If a person is playing a MMORPG, then it is fair to say that he/she is living a double life. The gaming community has grown bigger, complex, and engaging over the years. With the rise of social media networks and blogs, gamers now have many more platforms for them to live and discuss their second life. Neilson’s Chapter 7 on player culture discusses the social aspect of gaming and went into detail on the different type of communities was rose from gaming.
The first type is called gaming community. MMORPGs tends to adopt this kind of community because the game is designed so that players can interact while playing during the game. Another reason gaming communities exists mostly in MMORPGs is because the game relies heavily on cooperation and communication in order for players to progress and succeed. The second type is called metaculture. Metaculture is a community of a game outside the game. A metaculture can be a group of individuals, a game club/organization, blogs, and websites dedicated to the game.
There is one subtle difference between gaming community and metaculture that I noticed; the level of formality and structure. If we analyze these two using casual vs formal then gaming community would be casual and metaculture would be formal. Gaming community is generally conversations that takes place in the game. Players create and shape these communities through interactions. However, metacultures are formed through giving and receiving written information. It is arguable that metaculture could be a group of individuals meeting up to discuss the game; but these discussions are constructive when compared to gaming communities.
World of Warcraft (WOW) have a constructive gaming community as well as metaculture. In the game, players would have to work together through written conversations, form guilds, or communicate verbally to progress. The culture is therefore much more active. The metaculture part of WOW could be WOW forums, thottbot.com or wowhead.com. These website acts as a encyclopedia for players as well as a way to contribute, communicate, and socialize with other players.
It is amazing how gaming culture has grown over the past years. The complexity of these communities and the variety of forms it can take is something that still brings me in awe when I think about it. A fun fact that I would like to leave for discussion is the merging of main stream social network sites and these gaming community. StarCraft 2 has adopted a Facebook function inside the game for players to connect both platforms together.
My question is: What do you think the next step of gaming community or metaculture will be in the next year?
I think it would smart for the gaming communities to gravitate towards social networks, this would bring the online relationships created through this communities to life. I think its very smart for starcraft to make a Facebook function, because often online relationships can be looked down upon, and through social networking you can learn more about the person your interacting with.
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