Dungeons & Dragons in popular culture

The cover of Endless Quest: Dungeon of Dread
Dungeons & Dragons has influenced many derivative works such as books, movies, and television shows.

Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) is a fantasy role-playing game first published in 1974. As the popularity of the game grew throughout the late-1970s and 1980s, it became referenced in popular culture more frequently. The complement of games, films and cultural references based on Dungeons & Dragons or similar fantasies, characters, and adventures became ubiquitous after the end of the 1970s.

Dungeons & Dragons, and tabletop role-playing games in general, have exerted a deep and persistent impact on the development of all types of video games, from "first-person shooters to real-time strategy games and massively multiplayer online games",[1] which in turn play a significant and ongoing role in modern popular culture.[2]

In online culture, the term dungeon has since come to mean a virtual location where people can meet and collaborate. Hence, multi-user dungeons emerged throughout the 1970s and 1980s as a form of social networks or a social virtual reality.[3] By creating a means for players to assemble and explore an imaginary world, the Dungeons & Dragons rules provided a transition from fantasy literary settings, such as those of author J. R. R. Tolkien, to fully virtual worlds.[4]

Public figures who play or have played Dungeons & Dragons include comedians Stephen Colbert and Chris Hardwick, musician Moby, and actors Vin Diesel, Matthew Lillard, Mike Myers, Patton Oswalt, Wil Wheaton, and Robin Williams.[5][6][7][8][9]

Literature media

Books

Independent fiction derived from the Dungeons & Dragons game appeared with the Endless Quest series of books, published by TSR, Inc between 1982 and 1987. The Endless Quest books provided a form of interactive fiction in the style of the Choose Your Own Adventure series.[10] The continuing success of Dungeons & Dragons then sparked an even more extensive series of novels, also published by TSR, Inc. The first of these were based upon the Dragonlance campaign setting, and were released in 1984.[11] There proved to be a lucrative market for these works, and by the 2000s a significant portion of all fantasy paperbacks were being published by Wizards of the Coast, the American game company that acquired TSR, Inc in 1997.[12]

The impact of Dungeons & Dragons on players and culture has inspired reflective non-fiction works:

Several characters created for playing Dungeons & Dragons, or games derived from Dungeons & Dragons, have later spawned popular fantasy series.[17] Other novels make off-hand references to the game:

Comics

Begun in 1986, the comic books The Adventurers and Redfox were inspired by Dungeons & Dragons.[19] Several commercial comic strips are based entirely upon the game or make reference to the game in specific panels.

Visual media

Film

Several films include instances of characters playing the game of Dungeons & Dragons. There have also been three feature films released that were based upon the game: Dungeons & Dragons (2000), Dungeons & Dragons: Wrath of the Dragon God (2005), and Dungeons & Dragons: The Book of Vile Darkness (2012). Warner Bros, Sweetpea Entertainment and Hasbro Films are developing a new Dungeons & Dragons film.[26]

Television

The CBS network ran a Saturday morning cartoon series called Dungeons & Dragons, in which a group of teenagers visiting a Dungeons and Dragons-themed theme park dark ride are magically transported into the fantasy world of Dungeons and Dragons. The show included the voice talents of Willie Aames of Eight is Enough, and ran from 1983 to 1985.[35]

Dungeons & Dragons is also referenced in a variety of television programs:

Audio media

Music

Dungeons & Dragons is referenced in popular music:

Interactive media

Video games

Dungeons & Dragons is referenced in popular video games: On June 25, 2013, Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep, downloadable campaign is released, set within the world of a DnD-parody tabletop role-playing game known as Bunkers and Badasses, with Tiny Tina serving as a game master.[55]

