Not Just in It to Win It:

Inclusive Game Play in an MIT Dorm

by Hillary Kolos B.F.A., Film and Television New York University, 2002 SUBMITTED TO THE PROGRAM IN COMPARATIVE MEDIA STUDIES IN PARTIAL FUFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN COMPARATIVE MEDIA STUDIES AT THE MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY JUNE 2010 2010 Hillary Kolos. All rights reserved.

The author hereby grants to MIT permission to reproduce and to distribute publicly paper and electronic copies of this thesis document in whole of in part in any medium now known or hereafter created. Signature of Author: ___________________________________________________________________
Program in Comparative Media Studies May 07, 2010

Certified by: __________________________________________________________________________

Mia Consalvo Associate Professor & Director of Graduate Studies School of Telecommunications Ohio University Thesis Supervisor

Accepted by: _________________________________________________________________________

William Charles Uricchio Professor of Comparative Media Studies Director, Comparative Media Studies

Not Just in It to Win It:

Inclusive Game Play in an MIT Dorm
by Hillary Kolos Submitted to the Program in Comparative Media Studies on May 7, 2010, in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Comparative Media Studies

ABSTRACT The recent increase in digital gaming players and platforms does not imply that digital gaming is as inclusive as it could be. There are still gaps in participation that, if left unaddressed, will exclude groups who have been historically marginalized. Women are among those individuals most vulnerable to exclusion from gaming. In order to better understand the motivations and practices of female players, this study focuses on a group of undergraduates at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who have created a community that plays digital and non-digital games together and includes women. The research was conducted over eight months using interviews and participant observations. The study concludes that there are interrelated factors at the group, game play, and individual levels that influence this particular community's inclusiveness. These factors include how the community values the play process over who wins or loses a game, uses games as facilitators of playful socializing, and negotiates their identities in relation to the gamer stereotype.

Acknowledgements
To my committee Mia Consalvo, Henry Jenkins, and William Uricchio for inspiring and supportingmethroughoutthisprocess. TomyfamilyMom,Dad,Justin,Amy,Noah,andHaleyforalwaysbeingthereandbelievingI coulddothis. TomyCMSclassmatesforhelpingmethinkinnewwaysandmakingthelongnightsworkingas funastheycouldbeespeciallyMichelleMoonLee,NickSeaver,andSheilaSeleswithwhomI sharedanofficeandmanyLOLs. ToDorisRuschforgivingtheextrahelp(andsometimespush)thatIneeded. To my brilliant copy editors: Alexis Clements, Michelle Moon Lee, Alysa Nahmias, and Matt Schaffer. Tomyfriendsandlovedones,inBoston,DC,andNewYork,whostuckwithmeasIbounced backandforththesetwoyears,especiallyMattSchaffer,whotrulyisthebest.

TableofContents
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................ 5 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 9 Researchbackground ...............................................................................................................10 WhyMIT? .................................................................................................................................12 Genderingofdigitalgames.......................................................................................................14 Previousresearchonfemaleplayers........................................................................................17 DefiningPlayandGames ..........................................................................................................20 ResearchQuestions ..................................................................................................................28 Methods ...................................................................................................................................29 Backgroundoftheresearchsite...............................................................................................32 Howthe5Ncommunitycametobe.........................................................................................33 ChapterStructure .....................................................................................................................35 CHAPTERONE:TheCommunity ............................................................................................ 37 Playcommunityofthe5Nlounge ............................................................................................41 Socialgoalsofthe5Ncommunity ............................................................................................46 5Ncommunityasaparticipatoryculture .................................................................................50 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................57 CHAPTERTWO:GamesandGamePlay ................................................................................. 59 Gamesandsocialgoals.............................................................................................................60 SuperSmashBros.Brawl ..........................................................................................................62 Wittybanterandtrashtalk ......................................................................................................74 Roleofcompetition ..................................................................................................................78 Cardgames ...............................................................................................................................81 Motivationsforgameplay .......................................................................................................89 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................92 CHAPTERTHREE:ThePlayers ................................................................................................ 94 Beginningtogame....................................................................................................................95 DifferentContexts,DifferentModesofPlay ..........................................................................107 Whatisagame?Whoisagamer? .........................................................................................116 Conclusion ..............................................................................................................................124 CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................... 127 REFERENCES........................................................................................................................ 135

INTRODUCTION

Asdigitalgamingbecomesmoreintegratedintoourlives,wemustcontinuallyask:Whois beingleftoutandwhy?Gamingisanindustry,ameansofexpression,awaytoconnectwith people,andanengagingleisurelyactivity.Contrarytopopularstereotypes,gaminghasnever beenanactivityjustforkids.Thenumberofuswhoplaydigitalgamesisincreasing.Thetypes ofgamesweplayandtheplatformsweplaythemonarediversifying.Thisexpansion,however, doesnotimplythatdigitalgamingisasinclusiveasitcouldbe.Therearestillgapsin participationthat,ifleftunaddressed,willexcludegroupswhohavebeenhistorically marginalized. Womenareamongthoseindividualsmostvulnerabletoexclusionfromgaming.Thisisnotto saythatwomenarenotparticipatingingaming.Womenhavehadasignificantpresencein somegamingcontexts.Whatisproblematic,asBryceandRutter(2002)havedescribed,isthat womenarerendered'invisible'bymaledominatedgamingcommunities,thegamesindustry andacademicresearch(p.244).Thisinvisibilityoffemaleplayershelpstomaintainthe stereotypethatdigitalgamingisboystuffand,inturn,createsfurtherobstaclesto participationindigitalgaming. Inthisthesis,Ishedlightonthisinvisiblegroupbyexploringthemotivationsandpracticesof agroupofundergraduatesattheMassachusettsInstituteofTechnology(MIT)whohave 9

createdacommunitythatplaysdigitalandnondigitalgamestogetherandincludeswomen,as wellasstudentsofdifferentracesandethnicities1andplayerswithdifferentlevelsofgaming experience.Myresearch,consistingofinterviewsandparticipantobservationsconducted betweenSeptember2009andApril2010,indicatesthatthereareinterrelatedfactorsatthe group,gameplay,andindividuallevelsthatinfluencethisparticularcommunity'sinclusiveness.

Researchbackground ThisthesiswasinspiredbyessaysintherecentcompilationBeyondBarbieandMortalKombat (Kafai,Heeter,Denner,&Sun,2008),whichalongwithitspredecessorfromtenyearsprior, FromBarbietoMortalKombat(CassellandJenkins,1998),containsmuchofthefoundational thinkingonfemaleplayersanddigitalgaming2.Together,thesebooksofferanumberofuseful researchfindings,conceptualframeworksforthinkingaboutgenderandgaming,andpossible solutionsformakingdigitalgamingculturemoreinclusiveoffemaleplayers. Twocallsforfurtherstudyinessaysfromthesebooksguidedmyresearch.First,Elizabeth Hayes(2008)hypothesizedinGirls,Gaming,andTrajectoriesofITExpertisethatplayingand designingdigitalgamesmaybeameansforhelpinggirlsandyoungwomenbecomemore interestedininformationtechnology.Ifvalidated,suchaconnectionwouldbeasignificant findingbecause,astheopportunitiesforcareersintechnologyareexpanding,theroleof
1

Iamnotabletofullyaddressissuesofrace,ethnicity,andgameplayinthisthesis.ThestudentsIinterviewedand observedwereofdiverseracesandethnicities.Iwilloccasionallycommentontheroleofraceorethnicityinthe communityIstudiedinthisthesis,butformorediscussionofthistopicseeEverett&Watkins(2008). 2 Digitalgamingisanadmittedlybroadterm.Inthisthesis,Imeanforittoincludevideogamesonconsoles, handhelds,andPC,aswellasmobilegames,onlinesocialgames,andcasualgames.Whendistinctionsbetween thevariousgamingplatformsarerequiredIemploymorespecificterms.

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womenindesigningthattechnologyhasdecreasedoverthepasttwentyyears.The percentagesofwomenearningcomputerscienceundergraduateandmaster'sdegreeshave actuallydeclinedsincethe1990s(NationalScienceFoundation,2009)andthereisgrowing needtofindwaystopiquegirls'interestintheareasofscience,technology,engineering,and math(STEM).Ifplayinganddesigninggamescouldincreasegirls'technicalinterestandabilities, wewouldpotentiallyhaveawayofaddressingthisgenderdisparity. Beforewecanknowwhetherornotgirls'interestinITfieldsincreasewhentheyplayordesign digitalgames,thereisaneedformoreresearchaboutwomenwhoalreadyplaydigitalgames includingwhatgamestheyplay,whereandhowtheyplay,andtheirmotivationsforplaying. T.L.Taylor(2008a)hascalledforthiskindofresearch: Currentwomenplayersareregularlyseenasanomaliesandnotcentralresearch interests...Whatthismeans,howeveristhatwetendtoleavetheirpleasures,their strategies,theirnetworks,theirplayalwaysatthemargins...Theytellusalotaboutthe pleasuresofgameplayandwhatittakestogetthere.Andforthoseinterestedin creatingchange,whatbetterplacetolookthantothewomenandgirlscreatingitnow? (p.56) Taylorrecognizesthelackofresearchfocusedonwomenwhocurrentlyplaydigitalgames.Itis notthatwomenarenotplayinggames,butthattheirparticipationisnotseenasthenormand thereforenotperceivedasworthyofresearch.TaylorbelievesasdoIandmanyothergames researchersthatthereisstillmuchtobelearnedaboutfemaleplayersandthatnew knowledgeaboutgenderandgamingwillalsoinformusaboutthekindsofpleasuresgames offertoallplayers.Inmyresearch,Itookupthiscalltolookwherewomenarealready participatingingaming.

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WhyMIT? IbeganmysearchforfemaleplayersinmyimmediatesurroundingsatMIT.Iknewitwaslikely thatatMITaschoolknownforfosteringthenextgenerationofhackers,engineers,and scientiststherewouldbeasignificantpopulationofyoungwomenwhohadsustainedan interestindigitalgamingthroughhighschoolandintocollege.Ofcourse,MITundergraduates arenotrepresentativeofaveragecollegestudents.FemaleundergraduatesatMITdo, however,representakindofyoungwomanthatwecanlearnfrominordertounderstandwhat motivatesandsustainswomen'sinterestindigitalgaming.Perhapsbybetterunderstandingthe motivations,interests,andsocialcontextoftheseparticularwomen,whoareinterestedin gamingandtechnology(notnecessarilybecauseofeachother),wecanlearnmoreabouthow tosupportgirls'interestintechnologyingeneral. PreviousresearchontheculturesurroundingmediaandtechnologyatMIThasbeendonethat helpedpositionmyworkhere.SherryTurkle(1984;1997)hasconductedresearchonhowthe computer,asaprojectiveandevocativemedium,hasinfluencedpeoplesawarenessof themselvesand,inturn,howtheythinkaboutculture.Herapproachisamixofethnographic andpsychoanalyticmethodsanditlargelydrawsoncasesstudiesandinterviewswithstudents andprofessorsatMIT.SheoffersthoughtsontheroleofgenderatMIT,whichare,forthemost part,relatedtohowpeopleapproachcomputerprogramming. Researchonstudents'interactionswithpopularmediaonMIT'scampushasalsobeendonein atleasttwostudies.Jenkins(1995)researchedthediscursivecontextofStarTrekviewersat

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MIT(p.215).Whilehisstudydidnotfocusongender,itdidexplorethemotivationsofstudents whowatchedtheshow,howitrelatedtotheirownworkinscienceandtechnology,andthe criteriabywhichtheyevaluatedtheshowandotherworksinthesciencefictiongenre.Jenkins foundthatStarTrekplayedasignificantroleinhowmanyofthestudentsmadesenseofthe roleofscienceandtechnologyintheirownlives,aswellashowtheydevelopedtheirown professionalideology...asmembersofthescientificcommunity(p.236).Jenkins'research offersausefulframeworkforevaluatingthewaysstudentsmakesenseofmedia;yet,because itwasbasedsolelyoninterviewsandfocusgroups,itdidnotadequatelytakeintoaccountthe students'socialcontext.Ford(2006)wasabletoprovidesomeofthiscontextwhenhestudied mediaconsumptionpatternsinanMITdorm.Whileitismeanttobeamoregeneralstudy, FordofferedinsightintohowdormlifeinfluencedMITstudents'relationshipswithvarious mediatextsandplatforms.Theserelationshipswereespeciallyshapedbystudents'lackof substantialprivatespaceandthelimitedresourcesavailabletothem,whichresultedinafair amountofmediaproselytizingbetweenstudentstosharetheirtastesandinterestsinvarious mediaforms(p.1). ItisimportanttonotethatdormselectionbystudentsatMIThappensdifferentlythanatmost othercolleges.MIT'sdormselectionprocessplayedasignificantroleinhowthecommunity thatwasthefocusofmyresearchwasabletocreateitsownculturearounditssharedinterests andgoals.Insteadofbeingrandomlyassigneddorms,studentsatMITareabletocreateliving communitiesaroundsharedinterestsorthemesthatcanbecultivatedoverthetimetheyarein school.Thesecommunitiesareabletoformbecausestudentscanstayinthesamedormrooms

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fromyeartoyear,aswellasdecidehowtheywillpresenttheirhalltoincomingfreshman studentsduringdormpreviewopportunities.Dorms,andevencertainwingsorhalls,areknown forthemedliving,suchastheEastCampusdorm,whichattractsmanyengineersandhackers; orLaCasa,whichisalivingcommunitywithinthedormNewHousethatfocusesoninterestsin Latinoculture. Myfindingsfromresearchamongthisparticularcommunityaredeeplytiedtoitscontextat MIT,butthereisstillmuchtolearnfromtheseresultsabouthowwecanmorebroadlymake gamingparticipationmorediverse.Whileitisimportanttoremainawareofthecommunity's particularcircumstances,theyarenottheonlyfactorsthatinfluencetheinclusivenessofthe community.TheseotherfactorsarewhatIwillpresentandexamineinthefollowingthree chapters.

Genderingofdigitalgames Amovementbeganaroundfifteenyearsagoinfeministstudiesoftechnologytorecognizethat technologiesaregendered,meaningtheyareproducedandusedinwaysthatembodythe prevailinggendernorms(Cockburn,1992;Wajcman,1991).Thiswasashiftfromthethen popularviewthattechnologyautonomouslyaffectsitsusers.Wajcman(2010)hasexplained thatinsteadofframingtechnologyasneutralorvaluefree,researchersbegantorecognize thatsocialrelations(includinggenderrelations)arematerialisedintoolsandtechniques(p. 147).TechnologytoWajcmanincludestheartifacts,aswellastheknowledgeofhowtouse themandthepracticessurroundingthem;itisaculturalproductwhichishistorically

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constitutedbycertainsortsofknowledgeandsocialpracticesaswellasotherformsof representation(1991,p.158). Thegenderedunderstandingoftheuseandproductionoftechnologiesisinextricablylinkedto hierarchicalassumptionsaboutskillandmasteryandisintertwinedwiththegenderingof computingingeneral.Turkle(1988)hasstudiedmaledominatedhackercultureatMITfor years,aswellaswomen'sreticencetowardscomputing.MargolisandFisher(2002) conductedastudyofwomeninthecomputersciencedepartmentofCarnegieMellon Universityusingadevelopmentalframeworkthatshowshowperceptionsofcomputingas maleterritoryorguystuffinfluencefemaleparticipationfromchildhoodtoadulthood. Corneliussen(2005)hasmovedthisresearchbeyondunderstandingcomputingasgenderedto anunderstandingofhowandwhywomenfindpleasureincomputersevenwhentheyare'the others'inrelationtothemasculineassociationsofcomputertechnology(p.235).Soweare movingfromrecognizingtheoftenmasculinizedperceptionsofcomputingandother technologytotryingtounderstandwhyandhowitisthatwomenactuallyfindawidevarietyof pleasuresinusingcomputers,includingformingsocialbondsandexpertisearoundthem. JensonanddeCastell(2005)connectthegenderingofcomputingtothegenderingofdigital games.Theyhavestatedthatthetrendingamesstudiesofessentializingwhatisfemalein digitalgamingbynomeansoriginateswithvideogameplaying,butisindigenoustothe cultureofcomputingmoregenerallyandthatthisgenderedcomputingculturealwaysalready

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mediatesgirls'interactionswiththosetechnologies,amongwhichgameplayingisonlythe mostrecentsubjectofattention(p.2).Thisstatementtiesgenderandgamingissuesintoa largerculturalcontextthatgoesbeyondsimplyfiguringoutwhatgirlgamesshouldbelike.I willthenadoptanapproachinthisthesismuchliketheoneIshowthatCorneliussen(2005) takesabove.Iaminterestedinmovingbeyondtherecognitionthatdigitalgamingisoften perceivedasguystuffandontoexploringwhatpleasuresmotivateandwhatsocialcontexts sustainfemaleplayers. Also,itisworthmentioningthatdigitalgamesarenotgenderedinthesamewayacrossall platformsandgenres.Socialcontexthelpspeoplemakesenseofwhethertheythinkgirls shouldplayaNintendoDS,orifaSonyPS3ismadeforboys.TheElectronicSoftware Association(2009)hasclaimedthat40%ofallplayersarewomen,suggestingthatfemale playershaveachievedastateofnearparitywiththeirmalecounterparts(p.3).Butbreaking downthatpercentagebyplatform,age,andgenreshowthattherearewidegapsbetween maleandfemaleparticipationinmanyareasofgaming.JensonanddeCastell(2005)have criticizedtheuseoflargescalequantitativestudiestoexaminegenderandgamingfor obscuringvariationsinparticipationbetweenmaleandfemaleplayers: [S]tatisticsliketheseareusedtodismissthequestionofgenderandcomputergame playingfromtheoutset(itisnolongeraproblemsincesomanymorewomenare indicatingthattheyareplaying).Oncegenderhasbeenexcisedasstatistically insignificant,thereistypicallynofurthergenderbaseddisaggregationofdata,even whenitmightseemthatstatisticallyrelevantdistinctionsshouldbemadewithrespect togamepreferencesandtimeonthegame.(p.3) Smallerscalequalitativeresearch,suchasthisthesis,strengthensourunderstandingofhow broadstatisticsbreakdownintangiblegamingcontexts,ondiversegamingplatforms,andby 16

demographicssuchasage,raceandethnicity,andclass.

