The RPG Self: Bleed, Constellation, and Consent
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33063/ijrp.vi16.638Keywords:
depth psychology, role-playing games, identity, archetypes, individuation, constellations, consentAbstract
This article is a philosophical exploration of the intersection between the deep narratives of tabletop RPGs and the notions of bleed and consent. This synoptic view integrates the theories of Carl Jung into a broader theory of self that expects the conscious meta-cognition of patterns within RPG play. It revisits bleed as a bi-directional process, its types, and properties (Beltrán 2012, Kemper 2017, Hugaas 2019, Hugaas 2024). Then, the article explores and extends the Jungian approach to RPGs (Bowman 2012, 2017, Beltrán 2012, 2013, Diakolambrianou & Bowman 2023), broadening the theoretical framework of bleed studies and consent-based gaming. The advantage of Jung’s theory lies in its aptitude to combine inner psychic manifestations with symbols, images, and feelings (Stevens 2002). The archetypes, the universal figures of supra-personal character that organize feeling-toned complexes, are key concepts (Stein 1998). Wrought in our dreams and mythology (Jung 2014), they set up the playground for our symbol-forming capacities (Stevens 2002).
The article proposes two new concepts to study individuation, archetypal engagement, and bleed in RPGs: constellation and the RPG Self. Finally, it discusses insights for studying bleed in Game Directors and, employing ideas from archetypal psychology (Adams 2002, Hillman 2004, Paris 2008), it explores future perspectives on devising safe strategies for consent-based gaming via the conscious recognition of archetypal images and mythic narratives born within the RPG Self.
References
Adams, Michael Vannoy. 2004. The Fantasy Principle: Psychoanalysis of the Imagination. New York: Brunner-Routledge.
Armstrong, Robert Plant. 1971. The Affecting Presence. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.
Bastarrachea-Magnani, Miguel Ángel. 2020. “Lo orgánico en los juegos de rol, más allá del racionalismo ilustrado.” In Lanzando los dados: aproximaciones académicas a los juegos de rol, edited by Mariana Rangel Jiménez, 81–92. Mexico City: Universidad Iberoamericana.
Bastarrachea-Magnani, Miguel Ángel. 2023. “A Coin with Two Sides: Role-Playing Games as Symbolic Devices.” International Journal of Role-Playing 13: 57–67.
Beltrán, Whitney “Strix.” 2012. “Yearning for the Hero Within: Live Action Role-Playing as Engagement with Mythical Archetypes.” In Wyrd Con Companion Book 2012, edited by Sarah Lynne Bowman and Aaron Vanek, 89–96. Los Angeles: Wyrd Con. Link here.
Beltrán, Whitney “Strix.” 2013. “Shadow Work: A Jungian Perspective on the Underside of Live Action Role-Play in the United States.” In Wyrd Con Companion Book 2013, edited by Sarah Lynne Bowman and Aaron Vanek, 94–101. Orange, CA: Wyrd Con. Link here.
Big Bad Con. 2016. “Safety and Calibration Tools.” Link here.
Bishop, Paul. 1996. “The Use of Kant in Jung’s Early Psychological Works.” Journal of European Studies 26: 107–40. Link here.
Boss, Emily Care. 2007. “Romance and Gender in Role Playing Games: Too Hot to Handle?” Paper presented at Ropecon 2007, Helsinki, Finland. Black and Green Games. Link here.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne. 2010. The Functions of Role-Playing Games: How Participants Create Community, Solve Problems, and Explore Identity. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne. 2012. “Jungian Theory and Immersion in Role-Playing Games.” In Immersive Gameplay: Essays on Participatory Media and Role-Playing, edited by Evan Torner and William J. White, 13–28. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne. 2013. “Social Conflict in Role-Playing Communities: An Exploratory Qualitative Study.” International Journal of Role-Playing 4: 17–18. Link here.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne. 2015. “Bleed: The Spillover Between Player and Character.” Nordiclarp.org. March 2, 2015. Link here.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne. 2017a. “Active Imagination, Individuation, and Role-Playing Narratives.” Tríade: Revista de Comunicação, Cultura e Mídia 5: 158–73. Link here.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne. 2017b. “A Matter of Trust: Larp and Consent Culture.” Nordiclarp.org. February 3, 2017. Link here.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne. 2025. “Games of Personal Horror: Shadow Work and Role-playing Experiences.” In Monstrosity in Games and Play: A Multidisciplinary Examination of the Monstrous in Contemporary Cultures, edited by Sarah Stang, Mikko Meriläinen, Joleen Blom, and Lobna Hassan. Amsterdam University Press.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne, and Karen Schrier. 2018. “Players and Their Characters in Role-Playing Games.” In Role-Playing Game Studies: Transmedia Foundations, edited by José P. Zagal and Sebastian Deterding, 395–410. New York: Routledge.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne, and Andreas Lieberoth. 2018. “Psychology and Role-Playing Games.” In Role-Playing Game Studies: Transmedia Foundations, edited by José P. Zagal and Sebastian Deterding, 245–64. New York: Routledge.
