On why online gaming is a dictatorship

Information Week’s Cary Doctorow muses in his lengthy article if it is indeed possible for a complete democracy to exist in MMOs. It’s not just that namby-pamby “what the masses say goes in terms of game-rules” and what not, but a game where in-world property is really yours.

In his effort to highlight that difference – the difference between being a citizen in a world, and being a customer, Doctorow notes several in-world incidents in MMORPG worlds, and how people are treated as entities in the opposite end of a business deal instead of a citizen with rights and co-ownership of the a game world.

The Gay/Bi/Lesbian/Transgendered-friendly guild shut-down in World of Warcraft was noted, the “Dentara Rask pro-piracy anti-merchant EVE Online economy crash” was detailed, and most amusingly he notes that even Second Life isn’t safe from this phenomenon. Yes, you can get rich in SL but, if you lose an argument with the company running Second Life, your Linden Dollars are gone. The only stable wealth in Second Life, is the wealth you take OUT of the game.

But would a democratic virtual world be the solution to the possibility of poor treatment from game owners? Doctorow thinks that while it can solve that problem he doesn’t believe that it would be plausible. The reason? Running things yourselves, the responsibility, sort of takes out the FUN of it all, which is the point of getting into all these MMO worlds.

Personally, I’m thinking that maybe it’s like communism: people have to go against human nature to make the utopian dream of a true democratic MMO work. But that’s just me, and I’m just a nobody who’s overdosed on caffeine.

Anyhow, Doctorow’s piece, while lengthy is an awesome read, and if you feel like getting more detail about his musings, feel free to head to it via our “read” link below.

Information Week’s Cary Doctorow muses in his lengthy article if it is indeed possible for a complete democracy to exist in MMOs. It’s not just that namby-pamby “what the masses say goes in terms of game-rules” and what not, but a game where in-world property is really yours.

In his effort to highlight that difference – the difference between being a citizen in a world, and being a customer, Doctorow notes several in-world incidents in MMORPG worlds, and how people are treated as entities in the opposite end of a business deal instead of a citizen with rights and co-ownership of the a game world.

The Gay/Bi/Lesbian/Transgendered-friendly guild shut-down in World of Warcraft was noted, the “Dentara Rask pro-piracy anti-merchant EVE Online economy crash” was detailed, and most amusingly he notes that even Second Life isn’t safe from this phenomenon. Yes, you can get rich in SL but, if you lose an argument with the company running Second Life, your Linden Dollars are gone. The only stable wealth in Second Life, is the wealth you take OUT of the game.

But would a democratic virtual world be the solution to the possibility of poor treatment from game owners? Doctorow thinks that while it can solve that problem he doesn’t believe that it would be plausible. The reason? Running things yourselves, the responsibility, sort of takes out the FUN of it all, which is the point of getting into all these MMO worlds.

Personally, I’m thinking that maybe it’s like communism: people have to go against human nature to make the utopian dream of a true democratic MMO work. But that’s just me, and I’m just a nobody who’s overdosed on caffeine.

Anyhow, Doctorow’s piece, while lengthy is an awesome read, and if you feel like getting more detail about his musings, feel free to head to it via our “read” link below.