scholarly journals BEWARE ASIAN SERVERS: RACIALIZED PERCEPTIONS OF CHEATING AND SKILL AMONG VIDEO GAME PLAYERS

Author(s):  
Christine Tomlinson ◽  
Sam Srauy

The resurgent interest in cyberpunk in video game cultures centers the genre's historical and racially problematic themes. Moreover, competitive/online play and the attending toxicity, along with recent Covid-19 based anti-Asian sentiments center the need to theorize the discursive patterns in which these phenomena appear. Taking the recurring talk on various video game forums of isolating Asian servers because "Asians cheat" as a site of inquiry, this project argues that the sentiment of isolating Asian players to region locked servers relies on three entangled discourses: the on-again, off-again collapsing of various Asian identities to a monolithic Pan-Asia (Duara, 2001), Korean and Japanese "expertise" through acquired skill viz. their assumed video game "obsessiveness" (Groen, 2013), and the cheating technological Other seeking to supplant Whiteness at the privileged center of video games (see Nakamura, 2002, 2009). By highlighting these discourses and how they function, this project hopes to lend theoretical nuance to understanding racism in contemporary video game cultures.

Author(s):  
Michael Austin

Video games have long been scrutinized and criticized as sites of identity formation and exploration for video game players. This chapter argues that hip hop–themed video games afford players the opportunity to adopt hip hop identities through the use of avatars within the game, an endeavor that can be problematic when considering the politics of representation (and specifically the politics of race and ethnicity) at play. It also investigates ways in which hip hop spaces are represented within video games, and ways in which video games and their music operate as a site of resistance for hip hop artists.


2021 ◽  
pp. e20200012
Author(s):  
Heidi Rautalahti

The article examines player narratives on meaningful encounters with video games by using an argumentative qualitative interview method. Data gathered among Finnish adult video game players represents narratives of important connections in personal lives, affinities that the article analyzes as further producing three distinctive themes on meaningful encounters. Utilizing a study-of-religion framework, the article discusses meaning making and emerging ways of meaningfulness connected to the larger discussion on the “big questions” that are asked, explored, and answered in popular culture today. Non-religious players talk about intricate and profound contemplations in relation to game memories, highlighting how accidental self-reflections in mundane game worlds frame a continuing search for self.


1984 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 271-276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert F. McClure ◽  
F. Gary Mears

This study examined some personality characteristics and demographic variables of frequent video game users. A survey of video-game-playing attitudes, personality characteristics, and entertainment choices of high school teenagers was made. Frequent video-game players were young, male, and liked competitive activities, such as playing sports. They were bright and liked challenges and science fiction movies. Infrequent players tended to be older, female, not as bright and to like noncompetitive activities. These infrequent players did not like video games, were anxious about computers, and did not read very many books.


2016 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josef Nguyen

This article examines the fan practice of Let's Plays—video recordings that video game players create of themselves playing that include live commentary or riffing. I argue that the riffing accompanying game play footage in Let's Plays highlights how players play idiosyncratically by constructing and performing game-playing personalities. These videos emphasize the performative nature of video game players as fans who actively negotiate with the video games that they play through presentations of individual playing styles and experiences. I show that in accounting for how and why they play the way that they do, Let's Players demonstrate what I suggest are various modes of playing in which players can engage with video games generally. Consequently, creating, sharing, and discussing Let's Plays can render visible a wider diversity of game-playing identities, experiences, and styles.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanzhou Xu

