Dave Arneson, co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons, passes at 61

Another sad day has befallen the world of fantasy gaming today. Dave Arneson has passed away at the age of 61. A young age for a mind that helped create worlds millions have ventured to and enjoyed for decades.

Dave Arneson was the co-creator of the Dungeon & Dragons games. This one game has spawned several industries, and given geeks and jocks alike the chance to become uber-heroes. There is perhaps no other game I can think of that has been so directly responsible for creating and expanding the realm of entertainment ever.

Were it not for this simple game (ok, so the rules were never exactly simple – but they were fun and fluid if you had a good dungeon master) part of the initial growth of the internet would never have occurred (many colleges created M.U.D.’s based on similar ideas to D&D and other such games which then grew into the MMO’s of today). Movies delving into this type of realm would never have been created, countless books would never have been written, and more than a few television shows and cartoons could not have existed.

Truly the scope of this simple game is astounding. And it long ago passed from just a geek enterprise into the imagination, to something everyone can enjoy.

It is also sad to note that now both creative minds involved in the D & D phenom (Gary Gygax and Arneson) have passed from this world. It is a great loss. But their legacy continues to be a great inspiration.

My condolences to the Arneson family.

Dungeons & Dragons greatest Dungeon Master loses the ultimate battle - 3.4.2008.1

I have some very sad news to report today. While some of you may not recognize the name, others will be quite familiar with Gary Gygax. I hate to say it, but he has died at the age of 69.

Now I know gamers, most of us that are now a bit older and many are creating our own games, should be familiar with this man. For those that are not, he is one of the co-creators of the most popular gaming system possibly ever. Dungeons & Dragons. Along with JRR Tolkein he was responsible for sci-fantasy and RPG style gaming.

In fact I think you can draw a direct line from JRR Tolkein to Gary Gygax to Vampire: The Masquerade to The Witcher to MMO’s (Massively Multiplayer Online games). Without D&D there is no Everquest, or World of Warcraft. There is no Final Fantasy. There is no Resident Evil or any other game. And thus no movies either.

Some may think that D&D was simply a bad movie made by some Hollywood guy that was made into an MMO. In fact the universe of Dungeons & Dragons is enormous and highly profitable. From huge tomes regarding how to play in the 1980’s, a cartoon in the late 80’s, video games, trading cards, books, and movies the genre encompasses 3 decades and continuing.

The original game system was a real first. Before there were computers, groups of friends (yes some were a bit geeky, but it was hugely popular with the military too) would gather to pull out pieces of paper and become a Dwarven Thief or Elven Paladin or Human Mage for a few hours. Without the need of more than pencil paper and a set of 3-, 4-, 6-, 10-, and 20-sided dice entire worlds were created and enjoyed. Today those same types of worlds require years of programming and sometimes servers connected to the world.

The legacy of Gary Gygax is immense when you consider not only what he created for his friends to enjoy, but what became a multi-national conglomerate. You may not be a computer geek, but every time you play a FPS (First Person Shooter), RPG (Role Playing Game), or fantasy MMO you are living an extension of the mind of the greatest mage this side of Merlin.

Few are so creative, and touched so many. My condolences to his friends and family. He will be missed by this Dwarven Thief and many others I am sure.