Previousresearchonfemaleplayers ThereisagrowingbodyofresearchongenderandgaminginadditiontothetwoBarbieto MortalKombatbooks.Thisresearchhastendedtofocusoncertainaspectsofgaming, especiallygamingbyyounggirls,onlinegaming,anddesigninggamesforfemaleplayers,andit hasleftmultipleareasunexploredandopentofurtherdiscoveries. Researchonfemaleplayerstodatefocusesmostlyonschoolagedgirls.Thisresearchhas contributedtotheunderstandingoftheimportanceofaccesstogamingtechnology,the complexnegotiationsofgenderperformancethatsometimesoccurwhengirlsplaydigital games,andtheroleofdiscoursethatgoesonaroundgameplay(deCastell,Boschman,& Jenson,2009;OrrVered,1998;Taylor,Jenson,&deCastell,2007;Walkerdine,2006).While thesestudieshavecontributedsignificantfindings,onecommonaspecttonoteisthatmostof thesestudiestookplaceinafterschoolsettingsthatwerecreatedbytheresearchers.These controlledcontextstudiesmayhaveproduceddifferentunderstandingsofhowgirlsplaygames thanstudiesthatwerelessmanipulated.Thereisaneedforfurtherresearchthatlooksatgame playinlivingspaces,whereitmostoftenoccurs. Thestronginterestinlearninganddigitalgameshasskewedtheliteratureongenderand gamingsothatyoungeragesareoverrepresented,leavingagapinresearchonfemaleadult players.Theresearchthatdoesexistonwomenhasmostoftenbeenstudiesofwomenplaying

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onlineinvirtualworlds,massivelymultiplayeronlineroleplayinggames(MMORPG's),and causalgames(Corneliussen&Rettberg,2008;Juul,2010;Pearce,2009;Taylor,2006).While thisresearchhasbeenhelpfulinexamininghowandwhywomenplay,thereismoreresearch neededtounderstandwomen'sofflinedigitalgamingpracticesandtheinfluenceofsocial contextforcolocatedgaming,i.e.whentheyareplayingwithotherplayersinthesame physicalspace. Therehasbeenapromisingshiftinthepastfewyearstorecognizetheimportanceofsocial contextinsituationswheregirlsandwomenplaydigitalgames(Beavis&Charles,2007;Carr, 2005;Lin,2008;Taylor,2006).Analyzingthestructuralelementsandcontentofdigitalgames arecertainlykeytounderstandinghowwomenmakesenseofdigitalgames,butexcluding contextualfactorssuchaswhothegameisbeingplayedwith,whereitisbeingplayed,and whyitisbeingplayedcanleadtoprescriptivethinkingabouthowgamedesigninfluencesthe behaviorofplayers.Taylor(2008b)hasproposedthat[r]atherthanseeingactualplayersand theiractivityasakindofsidebar(ormetaconstruct)toaninvestigationofgames,Iwould suggestthatcriticalgamesstudiesneedtotakeintoseriousaccounttheintersectionof structureandplayerculture(p.124).Researchersarerecognizingthatstrictlystudyinggames assystemsofrulesleavesouttheimportantfactorsthattheplayersbringtothegames,which influencehowthegamesareplayed. Twostudieswereparticularlyhelpfulforunderstandinghowsomewomenplayincolocated contexts.Thefirststudy,conductedbyKerr(2003),wasoneofthefewthathasdiscussed

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women'spersonalhistorieswithgaming.Kerrfoundtwomajorfactorsthatinfluencedhowand whywomenparticipatedingamingculturewereaccesstoan'offline'socialnetworkofplayers andplayervisibilityandtherangeandqualityofgames(p.279).WhileKerr'sstudyoffereda deeperunderstandingofwomenandtheiridentitiesinrelationtoplayinggames,itdidnot explorethesocialcontextsinwhichthewomen'sgamingactuallytookplace.Thornham(2008) hasbeenoneofthefewresearcherstoanalyzethecontextsofcolocatedconsolegamingfor women.SheconductedanethnographicstudyofelevenBritishhouseholdsmostofwhich werecoedgroupsofyoungadultsandtheirgamingpractices.Shediscoveredacomplicated discoursethatexistedaroundgamingthatembodiedtheplayers'existingconceptionsof genderroles.Inadditiontodiscourse,shefoundthatnotionsofgenderrolesinfluencedhow peopleplayedgames,noting,[i]ndeed,itisnotjustacaseofwhattheyresupposedtosay,it isalsohowtheyresupposedtogamewhichistheissue(p.139).Thornham'sobservationsin thisstudywereabletoshowhowdeeplyintertwinedthesocialcontextcanbecomewithgame playinadomesticsetting. Inthisthesis,IbuildonThornham'swork,researchinganothergroupofmaleandfemaledigital gameplayerstobetterunderstandtheirmotivationsandpractices.However,Idonotwantmy researchonthisgrouptobestrictlyfocusedonsocialcontext.Insteadmyapproachisthree pronged:1)Ilookatthesocialdynamicsandinteractionsofthegroupofstudentsinthedorm loungetoseehowplayinggamesfitintotheirlargernetworkofrelationshipsandactivities;2)I focusonthemultiplayergamesthatwereplayedintheloungetobetterunderstandhowtheir structuralelementsandcontenthelpedfacilitatethesocialgoalsofthegroup;and3)Itakeup

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theindividualmembers'gaminghistories,motivations,andplayingstylestoshowhowthey intersectedanddivergedfromeachotherovertime.Theplayerswereinsomewaysvery similar,buttheyalsorepresentedadiversegroupofexperiencesandpreferencesthatwere situatedinandinfluencedbytheirspecificcontexts.Itismyintentiontoanalyzetheinterviews andobservationsfromthiscommunityatMITthroughthesethreelensesinordertoarriveata fullerpictureofhowsocialcontext,gamestructure,andtheindividualplayersinteractedand influencedoneanother.

DefiningPlayandGames Inthisthesis,Ioftendistinguishbetweenplayandgametocapturedifferentapproachesto interactingwithgames.Roughly,Iusethewordplaytorefertotheactionsofthosewho primarilyenjoytheprocessofagame(regardlessofwhowinsorloses)andthewordgameto refertotheapproachinwhichwinningisthemaingoaloftheactivity.Thequestionofhow thesetermsoughttobedefinediswellcoveredterritoryingamesstudiesliterature,andIdo notwishheretoproposenewdefinitionsofeitherterm.Instead,forreasonsdiscussedinthis section,IwilladoptdefinitionsthathavebeenproposedbySalenandZimmerman(2004).

Thetwomostcitedtechnicaldistinctionsbetweenplayandgameingamesstudiesarefrom Huizinga(1955)andCaillois(1975).Huizinga(1955),aDutchculturalhistorian,wasoneofthe firstthinkerstorecognizetheroleofplayinthedevelopmentofculture.Inhisbook,Homo Ludens,heassertsthatplayisafreeactivityoutsideofordinarylife,notserious,absorbing,has nomaterialinterestorprofitgained,occursinitsowntimeandspace,hasfixedrules,and 20

Earlyresearch

promotessocialgroupingsthatareoftensurroundedbysecrecy(p.13).Caillois(1975)builds offofHuizinga'sworkonplay,butismorefocusedongames.HepraisesHuizingaforhis attempttodefinethecharacteristicsofplayandforrecognizingplay'sroleinthedevelopment ofculture,buthebelievestheHuizinga'sdefinitionis"atthesametimetoobroadandtoo narrow"(p.4).Cailloisdevelopsaframeworkforcategorizinggamesthatincludesfourtypes: agoncompetitivegames;aleagamesofchance;mimicrymakebelieve;andilinxphysical gamesthat"attempttodestroythestabilityofperception"(p.23).Thesefourtypescanbe combinedwithtwomoregeneralcategories,ludusandpaidia,toformamatrixof categorization.ForCaillois,playandgamesfallonascalebetweenpaidiaandludus,theformer havingfewrulesandthelatterbeingmorestructured.Heexplainsthatludusis complementarytoandarefinementofpaidia,whichitdisciplinesandenriches(p.29). Caillois'conceptionsofplayandgameareimportantbecausemanycurrentresearchersuse themasfoundationsfortheirowndefinitionsorcategorizations.Whilehisideasarepopular, theyarealsoproblematicbecausetheyincludeaparticularnormativeassumptionaccordingto whichplayissubordinatetogames,asshowninthequoteabove.Cailloisfirstrecognizesa complementaryrelationshipbetweenpaidiaandludus,butthengoesontoascribequalities toludusthatdisciplineandenrichpaidia.Thissubordinationofplaylikeactivitiestogame likeactivitiesisimportanttorecognizebecauseitcanleadtothegenderingofplayfulpractices asfeminine,whichcancreateboundarieswithinthedigitalgamingindustry,gamesresearch, andtheculturesurroundingdigitalgames.

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Fron,Fullerton,Ford,Morie,andPearce(2007)proposethat[t]oday'shegemonicgame industryhasinfusedbothindividuals'andsocieties'experiencesofgameswithvaluesand normsthatreinforceinvestmentsinaparticulardefinitionofgamesandplay,creatingacyclical systemofsupplyanddemandinwhichalternateproductsofplayaremarginalizedand devalued(p.309).Iffeminizedplaypracticesaredevaluedbygamedevelopers,forexample, theymightbeneglectedinthedigitalgamemarket.Thiswouldlimitthechoicesthatfemale playershave,addingtoacycleofexclusionoffemaleplayersfromsomegamingparticipation. Assumptionsaboutthesubordinationofthefeminizedplaytomasculinizedgamesarealso foundindiscoursearoundplayasadevelopmentalstageofchildhood.Forinstance, developmentalpsychologist,BrunoBettelheim,(1987)explainsplayandgamesastwodifferent developmentalstages,theformerbeingcharacterizedbyfreedomfromallbutpersonally imposedrules(whicharechangedatwill),byfreewheelingfantasyinvolvement,andbythe absenceofanygoalsoutsideoftheactivityitself,andthelatterbeingmorecompetitiveand characterizedbyagreedupon,oftenexternallyimposed,rules,byarequirementtousethe implementsoftheactivityinthemannerforwhichtheyareintendedandnotasfancysuggests, andfrequentlybyagoalorpurposeoutsidetheactivity,suchaswinningthegame(p.4243). ForBettelheim,playisdoneforpureenjoymentwhilegamescanofteninvolvestress(p.43). SimilartoCaillois'categorizationsofpaidiaandludus,Bettelheimdistinguishesbetweenplay andgames,framingplayasaprecursorandlessdevelopedstagetogames.Indoingthishe reinforcesahierarchyofgamesasmoreadvancedthanplay,whichperhapsisstillpresentin thedevaluationofmoreopenendedgames.

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 ReflectingontheworkofPiaget,Bettelheimestablishesthatplayisanimportantstageof learninghowthingswork,includingtherulesofgames,butalsohowtointeractsociallyorto dealwithcomplexemotions.Play,seeninthisway,isproductiveandanimportantand necessarycomplimenttogames.Butinsteadofholdingthesestagesinequalregard,heclaims thatplayisalessmaturephaseofdevelopment,whichleadstoamorecivilizedstageof games(p.42).Apartfrombeingfactuallygroundless,thesenormativeassumptionsexclude likelyscenariosinwhich,playandgamesarevaluedequallyorthevaluerelationshipis reversed.Playisagaindevalued,eventhoughitisanecessaryprocessforlearningtherulesof agame.

Workingdefinitions Forthepurposesofmyresearchastartingassumptionofwhichwasthatthevalueof differentapproachestogamesisanopenquestionIsoughtadistinctionbetweenplayand gameinwhichtheformerwasnotautomaticallysubordinatedtothelatter.Afterdiscussingthe historyofthetermsatlength,SalenandZimmerman(2004),intheirbookRulesofPlay,have offeredadistinctionthatdoesnotimportthenormativeassumptionsthatcreateahierarchy betweenthetwonotions.Theyproposedthefollowingdefinitions: Agameisasysteminwhichplayersengageinanartificialconflict,definedbyrules,that resultsinaquantifiableoutcome(p.80). Playisfreemovementwithinamorerigidstructure(p.304).

Manyotherlanguagesdonotdistinguishbetweenthewordsplayandgame,butSalenand ZimmermanbelievethattheseparationofthewordsplayandgameinEnglishisanopportunity

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toconsidergamesandplayastwoseparateideaswithrelated,butdistinctmeanings(p.72).I employthisseparationusedbySalenandZimmermaninmythesistodistinguishbetween groupsofplayersthatfocusontheprocessofplayinggamesratherthantheendresultsof games. SalenandZimmerman'sdefinitionsarebroadenoughtocoverawiderangeofunderstandings ofplayandgame,butthereisapotentialcomplicationwiththeirdefinitionofgamethatI wouldliketoaddressbeforemovingforward.Intheirdefinitionofgame,SalenandZimmerman createaboundaryaroundwhatisandisnotagamebasedonwhetherornothereisa quantifiableoutcome,or,inotherwords,agoalthatisclearlydiscernible.Andtheyarenot theonlyresearcherstoincludethistypeofcriterionintheirdefinition.JesperJuul(2005) createdthediagram(Figure1)aspartoftheClassicGameModeltohelpdelineatewhatfell withinhisunderstandingofgame(p.23).

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Figure1Juul'sClassicGameModel(2005,p.23).

Thisrigidcriterionrelatedtothepresenceorabsenceofoutcomesingamesisnarrower thanmanypopularconceptionsofthetermgame,suchthatitpreventsactivitieswhichwe normallyconsidergamesfrombeingincludedinresearch.ForexampleconsidergameslikeThe Sims3andFarmville4,whicharelessformallygoaldriventhanmostgames,andbothofwhich areplayedpredominantlybywomen(Gross,2010;West,2008).UnderJuul(2005)andSalen

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Throughoutthisthesis,Iofferdescriptionsofthedigitalgamesthatarekeytoillustratingmyarguments. TheSimsisapopularlifesimulationgamethatwasoriginallycreatedforPC'sandlaterbecameavailableon consoles. 4 FarmvilleisagameplayedonthesocialnetworkFacebook.Playerscreatefarms,growcrops,takecareof animals,andinteractwithotherpeopleintheirnetworkwhoplaythegame.

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andZimmerman's(2004)definitions,thesegamesareborderlineorlimitcasesbecause theirgoalsaremoreoftenindividuallyorsociallydefinedthanprogrammedintothegame. Withthisconceptualexclusion,thereisapracticalriskthatcertainplayerswillnotbeseenas participatingingamingcultureandthattheymightbeexcludedfromthescopeofresearchin gamestudies. AspartoftheIntroductiontoanissueofFeministMediaStudies(Arthurs&Zacharias,2007), threegamesresearchers,MiaConsalvo,SaraM.Grimes,andHelenW.Kennedy,discussedthe genderingofplayasfeminineandgamesasmasculine.Kennedyfirststates,[t]hedominant definitionsofwhatcountsasgamesoftenexcludepreciselythesiteswheregirls(orwomen) aremostvisibleandactive...thesekindsofplayfultechnologiesarefrequentlyignoredin theorisingaboutgamesandgamers(p.106).GrimesacknowledgesCaillois'problematic distinctionbetweenpaidiaandludusasaparticularlyaptexampleofmalecentricityinthe playliterature.Icouldn'thelpbutfeelthathisconceptofpaidia,ifbetterdeveloped,actually correspondstomanygamesthataretraditionallycodedas'feminine';hissubordinationof 'paidia'to'ludus''instrumental,''civilising'play,isparticularlyproblematicfromthis perspective(p.108).GrimesaddsthatTheSimsandothergamesthataremoreopenended arecalledboundarygamesinJuul'smodelexactlybecausetheyexceedthedominant conceptualisationsofgames/gameplay/gameplaypleasures.Sothepleasureaspectof abandonment,purposelessness,orevensocialplaypracticesisdisavowed(p.109).Grimes andKennedycapturehowresearchthatreliestooheavilyonastrictdefinitionofgamesas goalorientedcanleaveentiregroupsofplayersinthiscase,womenandmenwhoplay

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moreopenendedgamesoutofourunderstandingofwhatmakesgamingpleasurable. TowardstheendoftheconversationConsalvosummarizestherisksofexclusiveterminology:I thinkit'susefultorememberthatjustaswefindterminologyhelpfulinorderingourthinking, ourthinkingcanalltooeasilybeorderedbyourterms.Naminganddefiningareideological, andcanshutdownunderstandingsjustastheyallowothers,andweneedtobevigilantin seeingjusthowwearegoingaboutdefiningandnamingwhatwearetryingtostudy(p.109).I amsympathetictoConsalvo'scritiquethatthewaygameisdefinedhaspotentialtoshapethe scopeofresearchforgamestudies.Wemustbecarefulnottoconflatewhatweconsidervalid subjectsofresearchwithcertainconceptswithingamestudiesespeciallywhendoingsocould reducethesphereofresearchandexcludevaluabletopics.Butdistinctionslikethosemadeby SalenandZimmermancanstillbeusefulforcategorizingapproachestogamesandeven broadeningthescopeofgamestudiestoincludemoresubjects. Untilrecentlyforexample,goalorientedgamesandtheirplayershavebeenthepredominant subjectsofresearchingamestudies.Thereisaneedtobroadenthefocusofstudytoinclude moreplayfulactivitiesandthosewhoparticipateinplayfulactivities.Itismypositionthatgame studiesoughttoincludegoalorientedandnongoalorientedgames.Buteven,articulatingthis basicthesisdependsonaconceptualdistinctionbetweenthetwotypesofapproachesto gaming.WhileIagreewithConsalvothatwewanttobeawareoftheinfluenceofourterms,I viewtheSalenandZimmermandistinctionasvaluableforachievingtheendwebothdesire: greaterinclusivenessingamesstudies.Byaddressingthisissueexplicitlyearlyoninmythesis,I

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hopetoreducethelikelihoodthatmyadoptionofSalenandZimmerman'sdistinctionand specificallytheirdefinitionofgamewillbeinterpretedasamovetorestrictthescopeofgame studies. Inthisthesis,ratherIuseSalenandZimmerman'sdefinitionsastoolstoexaminethe relationshipbetweeninclusionandaparticularcommunity'semphasisontheplayprocessover whowinsthegametocreateamoreinclusivegamingcontext.ThedistinctionmadebySalen andZimmermanbetweenplayandgamesbasedonwhetherthereisaquantifiablegoalornot isinstrumentaltoestablishingmydistinctioninChapterOneofdescribingthegroupof studentsIresearchedasaplaycommunityratherthanagamingcommunity.Thismoveis extremelyhelpfultoidentifyingthefactorsthatpromoteinclusiveness,whichcouldhaveutility ingamestudiesasadiscipline.

ResearchQuestions MyresearchquestionsforthisthesisevolvedtoreflecttheexploratoryprocessIunderwent.I beganmyresearchinterestedinthemotivationsandpracticesoffemaleundergraduateswho playeddigitalgamesoncampusatMIT.Knowinglittleofdormlifeorgamingactivitieson campus,Idecidedtocreatequestionsthatwerebroadenoughtoleadtoageneral understandingofwhatdigitalgamingbyfemaleplayerslookedlikeatMIT: WhatarefemaleMITundergraduates'motivationsforplayingdigitalgames? WhatarethegamesthatwomenplayinpersonwithothersonMIT'scampus? HowandwheredowomenatMITplaydigitalgames? Whatisthecriteriabywhichundergraduatefemalestudentsdeterminewhatisa gameandwhoisagamer?

