What Is It About Games?

There’s something about the combination of a strategy game (even one as thin as hair-pulling or fighting dragons) and a communications medium that is an undeniably powerful way to bring a community together. I think the power comes, for some, in creating a virtual world with rules to follow and an understood course of action.

An open community discussion site can be a daunting prospect for some, because it’s not always clear what the expected course of action is. There’s too much freedom. A common newbie statement is that the person doesn’t feel he “writes well enough” to participate in online discourse. But put him in a game of blackjack and watch the conversation fly.