely D&D still influences MMORPGs.

* D&D is a fantasy-based RPG, with spell-casting, sword-wielding heroes that fight dragons and other mythical monsters. The most popular and successful MMORPGs are all fantasy-based.

* D&D uses races and classes as the foundation of a player character (PC). While there are many RPGs that use other models of character construction, popular MMORPGs like Everquest and World of Warcraft also use races and classes to define PCs.

* D&D races and classes include archetypes like fighters, rangers, thieves, wizards, clerics, dwarves, elves, humans and halflings. You will find most of these, or some variant of them, in fantasy-based MMORPGs.

* D&D uses a level system to regulate the growth of PCs. This system is adopted by the vast majority of MMORPGs currently on the market.

* D&D uses hit points to reflect the health and vitality of a PC. Damage done to a PC is subtracted from their hit point total. As PCs grow more powerful (i.e., they gain levels), they add hit points to their total. MMORPGs use hit points to represent this mechanic as well.

This certainly isn't an exhaustive list of all the direct influences D&D has upon MMORPGs, but it definitely gives a clear picture of the game's impact. Dungeons & Dragons is truly the grandfather of MMORPGs.

Learn more about this author, Kameron M. Franklin.
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