Multiplayer Online Role-playing Games Research Articles

High school students involved and not involved in MMORPG: Creativity and innovativeness

The paper presents a theoretical and empirical analysis of involvement phenomenon in massively multiplayer online role-playing games among high school students. The characteristics of the virtual world are analyzed; its role in the life and activity of modern people is substantiated. The main features of the games that make them the most attractive to users and contribute to their active involvement in the game process are highlighted. The advantages of mass multiplayer online role-playing games are substantiated. On the basis of the theoretical analysis was formulated the aim of the study: to identify differences in the manifestations of innovativeness and creativity in high school students involved and not involved in MMORPG. Hypotheses about the existence of significant connections and differences in the manifestations of innovativeness and creativity in those involved and not involved in this type of games are formulated. The study involved 120 students of 10-11th forms and was based on the following methods: 1) questionnaire to assess the degree of enthusiasm in role-playing computer games; 2) questionnaire for the study of gaming activity, experience and gaming genre preferences of the individual; 3) self-assessment scale of personal innovative traits; 4) a multidimensional questionnaire “Innovativeness of a personality” - MQIP; 5) “Creativity” test. As a result of the study those involved in computer games are characterized by higher originality, imagination and creative thinking than their peers not playing massive multiplayer online role-playing games. The article presents a number of recommendations on the use of the plot potential of multiplayer online role-playing games for the development of high school students’ personality in modern teaching practice.

Is Sociability or Interactivity more Effective for Enhancing Performance? Findings from a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game

The essential issue currently challenging marketing managers in the virtual world is: How can a virtual world feature be designed to elevate consumers' purchase of virtual items and usage in the virtual world? Previous scholars have investigated the issue and have published their predictions on the individual level. Yet, they have done so without specifically addressing endogeneity or carryover effect among users and their activities. To alleviate this omission and potential methodological bias, we probe the impact of virtual world technological features on two performance criteria at the platform level. In addition, we differentiate two types of users (new vs returning users) and probe their distinct impact on purchase of virtual items and usage patterns in the virtual world. When using data from one virtual world and applying the vector auto regression model, results show that virtual world managers can elevate performance through promotion of both types of users' activities. The effects of these activities, however, are varied. Specifically, for returning users, interactivity leads to a more significant impact on consumers' purchase of virtual goods than sociability, while the opposite effect is applicable to usage in the virtual world. For new users, interactivity is more efficient for promotion of users' purchase of virtual goods than sociability, while the results are the opposite for usage in the virtual world.

Paying to play: an economic experiment examining children’s avatar preferences and their willingness to pay for them

PurposeThe purpose of this study is a formal experimental economics test of results found in a study designed and executed by a 12-year-old who was concerned about what she perceived to be bias in gaming applications (apps) that provided male avatar characters for no cost but required in-app purchases to access female characters. The present study was designed to test empirically whether children have a revealed preference for same-gendered characters and whether such preferences are dependent on the cost of the characters.Design/methodology/approachChildren from 6 to 16 years of age were recruited to participate in a framed field economics experiment in which they would earn actual money and be given opportunities to spend it on in-game avatars they could then use to continue to play. Additionally, a survey gathered data on participants’ stated preferences and experiences playing game apps on mobile phones.FindingsChildren do prefer to play a character of the same gender; however, they are more likely to remain the default character if choosing a different character costs money. When asked to say why they picked their character, children report most often that it is based on either the characters’ appearance or gender, followed by perceived character abilities, liking the character and the cost of a character. A vast majority (90 per cent) of children felt both male and female characters should be free.Research limitations/implicationsThis research was limited because the experiment simulated in-app purchases but could not offer the permanence of real-world in-app purchases. Players in the experiment could not “keep” the character if they chose to pay for it. The authors adjusted for this by making the cost to change character gender much lower than it would be in the game (25 cents in the study vs approximately $10 in the app). Future research could explore ways to make in-app purchases during the study permanent for players to test if the permanence of the purchase results in greater willingness to pay to switch character gender.Practical implicationsThis research has practical implications for video game designers. As both male and female players prefer to play with characters of the same gender, and having a cost to play a character reduces switching behavior, it is possible that having a cost for female characters reduces the popularity of the game with female players. This is especially relevant for endless running games as these games are preferred more by women than men. By making female characters free, default character and developers may increase the popularity of these games with female players.Originality/valueThis study adds to the body of literature about gender and video game preferences because prior studies relied solely on stated preferences about characters (using surveys and self-reported behaviors) and not on revealed preferences (observed behaviors). Additionally, this study examines character gender preferences in a casual game, while most prior studies have examine preferences in massively multiplayer online role-playing games.

