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There are two types of role-playing games (RPGs) folks are likely to encounter in the contemporary era: computer RPGs and "pen and paper" RPGs. I will discuss both.

The essence of role-playing games of either type is that the player(s) takes control of one or more "characters" and directs the action of those characters in a story. Depending on the type of role-playing game, the actions controlled may relate to the environment, characters controlled by other players (player characters, PCs for short), or characters not controlled by other players (non-player characters, NPCs for short).

RPGs can run the full range of genres, so there are fantasy RPGs (such as "Dungeons and Dragons"), science fiction RPGs (such as "Traveller" or "Knights of the Old Republic"), super-hero RPGs, etc.

In computer RPGs, players control one or more characters and pursue (often fairly linear) stories that are usually built in to the game. The big distinction in this area is single player vs. massively multiplayer (MMPOG - massively multiplayer online game). In a single player game, the player's characters interact only with "the game" within the options made available by that specific piece of software. In a massively multiplayer game, a player's characters interact with the system controlled NPCs in the virtual environment, but also with characters controlled by other players. In either style, the control of physical movements of the characters is fairly similar; in an MMPOG character "speech" (what the player causes the character to say) is much more free-form.

Traditional "pen and paper" RPGs involve several players and a "game master" getting together in the same room for a game. The game master in responsible for the setting, all character not controlled by the players (NPCs) and adjudicating the outcome of the action (quite a hefty set of responsibilities). All players and the game master are involved in collective story-telling. I often describe a role-playing game as "improvisational acting with dice to resolve the outcome of contingent actions." Role-players will take on the persona of their character, often describing their actions in the first person. For example, "I approach the knight and bow before I introduce myself." Or, "I say, 'Truly, my lord, it is an honor to meet you.'"

Dice get involved (the "roll" of "role-playing) when the rules (each game system has slightly different rules) call for it. Basically, any outcome that isn't left to the game masters' discretion requires dice. For example, swinging over a chasm on a rope might require some kind of skill check. One or more dice would be rolled and compared with the appropriate attribute or skill of the swinging character (recorded on the character sheet in accordance with the rules in anticipation of just such a contingency). If the dice fall within a range that equates to success based on the character's attributes and the rules, then the game master would announce the success and the story would proceed from that point. If the dice fall within a range that equates to failure, then the swinging character would fall or otherwise fail to swing, and perhaps more dice would be rolled to arbitrate the fall (or other characters may act to intervene to prevent a fall) and so the story would proceed from that point. Sometimes the dice lead the story in places that neither the players nor the game master intended it to go! That's OK, and that uncertainty is a large part of the fun of role-playing games. You never know exactly what the player next to you is going to do or say, and you never know when you are going to triumph over the odds, or meet with unlikely misfortune.

Learn more about this author, Christopher Paul.
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