Internet & Society
Answer the question below
What are the ways in which multiplayer games help to build a sense of community among gamers? Their social identity? Help to build their social support?
ANSWER
Internet and Society
Video games are an effective tool for building online communities. They create a virtual environment where people of all ages, gender and different backgrounds and profession can interact with each other. Video games are mainly used for entertainment which is their original use, but they are an excellent platform for people to interact and communicate as they share the same interest. Different video games can create different communities depending on the type of game and games that interest them. Playing the same type of game makes them share a similar interest, and thus this creates grounds for interaction (Fox et al., 2018). Multiplayer games are designed in such a way that players get to interact, and as they interact through playing the game, they get to form a community. Communities are also formed in multiplayer games as different people from different races and sexual orientations, and genders address the features of the games that affect them. They also give different people a chance to connect over a shared interest.
Socialization is one of the major motivations for playing online games. According to research, social interactions make most video game players return to the platform for social interactions and to also continue with the game. The social presence theory is applied in video games. According to this theory, an individual’s communication in an online presence such as online video games motivates them to be actively involved in the game (Cole et al., 2020). Socialization in video games also helps gamers to create a social identity. They have a community of people with whom they identify. They are known as gamers. Multiplayer video games help gamers create a social network of people virtually that they can identify with and interact with. The community created helps them have a sense of social identity. They are not lost within the society, they identify as gamers. Human beings are social beings, and therefore gamers tend to look for people who identify with their skill within the multiplayer games, thus creating a social identity.
Video games are fun and an engaging way to help connect with people. It is a teaching tool that helps a person develop social skills. In the community today, most of the people who are into video games tend to have an issue connecting with people in the real world. The virtual world is used as an escape or a place where they interact with people who do not know about their real lives (Cole et al., 2020). However, gamers can use this platform as a place to build social support. For example, the members of the rainbow community who play video games can mobilize and create groups of gamers who fight for the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community in video games. Women can also join forces and create a feminist group of video gamers fighting for women’s rights and inclusion games. The same applies to minorities and other groups. Video games can be used as platforms for entertainment and help certain individuals fight for their place in society.
Video games are a great way for gamers to connect. Video games have been male-dominated for a long time, but women have joined the platform with time. The platforms have been used as social grounds where women can discuss the issues they face in the gaming world and the real world. Communities have been formed from video games, and social movements started.
References
Cole, D. A., Nick, E. A., & Pulliam, K. A. (2020). Are massively multiplayer online role-playing games healthy or not, and why? Preliminary support for a compensatory social interaction model. Computers in Human Behavior, 102, 57-66.
Fox, J., Gilbert, M., & Tang, W. Y. (2018). Player experiences in a massively multiplayer online game: A diary study of performance, motivation, and social interaction. New Media & Society, 20(11), 4056-4073.