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Thesequestionswerethebasisofmyinitialexploratoryinterviewswithfemaleundergraduates oncampus.AsIwilldiscussbelow,theseinterviewsledmetolocatearesearchsite,whichwas adormloungethatservedasthesocialhubforacommunityinwhichseveralwomenplayed digitalandnondigitalgameswithmalestudents.Uponlocatingthiscommunity,Iadaptedmy researchquestionstoincludethesocialcontextoftheresearchsite: Whatfactorscontributetomakingagroup'sgamingactivitiesinclusiveofdifferentskill levels,gender,andplayexperiences?

WhenIstartedvisitingtheresearchsite,itwasobviousthatthegroupwasdiverseintermsof genderandplayerexperiences.Thissecondaryresearchquestionwasintendedtoexpandthe scopeofmyresearchtoincludethesocialdynamicsofthegroupandtheirspecificgaming preferencesandinteractions.

Methods Thisdescriptionofmyresearchmethodsismeanttogivethereaderasenseoftheever evolvingprocessthatIwentthroughtorefineandnarrowmythesis'focusoverthecourseofa year.Whatbeganasageneralinterestintherelationshipbetweengenderandgamingended upasasmallscaleethnographyofacommunitywhoplaysgamestogetherinthe5Nloungeof anMITdorm.(5Nreferstothedorm'sfloorandwingwheretheloungeislocated.)Thisgroup waschosenbecauseoftheparticipationofseveralwomenwhohadhistoriesofplayingdigital gamesbeforeenteringcollege,aswellaswomenwhoweremorerecentlyintroducedtodigital gamingordidnotplaydigitalgamesatall.Theresearchforthisthesiscanbestbeunderstood intwoparts:first,asaseriesofexploratoryinterviewstounderstandhowwomenplaydigital gamesoncampus,andsecond,asafocusedstudyofaresearchsitethatincludedparticipant

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observationsandsubsequent,detailedinterviews. Istartedmyresearchprocessbyinterviewingseveralundergraduatewomen.Mymethodsfor selectingwomentointerviewwerevaried.First,Ireachedoutviaemailtoseveralmaleand femalestudentswhomIhadmetattheSingaporeMITGAMBITGameLab,whichwaswhere mygraduatestudentofficewaslocatedatthetime.IalsosentanemailtotheAssassins'Guild, aliveactionroleplayinggrouponcampusaskingthemtoforwardmyrequesttointerview womenwhoplayeddigitalgamesoncampus.Thisinitialcontactledmetoscheduleafirst roundofinterviewswiththreefemalestudents. Iconductedinterviewsinpubliclocationsoncampus,usuallyattheStudentCenter,andI recordedtheaudiofortranscription.Thestyleoftheinterviewswasinformaland conversational.Iusuallybeganbyaskingtheintervieweetotellmeaboutherhistorywith gaming.TheintervieweeknewthatIwasmostlyinterestedindigitalgames,sonondigital gamingdidnotcomeupveryoften.Ithenwouldaskaboutthecurrentgamesthatsheplayed, howsheplayedthem,andwhyshelikedthem.Ifinterestingmomentswerementioned, especiallywheregenderwasobviouslyafactor,Iwouldaskhertogointomoredetail.Ialso askedeachintervieweetotalkaboutwhyshedecidedtocometoMITandhowshedefinedthe termsgameandgamer. Afterthisinitialroundofinterviews,Ilearnedthatmostofthedigitalgamingoncampus happenedindorms.Myfirstinterviewee,Lisa,whowouldbecomemymaininformant,invited

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metocomeplaygameswithheratherdorm.ThisiswhenIfirstencounteredmyresearchsite, the5Ndormlounge.AsImentionedabove,duringmyfirstvisitsto5NinOctoberand November2009,Iwasimpressedbythediversityofthegroupplayingdigitalgamesinthe lounge.Asaresultofthesevisits,Idecidedtoconductparticipantobservationsoverthenext sixmonthstobetterunderstandthesocialdynamicsofthegroupandtheirgamingpractices (Gray,2003,p.83).Ivisitedthedormloungeonetotwotimeseachmonth,usuallyinthe evenings,toplaygamesandsocializewiththegroup.ThiswasusuallyaThursday,Friday,or Saturdaynight,asthesewerethemostpopularnightsforstudentstovisittheloungeandplay games. Duringvisits,Itookfewnotesandinsteadtriedtoparticipateasmuchaspossibleinthe activitiesthattookplaceinandaroundthedormlounge.Theseincluded:playingvideoand cardgames,socializingandjokingaround,eating,andwatchingamovie.Ialsoconducted interviewswithmorestudentswhoparticipatedinactivitiesinthelounge.Ifoundthese studentsthroughrecommendationsofotherstudentsorbyapproachingthemmyselfinthe lounge.TheseinterviewswerestructuredsimilarlytowhatIdescribeabove,butalsoincluded specificquestionsaboutthegroupinthe5Nlounge,includinghowitcametobeandhowit currentlyfunctions.Atthetime,Ialsoconductedinterviewswiththreemorefemale undergraduateswhowerenotaffiliatedwiththelounge.Ilocatedthesestudentsbyemailing myrequestforinterviewstoseveraldorms'studentgovernmentmemberswhoforwardeditto theirdormemaillists. Aftereachvisittothe5Nlounge,Irecordedfieldnotesonmycomputer.Ialsotranscribedthe 31

interviewsthatIconducted,whichIeventuallycodedinordertofindemergentthemesfor analysis.Iusedthesefieldnotesandinterviewtranscriptstoshapemyanalysisforthisthesis.If IfoundareaswhereIneededmoreinformation,IwasabletofollowupviaemailorFacebook withmyintervieweestogathermoreinformation.

Backgroundoftheresearchsite Thecommunitythatgatheredinthe5N5loungebegantoforminSeptember2009.Aroundthis time,thecoregroupwhowerefreshmanatthetimebefriendedeachotheratan orientationeventbeforedormselectiontookplace.Theycoordinatedtheirtophousingpicks andwereabletoliveinthesamedorm.Theywereevenabletofindroomsonthesamefloor: 5N. Iinterviewedfivestudentsfromthisgroupoffriendswhoatthetimeofmyresearchwere sophomores: Lisaisacomparativemediastudiesmajorwhowasmyfirstintervieweeandbecamemy maininformant.SheisoneofthefewstudentswithherownPS3,makingherroom anotherhubofgaminginthedorm. Patisaverysocialchemicalengineeringmajorwholovestoplayroleplayinggames (RPG)andisconsideredbysometobetheleaderofthe5Nbunch. Jasonisadoublemajorinmaterialscienceandengineeringandcomparativemedia studieswhoalsoplaysdigitalgamesatthenewspaperofficeoncampus.
5

Thenamesofthedormfloorandthestudentshaveallbeenchangedtoprotecttheidentityofthesubjects.

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MeiisamanagementsciencemajorwhoseWiiwasusedtostartthegamingin5N.This pastsemesterthoughshehasbeenhangingoutlessintheloungeandmorewithher boyfriendandhisfriendsattheotherendofthehall.

RachelisadoublemajorineconomicsandmanagementsciencewholovesPokemon andMMORPG's.Shewasnotpartofthegroupoffriendswhometatorientation,but shelivedonthefloorlastyearandjoinedthegroupthroughamalefriendearlyinthe year.

Iinterviewedtwootherstudentswhofrequentthelounge,butwerenotsophomoresatthe time: Jessicaisajuniormajoringinelectricalengineeringandcomputersciencewhomoved to5Nfromanotherfloorinthesamedorm.

Janelleisaseniorbiologymajorandchemistryminorwhohaslivedon5Nsinceshewas afreshmanandhaswatchedthedevelopmentoftheloungecommunity.Sheisoneof thefewpeoplewhohangsoutintheloungeanddoesnotplayanydigitalgames.

Howthe5Ncommunitycametobe ThestudentsIinterviewedhadvariedtakesonhowtheloungebunchcametobe.Theirstories abouthowtheystartedhangingoutintheloungedidnotconflictmuch,buttheytoldstories frommarkedlydifferentperspectives.Iwasabletopiecetogetherthefollowingtrajectoryfrom theirinterviews.

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Theystartedplayinggamestogether,especiallythevideogameSuperSmashBros.Brawl6,in anotherstudent'sroom: Jessica:BeforelastyearalltheyhadwasAndres,andhehad[aWii]inhisroom.He'sa character;hegraduatedlastyear. Pat:ImeanlastyearwehadAndres;he'sabig6'1and280pounds,solidmuscle,and hewouldplayvideogameswithus. Andreswasavocalandhumorousplayerwhosetthemoodforthegameplaythatcontinuedin the5Nloungeafterhegraduated.Hewasknownforscreamingfunnyphrasesatthecharacters inthegamewhensomethingdidnotgothewayhewanteditto. Janelle:ThatwasAndres.Iusedtoliveafewdoorsoversoallyou'dhearwas Jigglypuff!orPikachu!veryloudly.Itwasveryamusing. Mei:Iactuallydon'tknowwhywegetintoitsomuch.Maybeit'sAndres'influence. Weplayandwejuststartyellingateachother. Jessica:That'ssoAndres. Interviewer:Butisitseriousorisitfun? Jessica:WhenIwastalkingtoourGRT[GraduateResidentTutor]fromlast year...talkingaboutgettinganewGRT...shewaslike,youhavetofindsomeonewho's OKwiththenoiseandtheyellingweirdthingslike,ScrewyouPikachu!andyeah, that'soneofthetrademarksofAndres.

SomeofthecurrentstudentsplayedwithAndresinhisroom,butthenMeidecidedtobringher ownconsole,aWii,outintothelounge. Mei:IthinkhowitstartedrememberhowIhadmyWiilastyear?IbroughtmyWii overandjustleftitintheloungebecauseIwastoolazytocleanupandIlivedextremely closetothelounge...Thenlikeafterafewmonths,youknowlikeafterfinals,likein November,IjuststartedtoleaveitouttherecauseIwastoolazy. Jessica:Whatwereyouplayingthen?FireEmblem7?

6

SuperSmashBros.BrawlisWiigame,inwhichplayerscontrolcharacters(usuallyfromanotherNintendogame) whobattleuptothreeothersinafighttothefinishtypeshowdown.ItisthelatestinaseriesofthreeSuper SmashBros.gamespublishedbyNintendo. 7 FireEmblemisafantasymedievalinspiredseriesoftacticalroleplayinggamesplayedontheNintendothatcan beplayedeitherinsingleplayerormultiplayermode.Itisturnbasedandinvolvessettingup playersonamap

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Mei:YeahEmblemandSmashbasically.ThatwastheonlytwogamesIhad.OhMario Kart8too. Jessica:YeahweplayedalotofMarioKartlastyear. Mei:'CeptforIgotsogoodatMarioKart;lastyearIownedallofthem. In2009,theloungehadpreviouslybeenaspacemostlyforseniorstohangout,butafterMei movedherWiiin,sheandtheotherfreshmanstartedtotakeoverthespace. Lisa:[Thegaming]actuallystartedupsecondsemester.Itwaslikefirstsemesterwe werejusttryingtogettoknowBostonandgoingeverywhere,tryingtodoproblemsets, gettingthroughcollegeandstuff.Andsecondsemesterwefeltlikeweownedtheplace. Startedtakingtheseniors'5Nloungeandplayinggameswheneverwefeltlikeit...the seniorsusedtoalwayshangoutthere,butthenwestartedplayinggamesthereand theygottiredofthenoise.Sotheystartedhangingoutindifferentlounges.

Theloungebecameasocialdestinationbecauseofgaming.Studentsfromotherfloorslearned aboutitandbegantovisit,socialize,andplaygames.Someofthestudentswhostartedoff livingon5Nmovedtootherfloors,butcontinuedtocomebacktotheloungeoften.

ChapterStructure Inthenextthreechapters,Iexaminethe5Ncommunitythroughthethreelensesdiscussed above:thegroup,thegamesandgameplay,andtheindividualplayers. ChapterOnediscussesthevariousactivitiesthatwentoninthe5Nloungeandhowthey intersectedwiththesocialgoalsofthecommunity.Gamingwasoneofanetworkofactivities thatthegroupparticipatedin,allowingvariouswaysforstudentstoplayfullysocializewith eachother.Iexplainhowthe5Ncommunityexemplifiesmanyaspectsofaparticipatoryculture

tobeattheenemy.Itisknownforitsstrongcharacterdevelopmentandtwoofitscharactersalsoappearin SuperSmashBros. 8 MarioKartisaseriesofcomicalracinggamesinvolvingcharactersfromotherNintendogames.

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andhowthatisrelatedtoitsinclusivenessofwomenandpeoplewhodonotplaygames. ChapterTwonarrowsinfocustolookatthecontentandstructuralelementsofthegamesthat wereplayedinthe5Nlounge,includinghowtheseelementsfacilitatedthesocialgoalsofthe group,andhowthesocialgoalsinfluencedhowthegameswereplayed.Digitalandnondigital gameswereplayedintheloungeand,often,bydifferentpeople.Thisallowedmultiplewaysof participatingingaminginthelounge.Whilethegamesthestudentsplayedhadwinnersand losers,theprimaryfunctionofthegameswastofacilitateplayfulsocializing. ChapterThreeexploresthemotivations,playingstylesandexperiencesofindividualplayers. Thefemaleplayers'gaminghistoriesaredescribed,revealingsomecommonalitiessuchas growingupplayingdigitalgameswithmostlymalepeersandshowingtherangeofgaming preferencesandstyleswomenhaddependingonwhattheyfoundpleasureinandwhatthey hadaccessto.Thischapteralsodiscussestheplayers'understandingsofthetermsgameand gamerandhowmanyofthefemaleplayersnegotiatedthestereotypesofgamingculture.

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CHAPTERONE:TheCommunity
Itismyfirstnightvisitingthe5NloungeandI'mnotsurewhattoexpect.Lisa,myinformant, meetsmeinthedormlobbyandtakesmeupthestairs.Wewalkdownahallwaylinedwith dormroomsuntilwearriveatthelounge.Herethehallwaywidenstotheleftintoalargeopen spacewhereabouttenstudentsarechattingandlaughing.Lisadoesn'tintroduceme.Instead, shejumpsontoacouch,whichIgatheriswhereshewassittingbeforeIarrived,andstarts playingSuperSmashBros.Brawl(Brawl). Iputmybackpackdown,takeoffmycoat,andsurveythescene.Theloungeisaspacious rectangle,about25'by20'.ItiscarpetedwithbarewallsexceptforacoupleofMITissued posters,oneofwhichtellsstudentstoThinkoutsidethebottle(referringtoalcohol)andtwo whiteboards.Onewhiteboardhasalongmathematicalequationscribbledonit.Halfofone wallisakitchensetupwhereafemalestudentiscookingacomplicatedmeal.Tworound tablesextendatarightanglefromthekitchenwall.

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Figure2Studentsinthe5NLoungeonaThursdaynight.

Aboutfivefeetawayfromthekitchenareaalongthesamewallisthefocalpointofthelounge alargeTV,probably30inchesinsizewithaNintendoWiiconsoletuckedintoacabinet beneathit.Threestandard,dormissueloveseatsareplacedinaUshapearoundtheTV,with anotherUofseatsbehindit.Atthismoment,twofemaleandthreemalestudentssitinthe seatsclosesttotheTV,fourofthemwithcontrollersintheirhands,pressingawayatthe buttonsandtradingwittybanterandphraseslikeLOLOLOLwhensomethingfunnyhappens areferencetothepopularinstantmessageabbreviationthatmeanslaughoutloud.Onemale studentwithoutacontrollerinhishandssitswithalaptopsurfingtheweb.Afemalestudent asksnooneinparticular,Isthefoodcoming?Amaleplayer,Pat,finisheshisroundinBrawl andcallstherestauranttocheckontheorder. *******

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ThisfirstencounterwassimilarinmanywaystoeveryothervisitImadetothe5Nloungeona Fridaynight.Forthefirsthalfoftheweek,thespacewaslikemanyotherdormlounges:aplace forstudentstowatchaTVshow,eatdinner,ordohomework.However,Thursdaysthrough Sundays,the5Nloungebustledwithsocialactivity. Theloungewasadestinationsometimesplanned,sometimeshappeneduponforagroupof abouttwentystudents.Someofthemlivedon5N,butsomelivedonotherfloorsandevenin otherdorms.Duringthebusiesttimesinthelounge,therewereusuallyafewactivities happeningatthesametime,includingplayingdigitalgames,playingnondigitalgames,cooking, eating,doinghomework,reading,andhavingconversationswithfriends.Itwasuncommonfor everyonetobedoingthesamethingatonce.Theloungebecameanenergetic,playfulspace that,attimes,feltchaotic. BeforeIvisitedthe5Nlounge,Iimagineditwouldbefullofgamerslikethekindportrayedon TVorinmovies.Thesearestereotypicalgamers;theyaremostlyyoung,whitemaleswho ascribetoahardcoreethic:spendasmuchtimeaspossible,playasdifficultgamesaspossible, playgamesattheexpenseofeverythingelse(Juul,2010,p.29).Iamnotsomeonewho regularlyplaysdigitalgames.Ihaveplayedthemsporadicallythroughoutlife,butmostofmy notionsofpeoplewhoplaydigitalgamescomefrommediarepresentations,storiestoldby friends,andfromreadingpreviousstudiesondigitalgamingculture.Withthisadmittedly modestunderstandingofwhoplaysandhow,Iassumedthatiftherewerewomenpresentin thelounge,theywouldmostlikelybewatchingmenplay,andifwomendidplay,theywouldbe

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viewedbythemaleplayersmoreasthetokenfemalethanasanequalchallenger. Ipresentmyownpreconceptionsherebecausetheyarelikelysimilartothoseofpeoplewho arenotinvolvedingamestudiesorgamingsubcultures.Digitalgamingformany,andespecially onconsoleslikethePS3andXbox,hasbecomeconnectedtothegamerstereotypeIexplained above.Recently,though,therehavebeenstudiesthatrecognizethegamerstereotypeisno longer,orneverwas,adequatefordescribingwhoplaysdigitalgames(Cassell&Jenkins,2008; Fronetal.,2007;Voida&Greenberg,2009).Thereisstillmuchresearchtobedoneonplayers whofalloutsideofthisstereotypeinordertounderstandthewiderangeofindividualsand playingcontextsthatareinvolvedindigitalgaming. AsIgottoknowthestudentsinthe5NloungeovertheeightmonthsIvisited,Ifoundmostof mypreconceptionsaboutwhoplaysdigitalgamesandhowtheyplaytobetoonarrow.First, themaletofemaleratioofstudentsintheloungewasalmostalwayseven.AsIwillshowlater, thiswasnotthecaseduringeveryinstanceofgameplay,butoveralltherewereusuallyas manymenaswomenintheloungeandmanywomenparticipatedingaming.9Second,the racialandethnicmixofthestudentswasalwayssuchthatstudentsfromU.S.minoritygroups madeupthemajorityofstudentsinthelounge.MoststudentswereChineseAmericanand TaiwaneseAmericanstudentsandsmallernumberswereAfricanAmerican,KoreanAmerican, IndianAmerican,andCaucasian.10Third,therewerealmostalwaysstudentsintheloungethat

10

Infall2009,womenmadeup45%oftheundergraduatepopulationatMIT(MIT). Itshouldbenotedherethat,AsianAmericanstudentsmakeupalargerpercentageoftheundergraduate

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neverplayeddigitalgames,oranygames,atall.Thesestudentswereintheloungetosocialize orparticipateintheotheractivitiesthatwerehappening.Fourth,thetoneoftheloungeon weekendnightswasalwaysplayfulandsocial.Almosteveryactivityintheloungeduring weekendevenings,includinggaming,wasdonewiththeminimalamountofseriousness.Even cookingornegotiationsoversharedresources,asIwillshowbelow,werejovialandsocial eventsinthe5Nlounge. Inthischapter,Iwilldivedeeperintothespaceofthe5Nlounge,especiallytheactivitiesofthe studentswhomImetthere,andhowtheydefiedmyexpectations.First,Iwillexplainhowthe groupcanbeseenasaplaycommunitythat,asawhole,ismoreinterestedinsocializingand theplayprocessthaninwhowinsorlosesthegamestheyplay(DeKoven,2002;Pearce,2007). Second,Iwillexplorehowthe5Ncommunityexemplifiesaparticipatorycultureandhowthat contributestoitsinclusiveness(Jenkins,Purushotma,Weigel,Clinton,&Robinson,2009).

