The Shame of Wargaming

I’ll admit it; I was a closet wargamer. I grew up in a small town with tight social circles. I was an athlete and one of the more popular kids if that’s what you want to call it. I had a secret, however, that many in my social circle wouldn’t understand, or so I thought. I loved fantasy settings and at the time, games like Hero Quest, Battle Masters, Dark World and even Warhammer Fantasy Battles strongly appealed to me.

Fearing this wouldn’t be acceptable in my social circles, I kept the games in the closet. Even into adulthood, if something was on the dining room table and someone was coming over I was quick to pick it up and hide it away. I didn’t want them to see that I enjoy small miniatures or what they would see as toys. They wouldn’t understand!

Perception is everything. Or is it? I think as humans we have a desire to be socially accepted and our true friends and companions will accept us for who we are. It took me a long time to understand that and now when friends come over, I leave things right where they are. Maybe they would be interested and I just never gave them the chance. Quite frankly, if they judged me or thought less of me they probably shouldn’t be coming over in the first place.

I think for many of us it’s difficult to break through that social barrier, especially as a younger person. As I get older I certainly care less about what people think. I’m happy the way I am and I accept myself. I feel like I missed a key part of my younger years in this hobby by being a closet gamer. I wish I would have broken through the social insecurities earlier. Now I’m here making up for lost time.