9 History of role playing games

The history of role-playing games begins with an earlier tradition of role-playing, which combined with the rulesets of fantasy wargames in the 1970s to give rise to the modern role-playing game. A role-playing game (RPG) is a type of game in which the participants assume the roles of characters and collaboratively create stories. Participants determine the actions of their characters based on their characterization and the actions succeed or fail according to a system of rules and guidelines. Within the rules, they may improvise freely; their choices shape the direction and outcome of the games.

The following is a timeline of tabletop role-playing games. For computer role-playing games see here.

The Dungeon Master: The Disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III is a 1984 book by private investigator William Dear, in which the author gives his explanation of the 1979 "steam tunnel incident" involving the disappearance of James Dallas Egbert III, a student at Michigan State University. In the book, Dear explained that he feels the incident was misrepresented by the news media.

"The Tale of Eric and the Dread Gazebo" is a role-playing game-inspired anecdote, made famous by Richard Aronson. Aronson's account first appeared in print in the APA Alarums and Excursions between 1985 and 1986. It was reprinted in Mensa's RPG APA The Spell Book in 1987, and The Mensa Bulletin in 1988. It subsequently spread to the internet where it has been frequently retold and adapted as short stories and comics. The story, as it was originally published, was titled "Eric and the Gazebo" but many retellings inserted the word 'Dread' in the title.

Live action role-playing games, known as LARPs, are a form of role-playing game in which live players/actors assume roles as specific characters and play out a scenario in-character. Technically, many childhood games may be thought of as simple LARPs, as they often involve the assumption of character roles. However, the scope of this article concerns itself mainly with LARPing in a technical sense: the organized live-action role-playing games whose origins are closely related to the invention of tabletop role-playing games in America in the 1970s.

Mazes and Monsters is a 1982 American made-for-television drama film directed by Steven Hilliard Stern about a group of college students and their interest in a fictitious role-playing game (RPG) of the same name.

Mazes and Monsters is a 1981 novel by Rona Jaffe. The novel is a cautionary tale regarding the then-new hobby of fantasy role-playing games. The book was adapted into a made-for-television movie by the same name in 1982 starring Tom Hanks.

Skullduggery is a 1983 Canadian horror film directed by Ota Richter.

Strategos is a military wargame developed by Charles A. L. Totten for the United States Army, and published in 1880.