Playcommunityofthe5Nlounge Ibeganmyresearchofthe5Nloungethinkingthatitwasagamingcommunity,bywhichI meantagroupoffriendswhosecentralactivityisplayingdigitalgamestogether.Afteracouple ofFridaynightvisitstothe5Nloungethough,Ifoundthatthereweresomanyotheractivities inadditiontogaminghappeningintheloungethattocallitagamingcommunitywasnota validcharacterization.Infact,thestudentsthemselvesdidn'tcalltheirgroupagaming

studentpopulationthanrepresentedintheU.S.populationasawholeabout25%atMITandabout4.5% nationally.(MIT;U.S.CensusBureau)

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community. Rachel:Ifeellike5Nisalotmorethanagamingcommunitywhereweplaygames together.Wegotoconcertstogether,wegooutshoppingtogether,soit'salotmoreof afamilythanjustfriends. Rachelpointedoutthattherewasmoretotheirinteractionsthangamingtogether,andthese interactionsdidnotjusthappeninthe5Nlounge.Shegoesasfarastocallthegroupmorethan friendsandevenafamily,suggestingthatthebondsbetweenthegroups'memberswereas closeassiblingsorcousins.Eventhoughthe5Ncommunitywasnottechnicallyafamily, Rachel'sallusiontothefamilyherebringsupthequestion:Whatkindofspaceisthe5N lounge?Isitadomesticorworkspace?Isitpublicorprivate? Formanyofthestudentsthedormwastheircurrenthome.Itwaswheretheyslept,ate,and relaxed,butalsowheretheyspentcountlesshoursdoingtheirworkonproblemsetsand studying.Theywerefreeofparentalsupervision,mostlikelyforthefirsttime,andtheirfellow residentsweretheirfriendsandpeers.Inthedorms,theywerealsousuallyfreefromthe pressuresofhavingtolooktheirbestoractthesamewaytheywouldinclassoratanoutside socialevent.Yettherewerestrangersintheirmidst,otherstudentstheymightnotknowor peoplethattheydon'tlike,whichmadeitfeellesslikeatypicaldomesticspace.Theloungewas morepublicthantheirownrooms,butlesspublicthantherestofcampus.The5Nspacehad characteristicsofboththepublicworkplaceandtheprivatehome. Forthepurposesofthisthesis,itmightbebesttothinkofthelounge,andthedormthat housesit,asliminalspaces.Turner(1974)describesliminalspacesasplaceswherepeople

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passthroughaperiodandareaofambiguity,asortofsociallimbowhichhasfew(though sometimesthesearemostcrucial)oftheattributesofeithertheprecedingorsubsequent profanesocialstatusesorculturalstates(p.57).Inthesespaces,people'play'withthe elementsofthefamiliaranddefamiliarizethem(p.60).Thedormandtheloungeweresites wherestudentsspentthetransitionaltimeofcollege,movingfromdependenceonparentsto dependenceonthemselvesandtheirsocialnetworks.Thelinebetweenadultandadolescent activitiesblurred.Studentscontinuedsomeoftheirfavoriteadolescentactivities,often socializing,playingdigitalgames,andjokingaround,butthepossibilityofnewresponsibilities, suchasmanagingrelationships,doinglaundry,andcookingdinnerwereincludedinthemix. The5Nloungebecamealiminallivingroomforthestudentswhouseit,setupmostlikelyin afashionsimilartotheirownfamilies'homeswiththeseatingcenteredaroundaTVand functioningasaplaceforpeopletogatherandinteract.Thisliminallivingroomwasfreefrom theinfluenceoffamily,however,allowingthemfreedomtoplaywithhowtheyinteractedwith eachother.Thismeanttheymighthavedonethingsthatnormallywouldn'tbeallowedat homewhetheritwastellingdirtyjokes,chasingeachotheraroundthecouches,orstayingup until4amplayingdigitalgames. Buttheloungefunctionedinmanywayslikeatraditionallivingroom.AsVoidaand Greenberg(2009)foundintheirownstudyoncolocatedconsolegaminginresidentialsettings, thecombinationofaTVandgamingsysteminaspacecanmakeitacomputationalmeeting place,whichnotonlybringspeopletogether,butalsomediat[es]amongthediversityof

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expertise,interests,andidentitiesofthegamerswhohavebeenbroughttogether(p.1562). DigitalgamingattractedadiversecrowdofMITstudentstothelounge,includingthosewho hadnointerestinactuallyplayinggames,butlikedtointeractwiththeotherpeopleplaying andwatching.TheloungewasphysicallysetupwiththeTVasthefocalpoint.Allofthecouches andloungechairsfacedit.ThismeantthatactivitiesthatinvolvedtheTVusuallybecamethe maineventsinthelounge,withotheractivitiesgoingonaroundtheperiphery.Thepresenceof theTValoneinthe5Nloungedidnotcreateadiversityofexpertise,interestsandidentities, butinthisparticularcommunityitfunctionedasatechnologythatbroughtpeopletogether withinasocialcontextthatvalueddiversityandsocializing. Thestudentswhocametothe5Nloungesawthemselvesasfriends,andevenfamilyinsome cases,butIfoundthatthetermcommunitymostaptlydescribedtheirrelationshiptoone another.Putnam(2000)hasexplainedthat'[c]ommunity'meansdifferentthingstodifferent people,butthatmostpeopleviewtheircommunityastheirfamilyandfriends,followedby theircoworkersandneighbors(p.273275).Thestudentsin5Nwerebothfriendsand neighbors,withsharedintereststhatwerereinforcedbytheircloseproximity. Tobemorespecific,wecansaythestudentsin5Ncreatedaplaycommunity,aparticulartype ofcommunitythatplaysgamestogetherthatDeKoven(2002)hasdescribedinhisbook,The WellPlayedGame.Playcommunitiesrequiretimetocommonlybuildtrust,safety, conventions,andfamiliarity(DeKoven,2002,pp.1718).Thegamesplayedandwhowinsare notimportant.Playcommunitiescaremostaboutwhethertheplayershadfun.Heexplained:

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We'llevenfindthatthekindofactivitieswegetinvolvedindon'tmatterthatmuch.Because ourbasisfortrustandsafetyhasbroadenedtosuchanextentthatitresidesnotinany particulargamebutinourveryrelationship(p.21). DeKoven'sdescriptionofplaycommunitiesisgeneralandnotnecessarilyrelatedtodigital games,butPearce(2007)hasbuiltonDeKoven'sconceptinherworkstudyingaparticular groupofpeoplewhoplayedtogetherintheanowdefunctmassivelymultiplayeronlinegame (MMOG): Theplaycommunitysharesastrongsocialconnection,aswellasamutualplaystylethat isbothinclusiveandflexible,andcanbetransformedandrelocatedasneededto sustainthegroup.Differentcommunitiesofplayhavedifferentcharacteristicsthatarise outofthecombinedplaystylesoftheindividualswithinthem,eachofwhomisinturn transformedbythegroupplaystyle.Theseplaystylesarealsobothinfluencedand transformedbythespacestheyareenactedin.(p.315) AsIinterviewedandinteractedmorewiththestudentsin5N,Icametounderstandthat insteadofacommunitybasedonplayingaparticularsetofdigitalgames,theyweremore alignedwiththeconceptofplaycommunities.Thestudentssharedastrongsocialconnection andsocializingwasthemostvaluedtypeofinteractioninthelounge.Theyhadcultivated relationshipswitheachotherovertheiryearandhalfoflivingtogetherthatwerebasedon trustandcomfort,eveninpotentiallycompetitivegamingsituations.Thissharedapproachto playtranscendedallthegamestheyplayed,aswellasmostotheractivitiestheyparticipatedin together.Thisisnottosaythatthegamestheyplayedwereinsignificant,but,asIwillshowin thenextchapter,thegamesfacilitatedtheirsocialgoals.

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Socialgoalsofthe5Ncommunity Pat:Ourculture,insteadoffocusedongames,ismorefocusedonconversation. Conversationinthebroadestsenseofthewordconversation.

Socializingwasavaluedpartofeveryactivityinthe5Nlounge,fromhomeworktocookingto gaming.Conversationwasusuallyplayfulbetweenthefivetotwentystudentsthatwereinthe loungeatanygiventimeontheweekends.Therewerelayerstothesocializingthatconsistedof smallgroupsorpairsofstudentstalkinghereandthere,aswellasasharedongoing conversationthatwaslouderandcarriedacrosstheloungetoincludeeveryoneintheroom. ThislouderconversationusuallyconsistedofjokesaboutwhatwashappeningontheTV, whetheritwasvideogamesoraTVprogram;peopletellingfunnystories;andsometimeseven acouplepeoplebreakingintosong. Aboutfourmonthsintomyparticipantinterviews,Iinterviewedsomemaleplayersatthe dorm.Itwasatypicalnight.Inbetweenconductinginterviewsinasmallerloungedownthe hall,Iwentbacktothemainloungeandobservedstudentsinvolvedinseveraldifferent activitiesallwithaplayfultone.WhenIfirstarrived,fourpeople,includingLisa,werespread acrossthehallsideoftheloungemakingdumplings.Thiswasnotthekindofculinary productionyouwouldfindattheCordonBleuoreveninafamilykitchen.Instead,anassembly linehadbeencreatedgoingfromthekitchenwallanddowntothefloor,whereLisaand anotherstudentwerestuffingdumplingsaroundabigbowlonthecarpet.Thepeoplemaking thefoodwereconversingandjokingwiththeotherpeopleinthelounge,whowereplaying gamesorsittingaroundonlaptops.

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 Later,afterconductinganinterview,Icamebacktotheloungeandfoundaboutsevenpeople intermittentlyyellingatandlaughingwitheachother.Patandanothermalestudentwereat thewhiteboardbehindtheTVtryingtocalculatetheamountofmoneyeachpersonhadspent orowedforfoodthatweek.Somepeoplewereyellingoutnumberswhiletheotherswatched themcalculate.Itwasacomedyoferrors.Patandtheotherstudentswereconfused.The peoplewatchingthemyelledoutpossiblesolutions,creatingachaotic,butjovialmoodinthe lounge.Theeventculminatedwhenoneofthemalestudentslookedatthenumbernexttohis nameandsaidIowemyself$13!HowcanIowemyself$13?Everyonelaughedandwent backtowhattheyhadbeendoingpreviously,whiletwostudentseventuallyworkedoutthe mathontheboard. Thisnightexemplifiestheplayfultoneofmostactivitiesthatoccurredinthe5Nlounge.Evena negotiationovermoney,whichinanothercontextcouldbecometense,wasconductedasa lightheartedperformance.Bycreatingatoneinthespacethatisplayful,theloungebecomes approachablebyalmostanystudentwhopassesbyinthehall.Theloungewassometimesused likeastagetopullpassingstudentsin,oratleastentertainthemastheywalkedby. Afterobservingtheactivitiesintheloungeoverseveralmonths,itwasclearthatthemain socialgoalofthegroupwastoplayfullysocialize.Playandsocializinginthe5Ncommunity wereusuallyongoingandnotorientedtoasingulargoal.Theresultsoftheiractivitieswerenot emphasized.Theprocessofeachactivitywasdrawnoutanddoneinaplayfulandperformative

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manner.Theresultsoftheactivitiesstillexisted,ofcourse,inthesituationsmentionedabove thestudentsintheloungeeventuallyatedumplingsandexchangedmoneyforfoodsupplies butachievingthesepracticalendswassecondaryinimportancetoentertainingeachotherand fosteringasocialcommunity. Theemphasisinthe5Ncommunityonaplayfulprocessovertheresultsofthegameisrelated tomychoicetodescribethegroupin5Nasaplaycommunityratherthanagamingcommunity. AsIshowedintheIntroduction,thetermplayhascometobevalueddifferentlythangame. Currentunderstandingsofthetermstendtosituateplayasanopenended,looselystructured activityandgamesasmorestructuredactivitiesthatareoftenassociatedwithhavinganend goalorwinstate.Ifweaccepttheseunderstandingsofthetermsfornow,astheyarethe dominantviewingamestudiesandthegameindustry,Iraisethequestion:Whatdoesfocusing acommunityonplayinsteadofacommunitythatgamesaffordtheparticipants? Themostapparentwaythe5Ncommunity'sfocusonplayshapedtheiractivitieswasthatthey wereabletoincorporateamuchwiderrangeofactivitiesandparticipantsthanwouldhave beenpossibleforacommunitystrictlyinterestedingaming.Loungevisitorshadmanyoptional activitiestotakepartindependingontheirimmediateneedsanddesires.Iftheyhadalotof worktodo,butwantedtounwindalittleandgetsomeaggressionoutwhiledoingit,theysat neartheTVandplayedBrawlwiththeirhomeworknearbytoworkonbetweenturns.Ifthey enjoyedreading,butwantedtobearoundpeople,theycouldsitinthenextrowofchairswith theirbookandinteractwhentheyfeltlikeit.Iftheywantedtojokeandinteractfacetoface

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withtheirfriends,theycouldmakedinnertogetherorplayacardgame.Eachactivityallowed fordifferentneedstobefulfilled. Also,becausethecollectiveidentityofthe5Ncommunitywasbasedmoreonbeingagroupof friendswholikedtoplayfullysocializeratherthanbasedstrictlyongaming,theirgameplayhad lowerstakesthanothercommunitiesthatmakegamingtheirhighestpriorityandmainactivity. Statuswithinthe5Nplaycommunitydidnotdependsolelyonhowskillfulsomeonewasat winninggames.Theabilitytowinwasonlyonefactorthatshapedhowothermembers perceivedeachother.Moreimportanttothegroupwashowsocialapersonwasandhowthey contributedtomakingtheactivitiesfunandenjoyableforall.Thisemphasisonthecollective experienceofthegroupduringtheplayprocessinsteadofaccomplishmentsofindividuals helpedmaintainthelowstakessocialcontextforgaming. The5Ncommunityisanexampleofaonethatplacesparticularvalueontheplayprocessover whowinsorloses.ActivitiesthatfitunderSalenandZimmerman's(2004)definitionofgames arepopularinthelounge,buttheformalgoalsaredeemphasizedandreplacedwiththe group'ssocialgoals.Thisresultsinacommunitywherethebarrierstoparticipationingaming, eitherasaplayeroranobserver,arelowandthemembersofthecommunityarebothmale andfemaleandhavearangeofexperiencesplayinggames.Creatingtheselowerbarriersto participationareespeciallyimportantforencouragingpeoplewhoareunfamiliarwithorfeel excludedfromgamingtostarttoplay.

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5Ncommunityasaparticipatoryculture Inadditiontobeingaplaycommunity,thestudentsinthe5Nloungecanbeseenasa participatoryculture,whichJenkinsetal.(2009)defineas: [A]culturewithlowbarrierstoartisticexpressionandcivicengagement,strongsupport forcreatingandsharingonescreations,andsometypeofinformalmentorshipwhereby whatisknownbythemostexperiencedispassedalongtonovices.Aparticipatory cultureisalsooneinwhichmembersbelievetheircontributionsmatter,andfeelsome degreeofsocialconnectionwithoneanother(attheleasttheycarewhatotherpeople thinkaboutwhattheyhavecreated)(pp.56). Initiallyusedasaconceptualframeworkforunderstandingfanpracticesaroundpopularmedia (Jenkins,1992),ithassincebeenappliedbyresearcherstootherfanandnonfanbased contextsbothonlineandoffline(Burgess,Green,Jenkins,&Hartley,2009;Driscoll,2009).Iuse participatorycultureasaframeworkforunderstandinghowthestudentsinthe5Ncommunity learnfromoneanotherandcreateasharedculture. Participatorycultureisaparticulartypeofsocialmodelthatisdifferentfromothermore hierarchicalandexclusivemodels.Inthecaseofthe5Ncommunity,theirfocusonplayful socializinghelpsthemcreateaninclusivecontextforgaming,butthefactorsthatcreatea participatoryculturesocialconnectionbetweenparticipants,lowbarrierstoentry,cultural productionofsharedtasteandknowledge,andaninformalmentorshipsystemhelpinsure thatallparticipantshavetheopportunitytolearnfromeachotherandaddtothecultureand knowledgeproductionofthecommunity Itshouldbefairlyobviousbynowthatthestudentsinthe5Nplaycommunityhadasocial

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connectiontooneanother.Thiswaspartlyenabledbytheircloseproximitytoeachother. Manyexamplesofparticipatoryculturerelyonmediatedformsofcommunicationtoshare informationandresourcesespeciallywhenparticipantsarespreadacrossawidegeographic area(Burgessetal.,2009;Jenkins,1992;Taylor,2006).Thestudentsin5Nhadthebenefitof directaccesstooneanotherforplayinggames,collaborating,andsocializing.Theirconstant interactionsstrengthenedtheirtrustandaffectionforeachanother,makingthemfamilylike, asRachelexplained. Families,friends,andothercommunitiesareunderstoodtobesociallyconnectedgroups,but theyarenotbydefaultparticipatorycultures.Thesegroupscouldbehierarchicalorrunbyan elitesubgroupandexclusionary.Thiswasnotthecasewiththe5Ncommunity.Myown experiencecomingintothegroupasanoutsiderhelpedmeunderstandthelowbarriersthe grouphadforparticipation.Lisawasthefirstpersontobringmetothelounge,butonceIwas thereshewasn'trequiredtoexplainwhoIwastoanyone.Thishastodosomewhatwiththe factthatIamalreadyanMITstudentandinthesamedepartmentasLisa,butitalsoseemed thenormtohavefriendsoffriendscometotheloungefromtimetotime.Isatonthecouch thatfirstnightwatchingLisaandacoupleothersplayBrawl.Acouplepeopleintroduced themselvestomeandaskedmewhoIwas.EvenaftertheyfoundoutIwasagraduatestudent theydidn'tseemtowonderwhyIwasthere. WithinthirtyminutesofarrivingIwasofferedagamecontrollerwhenoneoftheplayersgotup todosomethingelse.IwarnedtheotherplayersIdidn'tknowhowtoplay,butIwasreassured

