cnix

I came across a free online version of The Oregon Trail at this website: http://www.virtualapple.org/oregontraildisk.html

It only requires the installation of a Firefox plug-in.  I was not able to try it out because it requires Windows. 

I also found another game that was popular during my grade school days - Dope Wars.  While it may not be a typical educational game, it certainly has elements of strategy.  There are numerous versions of this online.  Facebook includes a vitiation that combines the classic game play with elements of an MMORPG.

I found a very simple parlor game that I think could be executed well within the gaming environment.  In real life, the game works like this:  a person who is ‘it’ absorbs those it touches until a huge string of people are chasing a few survivors.

 

Within Vanguard the game could be played very similar to how it is played in real life and could be especially fun in large groups.  After the person who is ‘it’ tags someone, that person could be invited into a group so that it might be a little easier to move as a group (with the distance and direction indicators).  What makes this game transfer well into the virtual world is that it does not require any specific real world objects and is not speech based.  While the chat box can be used, it is often too slow for entertaining gameplay.   

 My main research question is:  What elements of the MMORPG environment make griefing more likely to occur?

I plan to attempt to answer this question by interviewing s many different people, both griefers as well as the griefed.  In addition, I would like to gain access to forum posts.  Although forums could provide a great amount of information, it will be difficult to gain consent from the group for this kind of research.  A well-designed survey would also be of help by providing quantitative results to support the qualitative findings.

 Personally, I do not believe that gold farming should be practiced in MMORPGs such as World of Warcraft and Vanguard.  For one, it allows other players to progress in the game without putting in the time to do so.  Because I view games such as these as experiences rather than economies, gold farming seems contrary to my understanding. 

 

Although I do not agree with the practice of gold farming, I do not believe that negative action should be taken against the gold farmers themselves.  After all, a great deal of gold farming occurs overseas in sweatshops filled with underpaid workers.  Instead, the games themselves should attempt to prevent gold mining and the purchasing of in game currency from gold miners.  This will effectively prevent the practice of gold farming and protect the game for those who would like to play in an environment where people do not buy their way in.

 I apologize for the late submission; my flight to Dallas was delayed.

 

In order to better understand methods of reducing research bias, I will use the furry example Edward started in class.  Furries are excellent examples because many of us have ideas of what furry culture is about, though many of us have not met or talked to anyone who is significantly involved in the culture.  The following are three examples I believe could help study the Furry subculture without bias:

 

1. The first thing I think people should realize is that not all furries can be represented by images we have seen or what we have heard.  In fact, it’s likely that only a small portion of the people who are involved in furry culture do so in the stereotypically sexual way.  If we were to accept perceptions before doing research, it could severely damage the research information.
2. Secondly, it would be beneficial to view the furry subculture as if it were any other culture different from our own.  This involves treating the subjects with respect and not responding negatively to any information that a subject may provide.  In order to better understand the intricacies of the culture, you must be nonjudgmental about its practices.
3. Finally, all research questions should be thoroughly examined to ensure that they do not provoke bad responses.  Even if the researcher has the best intentions, poorly worded questions can be devastating to the research results.

 

While this may seem like a fairly obvious concept, while reading Terra Nova, I found the diversity of opinions very interesting.  Having diverse opinions react to a journal article is obviously one of the most important parts of performing research for just about any field.  I began to think that perhaps it would be beneficial to talk to people about my research who know about online gaming even before I produce research.  Even if this means just discussing it with people in our class, it could be very helpful to refine research techniques.

In addition, I have become more interested in researching grieving and one particular article on virtual crime was interesting.  One comment made the point that the article must be clear on what it is considering crime to be—offenses against the game or offences to other players.  It seems that this is the kind of minute detail that could actually have a great result on the study as a whole and therefore must be made clear during the research process.

Another research article on grieving included a comment by a poster that highlights previous research on the topic.  He basically depicts the type of person that engages in grieving and their motivations for doing so.  I need to continue to read though these bullet points, as well as other research on the site, to figure out if there is room for further, perhaps more focused, research in the area of grieving.

