Since its conception in 1974, Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) has been a staple of geek culture. Recently, it has even become a bit of a pop culture phenomenon with its inclusion in the Netflix show Stranger Things, as well as the advent of D&D shows such as Critical Role and The Adventure Zone. Despite its rise in popularity, the game is still at risk of fading back into obscurity thanks to a new controversy.

D&D is no stranger to controversy. During its early years many religious and parental groups believed the game to be occult in some way, and some of those beliefs are still held to this day.

D&D has also faced criticism for sexism due to misogynistic comments made by Gary Gygax, the creator of D&D, in the past as well as for negative portrayals of women in early editions of the game. Over time, however, many of these views have been removed from the game to create a game anyone can play freely.

However, a new controversy has arisen in D&D. This time, however, the issue lies with certain players of the game. These players are gatekeepers.

A gatekeeper is any person that uses prejudiced beliefs to keep certain groups of people from participating in something. Gatekeeping is not new to D&D either. Gygax's beliefs and general misogyny was a very common tool for gatekeepers to keep women from playing the game in its early years.

As the current edition of D&D has gained popularity, the company behind the game has been more open about who can play the game, making sure that everyone feels welcome playing it, and trying to make sure players understand that they shouldn't gatekeep the game. In 2020, however, it has come to light that gatekeeping to keep women from playing the game has become a serious issue again.

Because of misogynistic men that play the game trying to gatekeep the game, D&D's popularity is being stunted. The company behind the game has been trying to combat this by making the game more accessible to a larger and diverse audience of men and women.

The fate of the game, however, lies with the players. Anyone should be able and welcome to play D&D. If gatekeeping continues, then the game may not be able to reach a larger audience and may fade out of popularity, and if the game becomes associated with these misogynistic gatekeepers, then it may not be able to come back to the mainstream.