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thatitdidnotmatterandIshouldjustpressthedownbuttonatthesametimeastheBbutton alot.Ilosteveryroundthatnight,andmostoftheroundsoverthenextcouplemonthsthatI visited,butIwasneverpreventedfromplayingorridiculedintheprocessoflearning.(Ialso hadalotoffun.)Partofthecommunity'sabilitytomaintainlowbarrierstoentryhadtodo withthekindsofgamesthatthestudentsplayed(whichIwilldiscussinthenextchapter),but myacceptanceinthegroupwasalsoconnectedtoknowingsomeonealreadyaffiliatedandmy abilitytosocializeandjokearoundwiththeotherstudentswhileIwasinthelounge. Itwasrelativelyeasyformetoparticipateinthe5Ncommunity,butwhatexactlywasI participatingin?Onthesurfaceitmightlooklikethestudentsarejusthangingout,not producinganythingofvalue,butItoetal.(2009)haveincludedhangingoutinarecentstudy ofyoungpeople'sdigitalmediausageasasignificantgenreofparticipation,inwhichyouth developanddiscusstheirtasteinmusic,theirknowledgeoftelevisionandmovies,andtheir expertiseingaming,practicesthatbecomepartandparcelofsociabilityinyouthculture(p. 44).Thisunderstandingofhangingoutinvolvespeoplemakingmeaningfrommediatexts whetheritsmusic,digitalgamesorInternetvideosandsharingtheirknowledgeand understandingsofthemwithoneanother. Atfirstinthelounge,Iwasn'tsurewhattomakeofthejovial,fastpacedconversationsthat tookplacethere.Ieventuallybegantolearnsomeofthereferencestheyusedandtheir recurringjokes.Thistalkwasimportanttocreatingthefeelingofacommunityandashared wayofcommunicating.ThiskindofconversationisaversionofwhatFiske(1992)calls

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enunciativeproductivity.Inhisessay,TheCulturalEconomyofFandom,Fiskeproposesthree categoriesforthewaythatpeopleproducepopularculture.Thefirst,semioticproduction,is essentiallyinteriorandoccurswhenindividualsmakemeaningoutofsocialidentityand socialexperiencefromaspectsofculturalcommodities(forexample:amovie,adigitalgame,or themusicofaparticularartist)(p.37).Thenextcategory,enunciativeproductivity,iswhenthe meaningsmadearespokenandareshared,whetherit'sthroughconversationortheway someonechoosestodressorstyletheirhair(p.37).Thethird,whichwasrarerinthe5N community,istextualproductivity.Thisiswhenpeopleproduceanddistributetheirowntexts withintheircommunitythatdrawfromaparticularculturalcommodity(p.39).Textual productivityismostoftenassociatedwithfancommunities,butenunciativeproductivityisjust asimportantforcreatingsharedunderstandingsoftextsandculturalknowledgethatisvalued byothers. Thestudentswhohungoutinthe5Nloungewerenotfansofoneparticularcultural commodity.Theirinterestindigitalgameswaspartofalargermediaecologythatincluded socialnetworking,music,humorousInternetvideos,andmovies.Eachmemberofthe5Nplay communitybroughttheirownmixofexpertisethattheysharedwiththecommunity:some peopleknewmoreaboutgames,someknewaboutbiology,someknewaboutcooking.There wasaconstantflowofknowledgesharedabouthowtodothings,mediatocheckout,orevents toattend.Severaltimesmembersofthe5Nbunchtoldmetheyhadtriedoutadigitalgame becauseanotherpersoninthegrouphadsuggestedit.Jessica,whodidnotplaymanydigital gamesbeforecollege,wasturnedontotheplayingtheFireEmblemseriesofgamesafter

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watchingPatandMeiplaytheminthelounge.Duringmyvisits,studentssharedarangeof mediawithoneanother,fromdigitalgametrailerstosongs.Jasondescribedhowheshareshis tasteinDVDswiththelounge: I'llbringstuffandwe'llwatchthatIbroughtLooneyToonstotheloungeandwe watchedawholediscofthat.Thatwasfun,peoplegotintoit.Ilikeinflictingmytastein moviesuponothersaroundme.Wewatched,HotFuzz...Ibroughtittotheloungeto watchwithLisaand[anotherstudent]andbeforelongeveryoneintheroomwas watchingit.IliketothinkIhavegoodtasteinmovies.

Jasonisopentosharinghistasteinmovieswiththegroupandthegroupisopentowatching whathebrings.IfpeoplecometotheloungewhilesomethingisplayingontheTV,theyfeel

welcometowatch.Forexample,onenightacouplestudentssuggestedweallwatchthemovie, PirateoftheCaribbean.Thiswasamoviesomestudentshadseenmanytimesandsome studentshadneverseen.Atfirst,onlysixpeoplewerewatching,butbytheendaboutseven morepeoplehadjoinedusfromjustpassingtheloungeandseeingthatthemoviewasplaying. Theseeventswerenotnecessarilydecideduponbyallthegroupmembersinadvance,but insteadnegotiatedbyindividualsandsmallgroupsinordertofitinwiththeotherongoing activitiesofthelounge. Ford(2006)hasexploredthemediaconsumptionpatternsforstudentsinanMITdormand foundthatcommunalviewingsareoneofthestaplesofthedormenvironment,wheremany peopledonothavetelevisionsandmustinsteadrelyonsharedviewingareas(p.37).The students'personalinterests,sharedspaceandsociabilityresultedinabackandforthof knowledgeaboutandusageofmusic,DVDs,games,consoles,andcountlessothermedia.This wasthecaseinthe5Ncommunityaswell.Thestudentsgatheredandsharedtheirknowledge

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aboutarangeofmediatextsthroughvariousformsofdiscourseconversations,emails,jokes, andevenaFacebookpagewheretheysharedlinksbitsofwhichwerethenrepeatedand reincorporatedintothecommunity'sculture. Inadditiontomediarecommendations,moretraditionalconceptionsofknowledgewere sharedwhenstudentsdidhomeworkinthelounge.Whilethestudents,atthetime,were pursuingarangeofmajors,manyofthemhadattendedthesameclassesintheirfreshman year.Workingonproblemsetsfortheseclasses,whichstudentsareencouragedtocollaborate on,wasoneofthefirstactivitiesthatinitiallybroughtthestudentstothelounge.Theywere abletouseeachotherasresourceswhenproblemsweretrickyortheyhadadifferentareaof expertisetoshare.Duringonevisit,IobservedJanellesittingwithPatforoveranhourhelping himunderstandbiologyconceptsforaclasshewascurrentlyin,aclassshehadalreadytaken. Thisinstancealsoshowsthebenefitofhavingstudentsindifferentyearsaspartofthegroup, sincetheywereabletopassknowledgeontothenewerstudents. Janelle'shomeworkhelpwasonetypeofmentorshipthatgoesoninthecommunity,butthere wasalsomentorshiparoundgaming.Iunfortunatelywasnotabletotakeadvantageofthe informalmentoringsystemthatexistedinthe5Ncommunity,butifIhadbeenlivinginthe dorm,Imostlikelycouldhaveaskedfororbeenofferedmoreguidancefromsomeofthe members.Lisaexplainedhowshetookontheroleofthementorattimes: Yeah,Ihavealotoffriendswhogirlfriendswhowanttoactuallygetintogamingbut theyalwaysfeellikethey'regonnasuckatit,notbeanygoodanditstoohardtolearn andI'llhavetowaitforeveryoneelsetoleaveandinvitethemintotheroomtoplayand teachthemhowtoplayalittlebitbeforetheystarttoplaywitheverybodyelse. 55

 Lisawasnotsecretlyhelpingthesewomenoutbecausetheywouldberidiculed,butbecause manywomanplayersthoughttheywouldbemadefunoforembarrassediftheywerentona competitiveskilllevelwiththeotherpeopleplaying.Thisanxietyaroundstartingtoplaydigital gamesandplayingwithothersmightstemfromplayers'previousexperienceofseeingortrying gaminginahigherstakescontext,butforthosewomenwhohadlittletonoexperiencewith digitalgaming,italsocouldhavebeeninfluencedbytheirunderstandingofwhoissupposedto play.Thesewomensawgamingthroughalensthatframesdigitalgamingasanactivityfor malesratherthanfemalesandanactivitythatrequiresplayerstohavetherightkindsofskills andcompetenciestoparticipate.Lisawasoneofthemostexperiencedplayersinthegroupand recognizedthatshehadknowledgetosharewithotherpeopleinthecommunitywhojoined withoutmuchgamingexperience.Addingtoherabilitytomentorotherfemalestudentswas thatshewasoneofthefewwomeninthegroupwhohadherownconsolethatshekeptinher room.ThisallowedLisaandanyoneshementoredeasyandprivateaccesstopracticedigital games,freefromanyrealorimaginedoutsidepressures. The5Nplaycommunitywasinmanywaysaparticipatoryculture.Buthowdoesthisrelatetoa community'sinclusiveness?Thesocialconnectionsandknowledgesharingthattookplacein thegroupcouldalsohappeninmanyothercontexts.Themostimportantfactorsof participatoryculturethatmadethiscommunitymoreinclusivethanmanygroupswhoplay gamestogetherthatwemightconsidernonparticipatoryweretheirlowbarrierstoentry andtheinformalmentorshiptheyhadcreated.Noteverygroupwhoplaysgamesisableor willingtoplaywithnewplayers.Thisisespeciallytrueifplayersaremostinterestedinbuilding 56

theirownskilllevelorcompetingatthehighestlevelpossible.Mentoringalsohelpslower barriersbysupportingnewplayersormembersofthegrouptolearnfromoneanother.Players whoaremostinterestedinincreasingtheirownskillmighthavelessinterestinspendingtime theycouldbeachievingorlevelingupingameteachingsomeoneelsehowtoplay.Ifaplayeris moreinterestedinmeetingnewpeopleordiversifyingtheirsocialcontextwhilegaming,they mightbemoremotivatedtobringnewpeopleintothegame.

Conclusion Ihaveyettoexplainindetailhowthe5Ncommunityplayedgamestogether.Thereisareason forthis:Thestudentsin5Nwereacommunitycenteredaroundplay,notgames.Theywerea playcommunityandaparticipatoryculture,bothofwhichinfluencedtheirinclusiveness. Playingdigitalgameswasoneoftheirfavoriteactivities,butitwaspartofanetworkof activitiesthatwereavailabletoparticipatein.Membersofthecommunitywhodidn'twantto playgameshadotherwaystheycouldinteractwiththosewhodidplay.Bynotidentifyingtheir communitystrictlywithgaming,theycreatedalowstakesenvironmentforthosewhoarehad lessexperienceplayingdigitalgames. Thesharedgoalofplayfullysocializingshapedalloftheinteractionsinthelounge.The5N communitycreatedaspacewheretheycouldrelaxandbeproductive.Whatmatteredtothe studentswasaplayfulandsocialprocess.Intheend,therewereresultstomostactivities,but theywerenotasvaluedascreatingsocialtiesandmakingeachotherlaugh.Thisisnottosay theydidn'tshareknowledge.Infact,thestudentswereconstantlysharinginformationand

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knowledgethroughconversation,jokes,andaninformalmentoringsystem. The5Ncommunityisnotshownheresolelyasamodelforbringingmorewomenintogaming, butmoregenerallyasagroupthatismoresocial,inclusive,andparticipatorythancurrent notionsofgamingculture.Inthefollowingchapters,Ifocusmoreontherolethatdigitalgames playinthelounge,aswellasontheplayers'individualexperiences.

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CHAPTERTWO:GamesandGamePlay
Iinitiallystartedmyresearchinthe5Nloungebecauseitwasasitewherewomenplayed digitalgamestogether.Whilethestructureofthegamesthestudentsin5Nplayedwassimilar toothersthatgroupsplaytogether,itwaswhattheyvaluedduringgameplaythatmadethis groupdifferent.JasonexplainedhisapproachtoplayingBrawl,themostpopulardigitalgamein thelounge: InBrawlIdon'tplaythatintenselytobeginwith...Ithinkthebestanalogywould be...whentwokidsswordfight,they'renottryingtosmackeachotherthey'retryingto createasengagingorexcitinginteractionpossible.Youdon'tseethemswingingforeach otheryouseethemswingingforeachother'sswords,youtrytocreateasenseofbeing cool.Nosenseofhostility.Withgamingalotofpeopleplaytowin.They'llhaveallthe tacticsdownandunbeatablecombos.WhenIplay,Iplaytohavefun.Winningisstillthe objective,butIdon'tseetheneedtotakeittooseriously.Fightingtofight,notfighting towininBrawlatleast.

Jason'sexplanationwasemblematicoftherestofthecommunity'sapproachtogaming.During theprocessofplayingthegamewaswhenmostofthecommunitymembersfoundpleasure. Winnersandlosersofthegamestheyplayedweredetermined,butbecauseachievementin gamingwasnotrequiredforbeingavaluedmemberofthecommunity,theseresultshadless significancethaninhigherstakescontexts. 59

Inthischapter,Inarrowinonthegamesandgameplayofthegroupandexplorethefollowing questions: Whatgamesareplayedintheloungeandhowaretheyplayed? Whatroledogamesplayinthe5Nlounge?

Toanswerthesequestions,Iwillfirstexplainamodelforunderstandingmotivationsforplaying gamescreatedbyJuul(2010)thatwillhelpframemydiscussionofgamingin5N.Then,Iwill discussthecommunity'smostpopulargamesandhowtheirstructuralelementsfacilitatedthe socialgoalsofthegroup.Finally,Iwillexplorehowthegroup'smotivationsshapedhowthe gameswereplayedandwhatthegamesofferedthecommunitythatmadethemmorepopular thanotherpossibleactivities.

Gamesandsocialgoals Towardstheendoftheweek,gamingactivityincreasedinthelounge.Studentsusuallyhad moretimeforplayingThursdaysthroughSundays,asclasseshadendedfortheweekand homeworkandstudyingcouldbeputonhold.Thethreemostpopulartypesofgamesplayedin theloungewereBrawl;atricktakingcardgame,Tractor;andaWesternthemedcardgame, Bang!.Iwillnotattempttoanalyzethegamesintheirentiretyinthisthesis,butIwillfocuson thegameelementsthatfacilitatedplayfulsocializingandhowthegameswereplayedinthe lounge. Thestructureofgamesisoftenseenaslessflexiblethanthesocialrulesandnormsthat surroundgameplay.Thisisbecausedigitalgamestendtobeprogrammedtoallowonlycertain actions,andcardgamesusuallyhavecodifiedrulesthatarepasseddown,agreedupon,and 60

meanttobefollowed.Yet,thethreemostpopulargamesinthe5Ncommunitywereflexible enoughthatstudentscouldnegotiatethegameplaytosupportthesociabilityofthelounge andmaintainaplayfulmood.Taylor(2006)hasfoundsimilarflexibilityandnegotiationinher workonplayersinMMOG's.Despitethecommonnotionthatcomputergameslockdown modesofplayviathesystem,rulesandnormscanbe,especiallyinthecaseofMMOG's, incrediblycontextual,sociallynegotiated,heterogeneous,ambiguous,andquiteoften contradictorybetweenplayers(p.157).Taylor'sunderstandingoftherelationshipofthe structureandthesocialcontextofgamesisoneofconstantinteraction,withneitherableto functionseparatelyfromtheotherandbothinfluencingoneanotherthroughoutgameplay. Beforetalkingabouttheactualstructureandcontentof5N'sgames,itisimportanttohavea frameworkforunderstandinghowtheyarerelatedtothecommunity'ssocialgoalsandgame play.Juul(2010)hasaskedthequestion:Ifasharedunderstandingofgoalsispartofhowwe playmultiplayergames,howdoesthisinfluencethewayweplay?(p.126)Inordertoanswer thisquestion,Juuloffersthreeconsiderationsforevaluatingagameaction: Frame1:ThegameasgoalorientationDesiretowin Frame2:ThegameasexperienceDesireforaninterestinggame Frame3:Thegameasasocial,normalcontextDesireformanagementofasocial situation(p.127)

Juuldrawsthesethreeconsiderationsasboxesofdifferentsizes.Frame1isthesmallest

becauseitisthemostcloselytiedtotheformalrulesofthegame.Frames2and3arelarger becausetheyinvolvemoreofthesocialrulesandcontextthatsurroundgames.Each considerationtakesondifferentaweightindifferentcontextsanddependsonthemotivations ofeachplayer.Theyareahelpfulwayforunderstandinghowdifferentmotivationsforplaying 61

agamecanexistatthesametimeandtovaryingdegrees. Withthisframework,Juuloffersconsiderationstoweighwhentryingtounderstandanactiona playertakesinagame.Hesuggestsanambiguityexistsinmultiplayergamesspecifically because:theysimultaneouslycarryanotionofanoblecontestandhaveawiderangeof undeterminedsocialconsequences,ofmeanings(p.122).Oftenthesocialrulesinagaming contextareunderstood.Ifyouplayadigitalgamealoneandbreakarule,thecomputerwill usuallyletyouknowbecauseitisprogrammedtogiveyoufeedback,butifyoubreakasocial ruleduringagame,apersonmayormaynotletyouknow.Theplayersmaynothavemadethe socialrulesexplicitatthebeginningofthegame.Afterexplainingtherelevantstructural elementsofeachofthethreegames,IwillcallonJuul'sframeworktohelpexplainhowthese elementsinteractedwiththesocialcontexttoshapetheplayers'motivations. SuperSmashBros.Brawl Iknewfrommyinterviewsthatstudentsinthe5Nloungeindividuallyplayedarangeofvideo andonlinegames,butIwassurprisedthatinallmyvisitsIonlyobservedthemplayingone digitalgameasagroupSuperSmashBros.Brawl.Ididobserveacoupleofpeopleplaying othergamesontheirownlaptops,suchasJasonplayingDiablo211andafemalestudentIdidn't interviewplayingJadeDynasty12.Alsosomeofthe5NstudentswouldgotoLisa'sroom periodicallytoplayRockBand13together.However,inthelounge,Brawlwastheobviousgroup

11 12

Diablo2isHellthemedhackandslashroleplayinggamethatcanbeplayedinsingleormultiplayermode. JadeDynastyisafreeonlineMMORPG. 13 RockBandisagamethatallowsplayerstoplayalongwithpopularsongsusinginstrumentlikeinputdevices.It

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favorite. TheSuperSmashBros.seriesarevideogames,buttheyarealsosomethingofapopcultural phenomenon.Thereisasignificantfanpopulationthatplaysthegameandmaintainswebsites withvastamountsofinformationaboutgameplay,thecharactersinthegame,andSmash Bros.tournaments.WhenBrawlwasreleased,nearlyonethirdofallWiiownersboughtitin thefirstmonth(Remo,2008).Severalofthestudents,includingLisa,Jessica,Mei,andPat playedSmashBros.gamesinmiddleandhighschool,makingthemalreadyexperienced(to varyingdegrees)withhowtoplaywhentheyarrivedatMIT.

