relationships
Latest
Study: Playing in a guild actually lowers stress
A new study done by researchers at Australia's Queensland University of Technology says that spending time online playing World of Warcraft with others can actually be good for your mental wellbeing -- within moderation of course. Researcher Huon Longman studied WoW players who played alongside guildies in game, and found that players often shared their real-life concerns with their virtual associates, which resulted in lowered levels of "anxiety, depression, and stress." In short, it seems that when you build relationships and share emotions even with people online, it can help you deal with problems in real life as well. That follows what we talked about earlier this week with Dr. Hilarie Cash -- games like WoW can definitely complement real-life relationships and actually help you relax.But only when used in moderation -- Longman also found that 10% of the sample he studied played considerably more World of Warcraft than normal, and that those players not only didn't experience a bigger benefit to their wellbeing, but actually experienced more "negative psychological symptoms." A good balance of virtual and real life can have a lot of benefits, but falling too much into virtual life can actually cause more problems psychologically, according to this researcher's work. Obviously, this is one study of many about how playing these games can affect how we think, but the results are definitely reflected in experience: in-game relationships, used in moderation, can definitely help you deal with the real world in a healthier way.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!
Officers' Quarters: A scheduling headache
Every Monday Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership.One of the big annoyances of raiding is finding the right schedule. This time of year is particularly bad for many guilds, as last week's Officers' Quarters column proved. Students of all ages have finals. Working adults are traveling more often or spending more time away from the PC. When you have a small crew, the loss of even one person for a few weeks can mean all your raids are put on hold. This week, one officer wants to know how to figure out a raiding schedule despite some uncooperative individuals. Dear Scott, I am the co-leader of a casual 10-man raiding guild on Lightning Hoof. Despite only raiding once a week, we've managed to down ten of the bosses in Ulduar and we're proud of that accomplishment. Lately though, it has been almost impossible to get everyone together on the same night to work on progression. Quite a few of our raiders have school or work requirements, and it is very difficult to time every one's lives around raiding. We try our hardest, and for a good while it was working out perfectly. Lately though, I feel that our raiders are beginning to demand the raid schedule be built around them, rather than trying to make time in their own week to come. Since we are such a small guild, it happens quite often that when one person can't/doesn't show, we are not able to raid. This then wastes the entire night, and it becomes almost impossible to re-schedule.
The distance of romance: Is online romance possible?
Newsweek's story this week, about two Second Life users who met and fell in love without a nasty breakup, divorce, murder or any other sort of common human drama has sparked a lot of talk among users of virtual environments about love and romance over a distance. Opinions are divided of course. Some feel that it's impossible to fall in love with someone who is out of range of a slap in the face, while others see it as completely natural. Are human relationships like electro-magnetism, where they cannot exist beyond a certain small physical radius?
How can you tell your online friends that you've passed away?
Gamers know that online friends are important. We spend untold hours raiding together, questing together, leveling together, and laughing together. Part of the reason we even play MMOs is because we want to play a game with thousands of other players and meet new people while we do something we all can enjoy together.But what if the unthinkable should happen? What if you should die unexpectedly?The Associated Press recently ran the story of Jerald Spangenberg, a man who passed away while playing World of Warcraft, and his daughter's quest to inform his guild of his passing. Unfortunately, she didn't have his password, leaving her to ask around on the forums to speak with members of his guild.Methods are being set up to deal with this sort of thing -- including everything from websites sending out e-mails from beyond the grave to just giving a really trusted friend access to your e-mail account so he can tell your contacts that you've passed away. Whatever the method though, it seems like this problem will only be increasing as more people begin spending their time online and finding relationships where they never could before.
What to do when a player dies
This AP story is making its way around the community -- Jerald Spangleberg's daughter was faced with a growing problem when he passed a way: figuring out how to notify the guy's in-game friends. As online relationships grow more and more prevalent, relatives of those who pass away are often having trouble notifying some of the deceased closest friends. Even Blizzard can't help in this situation, apparently -- they have no policy or rules to deal with players who have died, and no way for relatives to log in to the game without the password to let guilds know what has happened.You might suggest that these relationships aren't that big a deal, but when you think that guildies are encountered almost nightly, while real-life friends connect only when schedules allow (maybe once or twice a week), you can see why it might be important to let the ingame associates know what has happened. Unfortunately, all of the solutions so far are pretty morbid -- there are sites that will send email for you, or some players have left lists of contacts to reach when they move on.The importance of online relationships is likely to increase in the future if the past few years are any indication. And given that the average player is getting older even as they're making more and stronger friends online, it might not be long until we've got a much better solution to deal with this problem.
