What Is Actual Play? Why Watching Other People Play D&D Is So Interesting
What Is Actual Play? Why Watching Other People Play D&D Is So Interesting
What Is Actual Play? Why Watching Other People Play D&D Is So Interesting
By Zahra Alhadad
November 2, 2020
Summary
Did you know that Amazon picked up a new animated show after its Kickstarter raised over US$11,000,000? Or that NBCUniversal's new streaming service will kick off featuring another brand new animated series?
Did you know that both of those shows are based on a group of people broadcasting their Dungeons & Dragons campaigns to the public?
There are hundreds of different long-form streams, podcasts, and even edited shows of people playing all types of tabletop games for the enjoyment of others.
The resurgence can partly be attributed to the shows mentioned above, as thousands of people became inspired to start their own campaigns with their friends and replicate their favorite D&D stream.
Even for a show like DROPOUT's Dimension 20, which is filmed in advance and edited like any traditional show, there is a lack of overt professionalism between the cast.
More often than not, the stories that come from these shows are earnest since they are the lovechild of the Dungeon Master and the players.
Because these people on these shows create these characters and stories themselves, it's not wrong to assume they are the ones who care for them the most.
You don't need a subscription to a streaming service to find these shows in their raw form.
Where do we go from here, then? Of course, it's hard to say if these shows will progress into the mainstream - though condensing the hundreds of hours of gameplay into a more traditional-form TV show could be a good start.
Considering how popular all these shows are getting, the bubble won't be bursting anytime soon.
Reference
Zahra Alhadad, Z. (2020, November 02). What Is Actual Play? Why Watching Other People Play D&D Is So Interesting. Retrieved November 16, 2020, from https://sea.ign.com/dungeons-dragons-1/165662/feature/what-is-actual-play-why-watching-other-people-play-dd-is-so-interesting