Figure3TVscreeninthe5NloungeduringaBrawlbout.

canbeplayedcompetitivelyorcollaboratively.

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ThebasicgameplayofalltheSmashBros.gamesiscenteredaroundfightingboutsbetweenup tofourplayersthatareplayedonstagesinspiredbythebackgroundsofotherNintendogames. Thegamescanbesingleormultiplayerandhavedifferentmodesofplaytochoosefrom.Ina bout,playerschooseacharactertoplayandmanipulatethecontrollerwithsimpledirection andbuttoncombinationslikeUp+Bbuttontomaketheirchosencharacterdodifferent movesthatattackotherplayers.Whenacharacterishit,theirdamagemeter,whichis measuredasapercentage,increasesfrom0%andtheyarethrownintotheair.Asthedamage increases,aplayeristhrownfartherfromthebattleareaandhastorecover,sometimessaving themselvesfromfallingoffthestage.Aplayerlosesalifeiftheyfalloffthestageoriftheir damagereachesacertainthreshold,whichthrowsthemsofartheycannotrecover.Playersare giventhreelives,butwhentheylosethethird,theyareoutofthegame.Thelastplayerlefton thestagewinsthebout.Thestatisticsfromthebout,includinghowmanyknockouts(KO's)you causedtootherplayers,areshownonascreenaftertheboutends. Characters

Thecharacterstheplayerscanchosetocontrolintheseboutsalmostallcomefromother Nintendovideogames,includingPokemon,Zelda,andSuperMarioBros.Thesearecharacters mostpeoplewhoplayedonaNintendoplatformgrowingupinthe1980sor1990swouldbe familiarwith,andevenhavenostalgiafor,justastheymightwithafavoritecharacterfroma bookorTVseries.Players'familiaritywiththecharactersvariesdependingontheamountof experiencetheyhaveplayingeachcharacter'soriginalNintendogame.

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Figure4TVscreenin5NloungeshowingBrawlcharacterselectionscreen.

EachcharacterinBrawlwaspartofanotherstorylineintheiroriginalvideogame.Forexample Mario,Luigi,PrincessPeach,Bowser,andYoshiappearedintheclassicSuperMarioBros.series ofgamesandeachhadaspecificrolesuchashero,sidekick,damselindistress,andvillain. Pikachu,PokemonTrainer,andJigglypuffarewellknownforbeingcharactersfromPokemon games,TVshows,movies,andtradingcards.SamusisthemaincharacterinthegameMetroid andoneofthefewfemalecharacterstobetheprotagonistofagame.Playerswhoarefamiliar withthestoriesofthesecharactersinothergamessometimesrecallandincorporatethemas theyplaySmashBros.games.Jakobsson&Akira(2007)havereferredtothepracticeof incorporatingcharactersfromdifferentgamesintoanothergameasintermediagameplay.He questionstheassumptionthatgamesareclosedsystemswhereweleaveagamingsession withnothingmorethanthesatisfactionofwinningorfrustrationoflosing(p.388).Instead, playerscarrythestoriesandtheirownmemoriesofplayingthecharactersinthepastwhile theyplayinanewscenariooftheSmashBros.series.Iwillshowhowstorylinesforcharacters

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comeupduringgameplayconversationbelow. Inadditiontothecarriedoverstorylinesfromthecharacters'originalgames,theplayersin5N alsocreatednicknamesandfictionalidentitiesforsomeofthecharacters.Thesenicknames becamethecatalystsforjokesduringplay.MeiandJessicaexplained: Jessica:We'venamedLuigiPedo Mei:He'sgotthatweirddanceandthatmustache. Jessica:...PinkCaptainFalcon,isCaptainFabulousAndres'sfavorite

ThenicknamePedoisshortforpedophile.Thestudentsin5Ncameupwiththisnickname becauseofastereotypeofpedophilesasbeingmenwhohavemustachesandsuggestivebody language.Inthegame,thecharacterLuigihasamustacheandanattackthatlookslikeaballet movethatthestudentsfoundweird.Theyhavecreatedanicknameforapinkversionofthe characterCaptainFalconthatusesthewordfabulous,whichisstereotypicallyassociatedwith homosexualmen.Thesenicknamesdonotmaketheplayersmorelikelytolose,butfrommy observationstheydidmakethecharacterslesslikelytobechosenbyplayers,unlessthey wantedtobethefocusofjokesduringplay,whichsomeplayersdiddofromtimetotime.14 Anothertermusedduringgameplayisspam.Thistermisalsousedinothervideogaming contextstodescribewhenaplayerattacksotherplayersingamerepeatedlywithoutgiving theiropponenttimetocounterattack.InthecaseofBrawl,thiscanhappenwhenacharacter hasamovethatcanattackothercharactersfromfaraway.MeiandJessicaexplainedtheyuse
14

ThiswasoneofthefewinstancesintheloungewhereIfoundthateventhoughthecommunitywasinclusiveto arelativelywiderangeofparticipants,therewerestillsignsofheteronormativebehaviorthatframed associationofastudent'scharacterwithhomosexualityasundesirable.Formoreondigitalgamesandsexuality seeConsalvo(2003).

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anamepunforLisa'sfavoritecharactertoplay,Samus: Mei:WecallSamusSpamus Jessica:CauseSamusisveryeasytospam,causeshehasliketwomissileattacks. Interviewer:Waitwhat'sspamming? Jessica:Youjustkeepdoingthesamemoveoverandoveragain. Mei:Justkeeponattackingwiththesamemoveandsomepeoplegetstuckinitand theygetmad. IwassurprisedtofindoutthatotherplayersmadejokesaboutLisaandherfavoritecharacter forspammingbecausesheseemedlikearespectedandskilledplayerwhensheplayed.When Ifirststartedplayingthegamewithher,shewonoftenandIdidn'trealizetherestofthegroup didnotappreciateoneofhertechniques.Iwilldiscussthe5Nrelationshiptospammingin thelatersectionongamecontrols. Finally,thenumberofcharactersavailableallowedmostplayerstovarytheirexperiencefrom bouttobout.Someplayerschosethesamecharactersalmosteverytimebecausetheyhad learnedtheirspecificattacksandfeltmostcomfortableplayingthem.Someplayerslearned characters'movesbyplayingdifferentmodesofthegame(mostlikelyattimeswhenthere weren'tmanypeopleinthelounge): Jason:AlsowithJessica,thatwaskindofforced,likeHey,Jessicawillyouhelpmego throughSubspaceEmissary?...theadventuremodeinSmash.Itcanbetwoplayer.The thingisyoudon'tgettochooseyourcharacter,ineachscenarioyouhaveacoupleto choosefrom.Thatkindofforcedhertolearnhowtoplay. Otherplayerschosedifferentcharacters,orevenusedtherandomchoicewhenplayingto mixuptheirexperienceandpracticethemovesofdifferentcharacters.Ifplayerswantto challengethemselvesmoreinBrawl,theycanswitchtoanothercharactertheyarelessfamiliar with,whichhelpedevenoutboutswhereplayers'skilllevelsvaried.Thiswasalwaysthechoice

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oftheplayerandwasmorelikelytobedonebythemoreexperiencedplayers.

Modes Brawlallowsplayerstochoosebetweenseveralmodes,including;asoloadventuremodethat integratesboutsintoanarrative;aclassicsolomodethatletsyouplaythroughallthestagesof thegamebattlingtheothercharacters;andamultiplayerbrawlmodethatletsplayersbattle eachotherinselfcontainedboutsthatvaryinlengthbutusuallylastseveralminutes.The brawlmodewasthemostpopularmodeIsawplayedinthe5Nlounge.Thismodeallows playerstoplayaneverendingstringofbouts.In5N,theboutswerealwaysselfcontained.I neversawthemplayinatournamentstylewherethewinnermovesonandlosershavetowait theirturntoplayagain.Thismeantthatplayerswereabletoeasilyjoininorleavethegame betweenboutsbecausetheresultsdidn'tmatterandgameplayhappenedinshortbursts. Winningorlosingdidn'tfactorintowhetherornotyoucouldplay,buttherewaspersistent knowledgethatcarriedoverfromgamingsessiontogamingsessionaboutwhowasskilledat playingwhichcharacterandhowsomepeopleplayedcertaincharacters. AsJakobsson&Akira(2007)foundintheirresearchwithSmashBros.MeleeplayersinSweden, itisnotjusttheprogrammedrulesofthegamedesignthatdeterminehowagameisplayed. Instead,therulesareinfluencedby,andaffect,thesocialandculturalaspectsofthegaming context(p.386).TheyobservedclubsthatmetandplayedMeleeindifferentways,includinga randomtournamentstylewhereavarietyofsocialruleswereaddedinadditiontothe programmedboutrules.Aftereachbout,thewinnerswouldhavetheirnamesplacedinahat toplaymorebouts,andlosersweregivenachancetotrytogetasixfromrollingdice.Ifthey 68

rolledasix,theirnameswerealsoplacedinthehattocontinueplaying.Thiselementincreased therandomnessofwhocontinuedplaying.InsertingmorerandomnessintheSwedishconsole clubboutswerenotpartofthegamedesign,butwereaddedbymembersasawayofevening outtherangeofskilllevelsintheclub.Theroleofrandomnessisdiscussedmoreinthecontrols section. In5N,therewerenotasmanysocialrulesaddedtoBrawlasJakobssonandAkirafoundintheir study,buttheflexibilityofbeingabletojoinorleavewhenevertheplayerwantedtofitwith thesocialgoalsofthegroup.The5Ngrouphadsociallyconstructednormsaroundhowbouts areplayed.Ifacontrollerwasfree,anyonecouldjoinin.Whetheryoulostorwon,itdidn't matter,youcouldkeepplaying.Ifsomeonewaswatchingthegamewhileyouplayedandyou wantedtogodosomethingelseyouofferedthemthecontroller.Theplayersoftenchanged throughoutthenight,andthegamingneverbuilttoanultimateresolutionofwhowonthe mostbouts. Controls ThecontrolsofBrawlarerelativelysimplecomparedtomoretraditionalfightinggames,like TekkenandStreetFighter.Thesetwogames,andseveralotherslikethem,requireplayersto memorizeandexecutelongcombinationsofbuttons,calledcombos,thatallowtheir characterstoexecuteaseriesofcomplicatedattacks.InBrawl,mostattacksrequirepressing oneactionbuttonatthesametimeaspressingadirection.Theselesscomplicatedcontrolsare importanttogamingparticipationbecausetheylowerthebarriertoentry. 69

IcanusemyownexperienceasanexamplesinceIhadneverplayedBrawlbeforevisitingthe 5Nlounge.IwasgiventheinstructionstoPressBanddownwhenIwasfirstofferedthe controller.WhatIwasdoingthefirstcouplesessionswouldbeconsideredbuttonmashing apejorativetermforwhenanewplayersimplyhitsallthebuttonswithoutknowingwhatthey do.AsIplayedmore,tryingBanddownandsimilarcontrolvariationswithotherbuttonsand directions,IwasabletofigureoutdifferentmovesforthecharactersIplayed.Itwasn'tlong beforeIwasabletoperiodicallyKOothercharacterscontrolledbythoseinthegroupwhohad moreexperience.Theeasytolearncontrolsmademyexperienceplayingthegameenjoyable soonerthanifIhadtolearnlonganddifficulttoexecutecombos.Thesimplercontrolsalso allowedmetocontinuesocializingduringthegamebecauseIdidn'thavetoconcentrateon executingcomplicatedbuttoncombinations. ThereisdebatearoundwhetherornottheSmashBros.gamesshouldbeconsideredpartofthe fightinggamegenremadepopularbyarcadeandvideogameslikeStreetFighterandTekken. ThereareseveralaspectsoftheSmashBros.gamesthataredifferentfromthesegames, includingmorecomicviolence,morethantwocharactersbattlingatonce,andtheoptionto turnonitemswhichgivecharactersmorepowerfulattacks.AdiscussiononaGameSpot.com forumentitledSuperSmashBros.gamesarenotfighting...(AnemicAnd_Sweet,2008) presentsaquotefromaNintendoPowereditorsayingBrawlisnotafightinggame.The forumposterusesthisquoteasevidencetoprovetoBrawlplayersthatthegameisn'tmeant tobeconsideredapartofthesamegenreofdigitalgames.Respondentstothepostcomment backandforthaboutwhetheritshouldorshouldn'tbeconsideredafightinggame,butit

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becomesobviousthatthegenrecategorizations(likethetermsgameandgamerasI'll showinthenextchapter)arerelativetoplayers'experienceandcontext. JasonbelievedthatthesimplercontrolsmadeBrawlbetterthanmostfightinggames: [Brawl]ismoresophisticatedthananyotherfightinggame.Ilikesimplicityinagame.I likesimplicitybutyetstillchallenging,soitsnotlikeDoratheExplorerwhohasto arrangemonkeysbycolor.It'snotthatsimplicitySocompareSmashtoTekken,orSoul Caliber,orStreetFighterwhereyouhavetomemorizecombosandinputthemcorrectly. Smashisveryformulaic.It'seasytopickup.Butyetthegoodplayerscanstillblow withthesameknowledgeofthegameblowasmallerfishoutofthewater. ForJason,sophisticationinagamemeantabalancebetweensimplicityandchallenge,whichhe foundinBrawl.Thesimplercontrolsinvolvedstrategyandskilltobeusedeffectivelytobeat opponents.JasonimpliesthatBrawl'slackofemphasisoncombos,whichrequirecomplicated handeyecoordinationandmemorization,allowplayerstofocusmoreonhowtobestusethe attacks.Thereisnoneedtotapinalongcombowithinstricttimelimitations,butyoudohave toknowwhentouseanattackonwhichplayer,whichrequiresthinkingahead,knowingwhat theotherplayersaredoing,andothercharacter'sstrengthsandweaknesses. ThedebatearoundwhetherornotSmashBros.gamesarefightinggamesornotisalsorelated toconceptionsofskillindigitalgames.Withoutgoingintogreatdetailabouttheroleofskill andchanceingames,whichhasbeenstudiedelsewhere15,itisacommonperceptionthatthe moreagameisbasedonchanceorrandomness,thelessskillisrequiredforwinning.Thisis becauseskillisrelatedtothedecisionsplayersmakeinagame,andchanceisbeyondplayers'

15

SeeBrathwaitheandSchreiber(2008)andSalenandZimmerman(2004)

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influence.Forpeoplewhoplaygamescompetitivelyandhighlyvaluewinning,itisimportantto playgamesthatrequireskillbecausetheresultofplayers'decisionscanbemappedtohow goodorbadtheyareatthegame. Brawlisdifferentfromotherfightinggamesbecauseplayerscanallowitemstoappearduring theboutsthatstrengthencharacters'attacks.Theseitemsaddelementsofrandomnessinto thegame.Lisaexplainedherviewofitemstomeinanemail: Iwouldsaythemostrandomizing/equalizingpartofBrawlwouldbetheitems.They rangefromPokeballsthatsummonPokemontokillotherplayers,tofoodforhealth regeneration,tosmartbombs,etc.ThebiggestiteminBrawlistheSmashBall,which basicallygivestheplayerwhoreceivesitaspecialmove.There'ssomeskillinvolvedin efficientlyusingyourspecialmove...AlmosteveryoneI'veeverplayedBrawlwithplayed withitemsforaboutaweek,justtoseealltheSmashBallpowers,thenturnedthemoff toremoveasmuchrandomnessfromthegameaspossible.

Lisareferredtotheitemsasequalizingbecausetheycouldbeespeciallyhelpfultoplayers

whohadlessexperiencewiththegameorhadfallenbehindinthebout.Allowingitemscould beawaytoequalizethegameplaybetweenplayersofdifferentskilllevelsandmake participationmoreinclusive.Thisassumesthoughthatthereisn'tskillinvolvedingrabbingand usingtheitemsinabout.Inthecaseof5N,thestudentsfoundtheitemsdidn'tmakethegame playmoreequalized,asLisadescribed: Weturnedoffitemsinourmatchesmostlybecauseitmadethegamealittletoochaotic (especiallywhentryingtoteachsomeonenewhowtoplay)andtherewouldbe instanceswhereoneplayerwouldconstantlymanagetogetthesmashball/itemsand killeveryoneoverandoveragain.Wefoundthegamesweremoreenjoyablewhenwe wereabletofocusontheonevs.onemechanicswithouthavingtoworryaboutsome randompersonthrowingapokeballatthebackofourheads. Inthiscase,eventhoughthegaminginthe5Nloungetendedtobeinclusiveofdifferentskill levels,theyfoundthatusingitemsinboutsdidnotfitwiththeirmotivationsforplayingand 72

wereeventuallyturnedoff.Theitemswerebeingusedbyplayerswhocouldgrabthemfirst andusethemtodominatethebouts,keepingotherplayersfrombeingabletowin.Winning, whileitmightnothavebeentheprimarygoaloftheindividualplayersin5N,wasn'tirrelevant. Ifthesamepersonwoneverytimeitbecamealessfunprocessforallinvolvedandnolongerfit withthegroup'ssocialgoalofplayfullysocializing.Whatwasmoreimportantaboutthe inclusionofitemsinthegamestructureofBrawlwasthattherewastheoptiontoturnthe itemsoff.Thismeantthatplayerscouldmodifythegametofitwiththeimmediatemotivations andcontextsofthegameandchoosewhethertoturntheitemsonoroffaccordingtohowit wouldfacilitatethesocialgoalsofthe5Ncommunity. AlsorelatedtoskillingamesisthetechniqueImentionedabovecalledspamming.Itis possibletowinboutsbyspamming,butitwasnotseenasatechniquethatrequiredskill. Howmuchplayersvaluedskillvaried.Someoftheplayersintheloungesaidthattheyspam, butthatitwasn'tabigdealin5Nbecausewinningandlosingwasn'ttakentooseriously.Rachel hadasimilarexperiencetomyownSmashplaying: Ididn'tstartplayingSmashuntilIgothereaswell,andbackthenitwaslikebutton mashing.CausetheywerelikehereholddownBandIwaslikeitsnotworking...SoI'd spamacertainattack.They'dmakejokesaboutit,butintheenditwaslike,Goodjob, Thanksforplaying. Someplayersexpressedadislikeforspammingintheirinterviews,butIneverhearditbrought upinawayduringgameplaythatwouldmakesomeonefeellikeitwasn'tallowed.Therewere jokesthatpointedtoitasatacticthatrequiredlessskill,butnooneeverfeltliketheywere breakingtherulesiftheywonbyspamming.Ifitmeantthatpeoplecouldmakeajokeabouta characterorbout,thenitaddedtothegameandthatwaswhatmattered.Aswesawbefore, 73

Lisa'sfavoritecharacter,Samus,wasnicknamedSpamusbecauseofhoweasyitistospam otherplayerswithher.Thisdidn'tstopLisafromplayingthecharacter,butitmostlikely remindedherthatspammingshouldn'tbetheonlytechniquesheusedduringgameplay.

