Gaming at the LAN event: the social context of playing video games

2007-06-26T05:47:00.001-07:00

The original text:
It's an article written by Jeroen Jansz and Lonneke Martens from the Amsterdam school of communications Research...

Abstract
An exploratory survey was undertaken about the appeal of
playing video games at a Local Area Network (LAN) event
where personal computers are linked in order to play both
face-to-face and online. First, we wanted to know who
the visitors of a LAN event were, because there is hardly
any research available about this class of gamers. Second,
we wanted to know why they participated in a LAN
event. The survey showed that LAN gamers were almost
exclusively male, with a mean age of 19.5 years. They
devoted about 2.6 hours each day to gaming. They were
motivated by social contact and a need to know more
about games. The competition motive was third in the
total sample. A subgroup of heavy gamers obtained a
higher score on competition. This article emphasizes the
importance of the social context of gaming and interprets
its results as a nuance of the stereotype of the solitary,
adolescent gamer.

Why is LAN Internet gaming so popular?

Games on the Internet get played more and more...
At a LAN event, gamers link ther Pc's within a high speed LAN
in order to play together.

These video games exist in many types and genres (ego-shooters,
sports games and even strategic games...), but all varieties
share one fundamental defining characteristic: Games are
an interactive kind of mediated entertainment..
When people play a video game, they know well that they are roaming
in a fantasy world, but they act as if it's real!
"People use media to satisfy their needs and desires". (Rubin 2002)
By playing these games people can identify themselves with
the virtual person and in this world there are no rules...
This could explain the age of these players. (Übergangsphase zur Selbstständigkeit)
They feel free by playing these games and parents cannot say anything.

Also competition is closely related to game content. Generally
sports and action games are the most competitive, but a similation game
may also satisfy this need, for example, when one is able to
accomplish levels that one's friend's cannot:-).

What could be negative about playing LAN games?

Well the firms make every year more and more money with that games,
which means that every year more people play these games.....
The ego-shooters are very brutal (shoot the head off...) that you have to
ask yourself if it's not dangerous for some or especially younger users!

Critical observers have expressed their worries publicly about this new
pastime. Video games have been criticized for many different reasons, but
two issues dominate the public debate: the ubiquity of violence in video
games and the risk of social isolation as a consequence of playing games.
The violence issue gained prominence in the media as a result of a number
of tragic violent incidents. In the aftermath of, for example, the shootings at
Columbine High School (2001), the murders by the so called ‘Beltway’
snipers in Washington, DC (2002) and the school shootings in Germany
(2002) and the Netherlands (2004), many commentators assumed a causal
link between these murders and playing violent games. It was argued that
the perpetrators were socially isolated adolescents who seemed to play out
in real life what they had practised behind their screens playing Doom, Duke
Nukem or other violent games (Anderson, 2004; Grossmann and
DeGaetano, 1999; Thompson, 2002).

My meaning

I think that you can't criticise these games that they make amok runners...
Some games are definetely not made for children...there it's a fault of the
parents or the shops selling this to teenagers...
Yourself when you are adult have to know how you use media.
Real life and virtual life is a big difference so when you choose virtual life,
after some time you don't respect your real needs because you are addicted.

Gaming at the LAN event: the social context of playing video games

2007-06-26T05:47:00.000-07:00

The original text:

2007-06-26T05:36:00.001-07:00

hmmmm

network gaming

Gaming at the LAN event: the social context of playing video games

Gaming at the LAN event: the social context of playing video games