WoW is the new "third place"
This is interesting -- a researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (just up the road from me here in Chicago) says that World of Warcraft is an emerging new "third place." That is, it's a place in between your work and home where you make friends and otherwise interact with new people. Starbucks has even used the term in their actual marketing (to try to make their coffee shops a hangout more than just a place that you stop by and grab a cuppa joe), and WoW isn't even the first videogame to fit the critera -- Sony advertised the Playstation 2 as a "third place" in Europe.But even though Blizzard has never actually marketed the game as a "third place," it almost fits the definition most. Sure, it's not actually a different place -- most people do play at home, I'd imagine -- but in terms of having a different crowd of people that you interact with outside your home or work, that is often exactly what WoW is for us. As Professor Constance Steinkuehler (who has a pretty wild website for a college professor) says, "most people go for the game and stay for the people."
The Guild episode 6 of season 2
It's Tuesday, which means The Guild is back yet again with more wacky hijinx. Episode six is out on MSN Video now (and on Xbox Live and Zune soon), and there's some blowback from the "eruption" at the end of the last episode. Clara continues her campaign of corruption, and Zaboo does something you should never, ever do to another player.This episode seems long for some reason, but at the same time, it's kind of a breather for what we're sure will be an interesting episode next week. Felicia twittered the other week that they're working on editing down just the last two episodes, so the hard work for them is almost over, even though we're only halfway through the season so far.And finally, The Guild got a tribute song last week, a video and tune put together by a fan. They're pretty excited about it, but we'll let you judge whether you like it or not. We will say that it is a nice effort, and it's good to see that there are fans of The Guild out there willing to put in the time and energy to do something like that. Rock on!
Braid creator rips on WoW, talks artificial rewards and social gaming
In an interview with Gamasutra, game designer Jon Blow (who created the critically acclaimed Xbox Live Arcade game Braid) had a few things to say about World of Warcraft. His criticisms could be just as easily leveled against any Diku-based, WoW-like MMO.He began by saying that WoW employs "artificial rewards" as opposed to "natural rewards." In other words, players play WoW for achievements like leveling up that have little real meaning, and they'll sit through a lot of boredom to reach those goals. That's not an unfair analysis; leveling up is a very empty and artificial kind of catharsis. Perhaps the most controversial statements he made were related to the social aspect of the game. One of Azeroth's millions of citizens? Check out our ongoing coverage of the World of Warcraft, and be sure to touch base with our sister site WoW Insider for all your Lich King needs!
Psychologists talk gaming addiction, online friendships
1UP's Scott Sharkey has written an article titled "Hook It to My Veins: Can Videogaming be an Addiction?" in which he provides anecdotal experiences with excessive gaming and conversations with two experts -- researcher/author Neils Clark and psychology lecturer Dr. Nadine Pelling. The conclusion is made pretty quickly: yes, video games can be an addiction. Big surprise there! But the details can be wishy-washy, it turns out. Virtual worlds are the subject of in-depth analysis. Clark borrows from a theory by J.R.R. Tolkien by suggesting that gaming addiction is about a conflict between what ought to be a primary world, and a secondary fantasy world. Gamers with a problem have difficulty prioritizing, or even acknowledging that the gaming world is secondary. Immersion is an important part of enjoying a game, right? But if you're thinking about how you need to make sure the primary world gets its due attention, then you're not immersed anymore -- so begins the problem.
The Daily Grind: Do guild relationships transfer between games?
When you have the right group of people, everything is just easier. When your guild members communicate well with each other, and each person knows her role and responsibilities, there isn't anything you can't overcome. At least, in that particular game. But what happens when you try to transfer that guild to a different game?Although many MMOs have similar classes and structures, it isn't always a one-to-one correlation. Your tank might suddenly find himself with a much more challenging job than in the previous game. Your healer could see a new class and decide he's done with his old job and wants to try something new. Maybe the functions of the group just don't work in the new game. When your guild wants to tackle the challenges of a new MMO, how do you go about settling in? If it isn't happening, how do you fix it?
