So if anyone is a gamer who enjoys games like Zelda or Role Playing games like Final Fantasy they are probably aware of the game genre known as the MMORPG. Massive Multi-player Online Roleplaying Games or MMOs for short, can be a cool online way to play fun games and socialize with friends who are playing. Unfortunately this type of game carries a very heavy side effect for those with addictive personalities. Unlike a normal game like Halo, MMOs rarely end. Most don't have a final boss or a finished storyline and this can be very dangerous. Many gamers are conditioned to work towards their goal of beating a game; with MMOs however, there is no endgame. There is always better equipment to obtain, more monsters to fight, and more achievements to earn. The problem with this is that many people will forgo time spent with friends and family to play these games. It is also scary because the amount of hours you put into the game is a sort of bragging right within the game. So if you call in sick to work and play for 14 hours that day, people inside the game will applaud your dedication and you will earn more and more honor and respect for your numerous hours. I was heavily involved in an MMO called Guild Wars. It had everything I wanted in a game and it never ended. It was too good to be true. At one period of time I was playing 10-12 hours a day. This went on for about a year before a lot of my friends and family finally approached me and helped me snap out of it. I hadn't even realized I was that addicted. I didn't eat me
als with my family, I didn't go out with friends, I didn't even finish most of my classes each day. When I wasn't playing, I was thinking about playing and about what else I needed to get in the game to make myself better. It consumed me entirely. I see this mentality a lot with the very popular game called World of Warcraft or WoW. With WoW, there is such a phenomenally deep series of character choices that someone could play for a year and still find out exponentially more gameplay they haven't yet experienced. I am just putting out a word of warning from someone who has been there. Moderation is key or else these games do have the ability to take over your whole social life and you may not even see it coming.Here are some more articles on this issue that is still very much under the radar:
Addiction Research
MMOs Anonymous
First Hand
I used to teach a class in the department called "Mass Communication Theory & Research" (COMM 396, RIP), and one year we read a book by Edward Castronova called SYNTHETIC WORLDS: THE BUSINESS & CULTURE OF ONLINE GAMES (2006). I would highly highly recommend checking this book out--see if our library has it, or else try to order it via Interlibrary loan. (You should see it before you buy it--but I highly recommend it.) Along those lines, also search out Henry Jenkins' CONVERGENCE CULTURE: WHERE OLD & NEW MEDIA COLLIDE (2006).
ReplyDeleteFor the record, I've never played a mmorpg, but I'm pretty invested in fantasy baseball, football, etc...
It is amazing what online worlds there are that some many people don't even know about. One such being Second Life which has made millionaires out of normal people selling online in-game real estate. I'm going to look that book up because the whole subject is fascinating to me.
ReplyDeleteI have to say when I saw the WOW photo on your blog I almost threw up a little bit. ONLY because I don't understand the obsession and why people dedicate their lives to this game! I tried TRIED to understand what is so fascinating about this and yes I will admit it's entertaining and challenging, however I can't seem to rap my mind around people playing it for 24 hours a day! I think this would be something worth researching...other than people finding it more entertaining in a fictional invincable world than real life (dilusional)
ReplyDeleteOh yea it's brutal. The allure comes from people who love video games to begin with and then find a game like this that has everything imaginable for them. It then quietly siphons your soul. But now from an outsiders perspective again, it really does baffle me that people put years of their life into this game with no real payoff in any way. What were to happen to these people if Blizzard (developer) got sued and lost everything and shut down WoW for ever. There goes 5 years of your life, congratulations.
ReplyDeletePeople are really die-hard fans. (especially my boyfriend who goes to the extreme of purchasing the mountain dew cans of soda because the characters from WOW are on it...sad I know.) I have asked him why he enjoys the game so much and he just says, "it's awsome". Thankfully, he isn't playing it religously or else there would be cause for concern. I will never understand the GREATNESS of this game.
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