Wittybanterandtrashtalk Forthemostpart,thesocializingduringgameplayinthe5Nloungebouncedbackandforth betweenconversationaboutthegamebeingplayedandmoregeneralconversationwith peoplewhowerenotplaying.Intermsofconversationaboutthegame,themostprevalent typesofplayersocialinteractionrelatedtothegameswerewittybanterandplayfultrash talking.Thesetypesofconversationaroundthegameconsistedofplayersyellingattheir characterandotherplayers'charactersonthescreen,exclaimingYes!orNo!atsurprising actionsinthegame,andcommunicatingtheiringamegoalstootherplayers. Trashtalkhastraditionallybeenatermfortheactoftradingofinsults,oftenoffensiveor crude,betweenplayersduringsportingevents.Itiscommonlyassociatedwithprofessional sports,especiallybasketballandfootball.EveslageandDelaney(1998)characterizedtrashtalk andotherformsofinsulttalkashavingcertaintraitsincluding:theycontinuouslystressand establishhierarchies;theyinvolvepersonalinsultsorputdowns,oftenascallstodefend masculinityandhonor;andtheyoftendegradeobjectsdefinedas'feminine'(p.241).While thischaracterizationisthecaseinhigherstakesgamingandsportingenvironments,trash talkinginthe5Nloungeservedadifferentpurpose.

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Thetrashtalkinthe5Nloungewasbynomeansascrudeormeanspiritedasitcanbeinmore seriouscontexts,butitdidplayonsimilarconventions.WhenIfirstvisitedthelounge,Ithought theyellingbetweenplayerswassimilartotraditionaltrashtalk.AsIobservedandtalkedto morestudents,itbecameclearthattheexchangesweremuchmoreperformativeandlight heartedthancanbeobservedatsportingeventsorinonlinegaming.Insteadofseriously insultingeachother,theplayersin5Nperformedrolesofmoreaggressiveplayers.Theyused phrasesandtookonattitudesthatareusedinauthentictrashtalkinginstances,butperformed theminoverthetopways,directingthematthecharactersonthescreeninsteadoftheother players.Thecontentofwhattheysaidwasnotmeanttooffendanyone,butinsteadmeantto entertaintheotherplayersandtheotherpeopleinthelounge. Thistypeofbanterstartedbeforetheloungewasahubforgaming.Janelleremembered hearingAndres,thesenioronthefloorwhohassincegraduated,oftenyell,Screwyou Pikachu!fromhisroomtheyearbeforepeoplestartedplayingBrawlinthelounge.Someof theplayersagreedthathewasthepersonwhostartedthebanteringduringthegame. Pat:AlotofitstartedwithAndres.Theemotionaloutburstsarenotdirectedatthe players,butusuallythecharactersthemselves.LikeAndreswhenheplayed,andhis characterswoulddosomethinghedidn'tlike,he'dbelike,Pikachu! Interviewer:Soit'sindirect,you'retrashtalkingtothethingonthescreen? Pat:There'salotoflike,Yourface!...Someonewilljustsaysomething. Interviewer:That'sunderstood? Pat:Yeah,it'sunderstood,likethesentimentof,Yourfaceisunderstood. Interviewer:Whataretheotheroutbursts?... Pat:...AgoodexamplefortrashtalkiswhenwewereplayingMarioKartlastyear,we wereplayingaparticularcoursewherethere'strafficandAndreswasdrivingandabout totakefirstplace,andsomethinghithim...andhe'sjustlike,Whatthehell!You'reas bigastheworld!Justrandomoutburststhatwekeptinourcollectivememories... Thetrashtalkin5Nwasindirectandplayful,whichmadeitlessthreateningtobothnewand 75

experiencedplayers.Playersrarelylookedatoneanotherwhileplayingabout,directingall theircommentsatthescreen.Exclamationscouldbesparkedbyrealfrustrationsduringgame play,butinawaythattargetedthecharactersonthescreen,nottheotherplayers.The5N playersprojectedtheirfrustrationsontothecharactersonthescreenandmadethegameplay intoaperformanceforanyoneintheloungetoobserveorinteractwith. Someplayerstrashtalkedmorethanothers,anditwasnotclearwhythiswas.Itdidnotseem toberelatedtogender.AllofthewomenwhoplayedfrequentlyMei,Jessica,andLisawere activetrashtalkers,aswasPatandmostoftheothermalestudentswhoplayed.Playingability wasalsonotadeterminantastowhethersomeoneparticipatedinthebanter,thoughif someonewasplayingpoorlytheyweremorelikelytosaysomethingdisparagingabouttheir owncharacterandcallattentiontotheirstrugglesthantotalktrashanothercharacter. Imentionedearlierthatsometimescharacters'storylinesfromotherNintendogamescarried overintoabout.AnexampleofthisoccurredwhenwewereplayingBrawlonenight.Jasonwas playingLinkandLisawasplayingZelda,bothcharactersfromtheLegendofZeldaseries. ThroughouttheZeldaseries,LinkisusuallyonaquesttosavePrincessZelda,butshehasalso beenabletofightforherselfinsomegames.WhilemanyfansoftheZeldaserieshavetheir ownreadingsofaromanticrelationshipbetweenLinkandZelda,theevidencefromthegames mostlyleavestheirstatusambiguous. ThisambiguitywasreferencedduringthetrashtalkofaBrawlboutinvolvingJason,Lisa,and

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myself.JasonasLinkwastargetingLisaasZelda,whichpromptedLisatosayjokinglytoJason, Don'tbeatupyourgirlfriend!Thiswassaidinhopesthathemightstopattackingher characterforawhileandbattlesomeoneelse.Instead,Jasonresponded,Girlfriend?!Zeldais thebiggestteasethissideofPeach!(PeachistheprincessMarioistaskedwithsavinginmost oftheSuperMariogames.)Thisexchange,whichisalsosignificantintermsofgenderrole expectations,transferstheplayers'readingsofcharactersrelationshipsintothenewcontextof aboutinBrawl.Lisareferencesapossibleemotionalrelationshipbetweenthecharactersin anothergameasaplayfulverbaldefensetogetJasontoleavehercharacteralone,playingon thehelplessfemalestereotype.Jasonretortswithahumorousandcynicaltakeonthe characters'relationship,andthenaddsinsulttoinjurybycallingLisa'scharacteratease.Lisa didnottakeoffensetothecomment,butinsteadlaughed.Shetookitasanattackonthe character,notonherownactionsorherpositionasawoman. ThereweresomepeopleintheloungethatdidnotplayBrawl.Thismeantthatnoteveryone foundplayingthegameenticingorenjoyable,buttheydidenjoythebanterthattheycould participateinaroundBrawlinthelounge.Janelle,whomIoftensawtalkingorreadingwhile otherpeoplewereplayingBrawlhadnodesiretoplay,butlikedthatthegameplayinthe5N loungehadmadethespacemoresocial: Interviewer:Doesn'titbotheryouthattherearegamesgoingon? Janelle:Ilikethenoise,itbringsmorepeopleouttothelounge. Interviewer:Doyoulikewatchingthegames? Janelle:Occasionally,butusuallyIhaveabooktoread,whichismuchmore interesting.Myeffectsarebetterthantheireffects.(Pointstoherhead.) FromJanelle'scommentsweseeplayingdigitalgamesmightnotbeeveryone'sfavoriteactivity,

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butthattheperformativewaytheyareplayedin5Ninvitedotherpeopletoengagewiththem. Participantshavecreatedaformofdigitalgameplaythatfitswithinabroadersocialcontext. Theirperformative,lowstakesplayintheloungedidnotmakenonplayersfeelexcludedand often,drewothersintothesocializingaroundthegamewithouthavingtoplay.

Roleofcompetition Thetrashtalkandwittybanterthattookplaceinthe5Nloungewereplayfulwaysforthe studentstocompetewitheachother.Mostofthestudentsenjoyedcomingupwithwitty commentsorlaughingatlightheartedinsultsdirectedatcharacters.However,manystudents alsofoundpleasureinwinning.Studentsin5Noftenexpressedtheirenjoymentofwinningor disappointmentinlosing,butthetypeofcompetitionthatwaspresentintheloungewas differentthanothermorehighstakescontexts. JensonanddeCastell(2008)havesuggestedthattheveryideaof'competition,'forexample, isbothgenderedandcontestable(p.17).Theygoontoshowintheirownresearchofgirls whoplaydigitalgames,thatasplayers,girlsareverymuchcompetingandenjoyingit,butthat itisadifferentkindofcompetitionthatistypicallyassociatedwithgameplay.Theyusethe termbenevolentcompetitiontoexplainhowthegirlscompetewithoneanotherwhilealso supporting,encouraging,andevenhelpingtheirplaymatestosucceedinthegame(p.17).In anotherarticle,Jenson,deCastell,andFisher(2007)describedthiskindofcompetitionthey observedinagroupofgirlsplayingthevideogameSuperMonkeyBallas: ...nevertoodirect,alwayssomewhatsupportiveandrarely(inonlyonecaseinallthe hoursofvideo)meanttounderminetheplayerwhowasahead...Whentheydid 78

competedirectlywithoneanother,theywouldmostoftennotcommentonwhetheror nottheircompetitorwasa'good'or'poor'gamer,butwouldinsteadbemoredirectly relatedtowhatwashappeninginthegameatanygiventime.(p.13) BenevolentcompetitionisverymuchwhatIobservedin5N,notstrictlyfromthefemale players,butalsofromthemaleplayers.The5Ncommunitywasabletonegotiateatypeof competitionthatmotivatedplayerstoplaytothebestoftheirabilities,butnottofocussolely onwhethertheywonorlost.Thisisopposedtoamoreindividualistictypeofhigherstakes competitionthatmakeswhowinsandlosesthesolefocusofattention. Patdescribedthekindofcompetitionthatheperceivedtheloungetohave: Idon'tknowifwe'rethatcompetitive.Noonereallyhasthereputationtobetarnished orgotten.It'snotlikethere'sonepersonwho'sthebest,andifyoubeatthatperson you'rethebest.Everyone'sgoodandeveryonehaswinsandlosses...IfI'monmygame andI'mplayingthecharacterIknow,I'mprettygood.I'measilydefeatedthough.We're notcompetitivelikeHaha,Idefeatedyouthat'sgreat!It'smorelike,that'scool,let's playagain. Withthiskindofcompetitioninthe5Nlounge,failurewasnotsomethingtobeashamedof,it wasaninevitablepartofplayingthegame.Itwasnotintertwinedwiththeplayersidentitiesin thegroup.Jenson,deCastell,andFisher(2007)foundthistobeamajordifferencebetweenthe allgirlandallboygroupstheyobservedplayingvideogamesintheirstudy: Incontrasttothegirls,theboysactivelyunderminedoneanother,referredtoeach otherasgoodorpoorgamersandestablishedandmaintainedahierarchyofmoreand lessproficientplayersonanygivengame.Fortheboys,muchmoresothanthegirls, theirgameplaywasconnectedtotheiridentity:theyweregoodorbad,skilledornot skilled,and/orawinnerorloser.Becausetheirveryidentityasagameplayerwasat stakewhentheyplayed,theircommentstooneanother,theirbanter,wasoftenbiting andcruel.(p.14)

What'smoreimportantabouthowthegroupscompetedisnotwhetheritwasboysorgirls 79

participatinginanunderminingtypeofcompetition,butwhetherwinningorlosingdefined howaplayerwasseenbytheotherplayers.Jensonetal.werenottryingtomaptypesof competitiontoonegender,but,instead,theywantedtodrawattentiontotherelationship betweenidentityconstructionandthestakesofwinningagame.Identityisshapedbyhowa playerseeshimorherself,butalsobytheirsocialcontextbyhowotherplayerscometosee them.Ifagroupdecidestheyonlyvaluemembersthatwin,thatviewwillinfluencehowthe playersdefineoneanotherandthemselves.Ifplayersdecidethatwhatmattersishow someoneplaysthegame,thenitwillcreateadifferentkindofrelationshipbetweenthe players. Inthe5Ncommunity,therewasnotastrictlyadheredtohierarchyrelatedtotheirgameplay. Therewasageneralunderstandingofwhowongamesmorethanothers,butthestudentsalso valuedplayerswhotoldthebestjokesormadetheplayfunforothers.Theresultsofaboutin Brawlrarelybecamerelatedtootherboutsortoplayers'understandingofeachotherasvalued membersofthecommunity.Thegamingwouldcontinueonanotherweekendnightandplayers wouldkeeptryingtowiniftheywantedto,butitdidnotdefinetheirroleinthegroup.Players cametobeknownforhowsocialtheywere,howtheycontributedtotheconversationthat goesonaroundthegaming,andhowtheyaddedtotheplayfulmoodofthelounge. Thisemphasisonbeingsocialledtoamorerelaxedapproachtohowpeopleplayedthegame. Inthisenvironment,wherewinningwasnotnecessarilyneededtobeconsideredavalued memberofthegroup,thereweremoreflexiblerolestobeplayedbyparticipants.Some

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studentspickedcharacterstoplayinBrawlthattheythoughtwouldenablethemtowin.Other studentsplayedcharacterstheythoughthadfunnymovessothattheycouldbethecomicrelief duringthegame.Moreexperiencedplayerssometimespickedacharactertheywereless familiarwithinordertomaketheboutmorechallengingforthemselves.Thesemoreflexible rolesallowedforamorediversegroupofplayerstoparticipate.Eventhosewhoweren'tas experiencedinthegamecouldcontributetotheactivitybymakingtheprocessmoresocialor enjoyablefortheothersplayersorthepeoplewatchingthegame.

Cardgames ThestudentsinteractionsduringthevideogameBrawlwereverysimilartothoseduringnon digitalgaming.IobservedthestudentsplayingtwocardgamesintheloungeaChinesetrick takinggamecalledTractorandanEnglishversionofanItaliancardgamecalledBang!.These gameswereverydifferentinstructure,butbothhadaspectsthatallowedthestudentsto socializeinaplayfulandperformativeway.AswithBrawl,theywereplayedinalowstakes manner.ThecardgameswerecompetitiveinawaythatwassimilartoBrawl,wherebyplayers trashtalkedduringthegame.Thisbehavior,however,didnotcarryoverintothesociallifeof theloungeafterthegameended.Also,thegameactionsweremotivatedbythegameas experienceandgameassocialeventframes,whichmeantthegroupemphasizedthe processofplayingovertheendresults. Asopposedtodigitalgames,itshouldnotbeasurprisethatcardgamescanbeextremely social.Parlett(1990)hassaidaboutcardgames:

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[An]attractionofcardgamesisthattheyareplayablebyanyreasonablenumber.For centuriestheyhaveprovedauniquelysociableactivityagainstthealternativesoftwo playergamesrequiringexclusiveconcentration...Playingcards,perhapspartlyfortheir aestheticqualities,havealwaysappealedasmuchtowomenastomen,andtheir sociablenatureisenhancedbythefactthatwholegamesconsistofrelativelybriefpart gameswithopportunitiesfortalkandrelaxationinbetween.(p.25) Theabilityforcardgamestofacilitatesocialinteractioniscalledintoquestionlessoftenthan digitalgames,whichhaveastigmaofbeingisolating.Thereasonfordiscussingcardgamesin thischapteristhattheywerepopularformsofgamingintheloungeandtheyalsoattracted somefemaleplayerswhodidnotplaydigitalgames. In5N,thestudentswhoplayedcardgamesvariedsomewhatfromthosewhoplayedBrawl, andnoteveryonewhoplayedBang!playedTractor.Thegamewiththemostplayeroverlap withBrawlwasthecardgameBang!.TherulesofBang!aresimple,butthedeckisuniqueand madeupofmanydifferentcards.Bang!isbasedonthespaghettiWesternfilmgenremade popularbySergioLeoni.AsonemightguessfromthenameBang!,thebasicpremiseofthe gameistoshoototherplayers.Itisnotacooperativegame,butinsteadsetseachplayer againsttheothers.Thismakesitsplayerstructuresimilartothebrawlmode5Nfavoredin Brawl. InBang!,eachplayerisdealtarolecardSheriff,Renegade,OutlaworDeputy.Theymustalso chooseaspecificcharacterfromthreeothercardstheyaredealt,eachofwhichofferscertain abilitieslikebeingabletodrawextracardsorattackmorethanothers.Eachplayerhasa certainnumberoflifepointsthatcanbetakenawaywhenotherplayersplayaBang!cardon them.Playerstaketurnsdrawingcards,takingactionsusingcardsintheirhand,andthen 82

discardingexcesscards.ThegameendswhenthepersonplayingtheSheriffiskilled.Pointsare distributedaccordingtowhoisthenleftalive.IftheSheriffisleftaliveandalltheOutlawsand theRenegadearekilled,theSheriffandanyliveDeputiesreceivepoints. When5NplaysBang!,itisasocialevent.AfterseveralvisitsIhadheardaboutthegamebut neverseenitplayed.Finally,onenightPatsuggestedweplayit.First,Patexplainedtherulesin detailtome,goingthrougheachcardinthedeck.Ihadheardfromothersthathewas particularlygoodatexplainingrules.ThiswasoneoftheonlytimesIinteractedwithhimthat hewascompletelyserious.Whenthegamebeganthough,sodidthejokes.PatandLisa describedinmoredetailthepurposeofBang!: Pat:...Bang!isjustopportunitiesforjokes. Interviewer:PeoplewhoarelessintocomplexgamesandjokesplayBang?It'smore lighthearted? Pat:Yeah,Bang!isdefinitelymorelighthearted.Eventhoughitsaboutkillingpeople.