MMO Couples tells you how to find love online
MMO Couples is a new blog about "how people successfully combine online gaming and relationships," and it's a pretty interesting read, whether you're a fan of online gaming or romance in general. It's written by "Gabi," a woman who met her boyfriend in WoW (she tells the story on the site), and while there's not much to read through there yet, it does seem like it might be an interesting look at how couples find themselves in virtual worlds.There are also some tips on how to find love in a virtual world, and I like how down-to-earth they are: communicate as much as possible, be realistic, have a backup plan. Online romances are often full of drama, and it seems pretty tough to get a good relationship out of having met in a place where the whole point is that you're pretending to be someone you're not.But a site like this would help fix some of that -- providing a community and a forum for folks in online relationships would probably help everybody involved.[Via Wonderland]
Ask WoW Insider: My Girlfriend won't let me level
Welcome to today's edition of Ask WoW Insider, in which we publish your questions for dissection by the peanut gallery -- now with extra snark and commentary by one of our writers. This week "Lovelorn in Azeroth" writes in: WoW-Playing Girlfriend DramaOr rather, "Here, don't level or do anything that'll give the character you play all the time any XP while I start to level a level one character that I hate playing all the time up to your character's level, and then make your character keep pace with mine! That way, everything will be super-special-awesome!"Dear WoWinsider,My name is [name omitted to protect the... something] elven fire mage of Area 52. Over three months ago, my girlfriend and I agreed (willingly, for the most part) that I should pause my leveling to allow her to roll up a new toon that would catch up to me, and allow us to adventure together across Azeroth on equal footing. Fine and dandy, non?
New York Times can't let WoW duo get away with it
Reader Roland (thanks!) pointed us to this weird WoW reference in the New York Times. In the wedding section of all places, there's a story about a couple that used World of Warcraft to play and have fun as a duo, and it's too damn bad that the NYT falls back into the old media idea that playing videogames as a couple isn't healthy.Can we get one mainstream media article that breaks the mold? Can we get one portrayal of a WoW player (or players, in this case) that doesn't fall back into the old line of MMOs being the territory of cave-dwelling social outcasts? That's most certainly not the case in reality -- how long is it going to take for mainstream reporters to forget this moronic angle and report on what's really happening here: two people in love sharing a hobby in between the rest of their full and fulfilling lives.There are now ten million people playing this game around the world, and the large, overwhelming majority of them are healthy, fulfilled individuals who lead great lives both in and out of game. In fact, the two people this article is about are two of those individuals. It's perfectly healthy to sit down and play a videogame with your significant other, on a beautiful spring day or at any other time (yes, it's never healthy to do one thing all the time, be it videogames or TV watching or anything else, but that's not what's happening here). And it's crazy that the NYT bent over backwards to make it seem like that's not the case.
Broadcast student creates documentary on MMO player relationships
Sure, we've got Second Skin coming up, but if you can't wait that long, here's a well-produced, nicely narrated audio documentary about the mechanisms of MMO relationships. It was created by a student from Central Michigan University's School of Broadcast & Cinematic Arts named Nathan Bender.For a change, this documentary focuses on Final Fantasy XI, rather than World of Warcraft. It provides a great deal of insight into how players interact with each other, and an insider's perspective on what it's like to enter a larger social world than previously experienced. Running under 30 minutes, it's well worth your time and may have you nodding in recognition.[Thanks, Fusionx!]
Gamer Interrupted: Duos are good for relationships
Each week, Robin Torres contributes Gamer Interrupted, a column about balancing real life with MMOs.Sharing your leisure time with a friend and/or loved one is a great way to strengthen your relationship. This is not a controversial statement. But if that leisure time includes video games, we are getting into much debated territory -- though things are improving. Newer studies are finding that social games do in fact make people more social, rather than the basement dwelling stereotypes that exist. In my opinion, MMOs are a great way to spend quality time together with friends, family and significant others -- particularly when some are in different physical locations. Couples can have in-game dates where they spend only the money that they are already spending on their account fees and with the kids sleeping nearby. Separated friends can spend time together even if they are in different countries. And, in my favorite story (though I am biased), brothers who have never met can get to know each other though they are hundreds of miles apart.
MTV muses on gaming with girlfriends/boyfriends
Sharing is difficult. For those of us blessed with significant others who game, we know this all too well. When games become "ours" instead of "mine" or "yours" how do you go about sharing the gameplay? MTV copy editor Katie Byrne has been thinking about this exact same problem, specifically with reference to her and her boyfriend's shared save file on Super Mario Galaxy.Although things start well with sharing the game -- switching off every other planet, and dividing play-time equally -- the plan goes a bit haywire when she visits home for Thanksgiving, and her beau just keeps on playing... and beats the game without her.Of course, we think the answer is obvious: separate save files for separate people. Single-player games are hard to turn into shared experiences, especially when both parties desire equal play-time. Read about Katie's upsetting experience on gaming with a significant other, and share your own success/horror stories below.
