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Even Pro Athletes Can Be Power Gamers
jht writes "Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling is known primarily as one of the best power pitchers in the game of baseball. He has a different side, though, as a huge RPG fan, of both board and online games. Curt is even the owner of a company called Multi-Man Publishing that publishes material for Avalon Hill wargames. But Curt is possibly best known in the gaming world for his avowed EverQuest addiction. ESPN Gamer recently published an interview with Schilling about his MMORPG habits and platform choices - an interesting read."
His opinions don't matter more because he's famous, they matter more because he doesn't play sport games. Therefore he has some sense, therefore listening to him might not be such a bad idea after all. :)
While the author's point of the story itself might be that yes he is a famous sports star and therefore lets listen to the pearls of wisdom that drop from his mouth, I disagree that it is wholely out of place on slashdot.
What I think the story conveys is a message that RPGs appeal to a wider audience that is more mainstream than the greasy haired social reject that is so frequently portrayed as a D&D player.
What's wrong with Flying Saucers?
B O R I N G
More non-dork celebrities are gamers than the mainstream media lets on. In an environment such as a Massively Multiplayer game the average person is given the opportunity to be other than they are, to live into a fantasy. For those peopel who may be seen as "living the fantasy", I believe a MMOG would do just the opposite. Inside EQ, a baseball player or movie star is just another hafling or troll. Anonymity can work both ways. Now, if more folks started coming out of the Pen and Paper closet I'd be amused. (I'm looking at you, Vin Diesel.)
Not defending baseball, as I find it boring, also (especially after playing it from ages 6-13). But do you know what kind of stress a MLB pitcher puts on themselves to pitch? I'd like to see you try to put a ball ~90mph over a foot-wide area a few hundred times a day (they also pitch when they're not playing to stay good).
If this is a shining example of the media holding up gaming as a reasonable and normal pastime...
I mean, "fiddling with joysticks." God. You don't see interviews like, "I hear you like to play poker with your friends. How long have you been 'shuffling' 'decks of cards', slugger?" Or, "We figure a tough guy like you always picks the thimble when he plays Monopoly, eh, champ?"