Here’s an interesting conference sponsored by the Institute for Information Law and Policy at the New York Law School and Yale Law. Here’s the description:
The new environments of electronic games, especially those that are massively multiplayer, are not just gamespaces; they are cultures unto themselves. Like real societies, they grow and evolve as their members create rules and norms. Some norms in games are cooperative and democratic, others are dictatorial and dystopic. This interdisciplinary conference will examine the state of play today in an effort to understand the phenomenon of digital games and the virtual worlds they create and to discuss the complex social, psychological, and legal issues to which they give rise.
I find the “they are cultures unto themselves” especially interesting.
Well, I can understand how electronic games can become “cultures unto themselves”…. The graphics have improved so much that you almost feel as if you are in another world…
Years ago, the graphics [or interactive aspect, is that the right term?]were not so hot..So, you could separate yourself from the game.
Now, I believe some games are almost “virtual”, in that they become a whole new world for the player…and suddenly, the “game” world becomes more fascinating than the real world…
I have not heard of the “mulitplayer” games..I am assuming that they are games that one or more can access at the same time from the comfort of a PC.
Think of the possibilities…You could have a team play soccer and yet no one is actually on a real green field…
Think of the possibilities of strategy with a multiplayer game…
Fascinating….:)
Most Graciously,
Maureen
*A Mayde in her own little Late Fall woode…