Play By Mail – Or By E-Mail

Play by mail games have been around for more than a half century. But like many social and entertainment ideas, the Internet has become an integral part of the play by mail (or play by e-mail) games. Playing games to pass the time has been a social habit for as long as man has had time to spare. The games have changed over the centuries, but the fact that those who are skilled at games are constantly looking for worthy opponents has not. It’s that quest that apparently led to the play by mail games that started as early as the 1960s with a game called ‘zine.” By the 1970s, these games had hit the commercial market and there were companies that made a profit from those who sought to play games by mail. The kinds of games that can be played by mail range from fantasy role play to board games. While the fantasy games – such as fantasy football – have gained some attention in recent years, many people don’t really realize that the play by mail games exist. How can you play a board game with an opponent who isn’t in the same room? After all, if you need to roll a “7” on the dice, can’t you simply say you did? Actually, most play by mail or play by e-mail

games of this kind are overseen by a moderator. In some cases, the moderator may roll the dice but today’s technology allows for a server to roll for each player, e-mailing the results of the roll to the player and the moderator so that no one has a chance to cheat. You’ll find that the games vary as widely as any games played in person. On the realm of fantasy games, you may have a single moderator and a relatively simple set or rules or a rule book that’s 50 or more pages long dictating the moves and actions. There are dozens of websites dedicated to the subject of play by mail or play by e-mail. You can find more information for play by mail at www.pbm.com/~lindahl/pbm.html.