Friday, October 22, 2010

PROPOSAL FOR SUBMISSION


Research topic
The topic we’ve selected is about online games business. The business in online games has broad definition and contains of wide-ranging services not just solely the services provided by the company to the customers, it also includes the business between players and between players with third-party business.
There are different kinds of online games categories as I mentioned in the first post, thus there have different pattern of business emerged. In our topic we are going to narrow down the scope to one category, which is about Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG).

Rationale of topic choice
Why we have selected this topic? It is because this kind of ‘off topic’ will not be taught in lectures/classes as a subject-matter, and yet the business in online games is not simply you can find in search engine (Google). Only if you’ve ever played MMORPG, then you would know what and how the business in MMORPG is about. As I’ve been a hardcore gamers since long time ago, I can share my experience of how the evolution and changes of business in online games (especially MMORPG) from past to present. So, it is pleased to provide me this opportunity to share the knowledge with others.

How we obtain information for the paper
As from my little survey in the blog there it shown that 50% voters ever play MMORPG and the other 50% are not. So, meaning to say, much of the students in this class are still not familiar with MMORPG/online games. Therefore, we try to simplify the illustration about the business of online games. How we plan to obtain information for the paper? I think mostly information in our research will based on our own experience in online games since we had been hardcore gamers before. And we would also try to find the related articles or journals regarding online games business to emphasize in our own understandings.

Research Objectives of Our Research Assignment
The scope of our research assignment would be narrow down into four parts:

1.       Identify various type of business in online games. The areas covered will be online game company and third-party company/business involves in the particular online game.

2.       Penetrate into strategies of how online games business (MMORPG) implemented. The areas covered will be online game company (MMORPG) and third-party company/business involves in the particular online game.

3.       Challenges of online gaming business (MMORPG) currently facing and how they overcome it. The areas covered will be the bot issue, scam issue, and hack issue.

4.       Factors affecting of why people play/spend times in online games (MMORPG). The areas covered will be studying the human factors and the attractiveness of online games.


Report Outline
1.0   Introduction
1.1   Rationale of topic choice
1.2   How we obtain information
2.0   Types of Business in Online Games
2.1   Brief introduction of different MMOs
2.1.1          MMORPG
2.1.2          MMOFPS
2.1.3          MMORTS
2.1.4          MMOSG
2.1.5          MMOR
2.2   Brief introduction of third-party companies/businesses involves in online game
2.2.1          SeaGamers
2.2.2          Garena
2.2.3          Gold-Farmer
2.2.4          Individual/Part-time players
3.0   Factors affecting people to play online games (MMORPG)
3.1   Achievement
3.1.1          Advancement
3.1.2          Mechanics
3.1.3          Competition
3.2   Social
3.2.1          Socializing
3.2.2          Relationship
3.2.3          Teamwork
3.3   Immersion
3.3.1          Discovery
3.3.2          Role-Play
3.3.3          Customization
3.3.4          Escapism
4.0   Strategies implemented in Online Games Business (MMORPG)
4.1   Online Game Company (MMORPG)
4.1.1          Competition
4.1.1.1    Genre
4.1.1.2    Content
4.1.1.3    Graphics
4.1.1.4    Familiarity
4.1.1.5    Updates
4.1.1.6    Game Length
4.1.1.7    Social Structure
4.1.1.8    Innovation
4.2   Third-party company/business involves in online game
4.2.1          How to approach in-game players
4.2.2          How they meet customers/players needs
5.0   Challenges and Ways to overcome (MMORPG)
5.1   Bot Issue
5.2   Scam Issue
5.3   Hack Issue
6.0   Conclusion
7.0   References
8.0   Appendix 

Literature Review
Online games can be differentiated into several types, such as MMORPG, MMOFPS, MMORTS, MMOSG and MMOR. In our research, we are trying to narrow downthe scope to MMORPG, and the businesses involving in it.

