Community

Recently we had a discussion about massively multiplayer online games (MMOG) and how they create the sense of community. The most popular type or genre of MMOG is massively multiplayer online role playing games or more commonly referred to as MMORPG. These games require the player to create a character they wish to play as and then lets them explore the world. Through their exploration they meet other online players who they can interact with. Many of these MMORPG have quests within the game. Players receive rewards for completing quests, these rewards vary from being given gold or increasing their skill level.

The MMORPG we discussed in class was EverQuest. This games is set in a fantasy world and is said to have been inspired by Dungeons and Dragons. In the game the player can interact with the other online players through role-playing, joining a guild or duelling.

It is in joining a guild where the sense of community appears. In some ways the guild can be seen as your online family. You are a member of a group, a group of people who have agreed to help each other out. I have never played EverQuest so I do not know how it feels to be accepted into a guild. But I can imagine that it gives the player a sense of belonging. They have been chosen by a group of people to become “one of them”. I believe that it is this sense of belonging that is the reason so many people continue to play MMORPG. If it wasn't then why choose an online game over your stand-alone off line game?