Roleplaying refers to any of a broad range of activities in which participants assume roles other than themselves, usually for the purpose of entertainment, though sometimes as a literary, dramatic, or therapeutic exercise. Bloggers tend to use the term to refer to games.
Roleplaying games (or RPGs) became very popular in the 1970s with the first publication of Dungeons and Dragons. Other "pen and paper" based games include many based on original source material, as well as licensed properties like Star Wars and the writings of H. P. Lovecraft. In these games players create characters appropriate to the setting and describe the actions of these characters within a scenario managed by a Gamemaster, producing what is essentially a collaborative story. Bloggers frequently write game reviews, as well as articles on game theory and development.
The roleplaying format was later successfully adapted to computer games. The dominant format for these games has come to be the Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game (MMORPG) in which thousands of players share the same game world through the internet. Leading examples of this sort of game include World of Warcraft, Lord of the Rings Online, Eve Online, and RuneScape, as well as many others.
Story-based roleplaying is also very popular on the internet, with players using message boards, chat, and online forums to engage in collaborative storytelling with very little structure and few rules. For an example of forum-based roleplaying see Caeliria. Also popular is live-action roleplaying (LARP) where participants dress up in character and engage in mock combat. For an example of popular live action roleplaying see NERO or World of Darkness.
by Dave Nalle
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