Abstract
It is a common perception that video-games contain rules and restrictions that force players to react in specific ways to a variety of situations. The milieu of games are rightfully believed to put a limit on player responses as intended by the developers of such games, for video-games are simply graphical representations of programmed environments. While video-games provide an accepted form of social interaction and traditional problem-solving based on pre-created environments of game design, it also creates unprecedented opportunities for players to create revolutionary new forms of play that are not expected by the developers of the game.
The patterns of this "emergent gameplay", while new and interesting, also provide an evolving view into the workings of human ways of creating new techniques to achieve goals. Often times these practices put into action by players combine a style of gameplay and meta-gaming that is never intended by the developers of the game, but quickly comes into its own as a valid strategy used by a game's community.
This paper will attempt to analyze the factors and situations necessary for the successful execution of emergent gameplay within a variety of massively multiplayer online video-games over the course of many decades of gaming. By touching on different types of emergent gameplay that is seen within these vast communities of players, the factors that lead up to the execution and later consequences of a human group acting towards a novel and unexpected solution within a restricted system of actions will become clear.
Faculty Sponsors
Dr. Eric Mason
Project Type
Event
Location
Alvin Sherman Library
Start Date
4-12-2013 1:00 PM
End Date
4-12-2013 5:30 PM
Lord British is Dead: An Analysis of the Execution and Consequences of Emergent Gameplay within Massively Multiplayer Online Video-Game Communities
Alvin Sherman Library
It is a common perception that video-games contain rules and restrictions that force players to react in specific ways to a variety of situations. The milieu of games are rightfully believed to put a limit on player responses as intended by the developers of such games, for video-games are simply graphical representations of programmed environments. While video-games provide an accepted form of social interaction and traditional problem-solving based on pre-created environments of game design, it also creates unprecedented opportunities for players to create revolutionary new forms of play that are not expected by the developers of the game.
The patterns of this "emergent gameplay", while new and interesting, also provide an evolving view into the workings of human ways of creating new techniques to achieve goals. Often times these practices put into action by players combine a style of gameplay and meta-gaming that is never intended by the developers of the game, but quickly comes into its own as a valid strategy used by a game's community.
This paper will attempt to analyze the factors and situations necessary for the successful execution of emergent gameplay within a variety of massively multiplayer online video-games over the course of many decades of gaming. By touching on different types of emergent gameplay that is seen within these vast communities of players, the factors that lead up to the execution and later consequences of a human group acting towards a novel and unexpected solution within a restricted system of actions will become clear.
