Just came across a link that Courtney posted in a comment. Great link. This researcher studies and surveys online gamers and their psychology. For some reason this site looks like butt on my screen, but the fascinating info is worth highlighting the text to read.

I especially enjoyed the essay on how men and women approach online gaming differently. You go “oh yeah” when you read the facts, like

female players are significantly more likely to always group with people they’ve grouped with before when compared with male players

but you don’t really observe those things unless they are pointed out. I also thought this was interesting:

Female players are significantly more likely to be in officer or leader positions within guilds than male players (link). Female players are also significantly more likely to participate in guild events than male players (link).

Most assumptions would be the opposite I think, as far as leadership roles. Anyway, the article is quite interesting, as is all his other research. Like:

The more a player is achievement-oriented, the more likely they will quit the game.

Those players whose goal becomes to “be the best” are the most likely to burn out, whereas the ones who use it as a social tool will be around for a while. Anyway, definitely worth a look. I will post it in my forums too.

On another note, I was at the bookstore today and saw a map of Los Angeles ON CLOTH. I can’t find a link to one on the internet no matter how hard I search, and I’m so annoyed I didn’t buy it! It was so much like the Ultima cloth maps! I will go buy it and take a picture. 🙂