Players

Stephen Colbert developed an intense interest in the game during his youth, which he later credited for his talent at character creation.[56] Ethan Gilsdorf credited the game for bestowing upon him "gifts of creativity and self-actualization".[57] Actor Vin Diesel, in his introduction to the book Thirty Years of Adventure, wrote that he was "attracted to the artistic outlet the game provided" and that the game was "a training ground for our imagination and an opportunity to explore our own identities".[58] Vin Diesel, Mike Myers, and Robin Williams also participated in the 2006 Worldwide Dungeons & Dragons Game Day, demonstrating that the game was then still a lively and active hobby.[59]

Director Chris Weitz pointed out that there "are a lot of people who played and are horribly embarrassed about it and won't admit it, because it's part of their lives they put behind". He developed a fervent interest in the game, even greater than in making movies, and said the experience "had such an influence on his life".[60] Director Jon Favreau was drawn into the game by the fantasy elements and the sense of story, saying "it gave me a really strong background in imagination, storytelling, understanding how to create tone and a sense of balance".[61]

Political reporter John J. Miller said that Dungeons & Dragons was a big part of his life during his school years, and argued that, "there's a lot to admire about D&D and what it can do for kids by encouraging them to read, do math, and think creatively".[62] Fantasy author China Miéville said that playing Dungeons & Dragons as a youth was one of the most enduring influences on his writing. The two things that particularly influenced him were "the mania for cataloging the fantastic" and "the weird fetish for systematization", in that everything is reduced to "game stats".[63] In contrast, author Mark Barrowcliffe considers his years playing Dungeons & Dragons to be a wasted youth and all of the players to be nerds. He has tried to put the experience behind him.[64]

List of notable D&D players

The following public figures have stated that they play, or have played, Dungeons & Dragons, indicating the game's broad appeal to a diverse range of talented individuals.[2]