MMORPG stands for massively multiplayer online role playing game, a type of MMOG (massively multiplayer online game). An MMORPG is a computer-based RPG (role playing game) which takes place in an online virtual world with hundreds or thousands of other players. In an MMORPG, a player uses a client to connect to a server, usually run by the publisher of the game, which hosts the virtual world and memorizes information about the player. (Anissimov)

In an MMORPG, like any RPG, the user controls a character represented by an avatar, which he directs to fight monster for experience, interact with other characters, acquire items, and so on. MMORPGs have become extremely popular since the wider debut of broadband internet connections, now with millions of subscribers from hundreds of different countries. Some MMORPGs have as many as a million subscribers. (Anissimov)

Mainly, publishers of the MMORPG are generating incomes from players through monthly subscription or through in-game cash items. Other than the publisher itself, third parties also have the opportunities to generate income from the online games, such as ‘SeaGamers’, who generates income by selling in-game gold and provide power-leveling service in exchange of real money; ‘Gold farmer’, who farm in-game gold and sell to other players for real money; and individual players who sells their accounts or trade in-game items to other players for real money.

There are several factors affecting people to invest or play MMORPG. According to Nick Yee (2007), the motivation of plays in MMORPG can be divided into 3 components, which are (1) achievement (2) social and (3) immersion and each of the components have their subcomponents, such as advancement, mechanics, competition, socializing, relationship, teamwork, discovery, role-playing, customization, and escapism.

As the market of MMORPG is rapidly growing, publisher of the games has to promote themselves in order to stand out of crowd among other MMORPG companies. Strategies implemented such as the changes in way of making businesses, like, eliminating monthly subscription, so as to attract more customers to register. In other words, it transferred from ‘pay to play’ model to ‘free to play’ model, whereby to generate income from selling in-game cash item instead of monthly subscription.

Moreover, advertising play a big role nowadays, in the past, mostly online game companies promote their game through game magazine or banner in cybercafé, but, today we can see that some online game companies are advertising their game through TV ads, and social network such as facebook to promote, acquire, interact/maintain relationship with their customers.

Publishers of online games are currently facing threats from those so-called ‘third party companies’, as these third party companies will approach in-game players to sell unfair benefits such as in-game gold/currency, power-leveling, bot etc. which will seriously affect the balance, fairness and motivation of other players.

Lastly, this research paper will provide a brief but broad explanation of various types of businesses that can be done in online game industry (especially MMORPG). 

Major References:
De Paoli, S. & Kerr, A. 2009, ‘The Cheating Assemblage in MMORPGs: Toward a sociotechnical description of cheating’, Authors & Digital Games Research Association (DiGRA), viewed 21thOct 2010.
This article provides an insight about the cheating assemblage in MMORPGs, and more towards conceptual explanation. The conceptual explanation is whereby the illustration of sociotechnical nature of cheating in MMORPGs showing how cheating is composed both of highly sophisticated technologies elements and complex social elements. We will use this article as a guideline when we writing about the challenges of MMORPGs currently facing, because in that section, what we’ve knew about the challenges is solely based on our own in-game experience, therefore we need this article to guide us in explaining the issues (bot, hack, scam) in a correct way.

‘Underworld MMORPG Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game 2005’, Neopangaia, viewed 21th Oct 2010.
This article is a business plan of a MMORPG company. In this article it shows that how actually a MMORPG company plan before launching their game. The plan contents such as keys to success, competition and buying patterns and etc. So, we will use this article to help us in explaining the strategies of how a company should take in order to compete among other competitors.

Yee, N. 2006, ‘Motivations of Play in MMORPGs: Results from a factor Analytic Approach’, Nick Yee, viewed 21th Oct 2010.
This article primarily analyse why peoples play MMORPG. In this research article the author classified the motivations into three major components, which are achievement, social, and immersion. We will use this article to help us in completing one of our research objectives that is to find out why people play/spend times in MMORPG.

Other References:
Anissimov, M. 2010, ‘What is a MMORPG’, wiseGEEK, conjecture corporation, viewed 22thOct 2010.

‘Benefits and Drawbacks of Less or More Time Playing MMOs during an Economic Depression’, Online Massive Multiplayer.com, viewed 17th September 2010.

Buy MapleSEAMesos | Sea Gamer Mall, 2007-2010 SEAGM.com, viewed 11thSeptember 2010.

‘China jails 11 over online games scam: state media 2009’, France 24, viewed 24th September 2010.

Drain, B. 2010, ‘EVE Online player steals $45,000 worth of ISK in massive investment scam’, Massively, viewed 24th September 2010.

Garena, Connecting World Gamers, Garena Online, viewed 10thSeptember 2010.

Laurence H. M. Holland and David M. Ewalt, 2006, ‘Making Real Money In Virtual Worlds’, Forbes.com, viewed 21th Oct 2010.

