Abstract
World of Warcraft (WoW), a game of the genre MMORPG (massive multiplayer online role playing game), has proven to be a valuable field of study for researchers interested in understanding the functioning of online communities and social relationships in those communities. This chapter seeks, through literature review and interviews conducted within the game itself, from player/researcher immersion, to discuss the relationships of a group of players in a new context of relationship and (in)formation, considering the significant screen time, communication processes, identifications, and identity building.
TopBackground
In the universe of games, individuals emerge that touched this border of being something beyond their “nature”, seeking this critical and “no return” point of being more of oneself, like art itself that extrapolates the human condition in search of being a hero or even being a god (Maldonado, 1991). It is therefore, in this society, based on the digital technologies of information and communication, that one can perceive the presence of individuals capable of taking steps towards the construction of their identities, or identifications, in an incessant process that has the technological contribution of this potential. Contribution of technologies that allows the immersion of imaginaries in imaginaries less and less filled with realities, or realities increasingly filled or enhanced by imaginary ones (Lévy, 1993). Without being a parallel universe, but a supposed supremacy of the imaginary, this is also the universe of creativity and innovation through a new industry.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Trolls: Trolls are a playable race presented in the game.
(In)formation: Formative dimension of the information.
Healer: This is a specialization within the game which has the function of healing the injuries of other players or of oneself.
RL or IRL: These terms mean real life or in real life.
Loot: Loot, inside the game, is the same as a reward, left by a defeated enemy monster.