 As this will be the first time I have joined a guild, I first set out to figure out what kind of guild I would like to join.  Due to the fact that larger guilds will provide a greater number of possible research participants, I first looked at guilds with the greatest number of players.  In addition, larger guilds are likely to be primarily composed of people who do not know each other outside of the game while some smaller guilds may include a group of friends who have met face-to-face.  By studying relationships that exist exclusively within the game, it may be possible to gain a better understanding of in-game dynamics.

Another factor influencing my decision is the type of guild.  Due to time restraints, I will not be able to spend enough time in game to join a “hard core” raiding guild.  Instead, I’m directing my attention towards guilds that are more casual.  This type of guild should allow me to experience guild dynamics while acquiring information for my research.

Unfortunately, the second time I attempted to use the Vanguard guild search it was not working; nonetheless, I found two from my previous research:  The Platinum Order and Safe Haven.  Both guilds are large and should provide many research opportunities.  In addition, The Platinum Order seems to have a very wide range of player types and could provide a broad range of data.

After talking about the different Bartle player types, I became curious about which category I would fall into.  Luckily our latest assignment involves taking a quiz that should indicate what kind of player I am.  After talking the quiz, the site reported “KILLER” in large green type.  The detailed analysis consisted of the following: Killer: 67%; Achiever: 67%; Socializer: 60%; Explorer: 13%.  In addition, the site suggested that the following games would align with my interests:  World of Warcraft, Dark Age of Camelot, Final Fantasy XI, Everquest, and Guild Wars.

Now, it seems possible that I am a killer, after all, I do spend a decent amount of time killing in the game, however, what I don’t understand is why the quiz would report that I am a killer when my killer and achiever percentages are equal.  It appears that my character type would be better described as a killer-achiever.  Because I mainly kill to achieve certain goals, this combination seems probable.  

The one area that I am not sure about is the socializing percentage.  Though my perception may be warped by my little experience playing an MMORPG, I can’t see myself spending a great deal of time talking to people I don’t know.  If I knew the people in real life, it would be a much different situation.  Its likely that this is because I am not used to talking to a person whose identity I only know through their avatar.  It should be interesting to see if my perceptions about the issue change as I become more accustomed to the gaming environment.  

On the whole, this scheme for describing the different player types seems appropriate but it will be good to reevaluate it after I become more familiar with MMORPGs.

I found this thread on the main Vanguard forum that I think would be helpful for other new players:

http://forums.station.sony.com/vg/posts/list.m?topic_id=2101

Also, I visited a fan site including a forum, FAQs, etc. that can be accessed here:

http://www.vanguardlive.com/

My first gaming experience with Vanguard was not as exciting has I had hoped, but I think that may have something to do with the little knowledge I have of how the game works.  For the majority of the class period, I ran around the virtual world clicking on and attempting to kill hostile enemies.  These actions quickly lost their appeal because aside from the fact that I would occasionally be killed and transported back to the grave area, little changed from kill to kill.

 

In future gaming sessions, I would like to learn about fulfilling objectives.  Different objectives could distract from the grunt work of mindlessly attempting to kill any enemy I come upon.  Though going into battle with someone in real life would be VERY exciting, the act of clicking on the screen to simulate battle becomes boring after a while.

 

In addition, I would like to better understand how to equip my character.  I think I figured out how to make my character hold a different weapon but that’s as far as I got.  Also, it would be nice to know the text commands that the game allows you to use so that communication between teem members, for example, would be easier.

Hello, world!  My name is Chris Nixon.  My knowledge of MMORPGs extends only as far as my friends’ desires to explain the virtual worlds they play in.  Usually, the game in discussion is World of Warcraft.  I’ve picked up random terms and concepts along the way, but I must admit that I, personally, have had no experience with this type of game. 

In fact, I have not spent a great deal of time with a game since I was in middle school, playing Diablo.  Since then, I’ve played various games, however, none of them could keep my attention.  I feel that i could not keep playing due to the fact that it seemed like I was wasting my time.  This stands in great contrast to others’ experiences.

After watching my first-year suitemate willingly throw his life away for World of Warcraft, I fully understand how addicting modern games can be.  An interesting area of research could involve further investigation into what causes addiction and dedication to these games.  It would also be interesting to investigate how a World of Warcraft addiction compares to other addictions, such as gambling.