As a teen in the mid-seventies, it was a time of discovery and imagination taking hold of me and exploring all types of gaming options hiding in the woodworks of the “gaming” hobby.
It was one thing to play Monopoly and Risk, and what was the most advanced level of strategy gaming with the board game Diplomacy by Allan B. Calhamer, and thinking I was at the top of my game (pun intended). Oh, and yes, I had been playing chess and backgammon during this time. Still, it just wasn’t enough. I needed and wanted more of a challenge and something that had more variety and long-term playability without the typical and expected outcomes.
Don’t get me wrong, Diplomacy very much offered this, but getting seven players in a room at one time willing to play the “long game” made it challenging. Needing players to engage with led me to play Diplomacy by Mail, which was a long and drawn-out process and didn’t allow as much collaboration and communication as it did when playing face-to-face. So I continued with my search through comic books (reading the advertisements) and reading what other Diplomacy players were into as part of the ‘Zines that were typed up and mailed out by folks that were refereeing games of Diplomacy for the Play-by-Mail hobby. Finally, I combined the above efforts with taking long bus rides to search out hobby stores and places offering more options in the arena of board games and such. Ultimately these efforts would pay off big time, and I would discover three great things out there – miniature wargaming, historical board games, and a reasonably new concept – role-playing games.
These discoveries were better than Monty Hall on “Let’s Make a Deal,” as I got to pick from all three doors and embrace a whole new hobby life full of inspiration, imagination, and brain-engaging fun.
Until next time.
