New RPG Player Matching Service: RPGMatch
Often game runners and dungeon masters have difficulty finding players, and the opposite could also be said. Sometimes it can be easy to find people that are interested in whatever tabletop game you want to run, or get to take part in. We got a chance to interview Joaquin Lippincott of RPGMatch. Sit back and learn more about this RPG matchmaking service!
GeekPost: What is RPGMatch?
Joaquin L: RPGMatch is a matching service for TTRPG gaming folks. Sort of like Tinder for playing roleplaying games. Not a romantic matching service but a way to find people to play games with.
GeekPost: Where did you get the idea?
Joaquin L: I got back into the TTRPG space after being away from it for 14 years. It was 2020 in peak covid times, and I wanted something to do with my kids -age 18 and 14- that didn’t involve computer screens. So I got back into D&D and bought the 5th edition books. We had a great time, and after a while I really wanted a group that I could play with on my own, but I didn’t know anybody. I was sure that by now there must be some kind of matching service, but I couldn’t find anything except random subreddits and Discord channels. Starting a new game is a really big commitment and there was no way to see if you and the other people would be a good match without an awkward request to fill out a form, or something similar. I wanted a better way to meet people that liked to play the style and the games that I like, so I decided to build it.
GeekPost: How did you get started gaming? Do you get to game often these days? And what is your favorite system and class?
Joaquin L: My first exposure to D&D was back in 1983, when I found a copy of the 1st edition Monster Manual at an after school program. I was about 5, so I couldn’t read everything, but I remember the pictures. I didn’t play my first game until 4th grade, when I found a copy of the Moldvay’s Basic D&D set and I was off to the races. I played for years, until I had my daughter when I was 24. I did have one game I played when she was a baby where I would rock her to sleep, but things got tough by about the year 2006 when I moved to Oregon from California.
These days I run a game once a week (on Wednesday nights) which I’ve set in Waterdeep. I’ve gone back and collected all of the old lore and boxed sets, and Ed Greenwood (@theedverse) has been amazing when I have questions about whether they have toilets in Waterdeep (it turns out they do) or who the latest 15th century nobles who could be found around town are. It’s actually really hard to run a good city campaign, and it’s also hard to run someone else’s world, but I am enjoying the challenge. That game is a 5th edition D&D game, with quite a bit of house rules that make it grittier and more dangerous.
Find and Follow RPGMatch on Twitter
My favorite system would have to be D&D 3.5e, though I’ve played all kinds of great games: Call of Cthulhu, Vampire the Masquerade, Mage the Ascension, Paranoia, Shadowrun, GURPS, and even recently bought games I still have to play: Blades in the Dark, Shadow of the Demon Lord, and the new Fallout release. I really love rolling 20-sided dice, and it turns out I’m not alone. Here’s a poll to prove it!
As far as a class, I’m a forever DM, so I get to play them all. I find I’m often drawn back to Fighters or Paladins, though I’m playing a Wizard in an upcoming game in the UK (so I guess I can’t really call myself a forever DM).
GeekPost: What do you do for fun when you’re not gaming and working on RPG Match?
Joaquin L: I really like my day job, and I like spending time with my family. I’m very happily married (going on 22 years) and my kids are really great. I try to exercise and get outdoors, so I can feel better about spending hours and hours prepping for my next D&D session.
GeekPost: Do you yourself have experience with code and creating apps?
Joaquin L: Yes, I do, though I’m retired from writing code myself. I’m fortunate that my day job puts me in touch with an amazing application development team, so we have a full crew: UX Designer, Product Owner, Project Manager, Programmers, and QA Engineer — all engaged on building the project. It’s not their sole focus, but several of them are gamers themselves and they are having a great time building it.
GeekPost: Do you consider yourself a geek?
Joaquin L: Hmm. I’m definitely a nerd, and I have some geeky tendencies. Yeah, I’d say I’m a geek.
GeekPost: Do you have any pets?
Joaquin L: Yes! I have a 10-pound dog named Winter. He is a chunky Yorkshire Terrier and he loves to play fetch. We named him Winter in honor of Game of Thrones which we were watching a lot of when we got him. We got him as a puppy and had to wait for him to get old enough that we could take him home, so we kept saying “Winter is coming…”
GeekPost: This is a pretty large undertaking. What do your family and friends think of this endeavor?
Joaquin L: Most of my family and friends have no idea what I am up to. For my immediate family, my wife and kids, they are supportive. My wife says to follow my passion, and so I am.
GeekPost: What platforms will RPGMatch be available for?
Joaquin L: We’re initially releasing the RPGMatch as a responsive, web-based mobile-first application. That makes it immediately available on all platforms, and then we can start to collect more data on usage. I think most of the users will be on their phones, but I don’t really know and I’m excited to find out!
GeekPost: What one thing would you like anyone who reads this interview to know?
Joaquin L: I really care about the TTRPG community, and this is a labor of love. Our mission is to connect every tabletop roleplaying gamer with their perfect group. I think this is an amazing hobby and I want to help as many people as I can find people who will become lifelong friends and avoid crazy crash-and-burn moments. Over the years I’ve had some crazy encounters, and I think we can do this safer, more respectfully, and give everyone a chance to play the way they want to.
GeekPost would like to say thank you to Joaquin Lippincott of RPGMatch. If you would like to learn more about RPGMatch and keep an eye out about the launch, you can find them on Twitter.
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