Non-gamers: hang in there with me I have homework for you at the end of this post...
Svenn and Inno: you guys dropping by made me wonder just how many military people play World of Warcraft. There seems to be a whole lotta ya around; I know Nimira and Priestholmes have a guild that's comprised entirely of marines. According to The Daedalus Project, about 13% of the WoW population have had military experience.
Unfortunately Daedalus is dated (Death Knights aren't even in the survey!) and no one seems to be making similar efforts these days. The people who know the most is of course Blizzard but they aren't about to let their marketing secrets out. So here's a mosaic portrait of the WoW player composed from what little research available and my impression (numbers and % when included are from Daedalus research):
You are a dude. But if you aren't (16%) WoW is probably your first computer gaming experience, and you play with your boyfriend or husband (68%).
As infantile as trade chat can be, you are actually as likely to be over 35 as you are in your teens (12-17). In your defense tho, you are more civil in game than, say, while you're driving down the highway. Apparently anonymity brings out the best in us as well. Maybe this is because 37% of us feel more comfortable communicating in typed chats than live interactions.
Somehow you hold down a job, go to school or make home full time (male 87%, female 74%), have young children (20% male/28% female), while spending an average of 21 hours a week raiding or grinding achievements.
In my three years on WoW, you have chatted with me from practically every time zone on this globe, and I haven't even been on the European or the Pacific servers yet.
If you aren't currently in school, you have had higher level education (78%). This has not translated to a higher income for you (slightly lower than US median of $35,000 as of 2005).
Now for the non-gamers: go watch The Guild. It's an award winning web-series about on-line gamers roughly based on the World of Warcraft, each episode is only a few minutes long so it's a small time investment for lots of laughs. When you have seen at least a couple episodes, take this quiz:
1) Although The Guild ruthlessly characterize WoW players as neurotic losers, it is universally adored by that population. Why? If you have seen Little Miss Sunshine, you might have the answer already.
2) Can you see Codex, Vork, and Zaboo outside the gaming context? do you know such a person in your life? Do you have her/him on your calendar this week? Last year? Where are they on your speed dial?
3) How are the supporting characters (Clara's husband, Codex's therapist, Zaboo's mom etc.) perceived by the main characters? Name three different ways the supporting cast relate to the gamers' addiction.
Extra Credit: Seasons 3 and 4 explore friendship and romance. Compare those with how you understand relationships. (Hint: try to suspend your judgment and idealism. If you still have trouble, think back to your high school years.)
1. While genuine self-deprecation can be a sign of low self esteem, the jesting present thematically in the guild reflects the kind of self-deprecation more often found in comedians and others who are secure in their self image (even if it runs contrary to normal social conventions). Here too, “The Knights of Good” (the Guild in The Guild) are depicted as the underdog- people love to root for the underdog. WoW players relating to themselves as underdogs then also are rooted for. Also, there are not too many games that inspire web-videos like WoW does (Halo being the major exception with Red vs. Blue), which gives the WoWers the added feeling of belonging to a special club.
ReplyDelete2. Sure. Yes. Yep. You bet. Grayce is the only person on my speed dial :). (I figured a little brevity on this one was in order given the rambling length of my answer to the first question.)
3. The supporting characters are regarded as necessary yet inconvenient tangentials. While efforts have been made to bring Quigley (Clara’s husband) and more recently Zaboo’s mom into the fold, the main characters are just as comfortable having them occupy an orbit at the periphery. They are representative of the “real world” which, while serving to keep the main characters grounded, is as often as not also a source of resentment as well.
Clarification and Extra Credit:
ReplyDeleteCodex does portray the Sterotypical low self esteem, no concept of self worth female in the show, however, given the audience’s knowledge of the show’s production and Felicia Day, this characterization can be viewed as I described it above in my 1st answer. OK, now that I have that cleared up, Extra Credit time! (By the way, what is the extra credit for? Are we being graded? :)
I think the portrayal of friendship and romance in the show is typical of real life experience. You can read the allegorized account of my personal experience in this arena at:
http://wowsvenn.blogspot.com/2009/06/ballad-of-svenn-and-grayce.html
Ya, ok Svenn, you cheated... that quiz was for "non-gamers". And extra credit is for heavenly rewards of course!
ReplyDeleteSeriously though I am also wondering how The Guild is understood by folks outside the gaming community. Someone chime in please?