PROPOSAL

Research Topic

The technology of Internet has brought gaming industry into a new level where game players are able to engage with each other on the same gaming server. Through the fast network connection, more and more sophisticated online games are able to accommodate huge number of players. This report will place a famous genre of online game into discussion throughout the report, which is the Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG). The report will be focusing on the aspects of fraudulent, privacy, and behavior that influences human lifestyle. We will have a closer look on what is MMORPG, and also the positive aspects of MMORPG as well. Lastly, some idea regarding on the future of MMORPG will be presented.


Research Objectives

The objectives of this research are:

• to understand what is MMORPG
• to find out what is the technology used in MMORPG
• to identify the issues in MMORPG (Fraud, Privacy, Addiction)
• to identify the positive impacts of MMORPG
• to give suggestions for MMORPG in the future

Outline

1.0 Introduction
            1.1 Abstract
            1.2 What is MMORPG


2.0 The Technology of MMORPG

3.0 Issues in MMORPG
            3.1 Fraud
            3.2 Privacy
            3.3 Addiction

4.0 Positive consequences of MMORPG
            4.1 Real Income from the Virtual World
            4.2 Help unemployment
            4.3 Community Building

5.0 Future of MMORPG
            5.1 Avatars as a Second Life
            5.2 Play for Living
            5.3 MMORPG will no longer considered as a game

6.0 Conclusion/Recommendations
            6.1 Self-awareness
            6.2 Parental control
            6.3 Protection of personal data and privacy concern

7.0 Acknowledgement

8.0 List of References

Literature Review

Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) is the online game brought into the gaming industry by the Internet technology. Players are able to engage with each other in one gaming server through the high speed Internet connection. People from different parts of the world can communicate with each other by using the avatars created in the game. 

According to the "The World of MMORPG: A Tale of Two Regions" report, the industry for MMORPG is keep expanding from time to time. The Strategy Analytics predicts the market will generate $6 billion in the year of 2010, and $8 billion in 2014.

According to researches, MMORPG is where the crimeware will mostly happen (McAfee Avert Labs). In the MMORPG, the real money and virtual currency is often involved in playing the game. Players can trade for weapon and virtual currency using real life money. Because of that, some people take the opportunity to practice unethical action like scam and fraud.

Nowadays there are many people who play online games like Warcraft, Dota, and Aion. Undeniably, most of the people will get addicted to the games once they start playing it. The worst problems of games addiction are students started to neglected their studies, unable to concentrate in work, and stay awake until late night. Some gamers wanted to quit but failed to do so, and even feel irritated when they are unable to play. According to The Psychology of MMORPGs, there are variety of mechanisms in MMORPGs that may encourage obsessive usage. It employ well-known behavioral conditioning principles from psychology that reinforce repetitive actions through an elaborate system of scheduled rewards. In effect, the game rewards players to perform increasingly tedious tasks and seduces the player to play continuously.

Signs of MMORPG addiction:

• A preoccupation with gaming
• Lying or hiding game use
• Disobedience at time limits
• Loss of interest in other activities
• Social withdrawal from family and friends

MMORPG is addictive because of gamers' self-esteem. Players wanted to play continuously to gain experience and fight for the top place in the game. In other world, they wish to respected by other gamers in the virtual world. Besides, the MMORPG is having continuous episodes and levels to make gamers enthusiastic to solve the mysteries in the game. Gamers might feel unworthy to stop on the half way in completed the game. Finally, MMORPG is addictive because there are unlimited rewards and development in the virtual world. If a player wish to make his avatar to grow powerful, he need to play extensively.

The issues of copyright and ownerships right often arises in the MMORPGs. Can the agreement made in the cyberspace enforced by the real world's law? Can the virtual properties be "stolen" in legal sense? There is an example of the virtual property and real world money trade that involved court. In the case, a Second Life player purchased a piece of virtual land below the market value and invested thousands of dollar to resell the land for profit. However, the gamer's account was terminated by the gaming company upon the completion of the trade. The company refused to make refund and the gamer filed a civil complaint against the company. What worth mentioning is the case is not heard in the court until today. It is unsure whether this kind of trade involving virtual land and real money can be enforced by the legal action.