References

  1. Tychsen, Anders (December 2006), "Role Playing Games – Comparative Analysis Across Two Media Play", IE '06 Proceedings of the 3rd Australasian conference on Interactive entertainment, Murdoch University, Australia: ACM, Inc, pp. 75–82, OCLC 170367427, retrieved 2011-06-10.
  2. 1 2 Rausch, Allen (August 16, 2004), "Magic & Memories: The Complete History of Dungeons & Dragons", GameSpy, IGN, retrieved 2011-06-06.
  3. Steels, Luc (2004), "Virtual Venues", in Mario Tokoro, A Learning Zone of One's Own: Sharing Representations and Flow in Collaborative Learning Environments, Washington, DC: IOS Press, ISBN 1-58603-410-3, retrieved 2011-06-06.
  4. Heider, Don (2009), Living Virtually: Researching New Worlds, Digital formations, 47, New York: Peter Lang, pp. 14–15, ISBN 1-4331-0130-0.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Shanafelt, Steve (November 2, 2005), "The growing chic of geek: How turning 30 made Dungeons & Dragons feel young again", Mountain Xpress, 12 (14), retrieved August 4, 2007.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Tonjes, Wayne (October 19, 2005), Interview with Charles Ryan on the 2005 Worldwide Dungeons & Dragons Game Day, Gaming Report, retrieved 2007-08-04.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Diesel contributed the introduction, and both Colbert and Wheaton page-long personal reflections to 30 Years of Adventure: A Celebration of Dungeons & Dragons.
  8. 1 2 Leckart, Steven (June 26, 2007), "Ratatouille Star Patton Oswalt on Geeks vs. Nerds", Wired, 15 (7).
  9. 1 2 Mike Myers, Inside the Actors' Studio (9), February 4, 2001.
  10. Tresca, Michael J. (2010), The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games, McFarland, p. 103, ISBN 078645895X.
  11. Mackay, Daniel (2001), The Fantasy Role-Playing Game: A New Performing Art, Jefferson, N.C: McFarland, pp. 18–19, ISBN 0-7864-0815-4.
  12. Buker, Derek M. (2002), "The Science Fiction and Fantasy Readers' Advisory: The Librarian's Guide to Cyborgs, Aliens, and Sorcerers", ALA readers' advisory series, Chicago: ALA Editions, pp. 127–128, ISBN 0-8389-0831-4.
  13. Harrison, Michael (September 1, 2009), "Don't Try to Escape Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks", Wired.com Geek Dad, Conde Nast Digital, retrieved 2010-08-12.
  14. 1 2 Harrison, Michael (November 7, 2008), "The Elfish Gene Looks Back at a Childhood Spent on D&D", Wired: Geek Dad, Condé Nast Digital.
  15. Baichtal, John (September 26, 2007), "Introducing D&D to Girly Girls", Wired, retrieved 2011-06-10.
  16. Nugent, Benjamin (2009), American Nerd: The Story of My People, Simon and Schuster, p. 183, ISBN 0-7432-8802-5.
  17. Carlisle, Rodney P. (2009), "Dungeons & Dragons", Encyclopedia of play in today's society, 1, SAGE, p. 187, ISBN 1-4129-6670-1.
  18. Clare, Cassandra (2007), City of Bones, Simon and Schuster, p. 117, ISBN 1-4169-1428-5.
  19. Booker, M. Keith, ed. (2010), Encyclopedia of Comic Books and Graphic Novels, 1, ABC-CLIO, p. 208, ISBN 0313357471.
  20. Panzeri Jr., Peter F. (July 1, 2006), 32nd Hall of Fame Inductees Announced (PDF), Talsorian, retrieved 2008-12-04.
  21. "Raven Levels Up", Questionable Content, retrieved 2010-04-01.
  22. Schlock Mercenary, Tayler Corporation, November 11, 2007, retrieved 2010-04-01.
  23. Carter, Glenn, "Eagle Awards 2008 (for 2007) results", Comics Village, retrieved 2010-06-11.
  24. Grossman, Lev (January 31, 2007), "Webcomics Are the New Blogs: The Order of the Stick", Techland, TIME, Inc., retrieved 2010-06-11.
  25. "Ultimate Game", xkcd, retrieved 2010-04-01.
