“Facebook is just a simplified version of video games.”  

For all those readers out there who are not very familiar with Massive Multiplayer Online (MMO) video games like World of Warcraft or Final Fantasy, I’m here to tell you that they’re just like our world, if our world was full of castle-laden mountain peaks, monsters lurking around every corner, glowing portals that hover in the air like fly traps, and enormous swords that characters carry around as calmly as though they were smartphones.  The level of detail and artistry in these games is truly incredible and the adventures avatars go on are immersive and exciting.

These are some of the reasons why millions of players are hooked on gaming, but aesthetics and game play aside, one of the primary reasons why MMO games are so appealing and potentially addictive lies within the name – Massive Multiplayer Online.  Hundreds of thousands of people plug into an alternate fantasy world at any given time on any given day and interact with one another online in ways that are very similar to how they do so in real life (except with more spontaneous dancing, flying horse rides and sword slashing).  They joke with friends and fight bosses (the bad guys), they go to taverns (video game bars) for a drink and a chat, they flirt, they gossip and they do almost all the other things we do in real life but with a fantastical twist.

Since I’m what one might call a “total noob” in video gaming, to learn more about how social dynamics play out in video games I sat down with my friend AmarienS who I consider to be an expert in all things gaming and Internet so that she could explain to me what it’s like on the other side.  Below is an inside look at how the ups and downs of social life play out in the magical alternate world of video games.

Meeting People

Q: “Is it easier to meet people in the video game than in real life?”

On the one hand, according to Amarien, it’s easier to meet people in the game for two reasons: 1. Because you know that the person you’re meeting shares your interests and 2. Because there are more opportunities for interaction.

First of all, a stranger you might decide to approach in the game is doing the same thing you are – gaming – therefore you automatically have common ground and something to talk about.  Also, the stranger you approach in the game won’t judge you for your interests and geek outs, whereas real world folk are more likely to look at you funny when you start talking about your love of the new extension pack’s armor options or when you launch some spicy Internet humor at them.  People in the game share a connection that makes it easier to reach out to one another and make new contacts.

Second of all, there are more opportunities to meet people.  In the real world an adult can only really meet new people if they’re forced to be on the same team at work, if they get drunk at a bar and bump into a sexy stranger, or if someone makes the rare and socially terrifying move of introducing themselves out of the blue completely sober.  However, in the game there are tons of opportunities to meet people.  You could lend someone a hand while they’re building something, complement them on their innovative apparel or weaponry, or join them in fighting off a flying multi-headed beast man.

On the other hand, Amarien says, meeting people in the game can often be just as stressful as doing so in person.  Why?  Because someone’s avatar can react to you in much the same way as a person would in the real world.  They can ignore you, walk away, or give you a negative reaction.  And if you ignore them or tell them off, they can follow you around and pester you, blackmail you or turn your friends against you in the same way that one can do in the real world.  Basically, drama is as present in the gaming world as it is in real life.  As long as humans are interacting in some way on some kind of platform, high school dynamics live on.

Resolving Conflict

As is true in any social context, sometimes there’s conflict.  When you’re playing, often times you’re part of a “Guild” or “Clan”, ie a team of friends that chat and complete challenges together.  If someone gets irritated or conflict arises in the Clan of bantering and monster-combating friends, text chatting can become a difficult way to resolve the tension because there is limited information about people’s emotional status. Is “you’re a #@&%!” a joke, a half-hearted jab, or a true accusation?  In chat it’s hard to tell.

However, hearing someone’s voice can make it clearer if they are joking, indifferent, or angry, and that helps the group figure out how to handle the conflict.  That’s why when tensions are high, Amarien says players often switch to voice chat so they can get a better handle on the situation and resolve things more smoothly.  This behavior overlaps with research on mobile phone texting which has shown that text-based conversations are highly unsuitable for resolving interpersonal conflict and that voice talk or face-to-face meetings are more effective alternatives (Murdock, 2012).

Romance

The birth of romance is not a phenomenon exclusive to real life interactions.  This has been proven by the huge popularity of dating sites, apps like Tinder, and online chats from various websites.  Another online platform which is host to romance that most people might not immediately think of, is MMO video games.  In the same way that you can meet new people in the game and chat with friends, the excitement of fulfilling quests and slaying demons together with a dreamy pointy-haired mage can make one’s heart go aflutter.

