Long, long ago in a land not so far away... four children came together at the dining room table in the dining room of their home. The eldest became known as the Dungeon Master. The other three children were players of the game of Dungeons and Dragons.

The players learned to follow a map and figure out directions. They even brought a compass into the game so they could orient themselves with the directions needed to follow the dungeon created by the Dungeon Master. As they developed their skills they became better at avoiding traps, solving riddles and finding their way to the hidden treasures.

The Dungeon Master also picked up new skills and enjoyed causing confusion, building even more twisted dungeons and bringing the players into a special maze with a treasure they never did quite manage to find.

The four children were myself and my brother and sisters.

I loved being the Dungeon Master! We started playing with my Dad as the Dungeon Master but he didn't have patience to stick with the game and yet he had endless patience when it came to stopping the game to read every last rule for the game. Eventually we had the game to ourselves and enjoyed the spirit of the game more than being good rule-abiding Dungeon and Dragon players and characters.

I wish I still had a group to play Dungeons and Dragons with. My nephew, Zack, plays with a group of his high school friends. But, now they are all in the first year of university and will have a harder time getting together in one place at the same time. I hope they can keep their game going.

The only downfall for the game of Dungeons and Dragons is that you really do need the same group of people each time you play. It's not so easy to bring in new characters and adapt old characters to merge with the game as it is with the ongoing characters in the game.

Now you can get the new editions of the Dungeons and Dragons game, rules and equipment.

Later I did find more Dungeon and Dragon sets, rulebooks, manuals and guides but my brother and sisters and I had long grown up, moved away from each other and now we are more likely to play card games when we get together. But, I still love D & D and I've kept all the books, game parts and even some of my old map creations.

I hate anyone saying they are bored. To me it just means they aren't putting in enough real effort into what they are doing - or making the most of what they could be doing. Dungeons and Dragons took a lot of effort, planning and even real skills (like map reading and map making). Anyone who claims to be bored with playing D&D has likely dumbed it down and lost interest.

I didn't even want to play Carmageddon the first time I was asked. I was the type to play city building games, not shooters and anything bloody and violent or aggressive. The game grew on me. When I didn't take it too seriously I had a lot of fun, stress release and a dark sense of humour and it was soon my favourite game. I still like my city building games but, there are times when city building is just a bit too tame and nice.

Carmageddon, the first game, looks pretty rustic by modern game standards. But, if you can get it working on your computer, Carmageddon 1 is still a lot of fun. It came out in the late 1990's and was restricted in the UK. You had to buy extra software to have the full effects of the game. It has never been a fluffy bunny type of game.

In Carmageddon you need a dark sense of humour to drive recklessly while keeping control of your car, smashing and racing your opponents in a demolition where you get extra points for pedestrian and animal carnage. Or, you can stick to the paler, less bloody, version where the pedestrians and animals are all robot creatures.

Carmageddon 2 came along and was called Crashopalypse. It was a smoother looking version of the same game. Arguably, it is the best version so far. Better graphics, more tracks and more challenges.

Carmageddon 3 never got very far. The gameplay was not as smooth and the controls were awkward. I could not get past the first level because I found it impossible to get enough points. I would not be surprised if I had also had trouble with the other versions. But, I didn't. I was able to beat both games, without resorting to the cheat mode. But, the cheat mode did add to the fun when I wanted to repel cars and and shock pedestrians. (Did I mention Carmageddon is not for the faint of heart)?

Carmageddon 4 (going by the name Carmageddon Reincarnation) is due out soon. The date has changed a few times but we are finally getting a new version of the game. I have signed up for it, contributed to it and now I'm just waiting for the day I can download it and play.

Die Anna was from the first Carmageddon game in the series. I hope they bring more women drivers into the game. Not as slutty bystander types but real drivers who don't show cleavage.

Wreckage, Mayhem, Demolition and the Mooing of Cows

Weekend Carmageddon marathons are some of my favourite ways to spend couple time. Not so much on the romantic side but it was pure pleasure. Hunting down my husband, determined to find his hideout spot and smash his car into bits of wreckage on the pavement - with him in it! Could you find a better way to spend a weekend together?

Carmageddon is a video game. You race a car around a track (several tracks with different themes) and you choose how you want to win the game.

• Demolition - Wreck and disable all the other players.
• Race - Be the first to get to the finish line - not as easy as it sounds.
• Carnage - Kill every last pedestrian, cow, dog, etc.

