LARPing… What crosses the line? [6 comments]
Tara
Hello everyone!
I’m psyched to be joining Jill on this blog and all of her adventures. We’ll be joining forces to introduce each other to even more wonderfully geeky things, and I’m excited to get some videos up to show you all!
But today I wanted to start a discussion on something that’s always been tough for me: LARPing.
What is the fine line between “playing pretend” and “Live Action Role Playing”? Is there a difference? Are children who pretend to be superheros actually LARPing?
LARPing has some stigma attached to it, and I’ve been careful to name all of my close encounters with it as “interactive parties”, “flash mobs”, or “guerrilla street theater”. However, it might be time for me to look at my costumed self in the mirror and decide once and for all: am I a LARPer?
Take a look at some of my favorite LARP spoofs:
| RENO 911! | ||||
| Magic Missile | ||||
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And now take a look at some photos from “interactive parties” and “flash mobs” I’ve been a part of.
Jill showed this to you all a couple days ago: me as “The Witch” from L4D. Francis doesn’t stand a chance!
Here I am hugging a robot before beating him up in the annual “Pirates vs. Robots vs. Ninjas battle”
And for the Harry Potter fans out there, here I am teaching a “Herbology” class (on miracle berries) at an Interactive Harry Potter party.
Tell me the truth: Am I a LARPer?
Tags: PICTURES SAY IT ALL, RPG
From these pics, I’d say you are a cosplayer with LARPing tendencies. Which reminds me – look up “Fear of Girls” on YouTube.
I’d say that you’re a cosplayer with LARPing tendencies. There are some … lines you’ll still need to cross to become a LARPer.
On a related note, check this out if you haven’t seen it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Mp7Ikko8SI
Whoops! Sorry for the 2x post …
I think you’re safe. I tend to think of LARPing as an organized RPG acted out. You just like to play dress up and goof around, from what I can tell, which is far from LARPing.
This is coming from a person who doesn’t know you and didn’t know what LARPing was until I read your blog and watched the videos … If you didn’t get a paycheck for any of those three events, you’re a LARPer.
Great blog post, thanks for the info.