Anonymity

One of the trickiest parts in video game <3 is the anonymity.  Although you might hit it off with someone’s personality, if it’s something about their physical appearance that draws you in, take a step back and rethink your attraction before you fall too hard.  According to Amarien, people create their avatars to look the way they do for various reasons, only one of which is an effort to recreate their true appearance.  Other reasons include:

1. To create an ideal identity that one can’t embody in real life

2. To explore an identity different from one’s own just for the fun of it (like gender switching)

or

3. For aesthetic purposes, ie simply in the pursuit of creating something beautiful

Amarien explained that there are many occasions on which one character will catfish another by pretending to be the opposite gender or somehow misrepresenting themselves.  Motivations include getting something from their admirer in the game, or simply trolling for the heck of it.  As long as the tryst is purely virtual, it’s all fun and games.  But if true emotions arise behind the screen, things can get tricky.

Mass Effect

 Sex

To my surprise, virtual sex is actually not common in MMOs.  I expected that a world so similar in many ways to the real world, played by hundreds of thousands of adults, would find a way to cater to this primary human need as well.  After all, sex sells and has found its way into most mass medias by now.  However, according to Amarien, those seeking to act out lust in the game do it in more of a role play manner than by explicitly engaging in the activity as there are not usually options to actually strip down and get under the pixelated covers.

She says this is because not that many players demand a sex option (and let’s not forget there are many underage players subject to parental supervision), therefore including something like that in the video game might alienate a bigger fraction of players than it would appeal to, leading to less overall success.  However, I did some research on the subject (couldn’t resist) and found that there are indeed some games like “Witcher” and “Mass Effect” among others which allow for more romantic activity of the graphic variety.

Status

As in most real life communities, rising in status is desirable and possible for many players who seek the ranks of glory.  There are leaderboards that list the best players with the highest stats, giving credit to those on top of the gaming food chain.  There are also real life tournaments that pit the best players from specific video games against one another.  These tournaments are often big, glamorous events with cash prizes worth thousands of dollars and are a way to reward those who have sacrificed hundreds of sleep and dating hours to perfect their craft.  The tournaments are also broadcast to viewers around the world and provide players with fame in gaming circles.

There is a also a way to gain celebrity and riches from video gaming on websites such as Twitch and YouTube.  Some of the most successful and well-paid YouTubers – PewDiePie and Markiplier for example – earned their fame by making videos of themselves playing games with skill and a sense of humor, which have racked them up millions of views and dollars.  Platforms like this have made video gaming not only an interesting pastime but also a legitimate career for many, with fame and success contributing to the motivation to play.

Final Thoughts

Although Amarien describes MMO video games as exciting and beautiful alternate worlds with rich social life opportunities for characters, she says that she and many of her gamer friends still prefer to meet face-to-face and that video gaming doesn’t replace the desire for real life hang outs.  You can’t touch in the game, she says, you can’t share experiences like drinking a coffee or show each other things like books or see each other’s facial expressions when you share dirty jokes. And that’s all stuff that is fun and highly desirable.  The social life in the game is exciting and satisfying in many ways and it offers many experiences that don’t exist in the real world, but it doesn’t erase the desire to have face-to-face interactions.

This is good to know considering how many people, concerned parents and curious researchers alike, fear that long hours of video gaming might be decreasing users’ desire for healthy real-life human contact.  Although this may be true for some, it isn’t always the case.  Being an avid gamer doesn’t automatically mean being antisocial or unsuccessful or lonely (although research shows intense video gaming can be associated with psychological problems, but that’s a topic for a different day).

With more and more of our lives moving online, many social activities are being transferred over as well.  Who knows?  Maybe one day we’ll be able to go to a café-themed MMO to “drink” coffee with friends from different countries, see films together in a virtual theater and fist bump each other across oceans with special sensor-equipped gloves.  With the infinite expanse of pixelated landscape in front of us and millions of avatar co-habitants by our side, anything is possible.