Are Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games healthy or not and why? Preliminary support for a Compensatory Social Interaction model

Data and theory have generated mixed results about the positive versus negative psychological effects of massively multiplayer role-playing games (MMORPGs). Such games provide opportunities to interact with others in ways that (like in-person groups) can foster cooperation and social support from others; however, they can facilitate social aggression and peer victimization as well. The current study involved multi-group path analysis of survey data obtained from 337 frequent MMORPG users. The paper proposes and supports a Compensatory Social Interaction model in which MMORPG play was simultaneously associated with healthy outcomes as a function of higher online social support and adverse outcomes as a function of online peer victimization. These countervailing processes offset one another, ostensibly suggesting that MMORPG use was unassociated with these outcomes; however, follow-up analyses revealed that the kind of outcome depended on individuals’ levels of online social support versus victimization. Results are interpreted in light of the Compensatory Social Interaction model and possible clinical applications.

Fetishism Towards The Visual Appearance Of The Character's Avatar In The Online Mobile Game Of Ragnarok: Eternal Love

Advances in communication technology and the internet, video games developed into games that can not only be played by two people, but many people at once, even up to millions of people. Massive multiplayer online role-playing game or abbreviated as MMORPG is a video game that is played by many people at once and is set in a virtual world. MMORPG generally gives players the freedom to create their own avatars, ranging from race, skin color, hair color, to costumes. In Ragnarok Online Mobile: Eternal Love or usually likened to RoM: Eternal Love, players must pay a sum of virtual money to get (randomly) unique costumes to enhance their character's visual appearance. Players are willing to spend up to millions of rupiah to buy the desired costume. Commodity fetishism is now no longer limited to material objects such as luxury cars, expensive watches and branded bags, but also to virtual commodities and video games. As in the phenomenon of RoM: Eternal Love, fetishism is a virtual commodity.

BeXplorer: Visual analytics of dynamic interplay between communication and purchase behaviors in MMORPGs

With the rapid development of massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs), a huge amount of fine-grained data on the in-game activities of players have been recorded by MMORPGs operators. These data provide considerable opportunities with which to study the dynamic interplay between player behaviors and investigate the roles of various social structures that underlie such interplay. However, it is challenging to model and visualize these behavioral data. This study proposes a novel influence-susceptible model to measure the dynamic interplay between behaviors. Based on this model, we introduce a new visual analytics system called BeXplorer. This system enables analysts to interactively explore the dynamic interplay between player purchase and communication behaviors and to examine the manner in which this interplay is bound by social structures where players are embedded. Three case studies and a task-based evaluation are conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness and applicability of our method.

NON-POISSON DONATION BEHAVIORS IN VIRTUAL WORLDS

Similar to charitable giving in real world, donation behaviors play an important role in the complex interactions among individuals in virtual worlds. However, it is not clear if the donation process is random or not. We investigate this problem using detailed data from parallel virtual worlds adhered to a massively multiplayer online role-playing game. We find that the inter-donation durations follow power-law-tailed distributions distributed with an average tail exponent close to 1.91, have strong long-range correlations, and possess multifractal features. These findings indicate that the donation process is non-Poissonian, which has potential worth in modeling the complicated individual behaviors in virtual worlds.

How to measure and model QoE for networked games?

In this paper, we investigate methodologies for modeling quality of experience (QoE) for networked video games, focusing on massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs), and using Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft (WoW) as a case study. In two user studies, involving a total of 104 players, we investigate system, user, and context parameters and evaluate their impact on QoE and related quality features. We also discuss some methodological questions related to measuring gaming QoE, which can be used as guidelines for future gaming QoE studies. We further analyze a set of quality metrics “beyond MOS”. Having evaluated different modeling techniques, we present and evaluate four linear statistical models and three (non-linear) machine learning models for estimating MMORPG QoE. Finally, we make our datasets available to the research community to foster further analysis and reproducibility of results.

Migrant gaming girls in Beijing: Urban solitude, play, and attempts to integrate

Individuals are said to be free to desire and free to choose their ‘urban dreams’ in China. This is not true. Drawing on participant observation and in-depth interviews with members of a WoW guild, we examine the lived stories and daily practices of these well-educated migrant gaming girls. The girls have usually been ‘taken’ to the metropolis, and their vulnerability lies in the fact they may not get adequate emotional or social support. It’s all because of their ‘outsider’ identities rather than lack of requisite suzhi (‘human quality’). A back-and-forth shuttling between popular massively multi-player online role-playing games (MMORPGs) like WoW and the ‘real world’ can help them regain or alter themselves. These enterprising-selves are ultimately thus accomplished. The desiring-selves part, to the contrary, is unable to be empowered by the digital real.