Bowman, Sarah Lynne, and Kjell Hedgard Hugaas. 2021. “Magic is Real: How Role-playing Can Transform Our Identities, Our Communities, and Our Lives.” In Book of Magic: Vibrant Fragments of Larp Practices, edited by Kari Kvittingen Djukastein, Marcus Irgens, Nadja Lipsyc, and Lars Kristian Løveng Sunde, 52-74. Oslo, Norway: Knutepunkt.
Brewster, Fanny. 2017. African Americans and Jungian Psychology: Leaving the Shadows. New York: Routledg
Brind, Simon. 2017. “Response to Ian Andrews.” In Once Upon a Nordic Larp... Twenty Years of Playing Stories, edited by Martine Svanevik, Linn Carin Andreassen, Simon Brind, Elin Nilsen, and Grethe Sofie Bulterud Strand, 167-175. Oslo, Norway: Knutepunkt. Link here.
Brown, Maury, and Benjamin A. Morrow. 2015. “Breaking the Alibi: Fostering Empathy by Reuniting the Player and Character.” In The Wyrd Companion Book 2015, edited by Sarah Lynne Bowman, 102-116. Los Angeles, CA: Wyrd Con.
Buber, Martin. 2018. I and Thou. London: Bloomsbury.
Caillois, Roger. 2001. Man, Play and Games. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press.
Diakolambrianou, Elektra, and Sarah Lynne Bowman. 2023. “Dual Consciousness: What Psychology and Counseling Theories Can Teach and Learn Regarding Identity and the Role-Playing Game Experience.” Journal of Role-Playing Studies and STEAM 2: 1–33.
Deleuze, Gilles, and Félix Guattari. 2004. A Thousand Plateaus. London: Continuum.
Deterding, Sebastian. 2017. “Alibis for Adult Play: A Goffmanian Account of Escaping Embarrassment in Adult Play.” Games and Culture 13: 260–79. Link here.
Ehrett, Carl, and Sarah Worth. 2012. “What Dungeons and Dragons Is and Why We Do It.” In Dungeons and Dragons and Philosophy: Raiding the Temple of Wisdom, edited by Jon Cogburn and Mark Silcox, 195–206. Chicago: Open Court.
Fine, Gary Alan. 1983. Shared Fantasy: Role-Playing Games as Social Worlds. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Gage, Ashley. 2023. “Consent in Gaming.” Crit Academy. Link here.
Gordon, Haim. 2001. The Heidegger-Buber Controversy: The Status of the I-Thou. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Harder, Sanne. 2018. “Larp Crush: The What, When, How.” Nordiclarp.org. March 28, 2018. Link here.
Hillman, James. 2004. “Why ‘Archetypal Psychology’?” In Uniform Edition of the Writings of James Hillman, volume 1: Archetypal Psychology, edited by James Hillman, 123–128. Spring Publications.
Hillman, James. 2004. Archetypal Psychology. Putnam, CT: Spring Publications.
Hugaas, Kjell Hedgard. 2019. “Investigating Types of Bleed in Larp: Emotional, Procedural, and Memetic.” Nordiclarp.org. January 25, 2019. Link here.
Hugaas, Kjell Hedgard. 2024. “Bleed and Identity: A Conceptual Model of Bleed and How Bleed-Out from Role-Playing Games Can Affect a Player’s Sense of Self.” International Journal of Role-Playing 15 (June): 9-35. Link here.
