Editorial for the CHB special issue on MMOGs

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.06.041 0747-5632/ 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Sociability, social structures, and the way that these are translated in the digital world are becoming an interesting topic for video game researchers (Christou, Zaphiris, Ang, & Law, 2011). Particularly, the way that these structures are manifested in Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) becomes of interest, and that is evident from the articles in this special issue. MMOGs have become more popular than emails, according to a study by Nielsen Online (Nielsen Wire, 2010). Social cultural studies on computer games are gaining much popularity recently due to the emergence of MMOGs in which player–player interaction plays a very important role. Research in this area ranges from virtual identity, sociability design, cultural impacts of games, participatory culture as well as media and communication. The draw to these games is that they offer a new kind of ‘‘third-place’’ (Oldenburg, 1989), a place where people can go and socially interact, which cannot be classified as home or work. Several questions must be asked if we are to enhance the entertainment value and motivation to play that are staples of video games. Players expect that by playing together with their friends, or even ‘‘alone together’’ (Ducheneaut, Yee, Nickell, & Moore, 2006), they will be entertained, they will compete, they will collaborate, and when they finish their play they will have a social experience that will draw them to play more. On the other hand, designers want to ensure that they provide a third-place that is safe for the targeted age-group, and where players will feel comfortable. Intrusive online advertisements and offensive language that go ‘‘unpunished’’ are issues that detract from the fun factor of play, and may chase away players. As such, examining how these issues transpire the inside of the video game world provides game designers with further understanding and better tools to deal with these topics. Of course, there are other topics that are of interest to the social games community (Williams, 2006):