EverQuest -- reading response
I was truly fascinated by the EverQuest article. I have always been somewhat appalled by the popularity of these online games -- I find it unfortunate that people spend so much time in a virtual world when the real world is here. I understand that the sense of escape these games can offer can be satisfying, or even necessary for some people, but I think that in the long run this kind of escape might be harmful because it presents only a temporary, virtual solution to whatever problems they might have (and distracts them from dealing with the problems they have in the real world and finding a real solution to them).
This article has introduced me to many implications of these virtual worlds that I would never have considered. The interface between the real and virtual worlds and their economies (and people) is where it starts to get interesting. Because these virtual worlds exist in the real world, and connect real people to each other, their interactions and the relationships they build are in some sense real. However, I am worried that people will just get used to interacting with each other through a screen -- this happens more and more each day, not only because of RPGs of course -- and I don't think that's a good thing.
Back to the actual article though! Using these virtual worlds as a way of studying economic systems is a great idea. I wonder if they can be studied for other purposes, such as social psychology. Of course it has to be acknowledged by researchers that the gaming environment is fake, and not a representation of real life, so the behavior of the players isn't necessarily the same as it would be in the real world. For example, in examining the failure of games where no one can amass more wealth that any other players, we should keep in mind that the players enter the virtual world of the game to play and to win, so a game that doesn't allow you to do that will bore you. People don't always have such expectations from the real world though. People in the real world like to be lazy sometimes and don't mind not winning challenges etc.
Thinking about these games in terms of business is interesting to me, as I am beginning to understand how everything works, and all the questions the article the article raised about the legal implications of owning virtual property etc are very informative.