Assigment #9: World of Warcraft, or World of Warcrack?

World of Warcraft: to some, it is a way of life. To the rest of the world, it is something that nerds use as an excuse to be antisocial. But, seeing as how this virtual world has a larger population than more than 60% of actual countries (9 million players total as of July), there obviously must be something more to this obsession than meets the eye. Indeed, there is something strangely addicting about World of Warcraft.

When I played World of Warcraft, I wouldn't have ever called my gaming habits problematic, but I certainly knew my fair share of individuals whose habits I would call problematic. I actually know of someone that goes to Harvard who skipped two of his finals so he could join his guild for an important in-game event. It is very sad that this happens, but it is also very interesting to explore why it does. One possible explanation is the escape from reality the game provides. This can range from the simple need to forget that you have three tests coming up very soon, or it can be more fundamental, such as being unhappy with your actual self. I had one friend who is very skinny in real life, but would play as the most masculine characters imaginable. This cartoon sums up the basic idea:


Another reason World of Warcraft is so addicting is the insatiable desire for better items. Truthfully, it may be a little time consuming, but it is possible to obtain superior quality weapons and armor without a great deal of effort. However, it is almost impossible for any one player to obtain the very best items the game has to offer, lest he or she is willing to devote endless time to playing. It is almost like a gambler's mentality, that with a little more patience, some hard work, and a little luck, you can strike it rich. To make it even worse, the developers of the game are always releasing new content, which means that fancy new sword you spent hours upon hours to get will soon be obsolete, and you will have to spend even more time getting the better item.

Despite the problems that can arise from playing World of Warcraft, it does not really resemble Caplan's model at all. All of the internet affordances (anonymity, less social risk, etc.) are not really reasons people get addicted, except for having greater control over self-presentation (the above cartoon). In terms of psychosocial issues, the motivation to play World of Warcraft is fundamentally different from Caplan's model. Online gaming, in general, is a very social activity, and some of the most fun I've had with other people were the ridiculous conversations I've had with people online using voice chat programs. In fact, most of the time when I wanted to play World of Warcraft, it was more to talk with my friends from home who also played: if nobody else was on besides me, I usually just logged off. This is fundamentally different from Caplan's model, which links problematic internet usage to social problems. Of all the people that I have become close with online, I would never say that any of them have had social problems. In fact, every single person I knew came from a group of real-life friends who played together.

I would say there there are really no unique affordances to online gaming in general. With all of the different reasons people get addicted to many things they do, there is bound to be some kind of overlap.