SEA Gamer Mall | Your One Stop Gaming Services Platform,2007-2010 SEAGM.com, viewed 11thSeptember 2010.

Young, K. 2006, ‘Addiction to MMORPGs: Symptoms and Treatment’, viewed 21thOct 2010.

Friday, October 1, 2010

Bot + Botting + Botters





What is Bot? It is a software that operates as an agent for user or another programme or simulates a human activity. (TechTarget)


How Bot Works?

Botting in MMORPG is unethical and is a form of cheating, where players use the bot software to replace them from playing, such as auto-leveling (auto-training). Those who use bot software can even stay away from playing for more than 24hours or even weeks because the bot will do all the jobs! Unless there is a new patch (games update), there is no timeout for bot to do their jobs, they will keep leveling, kill mobs (a term in game similar to NPC enemy), do daily quest, if the players character had run out of potion (HP, MP), the bot will automatically go back to town and reload it; the bot will act as a real human being, for example, it will automatically sell the loots at town when the inventory is full, go back to the leveling places if PK-ed by other players, auto log off when detect GM nearby.

Silkroad's Bot
CabalSea's Bot

Why Bot?

Finishing a quest in a game play is fun, but repetitive doing so is boring. For example, a daily quest that require you to kill 100 mobs (a term in game similar to NPC enemy), if you have bunches of this kind of quest to do, will you get bored? Just imagine you sit in front of computers and killing the mobs, keep killing after another, and keep repeating doing so. Furthermore, bot is relative cheaper way to help earning (farming) in-game gold/currency than hire ‘gold farmers’ for doing so. (As I mentioned, the bot will automatically sell the loots when inventory full and go back hunt from mobs again in the mean time gaining XP too)


How Bot Company/Creator Earn Money?

They simply earn by selling the bot software. For example, (Cabal Rider) http://www.cabalrider.net/sg/sg.html is a bot company which aim at CabalSea players, at cost of $13.50 = 30 Days usage. Similarly, there are tons of online games throughout the world, which then provides opportunities for this so-called bot company too to earn money from those players.


Challenges for Online Game Business!

Bot brings serious negative effect to online game business:

(1)    Server traffic is overloaded: Like previously in Silkroad online international, approximately 90% gamers are ‘botters’. Even the game has several servers, all servers are full with ‘botters’. So for those honest players, they hardly logging in to the game, regardless day or night. They have higher chance to log in, only when the time right after the server maintanence, or right after new patch updated.


(2)    Inflation: Botters can perpetually farming gold, 24hours/7days/52weeks. It can easily cause inflation in the game, where the large amount of circulating gold made every in-game item prices goes up and those honest players can’t afford to trade with other players anymore.


(3)    Duplicate: A player who uses bot software to auto-leveling his/her characters in the same time also auto-leveling other characters. This is the process: Firstly, register many different accounts, and then log in to the game. Secondly, create different characters and different names. Thirdly, select one of the characters and start botting! Fourthly, command other characters to party up with the one which are botting, and following the botter to leech experience. In the end, all characters reach the maximum level in a same time, and for them this is their beginning of the game play, for e.g. to PK the honest players, low-level players, disrupting and dominating the server is their ultimate objective!

(4)    Hard to detect players from using bot: It is hardly to detect players from using bot, because a lot of bot software designed to obey the game’s rule. For example, one method use by online gaming company to check whether the player is botting is through the ‘quiz’, the quiz will pop up in random time to ask the players to answer a simple question, if the players didn’t respond or click the wrong answer, then the GM will consider this players is botting (after several time of failing to answer quiz) and start investigate this player, by starting a conversation with the player to see if the player is at the keyobard. However, this does not work, some bot software is able to detect this quiz and can answer it correctly, and even, it is impossible for GM to eliminate botters thoroughly, because normally an online game only have few GM (3 to 5).


(5)    Motivation of honest players to continue playing in MMORPG will be affected by botters and thus switching to other MMORPG which has lessor botters or even no botters.



How The MMORPG businesses overcome these challenges? We seek for your advices! Thanks!

References:
Mitterhofer, S., Platzer, C., Kruegel, C., Kirda, E., May/June 2009, "Server-Side Bot Detection in Massive Multiplayer Online Games", IEEE Computer And Reliability Societies, viewed 01 Oct 2010.

Definition of Bot, TechTarget, viewed 01 Oct 2010.

CabalRider, viewed 01 Oct 2010.