A decade of research into player communities in online games

Abstract

The social dynamics of player communities in online games have been the subject of much research during the last decade. Following a systematic review of empirical research publications from 2000–2010, this article synthesizes the key methods and concepts researchers have used to study and characterize player communities. It also synthesizes the key aspects and operationalizations researchers have concentrated on. The analysis shows that qualitative approaches have been more common than quantitative ones. The concepts used to characterize player communities were often not clearly defined or overlapped in meaning. Yet they revealed a prevalence of micro (groups or teams), meso (guilds or organizations) and macro (communities and networks) perspectives. About 22 different aspects and operationalizations of player communities were identified. Six were most common, i.e. culture and social norms, social structuring, rationale, number of members, used information and communication technologies and time of existence. The article concludes with several suggestions for future research.

The Role of Virtual Communities in Gambling and Gaming Behaviors: A Systematic Review

“…Some systematic reviews close to our topic have been conducted, for example in terms of online game communities (Warmelink and Siitonen 2013 ) and user participation in different online communities (Malinen 2015 ). However, our focus lies in the social aspects of the online gambling and monetary gaming phenomena.…”

Social Interactions in Virtual Worlds

“…One can also find groups that were created to accommodate particular player needs such as odd work schedules and disabilities (Poisso, 2013). Lastly, it is common for guilds to be established around different in-game goals and playing preferences such as socializing, raiding, role-playing, or PvP 3 (Warmelink & Siitonen, 2013;Williams et al, 2006).…”

Computer Games and Organization Studies

“…Game studies have suggested that online gaming communities use novel organizational configurations (e.g. Castronova, 2005; Chen, Sun, & Hsieh, 2008; Taylor, 2009; Vesa, 2013; Warmelink & Siitonen, 2013; Williams et al, 2006). With millions of computers connected through the Internet it became possible to program persistent, virtual game worlds such as Azeroth of World of Warcraft or New Eden of EVE Online.…”