All the World's a Stage: It's not about saving the world
All the World's a Stage is brought to you by David Bowers every Sunday evening, investigating the mysterious art of roleplaying in the World of Warcraft.All those people who say "Roleplaying is dead" simply misunderstand what RP in WoW is all about. It's not at all about stepping into your favorite fantasy novel and acting out an epic story in which you are the great hero, sacrificing everything to save Azeroth from the legions of evil. For that sort of storytelling, there are pen-and-paper role playing games, which allow for a great deal more flexibility than any computer system can. While the majority of fantasy literature uses this "save the world" motif, it doesn't work at all for roleplaying in WoW because things happen in the game that couldn't possibly happen in a story. But that's okay, because when we roleplay in WoW, our focus should not be so grand and epic in scope. Instead it should be more personal and down-to-earth, about our own characters, their hopes and failings, and their relationships with others. For all the game's outward appearances of epic battles and the fight against evil, WoW roleplaying is really all about character development, relationships, and the expression of who you are. Think less of the latest Oscar-award-winning fantasy epic, and more of your favorite sitcoms or drama series. Your character is a savior of the world and a regular nobody -- both at the same time. All of us do exciting, heroic things in the game, but, while Blizzard has put a lot of story elements in there, none of it is actual storytelling. For a roleplayer, most PvE is just background to the storytelling, something your characters do offstage -- kind of like food, paperwork, bathroom breaks, and sleep in the movies or novels you enjoy. Of course any event in life can be an important moment for your character, but in roleplaying, you have to let all the repetitive hero stuff fade into the background while your characters interact with one another.
Robotic cockroaches influence, exploit living clans
Strangely enough, we've seen robotic roaches in action before, but a new report focusing on nature's influence on mechanical creatures substantiates some of our worse fears. Apparently, a team of researchers led by Jose Halloy of the University Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium crafted "cockroach-sized robots that interacted with their living counterparts." The critters themselves did not actually resemble cockroaches, but they were doused with chemicals to mimic the authentic aroma; subsequently, these autonomous pests were able to persuade a clan of real roaches to choose a poor (light) shelter over a dark alternative, sparking worry that humanoids may one day use these very tactics to lead us straight to our demise. On the real, the gurus behind the research are looking at the trials to "explore decision-making mechanisms in group-living animals," which when you think about, really isn't any less frightening.[Image courtesy of ETHZ]
QRIO befriended by toddlers in study
Remember that study which placed a bubbly QRIO in the middle of rambunctious 18- to 24-month old kids in order to better analyze human-robot interactions? We know, it's probably coming back ever so slowly, but regardless, the findings of the five month trial have finally been published, and the results are less than shocking. Essentially, researchers noticed that children learned to treat the QRIO as if it were another human; the Earthlings eventually felt comfortable touching its hands, covering it with a blanket when it laid down and helping it back up if it toppled over. Notably, kiddos even went so far as to shun the poor bot when it was programmed to dance nonstop, but they forgave the bizarre antics and continued to play nice once the jig was up. The crew involved with the research is now focusing on the development of autonomous bots for the toddler classroom, and while much more testing will likely be done before any conclusions are definitively drawn, results from this go 'round sure hinted at just how susceptible we are to robotic takeover, er, playing nice with harmless androids. Oh, and be sure and check the video after the break![Via Slashdot]
How to deal with a "WoW widow" (without going insane)
"Are you *still* playing that silly game of yours?""Why do you stay up all night playing on your computer?""You pay more attention to that game of yours than you do to me!" Many of you have heard these words from your angry spouse or significant other. Many more of you have been unwise enough to try to defend yourself only to find yourself embroiled in a bitter, and sometimes relationship-ending, argument. Still more of you look over your shoulders at night fighting off feelings of guilt for sneaking into your computer room in order to get a few hours of your favorite game in. Such struggles might lead to resentment and may certainly put a strain on your relationships with the people who are most important to you.I have good news and bad news for you. The bad news is that situations like this are most certainly your fault. The good news is that it isn't for the reason you think it is. There is no difference between the guy who schedules a raid on Tuesday night from 8:00 to midnight and the guy who has a weekly bowling night with his friends at the same time. There is no difference between the guy who plants himself on the couch to watch the big game and the guy who welds his butt to a computer chair for 5 hours on a Sunday afternoon. So why do we never hear the terms "Bowling League Widows" or "Sunday Football Widows" kicked around, but jokes about "WoW Widows" and "MMO Spouse Support Groups" abound?