  26. Khatchatourian, Maane (August 3, 2015). "'Dungeons & Dragons' Movie in Works at Warner Bros. as Lawsuit Ends". Variety. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  27. Mackay, Daniel (2001), The Fantasy Role-Playing Game: A New Performing Art, Jefferson, N.C: McFarland, p. 22, ISBN 0-7864-0815-4.
  28. Buckland, Warren (2006), Directed by Steven Spielberg: Poetics of the Contemporary Hollywood Blockbuster, New York: Continuum International Publishing Group, p. 161, ISBN 0-8264-1691-8.
  29. 1 2 Communications, Emmis (April 1986), "Robert MacNaughton", Orange Coast Magazinee, 12 (4): 80, 85, retrieved 2010-06-11.
  30. Wortham, Jenna (November 4, 2008), "Futurama Animators Roll 20-Sided Die With Bender's Game", Wired, Condé Nast Digital, retrieved 2010-07-05
  31. Lees, Jennie (January 30, 2006), "Fear of Girls", joystiq, Aol, retrieved 2011-09-30.
  32. staff (January 28, 2007), "Filmmaker germs and gems", Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
  33. "Dead Gentlemen deliver new movie, Review: 'The Gamers' is spoof from Tacoma filmmakers", The News Tribune, December 3, 2002, retrieved 2011-08-19.
  34. Jainchill, Johanna (October 13, 2006), "Horror Movie Festivals: The Screaming, er, Screening's at 8", The New York Times, retrieved 2011-08-19.
  35. "Dungeons & Dragons (TV Series 1983)", imdb, retrieved 2011-06-06.
  36. Stahler, Kelsea (February 4, 2011), "'Community' Recap: Advanced Dungeons and Dragons", Hollywood.com, retrieved 2011-08-16.
  37. Van Der Werff, Todd (February 3, 2011), "Advanced Dungeons & Dragons", The A.V. Club, The Onion, retrieved 2011-07-03.
  38. "IMBD Futurama Trivia Page", IMDb, retrieved 2010-04-01.
  39. Sacks, Mike (2009), And Here's the Kicker: Conversations with 21 Top Humor Writers on Their Craft, Writer's Digest Books, p. 160, ISBN 1-58297-505-1.
  40. "'Bored of the Rings'", Sarah Silverman Online, retrieved 2010-04-01.
  41. That '70s Show - Alice Cooper playing D&D (Video), YouTube, September 21, 2010, retrieved 2011-08-24.
  42. Cherry, James A.; et al. (1997), "Homer Goes to College", The Simpsons Archive, retrieved 2010-04-01.
  43. Brent Butt (April 20, 2009), Corner Gas S4: Episode 18 - Happy Camper 3/4 (Adobe Flash Video), Television production, YouTube, event occurs at 2:59.
  44. http://www.tuckersluck.com/episodes-3.html
  45. http://blogs.disney.com/insider/2015/08/04/exclusive-gravity-falls-creator-alex-hirsch-on-dungeons-dungeons-and-more-dungeons/
  46. Weezer (August 4, 2008), Weezer - In the Garage (Adobe Flash Video), Television production, YouTube, event occurs at 0:21.
  47. "White & Nerdy Lyrics", MusicLyricsFYI.com, 2010, retrieved 2010-06-01, Got skills, I'm a champion at D&D
  48. Kaufman, Gil (May 1, 2003), "Flashlight Brown: What's The Opposite of Cool?", VH1, retrieved 2010-04-13.
  49. Rivadavia, Eduardo, "Kyuss Biography", AllMusic, retrieved 2010-04-01.
  50. Burton, Bonnie (September 10, 2010), Star Wars Shout Outs in "G33k & G4M3R Girls" Music Video, Lucas Online, retrieved 2010-09-30.
  51. Shreve, Jeff (June 29, 2006), "Final Fantasy", Stylus Magazine, retrieved 21 November 2010.
  52. MISS AMP, "divine magic", AMP, retrieved 21 November 2010.
  53. Stephen Lynch (Apr 17, 2011), Stephen Lynch - D&D (Adobe Flash Video), Television production, YouTube, event occurs at 2:50.
  54. http://ghostmice.bandcamp.com/track/critical-hit
  55. Dyer, Mitch (May 2, 2013). "Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep Revealed". IGN.com. IGN Entertainment. Retrieved May 9, 2013.
  56. Carter, Bill (2010), The war for late night: when Leno went early and television went crazy, Penguin, p. 113, ISBN 0-670-02208-X.
  57. Gilsdorf, Ethan (March 8, 2011), How "Dungeons & Dragons" changed my life, Salon Media Group, retrieved 2011-10-16.