No, it's not a game for everyone. I'd rate it for the over 16 crowd but I know younger people are playing. I don't think they really have the maturity to appreciate the dark humour of the game. It should be taken as dark humour. If you look at it too closely you will just be horrified and never have any fun at all.

I've read posts from people who say they learned to drive, partially, from playing Carmageddon. You do get put into the driver's seat on a real tough course. You learn to control your vehicle in skids, wipe outs and over very rolling and bumpy terrain. Over time you develop a feel for how sharp or slow you need to take the turns without having your car spin out. I don't know if this experience will translate into the real world of driving a real car, but I've always thought it did (for me).

Mostly I play the game just for fun, some stress release and a chance to let out my dark humour in a way that harms none (husbands don't count when they're in the game).

Play Carmageddon on the LAN (Multiplayer)

We hooked up our computers over a network so we could both play on the game, at the time same. This was drastically fun. If you have some technical know-how and the hard ware to do it, I highly recommend playing Carmageddon as a LAN game with someone who won't get too angry once you turn their car into scrap metal.

Run Carmageddon 1 on a LAN - YouTube Video Instructions.

Carmageddon as a Single Player

Play alone and enjoy driving recklessly.

Target the computer players, track and hunt them down or get as many points as you can from power ups (some are hidden or take skill to access) and finish the race while leaving everyone else spinning around.

So far, winning the race has been kind of ignored when it comes to the computer generated players. You can always out race them on the regular game tracks. But, Carmageddon has not ignored the need for speed. There are games which you can only win by finishing before the timer runs out. But, you have a few obstacles... things like boats, nuclear reactors, treacherous roads, livestock, pedestrians, monster trucks with road rage and so on.

Carmageddon is Not for Animal Lovers without a Sense of Humour

Carmageddon 1 had cows on a track of the game. I know it sounds pretty bad to say I loved getting them, but I did and they are just digital cows. There was no cruelty to any real animals.

Carmageddon 2 (Carpocalypse) has dogs. I don't mind admitting I have very little affection for dogs. So, based on past personal experience, being able to run dogs down in the street did give me personal satisfaction. (You try being attacked by dogs and pulling a mouthful of teeth off your four-year-old sister and see how friendly you feel about dogs).

So, I know the dog killing spree won't be for everyone. You can still get the pedestrians and get points for extra skill in splattering them around. We all have some of our fellow man and woman we have no sentimental feelings for. Admit it, you'd secretly like to run down at least one person. Carmageddon is just a game, but it gives you that chance. Peer pressure be damned.

Carmageddon @carmageddongame

Finally... A NEW Carmageddon is in the Works!

Carmageddon: Reincarnation will be out in 2012. This time it's more than just a rumour. Die Anna - Girls Just Want to Have Fun

Addendum: The Carmageddon Reincarnation is out as an alpha game only to those who joined up and contributed to the KickStarter campaign. If you did, you can now be playing the game on Steam while it is in development. You get to see it evolve.

I know it's not a nice, pleasant game with fluffy bunnies and kitties. You don't grow things and harvest farm animals. You don't bake and run a fantasy shop of some kind. You just run things over, a lot.

If you want to do something differently you can choose to be the last one still driving in a demolition derby.

You can test your skills and see how well you keep control of your car in a race over hills, up paths and over and around various obstacles like boats, nuclear reactors, that kind of stuff.

Or, you can take out your frustrations of the day and get every last pedestrian on the map. You can win the game that way too.

• Stainless Games

Thirteen things I like about playing Kingdom of Loathing- KoL.

1. The stick figure drawings.

2. Every now and then you find something Canadian.

3. The weird humour. You have to play to read it.

4. It's free, right in my price range. Though I'm looking into making a donation.

5. It's an RPG. I always did like the choose your own adventure type of games. Still play a few of them on the computer, city building mainly but an RPG as well.

6. Who wouldn't like having a colossal closet, even if it's fictional?

7. My friend ADeadHeart is there. Don't say the c-word when you listen to her DJ at KoL Radio.

8. KoL Radio. If you have not experienced live radio alongside live chat you should try it, soon.

9. There are all kinds of really odd bits of equipment and some of them are edible.

10. It's not a game for those Grammar Queen types or those easily scared off by typos. No perfectionists could survive long in this game.

11. The currency of the game is meat!

12. It's always nice to find a group of fellow flakes to belong to.

13. I get my own character.