Title: “What was Roleplaying?” 

Abstract 

The history of roleplaying is often traced back through Dungeons & Dragons back to tabletop wargaming, but there is a less discussed history that goes back to group therapy techniques, management training, and social studies classrooms. That kind of roleplay is what happens when people practice having a pretend interview, or dramatize a social conflict to develop people's empathy. By tracing the history of roleplaying, this talk outlines an aesthetic and ethics that has been passed down into contemporary gaming culture. 

About Peter McDonald 

Peter McDonald is an Assistant Professor of Design, Creative, and Informal Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at UW-Madison and holds a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. His research explores the ways people interpret play and playful behavior as meaning-making activities, the design practices that can support critical engagement through play, and the historical contexts of playfulness. McDonald uses practice-based design research to build and study experimental forms of play, including alternate reality games, augmented reality games, and roleplaying games. His interests include play theory, media theory, feminist and queer methodologies, design research, and hermeneutics.