  58. Diesel, Vin (2004), "Foreword", Thirty Years of Adventure: A Celebration of Dungeons & Dragons, Wizards of the Coast, ISBN 0-7869-3498-0.
  59. Dungeons and Dragons Game Day at London Dungeon, View London.co.uk, November 3, 2007, retrieved 2010-04-01.
  60. 1 2 Scott, Kevin Conroy (2005), Screenwriters' masterclass: screenwriters talk about their greatest movies, Newmarket Insider Filmbook, Newmarket Press, p. 75, ISBN 1-55704-692-1.
  61. 1 2 Boucher, Geoff (May 5, 2008), "'Iron Man' action figure", Los Angeles Times, p. 3, retrieved 2010-03-26.
  62. 1 2 Miller, John J. (October 15, 2004), I Was A Teenage Half-Orc, National Review, retrieved 2011-10-16.
  63. Gordon, Joan (November 2003), "Reveling in Genre: An Interview with China Miéville", Science Fiction Studies, 30 (91), retrieved 2011-10-17.
  64. 1 2 Barrowcliffe, Mark (2008), "An Unhealthy Interest", The Elfish Gene: Dungeons, Dragons and Growing Up Strange, Soho Press, ISBN 1-56947-522-9.
  65. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Gilsdorf, Ethan (July 14, 2014), "A Game as Literary Tutorial: Dungeons & Dragons Has Influenced a Generation of Writers", New York Times, retrieved 2016-03-02.
  66. Booth, John (April 14, 2010), "Interview With FoxTrot's Bill Amend", Wired, retrieved 2010-04-15.
  67. Carter, Randolph (February 16, 2010), "Reading the text: Kevin J. Anderson interview", Grinding to Valhalla, retrieved 2010-04-15.
  68. Antwiler, Noah, "About", The Spoony Experiment, retrieved 17 March 2010.
  69. Snider, John C., "Interview: Lee Arenberg", SciFi Dimensions, retrieved 2010-04-15.
  70. Twitter
  71. Coates, Ta-Nehisi (2013), Growing Up in the Caves of Chaos, retrieved 2015-04-30.
  72. Brooke, Tyler (August 25, 2016), "Anderson Cooper Admits He's Obsessed with Dungeons and Dragons on Late Show", Fansided.
  73. Thomas, Harry (May 30, 2001), "Q&A: Not So Serious Rivers Cuomo", Rolling Stone.
  74. Bose, Lilledeshan (November 19, 2010), "What Weezer's Rivers Cuomo Said: Interviews from the Past vs. Present", OC Weekly, retrieved 2011-10-19.
  75. 12 Famous People Who Play D&D
  76. Dame Judi Dench Plays Dungeons & Dragons: How You Make a Captivating Character by Jen Violi
  77. Staff (2010), "Lexa Doig", DragonCon, DCI, Inc, retrieved 2010-05-26.
  78. Briggs, Jerry (November 30, 1997), "Duncan's unusual hobby and more unusual request", San Antonio Express-News (Texas).
  79. Stanton, Pete (April 10, 2011), "Your Highness Interviews With Danny McBride, Zooey Deschanel, James Franco, Justin Theroux and David Gordon Green", MovieFone, retrieved 2011-05-05.
  80. Clausen, Elizabeth (March 18, 2010), "Event to showcase two alumni authors", The Daily Reveille, retrieved 2010-03-26.
  81. 1 2 Staff (April 14, 2008), Teaching quality and peer influences, BBC News, retrieved 2011-10-17.
  82. "NERDIST PODCAST: JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT". nerdist.com. 2012-10-01. Retrieved 2016-07-08.
  83. 1 2 "Stars are nerds too", The Chicago Tribune, February 22, 2006, retrieved 2011-11-11.
  84. Sabbath, Zak (March 17, 2010), "I Hit It With My Axe: Episode One: Meet the Party", Escapist Magazine, Themis Group, Inc., retrieved 2010-07-04.
  85. 1 2 3 Serota, Maggie (March 9, 2010), "Dork in the Road", New York press, retrieved 2010-04-15.
  86. Hartinger, Brent (January 5, 2011), "Everything I Know I Learned From Dungeons & Dragons", The Torch Online, retrieved 2011-11-11.
  87. Van Der Werff, Todd (June 9, 2011), "Dan Harmon walks us through Community's second season (part 3 of 4)", A. V. Club, Onion, Inc, retrieved 2011-06-10.
  88. 12 Famous People Who Play D&D
