After many interviews with people who subscribe to Xbox Live, I have found that the major reason why most people decide to join is for the social space that Xbox Live provides. Years ago, the only way you could play a videogame with a friend was that one would go over to the other’s house and they would play together. Of course there were obvious limitations to this kind of gaming. To play multiplayer you had to have a friend or friends over and gaming systems would only allow up to four players, also, the television screen has to be shared by everyone playing. “What I like most is being able to play with friends and have the whole screen to myself. Before Xbox Live everyone had to share the screen so it was split. So with that kind of set up there was a lot of screen watching going on.” Corey Green comments, a long time Xbox Live subscriber. To Corey screen watching was a major factor in deciding to first subscribe to Xbox Live. “I hated it when I had a friend over and he would watch my half of the split screen to see what I was doing. It started to really take the fun away from playing with friends.” Xbox Live solved this dilemma. Corey was able to still enjoy games with friends, but since they weren’t right next to him, he didn’t have to worry about screen watching anymore. By playing multiplayer on Xbox Live, up to 16 people can be in a game compared to the traditional 4. More friends are able to play together and no one has to be left out.
I have always thought that playing videogames together with friends was a great way to bond with that friend and strengthen the friendship. However, once people start moving away or going off to college, it’s easy to lose touch with friends. “I joined to stay in touch with friends after everyone went off to college.” Comments Brianne Bailey, another Xbox Live subscriber, “I didn’t want to lose touch so I got Xbox Live so that we could at least still play videogames together.” This is actually a very common reason why some people decide to subscribe to Xbox Live. After High School, you don’t get to see all your old friends as often as you used to so in an attempt to not lose touch people subscribe to Xbox Live, that way they can still play videogames together like they did when they saw their friends almost every day.
To these people who subscribe just to play with friends and keep in touch, Xbox Live is not just a social space. It is a means to hold on to an old life that is almost lost because everyone goes their own separate ways. It’s the one thing that can stay the same. The games may change, but the interactions stay the same. When playing videogames online with friends, it is almost the same as it was in High School, bonding and reconnecting with each other through their mutual appreciation of videogames.
Corey Green, interview by Jenifer DeNormandie, phone, Norton, MA, 30 October 2009.
Brianne Bailey, interview by Jenifer DeNormandie, phone, Norton, MA, 31 October 2009.
I would like to let it be known that both Corey and Brianne have given me permission to use their names in this blog and they are both aware of the nature of this blog.
Dear Jenifer,
ReplyDeleteI am intrigued by your blog, because like you, I didn’t understand the basis for any of the new generation gaming consoles, especially when it came to the online multiplayer feature. I thought they were a waste of money until I bought a Nintendo Wii. I started playing online multiplayer with my “James Bond Quantum of Solace” video game with people I didn’t even know, but I quickly realized the benefits of online multiplayer. I could play this game with people better than me and then improve my skill level. I also liked the fact that I could play multiplayer at any time because unlike the Wii, all my old gaming systems required someone to physically be in the same room in order to play with multiple people. I can definitely see where you are coming from because you really can’t understand the reasoning behind online gaming until you have tried it for yourself (at least that’s what I think).
In terms of the structure of your blog, you seem to have done a good amount of research to back up your arguments. At the same time, in some entries I can’t really distinguish whether you have done any participant observation or solely relied on outside research to compile your data. It is unclear whether you were actually basing your observations from an experience you had using Xbox Live or whether you arrived at this information from one of your interviews. I think, for clarification, you should use parenthetical citations when referencing information that you researched; therefore your readers can understand where the information originated.
I enjoyed reading your blog because it is something to which I can make a personal connection. There were some aspects about new gaming consoles and online gaming that I didn’t understand, for instance why people spend money on an Xbox Live subscription (because I do know some people that spend hours and tons of money on Xbox Live), and you have clarified them for me. In general, I think you have done a good job on your blog.
Sincerely,
Chris DeMolles
Anthropology Classmate