Playing at the World, Volume 2: Three Pillars of Role-Playing Games, 2nd Edition eBook
$20.00
The second volume of two in a new, updated edition of the 2012 book Playing at the World, which charts the vast and complex history of role-playing games.
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About this eTextbook
The second volume of two in a new, updated edition of the 2012 book Playing at the World, which charts the vast and complex history of role-playing games. This new edition of Playing at the World is the second of two volumes that update the 720-page original tome of the same name from 2012. This second volume is The Three Pillars of Role-Playing Games, a deep dive into the history of the setting, system, and characters of Dungeons & Dragons—the three pillars indicated by the volume’s title. (The first volume of the new edition is The Invention of Dungeons & Dragons, which explores the publication and reception of that iconic game.) In this second volume, Jon Peterson covers the medieval fantasy setting—the first pillar—and addresses why the first role-playing game evolved around fantasy and medieval settings as opposed to some other historical setting.
In the second pillar, the author explores how the rules of wargames, from their roots in chess variants from eighteenth-century Germany, developed into those of role-playing games. Finally, the third pillar focuses on character, perhaps the most elusive of the three pillars, and investigates how precedents governed the introduction of characters to games more so than the original D&D rule books. Filled with unparalleled archival research (from obscure fanzines to letters, drafts, and other ephemera), this new edition of Playing at the World is the ultimate geek’s guide to the original RPG.
As such, it is an indispensable resource for academics and game fans exploring the origins of the hobby.
Publication details
- Author: Jon Peterson
- Publisher: The MIT Press
- eText ISBN: 9780262383103, 0262383101
- Print ISBN: 9780262552318, 0262552310
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- A licensed digital edition of this title, supplied as PDF or EPUB. The format is set by the publisher, so email us the ISBN before ordering and we will confirm which one it is.
- Delivered to the email address on your order as a secure download link, usually within minutes and always within 24 hours of payment.
- Download links do not expire and there is no cap on re-downloads. Readable on any computer, tablet or phone, online or offline.
- This is a digital edition. Nothing is printed, packed or posted, and there is no delivery charge.
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About this eTextbook
The second volume of two in a new, updated edition of the 2012 book Playing at the World, which charts the vast and complex history of role-playing games. This new edition of Playing at the World is the second of two volumes that update the 720-page original tome of the same name from 2012. This second volume is The Three Pillars of Role-Playing Games, a deep dive into the history of the setting, system, and characters of Dungeons & Dragons—the three pillars indicated by the volume’s title. (The first volume of the new edition is The Invention of Dungeons & Dragons, which explores the publication and reception of that iconic game.) In this second volume, Jon Peterson covers the medieval fantasy setting—the first pillar—and addresses why the first role-playing game evolved around fantasy and medieval settings as opposed to some other historical setting.
In the second pillar, the author explores how the rules of wargames, from their roots in chess variants from eighteenth-century Germany, developed into those of role-playing games. Finally, the third pillar focuses on character, perhaps the most elusive of the three pillars, and investigates how precedents governed the introduction of characters to games more so than the original D&D rule books. Filled with unparalleled archival research (from obscure fanzines to letters, drafts, and other ephemera), this new edition of Playing at the World is the ultimate geek’s guide to the original RPG.
As such, it is an indispensable resource for academics and game fans exploring the origins of the hobby.
Publication details
- Author: Jon Peterson
- Publisher: The MIT Press
- eText ISBN: 9780262383103, 0262383101
- Print ISBN: 9780262552318, 0262552310
What you receive
- A licensed digital edition of this title, supplied as PDF or EPUB. The format is set by the publisher, so email us the ISBN before ordering and we will confirm which one it is.
- Delivered to the email address on your order as a secure download link, usually within minutes and always within 24 hours of payment.
- Download links do not expire and there is no cap on re-downloads. Readable on any computer, tablet or phone, online or offline.
- This is a digital edition. Nothing is printed, packed or posted, and there is no delivery charge.
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