(Cut and pasted from the Escapist Blog -
theescapist.com/blog )
You may remember a previous post (
http://www.theescapist.com/blog/tiki-view_blog_post.php?blogId=5&postId=167
) on the second in the "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" series, entitled
"Rodrick Rules", in which Greg discovers that he enjoys a roleplaying
game called "Magick and Monsters."
I wanted to read a copy of the book before I made that post, just so I
could give my own informed opinion, but it took a few weeks before my
library could lock down a copy. It seems that the release of the first
"Wimpy Kid" movie has made the books very popular, which could be
beneficial for the roleplaying hobby, at least in a small way.
As I had heard from others, the mention of roleplaying is very brief,
but positive - Greg is apprehensive about trying it out, discovers
that he loves it, and then becomes worried that his mother won't
approve of it. She insists on trying it out herself, and hilarity
ensues - but like everyone else, I'd rather not spoil the punchline
for anyone, even though the book is a little bit scarce at the present
time.
I attempted to contact Jeff Kinney, the author of the "Wimpy Kid"
series, and ask a few questions about his reasons for including a
reference to roleplaying in his book, but it seems that he isn't
answering emails at the moment - possibly for the same reason I
mentioned above.<p>
I also wanted to inquire about a certain character in "Rodrick Rules"
that seems to have a very familar name: http://www.theescapist.com/wimpykid2.jpg
...but I'll leave my lawyers to handle the rest of that
negotiation.<p>
My previous post on the book inspired Rolf Elak from Germany to write
about his son's experience with "Rodrick Rules":
"I just read your blog entry about "the diary of a wimpy kid" ("Gregs
Tagebuch" in german). My son (10 y.) is a big fan of this series and a
short while ago he showed me the chapter about role playing. Knowing
that I have regular RP-sessions, he asked if this was a accurate
description (away from the hilarity ensuing when Mom entered the
session, caring for those poor,hungry orcs ;) ...). I assured him of
the accuracy of the description, hinting at some mild exaggerations.
Guess what happend next? My son decided to have a go at RP-ing. I
sorrily have to postpone our first session until our moving into a new
home is done, but my son is quite eager to play :).
This chapter is fun to read, it is obviously written by someone who
knows his stuff, and is by no means scaring any parents about the
dangers of RP-ing. It does, however, warn young roleplayers about the
dangers of Moms in gaming sessions ;)."
Then he shared some facts about roleplaying culture in Germany:
"I just re-read the chapter after my son dug it up from the mess he
calls his room ;), The translator did a fine job. Rowley is named
Leonard in the german "localisation" of the book. The game played is
"Kerker und Drachen" which translates directly into "Dungeons and
Dragons" :).<p>
The actual "Dungeons and Dragons" on the other hand is known over here
as, well, "Dungeons and Dragons" ...
It seems that we old-worlders are blessed with a lot less prejudice
against RPG in general, at least the PnP ones. No one needs to avoid
the name of "DnD" in books or publications, no (hearable) outcry from
the religous faction. Though one is met with a certain ...
cautiosness, if one would talk about his/her hobby. It's still deemed
to be a hobby for those adolescent pimple faced youths. Just for the
record: my own regulars are aged between 30 and 50 years (me being the
vintage one ;) )."
Thanks for the story and the culture lesson, Rolf!
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