Huizinga, Johan. 1949. Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element of Culture. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Jara, David, and Evan Torner. 2018. “Literary Studies and Role-Playing Games.” In Role-Playing Game Studies: Transmedia Foundations, edited by José P. Zagal and Sebastian Deterding, 265–82. New York: Routledge.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1963. Memories, Dreams, Reflections. New York: Vintage Books.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1973. Letters: 1906–1950. Vol. 1. Edited by Gerhard Adler, Aniela Jaffé, and R. F. C. Hull. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1975a. “A Review of the Complex Theory.” In The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche. Vol. 8 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, Gerhard Adler, and William McGuire. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1975b. “On Psychic Energy.” In The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche. Vol. 8 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, Gerhard Adler, and William McGuire. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1975c. “On the Structure of the Psyche.” In The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche. Vol. 8 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, Gerhard Adler, and William McGuire. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1975d. “On the Nature of the Psyche.” In The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche. Vol. 8 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, Gerhard Adler, and William McGuire. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1976. “Symbols of Transformation.” In Symbols of Transformation. Vol. 5 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, Gerhard Adler, and William McGuire. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1977. Jung Speaking: Interviews and Encounters. Edited by William McGuire and R. F. C. Hull. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1981a. “The Psychological Diagnosis of Evidence.” In Experimental Researches. Vol. 2 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, and Gerhard Adler. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1981b. “The Reaction-Time Ratio in the Association Experiment.” In Experimental Researches. Vol. 2 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, and Gerhard Adler. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 1982. “The Feeling-Toned Complex and Its General Effects on the Psyche.” In Psychogenesis of Mental Disease. Vol. 3 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, Gerhard Adler, and William McGuire. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 2014a. “Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious.” In The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious. Vol. 9 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, and Gerhard Adler. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 2014b. “The Psychological Aspects of the Kore.” In The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious. Vol. 9 of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, edited by Herbert Read, Michael Fordham, and Gerhard Adler. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, Carl Gustav. 2010. Synchronicity: An Acausal Connecting Principle. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Kant, Immanuel. 1999. Critique of Pure Reason. Edited by Paul Guyer and Allen W. Wood. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Kalsched, Donald. 1996. The Inner World of Trauma: Archetypal Defenses of the Personal Spirit. New York: Routledge.
Kemper, Jonaya. 2017. “The Battle of Primrose Park: Playing for Emancipatory Bleed in Fortune & Felicity.” Nordiclarp.org, June 21. Link here.
Kemper, Jonaya. 2020. “Wyrding the Self.” Nordiclarp.org, May 18. Link here.
Leonard, Diana J., and Tessa Thurman. 2018. “Bleed-Out in the Brain: The Neuroscience of Character-to-Player Spillover in Larp.” International Journal of Role-Playing 9: 9–15. Link here.
Major, João Carlos. 2021. “Archetypes and Code Biology.” Biosystems 208: 104501. Link here.
McGrath, S. J. 2012. The Dark Ground of Spirit: Schelling and the Unconscious. New York: Routledge.
Montola, Markus. 2010. “The Positive Negative Experience in Extreme Role-Playing.” In Proceedings of DiGRA Nordic 2010: Experiencing Games: Games, Play and Players. Stockholm: DiGRA Nordic. Link here.
Montola, Markus, and Jussi Holopainen. 2012. “First Person Audience and the Art of Painful Role-Playing.” In Immersive Gameplay: Essays on Participatory Media and Role-Playing, edited by Evan Torner and William J. White, 73–93. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company.
Montola, Markus, Jaakko Stenros, and Eleanor Saitta. 2015. “The Art of Steering: Bringing the Player and the Character Back Together.” Nordiclarp.org, April 29. Link here.
Nilsen, Elin. 2012. “High on Hell.” In States of Play: Nordic Larp around the World, edited by Juhana Pettersson, 10–11. Solmukohta: Pohjoismaisen roolipelaamisen seura. Link here.
Papadopoulos, Renos K., ed. 2006. The Handbook of Jungian Psychology: Theory, Practice and Applications. London: Routledge.
Paris, Ginette. 2008. “How Is Psychology a Mythology?” In Varieties of Mythic Experience: Essays on Religion, Psyche and Culture, edited by Dennis Patrick Slattery and Glen Slater, 211–30. Einsiedeln, Switzerland: Daimon Verlag.