<p><b>This thesis discusses the impact of video games on the tourism motivation of Chinese video game players, focusing on the Assassin’s Creed series of games. Four research questions are considered: What is the difference between the travelers’ tourism motivations and non-travelers’ tourism motivations in Chinese Assassin’s Creed players in terms of push and pull factors? What is the relationship between demographic characteristics and tourism motivations? Do gamer typologies have impact on Chinese Assassin’s Creed players’ tourism motivations? What impact does time and frequencies of playing Assassin’s Creed have on players’ tourism motivations in terms of push and pull factors?</b></p> <p>The review of literature focuses on video game players, video games and tourism, popular culture tourism and tourism motivation. The thesis identifies gaps in knowledge about the tourism motivations of Chinese video game players, and the relationship between tourism motivations and player typologies and participation in the game (time and frequency). As non-travelers are included in the data collection, it is found that the tourism motivation of non-travelers is also a knowledge gap through reviewing literature.</p> <p>Motivational push and pull factors as the theoretical basis of this research and the study focuses on the Assassin’s Creed games series. The study uses a quantitative method and collects data through an online survey of Chinese gamers recruited through three Assassin’s Creed online communities. The first stage of data collection focused on those who had travelled to France, Italy or the UK, the locations appearing in four of the Assassin’s Creed games. 29 useable responses were collected. The second stage broadened the sample to include those gamers who had not travelled to these places (termed non-travelers). This generated 131 useable responses, making 160 respondents in total.</p> <p>For Chinese video game players, novelty was the most important push factor motivating travel to the Western European countries appearing in the Assassin’s Creed games. The location attribute was the most important pull factor. There is no difference in the reported tourism motivation of travelers and non-travelers. Comparing tourism motivations by age, sociality and location attributes were not different, however, respondents aged 18 to 25 had higher importance in novelty and game-related push and pull tourism motivation factors than older gamers. There was no significant difference between male and female players' tourism push and pull motivations. Based on gaming motivation, the respondents are divided into two types: hardcore players (having multiple gaming motivations) and casual players (play games for passing time). Hardcore players give higher importance to tourism motivations than casual players. More-involved players give higher importance to tourism push motivations relating to video game than less-involved players. In popular culture tourism research, there are few explorations related to video games. The research on video games and tourism has mainly focused on the gamification of tourism marketing and travel experience. This thesis is one of a few studies of gamers and tourism. Thesis derived the new knowledge for understanding video gamers’ tourism motivations.</p>


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Yanzhou Xu

<p><b>This thesis discusses the impact of video games on the tourism motivation of Chinese video game players, focusing on the Assassin’s Creed series of games. Four research questions are considered: What is the difference between the travelers’ tourism motivations and non-travelers’ tourism motivations in Chinese Assassin’s Creed players in terms of push and pull factors? What is the relationship between demographic characteristics and tourism motivations? Do gamer typologies have impact on Chinese Assassin’s Creed players’ tourism motivations? What impact does time and frequencies of playing Assassin’s Creed have on players’ tourism motivations in terms of push and pull factors?</b></p> <p>The review of literature focuses on video game players, video games and tourism, popular culture tourism and tourism motivation. The thesis identifies gaps in knowledge about the tourism motivations of Chinese video game players, and the relationship between tourism motivations and player typologies and participation in the game (time and frequency). As non-travelers are included in the data collection, it is found that the tourism motivation of non-travelers is also a knowledge gap through reviewing literature.</p> <p>Motivational push and pull factors as the theoretical basis of this research and the study focuses on the Assassin’s Creed games series. The study uses a quantitative method and collects data through an online survey of Chinese gamers recruited through three Assassin’s Creed online communities. The first stage of data collection focused on those who had travelled to France, Italy or the UK, the locations appearing in four of the Assassin’s Creed games. 29 useable responses were collected. The second stage broadened the sample to include those gamers who had not travelled to these places (termed non-travelers). This generated 131 useable responses, making 160 respondents in total.</p> <p>For Chinese video game players, novelty was the most important push factor motivating travel to the Western European countries appearing in the Assassin’s Creed games. The location attribute was the most important pull factor. There is no difference in the reported tourism motivation of travelers and non-travelers. Comparing tourism motivations by age, sociality and location attributes were not different, however, respondents aged 18 to 25 had higher importance in novelty and game-related push and pull tourism motivation factors than older gamers. There was no significant difference between male and female players' tourism push and pull motivations. Based on gaming motivation, the respondents are divided into two types: hardcore players (having multiple gaming motivations) and casual players (play games for passing time). Hardcore players give higher importance to tourism motivations than casual players. More-involved players give higher importance to tourism push motivations relating to video game than less-involved players. In popular culture tourism research, there are few explorations related to video games. The research on video games and tourism has mainly focused on the gamification of tourism marketing and travel experience. This thesis is one of a few studies of gamers and tourism. Thesis derived the new knowledge for understanding video gamers’ tourism motivations.</p>


Author(s):  
Ben Tran

Understanding the psychology of the gamer is important not just in studying video game players but also for understanding behaviors and characteristics of individuals who are non-players of video games. Currently, there is a gap in literature concerning the utilization of the gamer in selecting and training potential and current employees in organizational settings. The benefits of utilizing the gamer factor in selecting and training potential employees are: 1) identifying a qualified candidate who is a good fit to the organizational needs and 2) achieving and maintaining competitive advantage over competitors. Organizations are encouraged to utilize the Enneagram of Personality and Emotional Intelligence measures to identify gamers’ other characteristics (O) and utilize the Tavistock method to assess gamers’ factors. The Tavistock approach has been utilized in various formats including the Apprentice.


2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shira Chess ◽  
Nathaniel J. Evans ◽  
Joyya JaDawn Baines

Recent years have seen changes to the video game industry and the image of video game players. There are more games on the market and a larger variety of ways to play those games. Yet, despite market shifts, authors such as Shaw demonstrate that there are still tensions surrounding gamer identification. Even as next-generation systems (such as the Xbox One, the PlayStation 4, and the Wii U) and casual gaming take hold of the market, tension remains between the perceptions of who is playing versus the reality of actual players. In our study, we perform a content analysis of video game commercials in 2013 to explore questions of diversity—particularly in terms of portrayals of the player’s sex and ethnicity—to consider how the gamer is represented in terms of physical and behavioral attributes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 15-20
Author(s):  
Klaudia Korpak ◽  
Aneta Bac ◽  
Anna Ścisłowska-Czarnecka

Aim of the study: The purpose of this study was to assess the occurrence of spinal pain syndromes among video game players. Material and methods: 550 persons took part in the survey, including 494 (89.8%) men and 56 (10.2%) women playing video games. The study was conducted using an online questionnaire created using Google Forms. The questionnaire contained 27 questions, including questions about time spent in sitting position, occurrence of spinal pain, ways of dealing with pain and knowledge of the principles of spinal pain prophylaxis. Results: 70% of respondents play on the computer seven days a week, about 3–4 hours a day. Half of the surveyed players devoted one to two hours a day to physical exercise, one third of the study subjects less than an hour, while every third video game player performed physical activity 3–4 times a week. When pain comes, almost 70% of respondents wait for it to subside, every fourth person treats themselves and the rest seeks help of a doctor or physiotherapist. Conclusions: There was no correlation between the number of years spent on playing video games and the occurrence of spinal pain as well as between the daily number of hours spent on playing video games and the occurrence of spinal pain.


Author(s):  
Lavinia McLean ◽  
Mark D. Griffiths

Research on video game playing has focused mainly on the effects of such games in relation to aggression and attitudes towards perpetrators and towards crime. The present research was designed to investigate gamers’ attitudes towards victims of crimes and incidents that were designed to mirror those portrayed in violent video games. Vignettes were used during interviews to explore 50 participants’ attitudes towards different types of victims. The results indicate that long-term playing of violent video games appears to be associated with more negative attitudes towards victims of crime. This is the first study to directly explore attitudes towards victims of crime, in relation to violent video game exposure. Compared to nonviolent video game players, the violent video game players in the study reported less positive attitudes towards the victims in the study and attributed more blame to the victims. The implications of this finding in the context of previous research on violent video games, and on attitudes are explored. Directions for future research in the area are also highlighted.


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