Measuring Female Gaming: Gamer Profile, Predictors, Prevalence, and Characteristics From Psychological and Gender Perspectives.

Research investigating female gaming is relatively scarce, and past research has demonstrated that men are more likely to be problematic gamers. Few studies have focused on female gamers in community samples, and those that have been published have mainly collected qualitative data in Europe. There is case study evidence suggesting clinicians are increasingly treating problem female gamers. The aim of this study is threefold: (i) to establish an international female gamer profile, (ii) to determine predictors associated with perceived internet gaming disorder (IGD), and (iii) to identify those who are potentially at risk of developing gaming addiction and its characteristics by applying a quantitative approach. A cross-sectional online survey was applied through international gaming forums recruiting 625 female gamers, assessing sociodemographics, gaming devices used and play genres, and a set of questionnaires on gaming [e.g., problem online gaming (e.g., the nine-item short-form scale to assess IGD: IGDS9-SF), female stereotypes (e.g., sex role stereotyping scale), and psychological symptoms (e.g., Symptom CheckList-27-plus)]. Female gamers from all continents reported the use of all videogames, especially popular online games using computers and consoles. The proportion of gamers with potential IGD was one per cent. Regression analyses identified several risk factors for increased scores on the IGDS9-SF, namely having achievement and social motivations, embodied presence and identification with the avatar, hostility and social phobia together with negative body image, playing Multiplayer Online Battle Arena games, Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games, and First-Person-Shooter games. Findings contribute to filling the gap in knowledge on female gaming, to aid in the applicability of problematic gaming measurements in female gamers, especially those who are at risk of problematic gaming. The purpose of this study is to enhance the validity of the current measures to diagnose problem gaming appropriately in both genders.

Behavior Pattern Recognition of Game Dragon Nest Using Bloom Filter Method

Dragon Nest is one of Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Game (MMORPG online games. It has become the most popular online game played by people around the world. This work observes two examples of the MMORPG online games: the Dragon Nest INA and the Legend DN II. The purpose is to analyze the traffic data of the Dragon Nest to find and discern the patterns of behavior of the Dragon Nest INA and the Legend DN II using Deep Packet Inspection (DPI). A dataset is constructed by capturing traffic data from the testbed environment. Then feature extraction, feature selection, and visualization are performed during the experiments. Experiment results shows the traffic data of the Dragon Nest INA is higher than the Legend DN II. It is because of the difference in the number of entries in the game. Then, the Bloom filter method is used as a tool to check the existence of a pattern of the Dragon Nest in the dataset. The false positive rate of matching is 0.399576%.

Computer game licences: The EULA and its discontents

This article considers the legal efficacy of terms found in the end-user licences (EULAs) of Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs). The article focuses on selected terms in the EULAs of well-known MMORPGs, Everquest and Runescape as well as a more recent MMORPG, Path of Exile. Although there are many examples of inappropriate and unenforceable terms in EULAs, computer games provide a particularly salient example. Eager for access to a game, players accept the EULA without question and, unaware of their rights or keen to avoid costly litigation, rarely challenge the terms. Given the value of the games industry to the international economy, the article recommends that international guidance for EULA content is needed.

French gamer-speak: new conceptualizations of text production, virtual spaces, and social stratification

This article discusses the significance of French gamer idiolect, here called “gamer-speak,” for the French gaming subculture. Two Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games (MMORPGs), World of...

Layout placement optimization methods using repeated user interface sequence patterns for client applications

We propose a method for automatically optimizing the layout placement of user interfaces in commercial applications. The proposed method suggests an optimal user interface component placement layout for an application by considering behavior cost, repeated user interface sequences, and preferred placement area. We used the Apriori algorithm and a genetic algorithm efficiently to optimize user interface component placement based on the evaluation of a keystroke-level model. We verified the effectiveness of the proposed method using a customizable user interface for three applications, namely, Adobe Photoshop, 3DS MAX, and the massively multiplayer online role-playing game “World of Warcraft.” Our experimental results show that the proposed system can both reduce the behavioral cost of an application at the user level and enable efficient user interface usage by considering interrelationship patterns among user interface components.

