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Thursday, November 10
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DGR01
Gamer Culture(s)
PP 048
Beyond Escapsim, Compensation and Dependency – Understanding the Role of Gaming in the Lives of Longtime Players
S.L. Richter
1
, C. Ortner
2
1
University of Applied Science Upper Austria, Hagenberg, Austria
2
University of Salzburg, Depratment for Communications, Salzburg, Austria
For a long time playing video and computer games has been seen as an entertaining pastime of young people which can affect them negatively in various
ways. Although there is a growing body of literature dealing with positive effects of gaming e.g. with potentials for learning or personal development,
gaming is still associated with escapism, compensation and dependency. This is especially true when it comes to young people who play extensively over
a long period of time. However, this paper argues that for longtime players gaming goes beyond fleeing from or compensating reality but is an integral
part of their lives. Starting from this assumption it explores the meaning gaming can have for long time players taking into account their self-perceptions,
priorities, expectations and individual circumstances in professional and private life. In order to get in-depth insights problem-centered interviews were
conducted with ten well- educated young men and women (20–35) from Germany between December 2015 and February 2016. All of them are playing
video or computer games on a regular basis since at least 13, most of them even 20 years. The analysis shows that the role of gaming is strongly connected
to their overall expectations from lives. Success-oriented interviewees who focus on achievements and are ambitious in their career, use gaming to train
competences, experience self-efficacy and strengthen self-esteem. For young adults who want to avoid obligations, responsibilities or problems gaming
–on the contrary – can be an expression of their hedonistic lifestyle trying to have fun and keep efforts low. Finally, gaming can be deeply interwoven with
the social environment of longtime player, which is especially important to young people who emphasize family ties and friendship.
PP 049
Playing Alone Together: Participatory Culture in the Candy Crush Saga
K. Manzur
1
, P. Lacasa
1
, M. Laura
2
1
University Alcala, Philology- Communication and Documentation, Alcala de Henares, Spain
2
UNED, Developmental Psychology and Education, Madrid, Spain
Nowadays, the vast majority of players are video gamers. This Facebook social games phenomenon has become the paradigm of change in the video games
industry. Social networks, as analysed by Henry Jenkins (2008), have had an impact on entertainment consumption behaviour.The aim of this proposal is to
analyse how the boom of video games on Facebook has allowed for the creation of a new universe around them where players are not limited by the video
game platform offer, they also are able to create a social architecture around the game (fan pages, blogs, wikis). These virtual spaces allow them to share
their game experiences and elucidate strategies that help them to reach significant progress in the game (Pearce, Boellstorff, & Nardi, 2011). According to
this, our main goals are the following: 1. To find the reason for the participation of gamers in groups and communities structured around a specific video
game. 2. To examine the branded content activities through the information given in the gamers' posts and to analyse whether this content is useful to
the members of the game community (Shaw, 2009). This research is based on a dual theoretical framework. Firstly, the definition of social game: A social
game is one in which the user’s interactions with other players help drive adoption of the game and help retain players, and that uses an external social
network of some type to facilitate these goals (Fields & Cotton, 2014). Secondly, the definition of participatory culture by Jenkins (2006): The video players
communicate to each other through the network and the limits between the sender and the receiver, author and spectator/reader, are too vague. They feel
a sort of social connection and their game progress are a reflect of this knowledge organization skill and guide the action toward a common goal, particular
skills in a collective construction. By adopting a virtual ethnographic approach (Boellstorff, Marcus, Nardi, Pearce, & Taylor, 2012), our data comes from
different sources. On the one hand, Facebook community players, more specifically Candy Crush Saga Friends, with 900,000 members. Using Grytics, the top
members were selected in order to analyse their contributions to the social network. On the other hand, the players' interaction of the players and also
the King’s Official Blogs were also analysed. The research team followed participants for six months. Online interviews and the participants’conversations as
social exchanges in this group were analyzed according to a discourse analysis approach. (Gee & Hayes, 2011) Considering the results, it is noteworthy that
playing hours help to develop skills such as logical-thought development and problem-solving skills. (Steinkuehler, Squire, & Barab, 2012). Video gamers
use audiovisual strategies in order to spread their knowledge beyond the game space. Here is where social networks emerge as a place that allows for
the exchange and dissemination of wisdom. A group of players bound by emotional ties creates a stronger interaction than one of unknown people. Candy
Crush offers a game experience based on playing alone, together.
Digital Games Research
(DGR01–DGR04)