communication, coordination, and camaraderie in world of warcraft
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Communication, Coordination, and Camaraderie in World of Warcraft. Mark Chen [email protected]. Research Overview. concept: game mechanics = player behavior? analysis: coordination in high-end raids; camaraderie and trust; group norms vs. individual expectations. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Communication, Coordination, and Camaraderie in World of Warcraft
Mark [email protected]
Research Overview• concept: game mechanics = player
behavior?• analysis: coordination in high-end
raids; camaraderie and trust; group norms vs. individual expectations
•implications: mechanics too narrow to understand behavior; trust based on experience; replication of social marginalization
Game Mechanics & Communities
• Assumptions:– helping people see how individual
affects community and vice versa important
– responsibility of educators• If games can be used as training
grounds, how do we get people to value community?
• Previous research looked at game design and mechanics—change mechanic, change player behavior
Ethnography of MMORPGs
• personal experience didn’t match up with models
• players’ actual choices are complex and socially situated
• look at social practice (Taylor, Steinkuehler)
World of Warcraft
• ~9 million subscribers• each server has 1000s
• fantasy world• character classes• kill monsters, complete
quests to gain experience and loot
Game Interface
Attributes and Items
better loot and experience = more powerful character
Raid Group• 40 players - Molten Core • each played different role• labor was divided/roles
emerged through social practice (Strauss, Stevens)– through game defined roles
(character class and ability)– through merit (case-specific
ability or prior knowledge)– through existing structures
(previous relationships)
Communication• text chat channels
– standard (raid)– specialized
(madrogues)• voice chat
Coordination• chat interwoven• on and off task• simultaneously coordinated• contextually meaningful
– 18:11:20.421 : [4. soulburn] Lori: Remember, ss target will change at Domo, but until then, your rezzer is to be ssed at all times.
• jovial
Molten Core
An encounter with Molten Giants• two Main Tanks• healers• damage dealers kept track of aggro
Learning in Molten Core
• individual learning• group learning through failure:
– “Now I hope no one's getting frustrated. This is how raids go. It's normal: You fight and fight and fight until your gear is broken, repair and do it again... It can take a while to master these encounters but we're doing good work!”
bodies from previous failures
Camaraderie (lack thereof)• One night, raid suffered meltdown.• doubt, bickering in specialized chat channels
– Shaun: .... Sven, you are fired.– Sven: Hey, most people avoid you, Shaunie! It's the breath. I'm
giving an alternative!– Shaun: an option that is closer to the caves. you... you are
trying to kill us all....– Sven: Well? It hasn't happened, now has it?? Stop being so
paranoid!
• camaraderie, level of communication in shared channels low (8 min of silence)
• no communication = no trust (Iacono & Weisband)
• bottom-up reflection on meltdown– “I love our raid... We are like brothers and sisters
really. Stuff like this is going to happen. However I think we have all been playing long enough to know that we have a pretty great group of people going here and truly we care about and try to do what is best for one another.”
• reaffirmed goals• trust built through valuing shared experience
Recovery
Drama: group vs. individual goals• Ways of talking / making arguments• Norms vs. cultural diversity?
- “Most of your argument was made up of class roles in a raid, and that’s a valid point. However, the other 75% of WoW isn’t a raid, and that needs to be taken into consideration too… So I’m passed up for a shield that could definitely benefit me… because that ¼ of the game has more precedence? Jeeze, don’t do me any favors.”
Instance requirements: Who gets to go?
Implications• Must look at player social practice• Learning happens socially, through lived
experience and practice• Coordination needed to succeed in group work• Trust among team members crucial
• What builds trust?– specialized roles– willingness to fail– communication– relationships/shared
experience goal– ability to reflect on goal
• Sustainable = equitable?