Not Only for the (Tom) boys: Gender Variables as Predictors for Playing Motivations, Passion, and Addiction for MMORPGs

Background. Research on playing motivation and passion for MMORPGs and gender has so far mainly focused on biological sex and neglected variables related to social gender such as masculinity and femininity. As some playing motivations and obsessive passion are assumed to be related to problematic game play, problematic game play is still considered a male phenomenon, often based on mainly male samples and disregarding underlying causes in problematic tendencies that could explain or extent findings on biological sex difference. Method. This survey based quantitative study investigated the impact of masculine and feminine personality on game play motivations, passion, and problematic game play. Massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) players ( N = 375, 44.3% female) were recruited via Facebook and online games. Feminine and masculine personality traits were assessed along with game play motivations, passion, and problematic game play. Results. Stepwise regression analyses revealed that gender traits add significant value for almost all variables of interest. Negative masculine traits were positive predictors for achievement as game play motivation while positive feminine traits predicted social interaction. Harmonious passion was predicted by positive masculine traits. Negative feminine traits were found to predict immersion as well as obsessive passion and were also important for problematic game play. Conclusion. Gender traits add valuable information to mere biological sex concerning different game related concepts such as motivation, passion, and problematic game play. Despite the idea that problematic game play is a male phenomenon, negative feminine traits seem to be linked to problematic tendencies. We suggest including gender and personality variables for future games and/or media studies.

Mechanisms of Disclosure: A Socio-technical Perspective on Sociality in Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Games

It is a mainstay in game studies that Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games are boasting social relations and community formation. Considering games as “sociotechnical” environments, this article studies how the usage of external communication technologies in an online video game guild shapes the members’ social dynamics. Based on a one-year ethnographic study of a women’s guild in The Elder Scrolls Online (TESO), the analysis shows that the infrastructure of TESO guards anonymous interaction by default and contributes to the game as a “safe space.” The displacement of guild communication to media platforms outside the game, however, unleashed mechanisms of disclosure: a leakage of information from the private, domestic domain via TeamSpeak and the “sharing” imperative of personal information on Facebook. Such techno-induced forms of personal disclosure act as a double-edged sword: they strengthen the guild’s social bonds but, simultaneously, breed tensions, peer-to-peer surveillance, and social control within the guild.

Ethnography of Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Games

Ethnography of Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Games

Applying Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) in EFL Teaching

This article explores the use of massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) as a type of serious games that have English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learning potentials. It highlights evidence from a case study which investigated the effects of role-playing in MMOGs on communication behaviours among EFL game players. Additionally, findings from the study elucidate the learning principles of good games that incorporate the dynamics of gaming which induce the language learner to be active generators of information, knowledge and language. Essentially the preliminary findings reported affirm the viability of online games as a potential tool for teaching and learning in the 4.0 era, which endeavours to engage the digital natives of the 21st century. The study thus claims that MMOGs in particular the massively multiplayer online role-playing games or MMORPGs can facilitate in providing contextualized and authentic language interaction opportunities in English between online multilingual speakers.

Does avatar's character and emotional bond expose to gaming addiction? Two studies on virtual self-discrepancy, avatar identification and gaming addiction in massively multiplayer online role-playing game players

This study aims to analyze virtual self-discrepancy (VSD), avatar identification, and gaming addiction in Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs). Two studies were conducted to test the relations between VSDs (i.e., idealized vs utopian avatar), avatar identification, and gaming addiction. In the cross-sectional survey (Study 1; 770 MMORPGs players) we assumed that higher MMORPG addiction was directly predicted by the construction of an idealized avatar (vs. utopian avatar) and by the avatar identification, which also mediated the relationship between the VSDs and gaming addiction. In the 2 × 2 experimental study (Study 2; 100 participants), manipulating VSD and avatar identification, we assumed that MMORPG addiction risk was higher in the idealized avatar-high identification condition than in the utopian avatar-low identification condition. Results confirmed that the more idealized the avatar was, the more the users increased their avatar identification (Study 1), that in turn was associated with gaming addiction (Study 1 and Study 2), and that only an idealized avatar (vs. utopian avatar) directly affected gaming addiction (Study 1). Furthermore, results showed that MMORPG addiction risk was higher in participants who customized an idealized avatar and identified with it (vs. utopian avatar-low identification) (Study 2).

Motivation and Risk Sentiment of Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG) Players

The article examines massive multiplayer online role-playing games as a phenomenon of modern culture from philosophical, psychological and methodological points of view. It makes a survey of the latest foreign and national investigations MMORPG players motivations. It carries out an investigation of achieving success and motivation of avoiding misfortunes in terms of risk sentiment. The result of the investigation is a conclusion that gamers oftener have a higher motivation of achieving success than those who do not play, while combining it with a high motivation of avoiding failures. These are less numbered in their readiness to risk recklessly by choosing more careful variants of behavior. The players commitment to Goals and Process in the game speaks to the fact that high motivation of achieving the goal is combined with maximum diving into the game process. The players features of risk sentiment is that a person, by risking in the virtual space, checks potentially dangerous behavioral strategies in the game and can transfer them into the life already in this variant.