The steam tunnel incident refers not to a single event, but rather, to a set of mostly mythical events wherein players enacting live action role-playing games perished therein.

The stories are, for the most part, apocryphal. The "original" incident concerns a student named Dallas Egbert alleged to have disappeared into the Michigan State University steam tunnels for reasons related to the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. Later versions involve groups of students attempting to enact "dungeon adventures" in the steam tunnels, getting lost and dying of hyperthermia.

For the most part, role-playing games are not dangerous. However, there are rare cases of addiction, especially with MMORPGs like EverQuest. Usually the reality, in cases of addiction, is less sensational than the "steam tunnel incident". Despite high-profile cases where role-playing gamers have committed suicide allegedly due to the game, there is no evidence that these games actually increase a person's likelihood of committing suicide.

External link

• "The Attacks on Role-Playing Games" by Paul Cardwell, Jr. (http://www.rpgstudies.net/cardwell/attacks.html)