Winners or Victims? Discussing Identity Tracking and Behavior Analysis in Next-Gen Video Games from a Digital Civil Rights Perspective

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to apply societal discourses on ‘big data’ to the growing practice of the collection of individual information and behavioral patterns of video game players to create virtual player representations. Game developers make use of such data to enhance the gameplay experience, and publishers can learn more about their customers. This article explains technical backgrounds and reasons why developers and publishers have an interest in gathering such a vast load of data. It also explains server gaming and game metrics technologies, takes a look at methods of consumer research, and discusses a critical standpoint from a civil rights perspective. While single aspects of the topic like big data or data mining have been researched and discussed before, the fact that many of today´s video games are constantly retrieving, collecting and maintaining personal data about the players to learn about their patterns of behavior had much less coverage thus far. From a civil rights perspective new dangers arise beyond the widely discussed topics of virtual violence or obsessive gaming and gambling. As a result, it highlights the necessity that modern computer game players should view themselves as vital parts of information networks and, in return for being entertained, provide important personal information that can help to make their individual behavior transparent and usable for third parties and probably information brokers. Not only do providers of games benefit from the socioeconomic information users give, but security agencies and human resource consultants also share a vital interest in any behavioural data that makes an individual become transparent and predictable. Intelligence services, corporations and social networks generate user profiles from data previously submitted during gameplay. This could have a significant impact on future job and life prospects and aid the economic and political control of individuals since character traits like cowardize or courage and sociality become traceable.