D & D E-sports and Gatekeeping

Hey Game Fans, today we’re going to have a little bit of a ramble about a topic that we all think we know everything about (Gatekeeping) and how none of us would ever do anything like that to new folks. Earlier this week, the CEO of Hasbro was interviewed by a big news network and made a comment to the effect that the Dungeons and Dragons properties are growing and expanding as a financial success and he thinks that one way to grow these properties even further was through the use of an esports style approach to life. Sounds like an okay thing (oh, and they announced they were bringing Eberron back and opening up the Magic the Gathering world of Ravnica as playgrounds for Dungeons and Dragons).

Gatekeeping in our Community

So we talk about Gatekeeping a lot as it relates to a lot of communities and fandoms in the world we live in, but i want to talk a little bit about how it affects our gaming communities and the very easy way it can become a solution instead of a problem. First off, I am an absolutely filthy casual of a player and as long as you are polite and friendly, i will try to help you with anything i can, IF I HAVE A FREE MOMENT TO DO SO. I am totally happy helping new folks find their jam in a game so long as i am not trying to do a bunch of other things.