Why Minis Games?

[Tactalvanic]

Early/late eighties - onwards with a loft break in the late 90s across three homes over nearly 15 years...

They were a thing at a time when I had very little money I could access, so have a lot of sentimental to them to.

I know roughly what I have lost from the collection and more clearly what I have given away/sold - oddly and that's not very many.

Painted or unpainted they give me joy, as others mentioned, they soothe, both precious in the modern day.

I can as with some computer games, get lost in the "imagineering" of it, of worlds not real, different places, times and spaces. Be away from work and modern pressures, even if only brief moments.

To game, examine, plan etc. They are a physical possession like books, are tactile, and I have just about enough space to keep them. Mostly in the loft 

I can more easily access them there now than before, more easily than previously and I always have far to many to hand in the "study" anyway.

I have no issue with computers and virtual gaming, pdfs, manuals, books etc and spend far to many hours there to (mostly work in regards computers) but the physical, the tactile is very much needed to.

ced1106 put most of it much better than me.

[DivisMal]

"Sustained use of resources" DivisMal? Books are the ultimate in sustainability and lock up the carbon in trees for decades; given the rare elements used in kindle devices, books should be, by far, the more sustainable option. I think your colleagues are spouting unthinking ideology at you! 

Thankfully Germany, where I live, is a real laggard in this regard. The fight against books and libraries has already caused great losses in many western countries!

[mikedemana]

I also enjoy the "zen" of sitting down and painting. I'm a huge history buff (retired History teacher), so I really enjoy watching history come alive on my painting desk, and then translating that into a scenario on the tabletop. The act of gaming itself is a very social one. I really don't enjoy competitive 1 vs. 1 games as much anymore, especially once they get cut-throat. Getting six guys sitting around a table playing one game is MUCH more fun for me. Jokes flying, celebrating each other's horrible die rolls, those are the things I enjoy about miniature gaming.

Great philosophical question, sir!

Mike Demana

[Sakuragi Miniatures]

I thought about this the other day while visiting the Fukuoka Zoo and part of what I love, is that I can create something on tabletop that can't exist in real life and interact with it through scenarios and games. The zoo is a place where I can see exotic creatures that in my daily living I could never come across, all gathered together in an artificial setting so we can enjoy it. I'll never be in 1920s Tokyo, but I can visit it through images and recreate it on the table top and create stories there. I think it's kind of like what Mike Demana said the other day.

That's not the whole reason I paint and make minis, but one of many.


Because I brought up the zoo: Behold, a leopard. So this was a Japanese zoo and the Japanese word/sound effect for a big cat going "ROAR" is "GAAAAOOOO." It's very adorable. I watched a mom and her two kids "GAAAOOOOO" at the leopard who just stared at them like "what the hell?" before growling back.

[Rick]

Right. So the leopard never bothered to learn the local language, then? Tsk, tsk. 

[Sakuragi Miniatures]

Right. So the leopard never bothered to learn the local language, then? Tsk, tsk. 

Yeah, it was still growling in Swahili. I should have greeted it with a hearty, "Jambo!"

[Moriarty]

Thankfully Germany, where I live, is a real laggard in this regard. The fight against books and libraries has already caused great losses in many western countries!

But wasn’t doing away with paper bags and using plastic ones instead going to save the planet?

[Rick]

But wasn’t doing away with paper bags and using plastic ones instead going to save the planet?

I don't know whether you've noticed but the list of things we're required to go without in order "to save the planet" keeps growing longer and longer, without ever seeming to come closer to saving the planet. Nobody has ever said - "good news, everybody - thanks to your good work, we're saved!" It's all a massive con job by a small but very vocal minority that want to tell us all what to do! 

[FierceKitty]

I don't know whether you've noticed but the list of things we're required to go without in order "to save the planet" keeps growing longer and longer, without ever seeming to come closer to saving the planet. Nobody has ever said - "good news, everybody - thanks to your good work, we're saved!" It's all a massive con job by a small but very vocal minority that want to tell us all what to do! 

 

[2010sunburst]

Yeh Rick, and vaccines cause autism…..what a crock!

[2010sunburst]

This is a great thread, by the way.  It didn’t deserve that political paperbagism hence my reply.

[Rick]

Yeh Rick, and vaccines cause autism…..what a crock!

No they don't - that's an appalling lie and very dangerous as well - you should be ashamed of yourself for sharing it.
Obviously you didn't pick up on the laughing emoji I put at the end of my post? Obviously it was meant as a tongue-in-cheek reply and I really can't help it if you failed to pick up on it. FierceKitty saw the joke even if you didn't.

[Sakuragi Miniatures]

This thread has become why we can't have nice things.

Another reason I do mini wargaming is that the making and painting has a nice calming effect on my neurotic personality. It keeps me calm and focused even when things are falling apart around me.

I also enjoy the (limited) social aspect.

[Easy E]

One of my personal favorites on the topic. 



That said, I have often wondered this very question.  In theory, I can get most of the same experience out of board games, Role-Playing Games, or even video games.  Video Games are just better at the spectacle and visuals.  Role-playing games are better at the story-telling and the social aspect.  Board games are often better at the "Game" part and are easier to get people to play.   

Yet none of those scratch the same itch. Here I am, constantly going back to the wargaming well.  Why? 

Well, some of those things may do it "better" in some areas but Miniature Wargaming does it good enough in ALL areas. for me.  That is the best answer I could come up with. 

Plus, it gives me an excuse to dig into history when I really have no other reason to.       

[Rick]

Sorry guys. I probably over-reacted a bit; I made a joke and someone appeared to take offence at my making a joke with something I feel very strongly about. My bad and I do apologise again for over-reacting.