‘Elven Elder LVL59 LFP/RB. Please PM me’: immersion, collaborative tasks and problem‐solving in massively multiplayer online games

Abstract

Although there is strong evidence that massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) constitute environments of social interactions and effective learning, we currently lack the tools for investigating the effectiveness of the social networks emerging as well as the cognitive aspects and knowledge acquisition such environments involve. Within this context, we present a conceptual framework for the investigation of the collaborative problem‐solving processes emerging in such environments and we apply it in the investigation of a number of MMOGs through interviews and virtual ethnography. Our findings suggest the balanced convergence of multiple factors, such as the mechanics of the game, the design of the tasks, the collaboration and competition affordances and the content of the game, for the constitution of an effective environment for collaborative learning.

Keywords:

• MMOGs
• collaborative problem‐solving
• online games
• virtual worlds
• collaborative virtual environments

Acknowledgements

With thanks to the Lineage II team of NCSoft Europe and to Beacon Mutlimedia, distributors in Greece, and particularly to Mr Christian Vestøl and Mr Dimitris Pavlis for their interest in our research and their support. Also, many thanks to the anonymous reviewers for their very knowledgeable and constructive comments, and to all the players who participated in our research for their time and their passionate, insightful and encouraging comments.

Notes

1. World of Warcraft. http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/index.xml.

2. Lineage II. http://www.lineage2.com/.

3. Left4Dead. http://www.14d.com/.

4. Tribal Wars. http://www.fyletikesmaxes.gr/.

5. The West. www.the-west.net/.

6. EVE Online. http://www.eveonline.com/.

7. DotA. http://www.dota-allstars.com/.

8. Age of Conan. http://www.ageofconan.com/.

9. Aion. http://na.aiononline.com/.