  89. "I Hit it With My Axe". escapistmagazine.com. 2010-03-17. Retrieved 2011-02-06.
  90. Krug, Kurt Anthony (May 25, 2011), "Grosse Pointe Park Resident Authors Star Wars Novels", Grosse Pointe Patch, retrieved 2011-06-06.
  91. 12 Famous People Who Play D&D
  92. Hodgman, John (February 13, 2005), Crossover: The Musical, The New York Times, p. 3, retrieved 2011-10-17.
  93. Malkin, Michelle (March 4, 2008), "D&D co-creator Gary Gygax, R.I.P", michellemalkin.com, retrieved 2010-04-15.
  94. Manson, Marilyn; Strauss, Neil (1999), The Long Hard Road Out of Hell, New York: HarperCollins, p. 26, ISBN 0-06-098746-4.
  95. Pevere, Geoff (May 29, 2011), "Bard of Geekdom: China Miéville discovers yet another new world", The Toronto Star, retrieved 2011-06-06.
  96. ., Nightmare Magazine (2016), Interview: David Mitchell, retrieved 2016-02-27.
  97. SWORD & SHIELD: Rage Against the DM, 2014, retrieved 2015-01-07.
  98. "Part 1 of two-part Interview: Entrepreneur Elon Musk Talks About his Background in Physics". APS News. American Physical Society. 22 (9). October 2013. Retrieved 2015-07-13.
  99. Derek Colanduno (April 21, 2015). "A Skepticality Guide To The Universe". http://www.skepticality.com/ (Podcast). Retrieved April 24, 2015. External link in |website= (help)
  100. Roy, Jessica (June 25, 2012), "Reddit Cofounder's Brooklyn Apartment Turned Into Set for Dungeons & Dragons Documentary", BetaBeat, retrieved 2012-06-29.
  101. Comic-Con: South Park creators won't do another Pokémon episode but probably will kill Kenny again
  102. Reyes-Chow, Bruce, "Bruce's Friday Five v6.8", SFGate, San Francisco Chronicle, retrieved 2012-06-29.
  103. Larnick, Eric (October 10, 2011), John C. Reilly on the nerve-wracking cast of 'Carnage' and his D&D upbringing, Moviefone, retrieved 2011-10-17.
  104. John J., Miller (2008), Dungeons & Dragons In a Digital World, WSJ, retrieved 2013-02-18.
  105. Gilsdorf, Ethan (January 10, 2012), "The dark elf of Leominster: With 17 million books sold, fantasy author R.A. Salvatore is the state's best-selling author you've never heard of", Boston Globe, retrieved 2016-03-02.
  106. Gilsdorf, Ethan (February 3, 2012), "Take This Mitt, and Pass Me the Broadsword", New York Times, retrieved 2016-03-02.
  107. 12 Famous People Who Play D&D
  108. Smith, Zak (March 17, 2010), "Episode One: Meet the Party", I Hit It With My Axe, The Escapist, retrieved 1 August 2010.
  109. Calio, Jim (August 23, 1982), "Revealing His Secrets at Last: Director Steven Spielberg Takes the Wraps Off E.T.", People Magazine, retrieved 2016-03-02.
  110. Ryan, Mike (May 3, 2011), "25 Questions for Boy Meets World's Rider Strong", Vanity Fair, retrieved 2011-05-05.
  111. Adler, Shawn, Vin Diesel of The Chronicles of Riddick (Universal) Interview, UGO Entertainment, retrieved 2010-04-16.
  112. Staff, "Mark Tremonti – The Tone Behind the Man", Guitar Edge, retrieved 2010-05-31.
  113. Vikernes, Varg (2010), A Burzum Story: Part I – The Origin And Meaning, Burzum.org, retrieved 2010-05-31.
  114. Castaneda, Gustavo (March 26, 2010), "Geek Out!: Wheaton wows gamers", CNN, retrieved 2010-03-26.
  115. 12 Famous People Who Play D&D
  116. Memmott, Carol (May 25, 2011), "Robots gone wild in Daniel H. Wilson's 'Robopocalypse'", USA Today, retrieved 2011-06-06.
  117. McHenry, Eric, "Columns Q&A: Rainn Wilson", Columns, retrieved 2010-12-08.
  118. Crouse, Richard (April 17, 2015), "Daredevil star Deborah Ann Woll 'a very proud dork'", Toronto Metro News, retrieved 2016-06-16.
  119. 1 2 Wired
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/29/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.