We’re All in This (Game) Together

Abstract

This study applies theories of computer-mediated communication and human-computer interaction to the study of transactive memory systems (TMS; how small groups coordinate expertise, for which communication is the central mechanism) in video game teams. A large-scale survey ( N = 18,627) of players from the small group video game League of Legends (LoL) combined with server-side data provided by Riot Games (the creators of LoL) was conducted to look at the relationship between TMS and win/loss outcome as well as the role of team size and past team member acquaintanceship on the formation of TMS, using social presence as a mediator. Results found that TMS was highly predictive of the likelihood of a team winning a game, and that while past team member acquaintanceship predicted TMS, team size did not. Furthermore, only two dimensions of social presence, copresence and perceived comprehension, were related to TMS. These two dimensions fully mediated the relationship between past team member acquaintanceship and TMS.

Understanding Continuance Intention toward Crowdsourcing Games: A Longitudinal Investigation

“…In recent years, videos games have experienced consistently accelerated growth (Entertainment Software Association, 2017). Part of the reason why games are popular could be that video gaming brings together innovative and creative technologies to create engaging, immersive, and even breathtaking experiences (Kahn & Williams, 2015). As a consequence, researchers have placed a significant amount of effort into studying gamificationthat is, the use of game-like experiences to motivate individuals in less engaging environments (Deterding, Dixon, Khaled, & Nacke, 2011;Huotari & Hamari, 2017;Wang, Goh, Lim, Vu, & Chua, 2017).…”

What Contributes to Success in MOBA Games? An Empirical Study of Defense of the Ancients 2

“…According to McGrath's (1984) circumplex model of group tasks, MOBA games belong to a specific type of group task called contest/battle tasks, of which success has to be considered based on two distinct metrics: performance and outcome. A strong performance does not guarantee a win, and a weak performance does not guarantee a loss (Kahn & Williams, 2016). Thus, it is necessary to note that success as it is referred to in the present article is operationalized as outcome.…”

“…MOBAs are a hybrid of the massively multiplayer online game and real-time strategy (RTS) genres. Such games center around two small teams competing against one another (Kahn & Williams, 2016). Recent years have witnessed the explosion of MOBA-related studies from various perspectives such as game addiction, motivation, leadership, and cultural differences.…”

Ubiquitous Pokémon Go: Human–Environment Relationships and the Location-Based Augmented Reality Game

“…Second, while co-presence has been investigated in the massive multi-player online game environment to understand players’ social gathering and collaboration in the virtual “third places” (Kahn & Williams, 2016; Lin & Sun, 2016), little has been done in the AR environment where players are able to assemble as a team in the game-world while physically co-locating with others in the real world. This study examined co-presence in a game that blended the virtual and physical world to expand the scope of the concept.…”