Players’ behavior in virtual worlds reflect their real-life personalities
“And what little we see of this behavior leaves much to be desired,” my wife, Joyce, told me over a cup of coffee yesterday morning.
What triggered this sudden outburst from my peace-loving wife was her recent expedition to the forums of a popular MMORPG here in the Philippines.
Frankly, I think the same way, that MMORPG players in this country deserve a good spanking.
I remember writing an article about this topic for a community paper. In the story, I highlighted the potential risk of allowing unethical MMORPG behavior to happen on a regular basis.
What do I mean by unethical behavior? Well, the virtual worlds of MMORPGs, whether we admit it or not, are very similar to the real world. Characters handled by players run around these worlds and go about their daily business. These worlds also run on economic conditions such as trade, price controls, and supply and demand.
The problem is, these worlds, particularly the characters found in them, also mimic real life. Scammers abound, duping ignorant victims into either purchasing useless items or letting go of their hard-earned in-game currency in exchange for nothing. Bullies run amuck, inflicting pain on the weak.
Fortunately, also much like the real world, virtual worlds have their own sets of rules and regulations. But if you think life is unfair here, you’ll take the real world over virtual worlds any day, as enforcement of laws in these imaginary lands are also virtual … sometimes non-existent.
Let’s go back to my wife’s argument, that the behavior of players in virtual worlds reflect their real-life personality. If you’re a con artist in-game, are you one in the real world? If you enjoy hurting other players in these virtual worlds, do you also enjoy hurting friends? Family? Neighbors? The neighbor’s cat?
That’s just in-game. I haven’t even touched the comments being made by some players against their fellows on the forums.
Here’s a parting shot for the reckless and irresponsible souls among us: It’s so easy to be bad … to be consumed by malicious thoughts. It’s hard to keep your nose clean, to stay out of trouble, and be an overall nice guy. If you think you’re strong because you can beat the crap out of and humiliate everyone you encounter in-game, think again … you’re weak, both in mind and in spirit.
Oh, boy! I think I’m pretty upset, too.
My thanks to ctrl+alt+del for the nice illustration that somehow depicts my frustration at the world we live in, both virtual and real.
Related Stories
POSTED IN: Asian MMO, Asian MMO Players, MMO-Etiquette, MMORPG, My World, Random Rants
0 opinions for Players’ behavior in virtual worlds reflect their real-life personalities
No one has left a comment yet. You know what this means, right? You could be first!
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: