Directed Blog Post 4: MMORPG Research

For the fourth directed blog post we were assigned the task to read from a collection of writings called “The Daedalus Project” (TDP), a web blog dedicated to the research and findings pertaining to  MMORPGs.  The site is operated by Nick Yee of the Palo Alto Research Center’s PlayOn research group.

“The PlayOn project at PARC is an investigation into the social dimensions of massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) and virtual worlds…”

In addition to TDP, the PlayOn site will also be a source of critical thinking in this entry. The PlayOn site, another blog, is the site maintained by the PARC research group.

The content of both sites is comparable. TDP and PlayOn both provide incredible insight into the social and psychological mechanics of the MMO machine. Considering there are over ten million World of Warcraft players alone, the research in this area is valuable. These two sites are excellent sources of this kind of information. From first glance at the site you are exposed to scientific studies on this type of subject matter. I had previously never guessed that this kind of work was being done, and the information that is presented in these sites is interesting. Articles cover lofty issues such as how we virtually project ourselves in a virtual world, to more serious topics like therapy and dependency of MMOGs. How we keep ourselves motivated to play these games, and questioning the stereotypes of gamers (anti-social, gender, age).

A primary objective of understanding apparent in TDP is learning what motivates us. Why is it that we spend seemingly wasted time in virtual worlds accomplishing little recognized by the outside world? Dr. Yee creates an empirical framework to answer this question. In his study titled “MMORPG Demographics, Motivations, and Experiences”, Yee surveys 6,000+ players of the game Ever Quest to discover what draws them to the game. The survey construed the following terms for motivating factors: relationships, manipulation, immersion, escapism, achievement, and learning. Female players were driven by the relationship factor, while male players found their motivation in achievement and manipulation. Furthermore, the study indicates that these experiences created genuine relationships, and practical leadership skills. This study seems incredibly reliable considering the size of the dataset.

As an adult gamer myself it is not uncommon to be compared to a child for playing video games. =( Sad yes, but true? No. And the data collected from the above study supports me and my feelings. The gender distribution was nearly 50/50. Shocking, I guess. But in this case we can question the validity of these figures. Consider that the dataset was provided by one game, in one slice of the gaming genre. Average gaming age was 27, another reality check. Once again, the old stereotypes are not exactly met here. Unfortunately, nobody said that these stereotypes were designed for MMO players, just players in general.When it comes to ingame stereotypes, and I mean stereotypes that are built into the game, they exist. Apparently it isn't easy to find every ethnic hairstyle you want.