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Fun & Games

Online games can be a great experience. Just understand how to play well with others

By Larry Magid
January, 2006

Online gaming is here and it’s growing. In 2005, according to Jupiter Research, 59% of online teens had played at least one online game. That number is up considerably from the year before. Even adults are taking to gaming online with 28% of adult Internet users having some experience with online gaming.

It’s no surprise. As fun as it is to play against a PC or a gaming console, going online gives you access to the much more interesting opponents of the human variety. Let’s face it, whether we like to play tennis, bridge, Monopoly or Halo 2 we’re all social creatures who love to interact with others.

Any PC with an Internet connection can be used for online games, as are a growing number of game consoles. By the end of this year, all three major console companies (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo) will have systems that feature interactive online gaming. Already, online gaming is a major selling point of Microsoft’s new Xbox 360.

It’s better online

Interactivity can clearly add a great deal of excitement to a game. Interacting with a computer is one thing, but testing your skills against actual human opponents brings gaming to an entirely new level.

Aside from the gaming aspects, interactive gaming has some positive social implications. While gaming online isn’t exactly the same as sitting across from an opponent in an old-fashioned board game, there is still a give and take going on. When you’re online, you’re communicating and interacting with other people, which means you’re in a social situation, even if you don’t know the actual identity of the other people. In addition to the interaction in the game itself, some online games provide the opportunity to chat on the side. This can be a great way to foster camaraderie or make friendly competition even friendlier.

It has long been argued that console and PC gaming can be an isolating experience, keeping people from interacting with friends and families, but with online gaming there can be a social aspect which actually brings people together. As with any other human interaction, there are plenty of positive lessons to be learned from an online gaming experience. Learning how to compete and win is an obvious one. Learning how to lose gracefully is another life lesson that, sadly, we all need to learn as well. Some games encourage cooperation and team building – positive skills that can serve you well in the “real world.” Online gaming can also teach bartering, negotiating and many other important social skills.

But it can be rough, so be smart

Needless to say, there are also risks associated with online gaming. If the game has a chat room or an opportunity to create identities, there is always the risk of giving out too much information. Kids, teens and also adult gamers need to understand what is safe to say and what best remains unsaid. The rules for safe chatting in games are no different than they are in other interactive online areas. Never say that can jeopardize your personal privacy or security or the financial security of yourself or others.

How people treat you and how you treat others is also a concern. In the heat of battle, it’s natural and not necessarily bad manners to express a bit of bravado as you challenge your opponents. That’s as true on the Internet as it is on the soccer field. But remember, the people on the other end of that router are indeed people and, regardless of what role they’re playing in the game, they’re probably decent, friendly and sensitive folks.

No one expects you to treat everyone with kid gloves, but try to keep competition in perspective and realize that the folks out there are friendly opponents, not real-life enemies. Most people know the difference between appropriate banter and hurtful comments. Likewise, if you’re going to be in the game, you need to have a thick skin. Don’t take comments seriously and don’t take it personally even if the person on the other end is being a bit obnoxious and insulting. They probably don’t mean anything by it and, even if they do, it says more about them than it does about you. The same advice applies to games that allow voice chat. If the conversation is making you uncomfortable, just end it. If the game allows you to connect a webcam, be very careful about where you point the camera and what you’re wearing.

Use the System

Also, be aware of the safety tools built into the game or the gaming system. Xbox 360, for example, allows you to block people from contacting you or to “mute” those you don’t want to hear from. If someone continues to bother you online, check out the service’s complaint system. I know you don’t want to rat on people, but if they’re way out of line, you may need to let someone else handle it. All of the next-generation gaming consoles will have parental controls to limit what games a person can play.

And Understand the costs

In addition to your personal safety and feelings, you must also guard your money. Although some online games are free, others charge a fee. Make sure you’re not getting in over your head on cost and also watch for extra charges either from the game publisher or third parties. There is a growing market for avatars, real estate, weapons and other artifacts that people buy and sell for real (not simulated) money. NetFamilyNews.org reported that, believe it or not, someone recently paid “$100,000 for a piece of ‘real estate’ in the Sweden-based MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game), Project Entropia.” Most transactions are for far less money but still, you need to be aware of your expenses when gaming online.

Web Resources on Games & Gaming

Because of video and online games' enormous and growing popularity, researchers and journalists have been following them closely. Here's some of the latest material from them and the game industry that parents and educators might find helpful.

Videogames
The latest on the addiction question
  • "Why are games so addictive?" Slate.com's gaming expert explains: "It's mostly the narcotic appeal of 'leveling." When you create a new character … it starts life as a weakling. Completing specific quests … jumps you to the next level, where you suddenly have more endurance, more strength, and stronger spells. The sense of accomplishment is incredible but fleeting. To make these games challenging, designers make the mathematics of leveling logarithmic: The higher you go, the longer it takes to reach the next level." 
  • "A new disorder is born" at The Daedalus Project (Daedalus is run by a Stanford PhD student who has been researching the psychology of online role-playing games" for three years)
  • "Hooked on the Web: Help Is on the Way" at the New York Times
  • NetFamilyNews on growth in the number of "patients" (and acceptance of the term "addiction")
Online gambling

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