There are tips published by the Blizzard Entertainment to avoid scam and these are:

• Never give your prized possessions to anyone that you do not trust 
• Caveat Emptor (Buyer beware)
•   Real Blizzard Employees will never ask you for items or gold
• Be cautious in the friends you make
• Keep your account information secret

In the future, the MMORPG technology will allow people to live behind their avatars since players are given capabilities to customize their characteristics of the avatars. Most of the people will play for their living. Almost everything in the MMORPG can be used to create business in real world. Virtual currency, weapons, gold, and equipments in the game are exchanged among players. In fact, there are players who are willing to pay real money for the virtual stuffs. MMORPG will not be considered as a game only in the future time.

References: 

• Chan, J. 2006, Unhealthy Gaming Habits and Addiction, viewed 25th September 2010, http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~jenchan/index.html

This report is focusing on the unhealthy gaming habits of gamers and the addiction. In this report, it includes the signs on addiction, causes of addiction, and what are the solutions. This report will help our research by helping us to understand what the factors that lead to MMORPG addiction are and how to help people to cure from the game addiction.

• Walter, L. 2010, MMORPG LAW: The Wild West or a New World Order?, viewed 25th September 2010, http://www.gamecensorship.com/mmorpglaw.html

This online article is looking into certain issues in the virtual world. These issues are virtual money and property, virtual gambling, and deviant behavior. The article will explore some of the issues that arise from the collision between virtual and real worlds, the legal implications that result, and the surrounding constitutional concerns.

• Sok, J. & Huhh (2008), Simple Economics of Real Money Trading, viewed 24th September         2010, http://anarinsk.com.ne.kr/data/article.pdf

   

In this paper, describe how people getting engage on investing and real money trade on MMORPG.    We were chosen because it can help us to relate on our research how the economics in MMPORPG happened of real money trading.

• Yee, N 2002, Facets: 5 Motivation Factors for Why People Play MMORPG, viewed 20th         September 2010, http://www.nickyee.com/facets/facets.PDF.

This research paper discusses about the motivation factor why people play MMORPG. There will help us to understand why people play MMORPG and to relate this research paper on how people get addicted to the game.

• Young, K. n.d., Addiction to MMORPGs: Symptoms and Treatment, viewed 26th September 2010, http://www.netaddiction.com/articles/addiction_to_mmorpgs.pdf  

In this article, Dr. Kimberly Young, who is the executive director of the Center for Internet  Addiction Recovery mentioned what are the symptoms of MMORPG addiction and there are also suggested treatment for the addiction.
   

Negative Impacts of MMORPG games

Money wastages

In order to have a great character that masters in all skills and has a lot of great and cool items, some gamers are willing to spend their money in order to buy all of the stuffs on EBAY, one of the e-business website. There is one article written by Jeremy, a former gamer, who shared his experience while he was addicted by MMOPRG games (Schoemaker, Jeremy, 2008). Buying stuffs from Ebay with quite expensive price has brought him into a debt. He lost his job and has no money to pay the electric bill where one day his electric power was shut off. Not only his online world has been shut off, but his life in the real world that have been neglected by him to play the game, now has been shut off. He is unemployed, and has no money to pay the rent house. He should start his life from beginning again by looking for a job. From this article, we can get a conclusion that gamers who are really addicted by games will lose more things than they ever know.

Lost their capability to interact in real life relationship

Gamers who have been addicted with the games will lose their capabilities in interacting with each others within real world. This is because the time that they spend is more into the games itself rather than the reality. One of the concrete examples that have been found from internet based on one of the parents’ experience about their child is that the parents have a 12 years old son who is into supreme destiny online games (Schoemaker, Jeremy, 2008, under Rom’s comment). His son can spend the whole time playing the games alone and never want to go out to play with other children who are in the same age with him. Besides that, his son always breaks the house rules and he has created a gap to communicate well with his sister. This can happen because the son has lack of proper understanding and differentiation between the game world and the real world he is in. From this experience we can take a conclusion that if the gamers always keep themselves into their own virtual world, at the end they will end up with losing their relatives and friends in their real life.

References:
http://www.shoemoney.com/2008/08/03/i-am-a-recovering-addict-of-mmorpg-games/
http://www.shoemoney.com/2008/07/31/making-money-with-virtual-property/