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Gaming is inherently social. Throughout history, playing games has been closely linked
with building relationships and reinforcing social hierarchies. However, with the advent
of video games this social aspect of gaming quickly began to disappear. Almost all of
these video games were solitaire in nature, and it was rare to find a game that
incorporated the play of two or more players. Along with this anti-social aspect, many
other negative issues were brought forth concerning video game play: addiction, aggressive
behavior, decrease in intelligence, and promotion of gender biases and stereotypes.
With the recent growth in popularity of the Internet, these once solitaire games have
evolved into a new medium, online gaming. The Internet has allowed people in different
locations to play games with each other. Thus, the Internet has provided an excellent
platform to return games to their social roots. How does this new medium potentially
answer the issues that have thus far plagued video games? And what new issues might be
brought forth because of this new environment? These implications of online gaming are
going to be examined and hopefully some answers will be brought forth. |