Colville is only half right on "The Hobby"

On a walk through the park, Matt Colville rebuked a certain type of RPG fan who complains about the cost of "The Hobby." These folks turn paying for RPG materials into a moral issue where spending money is a failure, and Colville is right to push back. Within reason, it's not wrong to enjoy good things in life with the abundance we've been given^[1].

But while addressing some of the complaints about monetizing The Hobby, Colville misses what I consider to be the core issue: the expectations it sets for new players.

Someone walks into Barnes & Nobel, sees three beautiful hardcovers from Dungeons & Dragons, and thinks that they need to spend $150 to start playing. Add another $50 campaign book and a few extra sets of dice for friends, and they've cleared $200. Oh, and they're going to need a battle map and a few minis, so let's call it $250. All of this down before ever rolling a die.

Some might pick up the Starter Set instead (only $55), and know that they can share dice and skip minis. They're probably not going to know that the D&D 5.5e SRD is free, and a basic Chessex dice set is under $5. The expectation has already been set: RPGs are fun ways to spend your money.

When I was young, I didn't have $55 to try D&D (let alone $250). My brothers and I stumbled on a DragonStrike box set at a yard sale for less than $10^[2]. That single purchase sustained us for years, because we learned quickly that imagination was the only real cost to entry. That's the expectation we should be setting: RPGs are basically free.

That doesn't mean that people can't choose to spend (a lot of) money on The Hobby. Good for them, and good for the publishers who produce quality materials. But they should be the exception and not the rule. The default should be like drawing or singing: something that you can do with your friends for free.

Sean McPherson works as a software engineer at Khan Academy, and enjoys playing games and watching soccer. He lives with family in Pittsburgh, PA.