Rensma, Ritske. 2009. The Innateness of Myth: A New Interpretation of Joseph Campbell’s Reception of C. G. Jung. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing.
Reynolds, Sean K., and Shanna Germain. 2019. Consent in Gaming. Seattle, WA: Monte Cook Games.
Salen, Katie, and Eric Zimmerman. 2003. Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Samuels, Andrew. 1986. Jung and the Post-Jungians. New York: Routledge.
Schelling, Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph. 1989. The Philosophy of Art. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Stein, Murray. 1998. Jung’s Map of the Soul: An Introduction. Chicago and La Salle, IL: Open Court.
Stevens, Anthony. 2002. Archetype Revisited: An Updated Natural History of the Self. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Stavropoulos, John. 2013. “X-Card: Safety Tools for Simulations and Role-Playing Games.” Google Docs (self-published). Link here.
Toft, Ida, and Sabine Harrer. 2020. “Design Bleed: A Standpoint Methodology for Game Design.” In Proceedings of the 2020 DiGRA International Conference: Play Everywhere. Link here.
Torner, Evan. 2018. “Theorizing by Designer and Players.” In Role-Playing Game Studies: Transmedia Foundations, edited by José P. Zagal and Sebastian Deterding, 191–212. New York: Routledge.
Vedor, João Ereiras. 2023. “Revisiting Carl Jung’s Archetype Theory: A Psychobiological Approach.” Biosystems 234: 105059. Link here.
von Franz, Marie-Louise. 1964. “Science and the Unconscious.” In Man and His Symbols, edited by C. G. Jung and Marie-Louise von Franz, 362–63. New York: Anchor Press.
von Heydwolff, Andreas. 2000. “Konstellation / konstellieren.” In Wörterbuch der Psychotherapie, edited by Günter Stumm and Alfred Pritz, 304–10. Vienna: Springer. Link here.
Vossen, Emma. 2018. “The Magic Circle and Consent in Gaming Practices.” In Feminism in Play, edited by Kishonna L. Gray, Gerald Voorhees, and Emma Vossen, 205–20. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan.
Waern, Annika. 2010. “‘I’m in Love with Someone That Doesn’t Exist!!’ Bleed in the Context of a Computer Game.” In Proceedings of DiGRA Nordic 2010: Experiencing Games: Games, Play, and Players. Stockholm: DiGRA Nordic.
Walles, Jason. 2020. “Session Zero and Character Arcs.” Angel’s Citadel: Storytelling and Gaming. August 5, 2020. Link here.
Waskul, Dennis. 2006. “The Role-Playing Game and the Game of Role-Playing: The Ludic Self and Everyday Life.” In Gaming as Culture: Essays on Reality, Identity, and Experience in Fantasy Games, edited by J. Patrick Williams, Sean Q. Hendricks, and W. Keith Winkler, 19–38. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company.
Waskul, Dennis, and Matt Lust. 2004. “Role-Playing and Playing Roles: The Person, Player, and Persona in Fantasy Role-Playing.” Symbolic Interaction 27 (3): 333–56. Link here.
White, William J., Nicholas LaLone, and Nicholas J. Mizer. 2022. “At the Head of the Table: The TRPG GM as Dramatistic Agent.” JARPS: Japanese Journal of Analog Role-Playing Game Studies 3: 46–58. Link here.
Wolfendale, Pete, and Tim Franklin. 2012. “Why Dungeons and Dragons Is Art.” In Dungeons and Dragons and Philosophy: Raiding the Temple of Wisdom, edited by Jon Cogburn and Mark Silcox, 207–24. Chicago: Open Court.
Writing Games. 2024. “Consent: Meaning and Definition.” Link here.
Zagal, José P., and Sebastian Deterding. 2018. “Definitions of ‘Role-Playing Games.’” In Role-Playing Game Studies: Transmedia Foundations, edited by José P. Zagal and Sebastian Deterding, 19–51. New York: Routledge.
Zambrano, J. T. 2019. “RPG: Consent in Gaming Has Everyone Talking.” Bell of Lost Souls: Today’s Tabletop & RPG. September 2019. Link here.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Miguel Angel Bastarrachea Magnani
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
