It’s August, and Geek Native’s team is stretched thin to cover the Edinburgh Festival season. As a result, this blog explores off the beaten track a bit further.
In July, I was touched by an article a friend shared on social media. LGBTQ Nation wrote, “Trans man’s ‘culture shock’ after transitioning provides critical insight into male loneliness.
I’m a cis-male; unlike the author of the piece, I can’t compare male friendship to female. However, I’m confident in my truth: I have forged genuine and powerful friendships around a gaming table.
So, now I suggest that tabletop RPGs could be a welcome antidote to the growing problem of loneliness. Male, female or whatever loneliness. Academic research is catching up, providing evidence for the profound social and mental health benefits of collaborative storytelling. For those who have felt the pang of isolation, tabletop roleplaying games offer more than just escapism; they offer a structured and creative path to belonging.
Loneliness isn’t simply about being alone. It’s the feeling of being disconnected, even in a crowd. Tabletop roleplaying games, by their very nature, are a direct counter to this. They are shared projects where a group of people work together to navigate challenges and build a story. Whether you’re battling dragons in Dungeons & Dragons or uncovering cosmic horrors in Call of Cthulhu, success hinges on teamwork, communication, and mutual support.
This isn’t just a feeling; it’s backed by research. For instance, a paper titled “Improving treatment with role-playing games” by Ashley Abramson details how TTRPGs can enhance group cohesion and lead to participants feeling more connected. The games provide a safe, structured environment to practise social interactions without real-world pressures. This idea is central to research in the field, with studies like Joel Billieux, Fournier, et al’s “Can playing Dungeons and Dragons be good for you?” exploring their therapeutic applications. Further work, such as Lily Spinelli’s paper “Tabletop Role-Playing Games and Social Skills in Young Adults“, found that this form of social practice can be effective in reducing social anxiety, giving players more confidence both at and away from the table.
Building Bonds from a Young Age
The benefits of roleplaying can be introduced early, providing children with a framework for social and emotional development that can help them throughout their lives. Giving a young person the tools to collaborate, empathise, and solve problems creatively in a game can make it easier for them to find their own “tribes” as they grow.
This has led to the rise of “therapeutic TTRPGs,” a field where games are designed by mental health professionals specifically to foster these skills.
A notable example is Adventuring Family, a game created by family therapist Nikolaos Kyriakoudis to be played by children and their parents. As Geek Native explored in a recent review, the game uses a simple, non-violent system to guide families through quests that encourage teamwork, emotional intelligence, and open communication. It’s a prime example of how the core mechanics of RPGs can be focused on to build stronger family bonds and help children develop resilience.
To help introduce this concept to more families, Geek Native has also been running a competition for a chance to win a copy of the Adventuring Family RPG. It’s a fantastic opportunity to see firsthand how these games can make a positive impact.
The personal stories from within the community echo these findings. Kublai Kohen, founder of the TTRPG studio Random Wyvern Publishing, shared one such experience.
I was introduced to D&D (the old red box rules) in Grade 8, a little before moving to a new country. I was an awkward kid who did not make friends easily, but I heard one of the other misfits at my new school mention AD&D and so we started to chat. Soon, five of us met regularly for a 2nd edition game and became a tight group of friends, even after going off to separate high schools. Without RPGs, I don’t know if we would have even become friends”
Finding Your Fellowship
For newcomers, taking that first step can feel daunting. Fortunately, the TTRPG community is more accessible than ever.
- Friendly Local Game Stores: These shops are the hubs of local gaming scenes. They often host “learn-to-play” events, one-shot games, and have notice boards (physical or digital) where GMs look for players. Staff are typically passionate gamers themselves and happy to point you in the right direction.
- Online Communities: The digital realm has countless spaces for gamers. Discord is a major platform where you can find servers dedicated to specific games or regions. These servers almost always have “looking for group” (LFG) channels where you can find a virtual table to join from anywhere in the world.
- Conventions: Gaming conventions, from large-scale events like UK Games Expo to smaller local affairs, are fantastic for trying out TTRPGs. You can book a spot in a one-shot (a self-contained, single-session adventure), which is a low-commitment way to meet new people and see if a game is for you.
The journey from feeling isolated to finding your “tribe” is a significant one. Tabletop roleplaying games provide a unique and effective map for that journey. Through shared triumphs and failures, inside jokes and epic narratives, the bonds formed around the table extend into genuine, lasting friendships.
It’s a powerful reminder that sometimes, the best way to connect with the real world is to spend a few hours in a world of imagination. Keep playing.
Photograph credit: Lukas Rychvalsky.
