Basically this Christian woman who got hooked on D&D (as Dungeons & Dragons is called) and got really depressed when one of her characters died. She “realized” then that D&D was a negative force in her life and was sapping energy from “healthy, normal” relationships with real people. Blah Blah Blah, you get the picture.

Basically this woman was blaming D&D for her social awkwardness. I have been DM’ing (D&D term for the person who writes the adventures- the Dungeon Master) a group of 5 players including my wife for several months now. Before doing this I had played with some friends who taught us the game, for several months. It is very easy to get caught up in D&D - it’s an escape from reality, which is something many people needs, especially with things being as they are in this world. I feel a person needs to be at a certain intellectual maturity before delving into the world of D&D. It is just a game. It is not to be taken too seriously.

What the religious community is missing out on is the extremely powerful positive forces that are inherent in D&D. First, it involves more than one person, so it is interaction with other human beings - something todays video games cannot offer. I am by nature a quiet, shy person, who does not like to be the center of attention. By DM’ing our D&D sessions I am slowly becoming more and more comfortable talking in front of a group of my peers. D&D also offers a completly maliable world. You can construct the world to be whatever you want it to be. I have lost the site by now, but I once read of a pastor who used D&D to involve teens in the church. he constructed a world in which there was only one God and all powers came from this single God. Rockin! D&D is usually polytheistic, but by making it monotheistic, he is teaching his faith and making it fun for young kids. He had a great site too, completely dispelling all the doubts and fears the religious community had against D&D.

Ok, well that is my geeky rant, I read that article and it just really upset me.