Lisa(viaemail):Foronething,Bang!allowsustomakesexjokeswithoutneedinga properexcusehaha.Itsalsodifferentfrommostcardgamesinthewaythatitsmore likeaboardgamethananactualcardgamethatyoucanjustplaywithanydeck.Itsa mixofpeoplewhoplaySmashaswellasotherpeoplewhojusthangoutinthelounge. Itsfunmostlybecausethepeopleplayingareoverthetopandamiableaswell. Bang!isagame,butitalsooffersthestudentsmaterialtoinspirejokesandconversations.In thesamewaythatstudentsmighthavesataroundandtalkaboutaTVshowormovie,the studentssataroundtotalkandjokeaboutwhatwashappeninginthegame.Lisaexplainedthat peopleplayedoverthetopwhichmadethegameplaymoreentertainingforboththe playersandanyonewhohappenedtobearoundinthelounge. AsJakobsson&Akira(2007)foundintheconsolegamingclubinSweden,itisnotjusttherules 83

ofthegamethatmatter,butalsotherulessetbytheculturalandsocialcontext.In5N,they addedsomeoftheirownrulestothegametomakeitmorefun.Forinstance,thereisacard calledCanCanthatallowsaplayertotakeonecardfromeveryplayer.Thestudentsin5N addedtheirownrulethatwhenanyoneplayedthiscard,everyonehadtogetupanddoan actualcancanlinedance.WhenweplayedIhadtoleavebeforethegamewasoverandthe playersdecidedtodothecancananywayjustsoIcouldseeit.Abouttenofus,bothpeople playingandnotplayinginthelounge,linedupalongthehallandquicklycoordinateda30 secondcancanline,whichinturnledtomuchlaughter. Bang!isnotasimplegame;ithasmanydifferentactionsandmultiplestrategiesyoucantake duringplay.Thestudentsin5Nhaveplayeditenoughtimesthattheyknowmostoftheactions withouthavingtoreadtheexplanationsonthecards,allowingthemtomakejokesduringthe gameabouttheplayoranythingelsethatcomesupduringthegame.Alotofthetalkwas aboutthingsthathadhappenedpreviouslytosomeoneinthegrouporinteractionswithpeople whowalkedby.Atonepoint,acoupleofthestudentsbrokeintoafunnysong.Whilewe played,theopeningceremonyoftheWinterOlympicswasontheTV,whichaddedmaterialfor commentaryandjokesduringthegame. Bang!wasthegamethatalmosteveryoneintheloungeplayed.Itwasplayedlessoftenthan Brawl,butitappealedtoawideraudience.Bang!didnotrequireanypreviousexperienceor handeyecoordinationlikemostdigitalgamesdo,butitdidrequiremoreofatime commitmentthanBrawlbecauseofitslongerformat.Theopportunitiesforjokesand conversationwereconstantthroughoutthegamebecauseplayerscouldtalkwithotherplayers 84

orotherpeopleintheloungewhilethepersonwhoseturnitwasdecidedontheirnextmove. Whilesomeofthestudentssaidtomethatthegameissimple,itinvolvesauniquedeckthat mustbelearnedandcertainlyrequiresstrategytostayinthegameandwin.Therewasno singularreasonwhythisgameappealedtothewidestgroupofplayers,butitfacilitatedplayful socialinteractionbyactingasthecatalystforjokes,offeringmomentsbetweenturnswhere studentcouldsocializewithotherplayersandothersinthelounge,andrequiringno technologicalskill. Themorecomplicatedcardgame,Tractor,wasplayedbyaslightlydifferentgroupofpeoplein thelounge,butalsofitwiththesocialgoalsofthegroup.IobservedtwogamesofTractor happeningatonceonenightinthelounge.Thegenderratioofonegamewassplitalmost evenlybetweenmaleandfemaleplayers,buttheothergamehadonlyonewomanplayer. Whatwasstriking,though,wasthatalmostalloftheplayerswereAsianAmerican.Itwasnot obviouswhythiswastomeuntillaterwhenIwastoldthatTractorisaChinesecardgame.Pat explained,inanemail,howthegamecameto5Nonesummerwhenonlysomeofthestudents werearoundandwhyitmaybemorepopularwithAsianAmericanstudents: Pat:Ithink[anAsianAmericanmalestudent]wastheonewhobroughtitto[the dorm].LotsofChineseparentsplaycardgameslikeTractor,andhehappenedtolearn fromhisparentsandpasseditontous.Forme,it'sfunandenjoyabletoplaybecauseit remindsmeofplayingcardgameswithmyparents;ithaskindofanostalgicfeeltoit, withtonsofinsidejokesandlaughsmixedin...ThemannerinwhichChinesepeoplesee Tractorandrelatedgames(Mahjong,DouDizhu,etc.)isthattheyexpectfamilyand closefamilyfriendstositaroundatable,eatingsunflowerseedsanddrinkingtea(or beer,sometimes)andhaveafewlaughsandtalkaboutanything.TheChinesekidscame intothisgamesettingwiththatkindoffeeling,andit'sbeenprettysimilar;we'reall reallycloseandthegameisawayforustoexpressourcloseness.Evenforthenon ChinesemembersofourTractorgroup,Ibelievethattheyfeelthesameway. 85

Patexplainedthatthereisadeepculturalandfamilialconnectiontothiskindofsocialcard gameformanyofthestudentsintheloungewhoareChineseAmerican.Theyhavegrownup understandingthatplayingthegameisareasontointeractwithfriendsandfamily.Itshouldbe notedthatthegamestartedintheloungewhenthosewhomighthavebeenexcludedwere awayforthesummer.WhilePatwaswillingtoexplainthegametothem,theymighthavefelt thatitwasit'snotworthtryingtocatchuptotheskillleveloftheotherplayerssinceitwasa morecomplicatedandstrategicgamethanBrawlorBang!. Bang!wascomplicatedformethefirsttimeItriedtoplayitbecauseIwasunfamiliarwithall thepossibleactions,anditwouldhavetakentimetobecomefamiliarwiththecontent.Tractor iscomplicatedinadifferentway.Itisplayedwithtraditionalplayingcards,buttherulesare longandcomplex.16SomestudentswhoplayedBrawlandBang!saidthattheydidn'tplay Tractorbecauseitwastoocomplicated. Lisa:IdontplaytrickcardgamesbecauseImafanofsimplicityovercomplexityinmy games.Ifittakesmetoolongtolearnandgetgoodatitsnotfun,andgamesshouldbe fun. Itcouldbethatthesestudentswerelessfamiliarwiththiskindofgame.JasonisAsian Americanandhepreferreddigitalgamesinvolvingstrategytotricktakingcardgamesthatwere toocomplex.LisaisAfricanAmericanandgrewupplayingcardswithherdad,butthekindof
16

ThebasicpremiseofTractoristhatplayersplayinpairs,sittingacrossthetablefromeachother,tryingtowin tricks.Inanygivenhandthereisadefenderpairofplayersandanattackerpairorpairsthedefendersusually beingthepairthatlostthelasthand.Iftheattackerpairwinsatrickthatcontainsaking,ten,orfivecard,those getaddedtoapileontheside.Thesecardscountaspoints.Ifattheendofthehandthepointsarelessthan80, thedefendersgainoverallpoints.Ifthepointsaremorethan80theattackersgainoverallpoints.Theoverall pointsstartatthreeandcanincreaseordecreaseeachhand.Theoverallpointsincreasebynumberandthenup throughJ,K,Q,andAce.MostplayersdeclareawinnerwhenapairreachesAceormodifytherulestostop soonerorlater.

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complexityinvolvedinBang!andTractordidnotappealtoher.Whatwasmoreimportantwas thatTractorwasnottheonlygamingoptionavailablein5NandbothJasonandLisawereable tofindothergamestoparticipatein. Evenifsomeonedidn'tlikeplayingTractororBang!in5N,theycouldstillbeinvolvedinthe activitybecause,liketheothergamesplayedin5N,itwasaperformativeandsocialactivity. ThefirsttimeIencounteredTractorIendedupwatchingandtalkingtothepeopleplayingfor about30minuteswithLisa.Myfieldnotesfromthatnightcapturedthescene: WhenwearrivedupstairsthescenewasquitedifferentfromwhatIhadseentwoweeks before.Thistimenoonewasplayingvideogames.Itwasaround9:30pmandthe majorityoftheactionwashappeningonthesideoftheloungethatwasfarthestfrom theTV.Twogroups,oneseatedataroundtableandtheotheraroundacoffeetable, wereplayingveryvocal,fastpacedcardgames.ThestudentsweremostlyAsian Americanwithathreegirl/threeboysplitattheroundtableandaonegirl/fiveboysplit atthecoffeetable.ThemostvocalplayerswereMei,whoseemedtoberunningthe gameathertable,JessicaandPat,whowereplayingathertable,and[afemalestudent Ihadn'tinterviewed],whowastheonlygirlattheothertable.Therewasoneguyatthe coffeetablethatwouldshoutouttotheothertableeveryonceinawhile. LisaandIstoodbytheroundtableandtriedtofigureoutwhattheywereplaying....Mei wassaidtobeonstageatonepoint,whichIdon'tthinkwasatechnicaltermfromthe game,butshedidseemtobeleadingtheactionsofthegameinsomewayandwas aggressivelyvocalinawaythatreinforcedherposition.Herwordsweren'tusually directedatanyperson,butmoresowereusedtomentionhowwellshewasdoing... Whilethecardgamewasintense,therewasafairamountofconversationandactivity goingonthatseemedunrelated.SeveraltimeswhileLisaandIstoodthereforabout30 minutes,someonebrokeoutinsong.SomeofthesongsIdidn'tknow,buttheywere mainlyfunnysongsfrommusicals.Atonepoint,Patraisedhishandandyelled,Fiddler ontheRoof!Yeah!andhighfivedaguybehindhim.Hethensangpartofasongfrom Fiddler,inwhatmostpeoplewouldprobablyconsideragoodsingingvoice,withafair amountofsincerity....Therewereatanygiventime35peoplestandingoverthegames ormillingaroundthelounge.Thesepeoplewouldtrytofollowtheplayorconversewith theplayerswhentheycould.Becausethegamesweresolively,evenifyoudidn'tknow everythingwasgoingon,youcouldstillwatchthedynamicsofthegameandlistento thewittybanterandbeentertained... 87

 Atthispointinmyresearch,Ihadn'theardmuchaboutpeopleplayingcardsinthelounge.I wassurprisedthatnoonewasplayingvideogames,butrecognizedthatthewaythestudents playedcardswasverysimilartohowtheyplayedBrawlevenifsomeoftheplayerswere different.SomeofthemostvocalplayerswerealsothemostvocalplayersofBrawlMei,Pat, andJessica.Thoughthefemalestudentswerefewerthanmalestudents,allofthewomen playingwereveryvocaland,asIsayinmynotes,Meiwasobviouslydominatinghergame.She wastrashtalkingsimilarlytohowsheandotherplayersdidinBrawl.Shewasn'tdisparaging otherplayers,butwasmakingexaggeratedstatementsabouthowgoodshewasatthegame, playingupherroleasthebestplayer. Theperformanceoftheplayers,whetheritwasprovokedbythegameornot,createda spectaclefornonplayerstowatchorinteractwiththroughoutthegameplay.Sometimes peoplecametotheloungetoseewhatwasgoingon,butsometimestheywerejustpassingby inthehallwayontheirwayadormroom.Theycouldbeentertainedbylisteningtowitty banter,joininwhenplayersbrokeintosong,ortrytofigureoutwhatwashappeningwiththe game.Thegameprovidedastructureforinteractionintheloungethatnotonlyincludedthe playersofthegame,butalsothosewatchingthegame. Thisinteractionwasnotstrictlyregulatedtomattersofthegame,itwasintertwinedwith socializingaboutsharedinterests.Thegameplayerswerethecenterofattention,butwerenot relegatedtoaimpenetrablemagiccircle,aconceptdevelopedandemployedbygamescholars toexplainaboundedoffspace,inwhichagameoccursthatkeepsitseparatefromandsubject 88

todifferentrulesthanordinarylife(Huizinga,1955;Salen&Zimmerman,2004).Consalvo (2009)hasarguedthatthisconceptofamagiccircleupholdsstructuralistdefinitionsor conceptualizationsofgames.Itemphasizesformatthecostoffunction,withoutattentionto thecontextofactualgameplay(p.411). Inthe5Nlounge,therewasalmostconstantinteractionbetweenthegameplayersandtheir socialcontext.Therewasnosensethatthepeopleplayingthegamewerenotinvolvedwiththe otheractivitiesgoingoninthelounge.Instead,theywerejustasintegratedintothesocializing assomeonewhowascooking,doinghomework,orsurfingtheweb.Consalvohassuggested, Whatif,ratherthanrelyingonstructuralistdefinitionsofwhatisagame,weviewagameasa contextual,dynamicactivity,whichplayersmustengagewithformeaningtobemade. Furthermore,itisonlythroughthatengagementthatthegameismadetomean(p.411).This ishowIcametounderstandtheroleofgamesinthelounge.Theyweremorethanjustrules, playingcards,oraWiidisc.Theywerepartofalargernetworkofactivitiesandsocial interactions,sometimesoccurringevenbeyondthelounge,thatinfluencedoneanotherand thatstudentsmovedfluidlybetween.

Motivationsforgameplay Ihaveshownthatwinningandlosingwerenotthemostimportantelementsofplayinggames in5N,insteaditwasmorevaluedtoengageintheplayfulsocialinteractionthatgoesonduring andinbetweenthegames,specificallythroughwittybanterthatengagedplayers,aswellas theotherstudentsinthelounge.Thestudents'trashtalkingwasmotivatedbyactioninthe

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game,buttookplaceoutsideoftheformalgamestructure.Itbecameanintegralpartofthe playprocess. GoingbacktoJuul's(2010)considerationsforgameactionmotivationswecanbetter understandhowthesocialgoalsof5Ninteractedwiththegamestructure.Theorientation towardsagoalwasnotcompletelygone,astheplayerswerestilltryingtobeatoneanother, butoutofthethreeconsiderations,winningwastheleastemphasizedbythegroup.Asthe gamebecamemoreintegratedintothenetworkofotheractivitiesandsocializingofthelounge, players'motivationsshiftedawayfromthegameasgoalorientationandmoretowards gameasexperienceandgameassocialevent. Thisisalsonottosaythattheweightoftheconsiderationsdidn'tvaryattheindividuallevel. MeimighthavevaluedwinningaBrawlboutin5NmorethanIwouldhaveasaresearcher becauseIwastryingtosecuremyrelationshipswiththeplayersin5N.Inthisscenario,Mei wouldbemorefocusedonthegameasgoalorientationwinningthegameandIwould havebeenmoreconcernedwiththegameassocialevent.Thesedifferingmotivationswould resultintwoverydifferentplayingstylesduringthesamegame.Ingeneralthereweremultiple motivationsatworkatanygiventime.Therewasanoverallsharedunderstandingofthesocial goalsofthegroup,whichallplayerstookintoconsiderationwhileplaying.Therewerealso individualmotivationsatwork,thatwhencombinedwiththesocialgoalsofthegroupcreateda rangeofactionsthatkepttheplayacceptableandappealingtoallinvolved.

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Thequestionremainsofwhychoosegamesasawayofsociallyinteracting?Flanagan(2009) hasproposedthatgamescanalsobeseenassocialtechnologiesthatfunctionasanordering logic...forcreatingsocialrelations,[they]worktodistillorabstracttheeverydayactionsofthe playersintoeasytounderstandinstrumentswherecontextisdefamiliarizedjustenoughto allowHuizinga'smagiccircleofplaytomanifest(p.9).Ihavequestionedtheexistenceofan impenetrablemagiccircleabove,butwhatFlanaganpointsoutisthatgamesareawayof facilitatingsocialinteractionthatordersandabstractseverydayactivitiesandinteractions. Studentsgatheredintheloungeduringtheeveningandonweekendstohaveanexperience thatwasdifferentfromdoingclassworkortakingcareofotherresponsibilities.Inthelounge, gamingwasengagingandsocial,butlowstakesandinclusive. ManyMITstudentsarehighachieversandhardworkers,andgamesareawaytocontinue feelingthissenseofproductivity,butwithoutthepressureofbeinggraded.Rachelexplained: Iguessit'stheMITculturethatweliketobeconstantlybusy.Whenyouwatchamovie you'renotaccomplishinganything.Thisismymindset,Idon'tknowifitfitsinwithother people.IfeellikeifI'mnotactivelydoingsomethingoraccomplishingsomething,thenI feellikeitsawasteofmytime...IfeelliketakingbreakswhereIdon'tdoanything,for meisveryirritating,causethenIfeellikeI'mactuallywastingtime.Ifeelguiltyaboutit. LikewhenI'mtakingabreakandIcansayIgainedfivelevelsonthisgame,Icanfeellike Iaccomplishedsomething...afteralongdaysworkandyouwanttocomehomeandtake yourangeroutonsomething,thenlikeSmashorsomethingistheperfectgametoplay.

Rachelblurredthelinebetweenplayandwork.Sheusedgamestotakeabreak,butchose themoverotheractivitiesbecausetheyfeltmoreproductive.Herviewmaynothavebeen representativeofallstudents,butitdoesmakesensethatthestudentsinthe5Nloungemight haveseengamesasavaluablesocialactivitybecausetheyallowedparticipantstofeelasense

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ofaccomplishmentorvalue.

Conclusion The5Ncommunitychosecertaindigitalandnondigitalgamesthatcouldfacilitateplayful socializing.Theirchoiceofgamesisimportant,butsoisthewaythattheyplayedthemandfit themintothesocialcontextofthelounge.Thepresenceofdifferentgamesoffereddifferent modesofentrytogamingforagroupofstudentswithdifferentexperiencelevelsand preferences.Somestudentsweredrawntoagamebecauseofpreviousexperienceor nostalgia,aswasthecasewithLisaandBrawlorPatandTractor.Janellehadnoexperience withdigitalgamesandexpressednointerestinplayingthem,butshewasabletoparticipatein theconversationaroundBrawlandfoundpleasureinplayingthecardgameBang!. Also,thegamesplayedwereflexibleenoughinstructurethattheycouldbealignedwiththe socialgoalsofthecommunity.Manyofthegames'structuralelementsloweredbarriersto participationandhelpedtomaintainaninclusivegamingenvironment.InBrawl,therewere modesthatoffereddifferentplayingexperiences,alargepoolofcharacterstochoosefrom, simplecontrols,andoptionalitemsthatcouldenhanceplayerattacks.Bang!andTractorhad fixedformalrules,butofferedanopenenoughstructurethatstudentscouldsocializebetween turnsoraddtheirownrules.Theformalgoalsofeachgamewereveryclear,butdidn'tcarry overintoothergameplaysessionsinawaythatwouldcreateahierarchyordenyaccessto playerswholost.

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Finally,thestudentsintheloungechosegamesthatcouldbeplayedinalowstakes, perfomativemanner.Thewittybanterandtrashtalkprovokedbythegameactionssocially engagedplayerswitheachother,butalsowithpeopleintheloungenotplayingthegame.This allowednonplayerstohaveareasontoparticipateinthegamingexperience,withoutthe pressureofwinningorlosing.Observerslikemecouldbecomefamiliarwithhowgamesworked byengagingattheperipheryandeventuallybecomeinterestedinplaying.Thiskindof exposuretothedifferentgamesinthelounge,inadditiontomentoringfrommoreexperienced players,ledtostudentswhodidn'tplaypreviouslybecomingplayers.Thestudentswho currentlyplayencouragednonplayerstojoininfortheexperience,butalsotomakefuture gameplaymorediverseandinteresting. Gamestructurecanbemoreorlessflexibleandconducivetodiversegroupsofplayers,butitis notinagamesstructurealonethatinclusivegamingiscreated.AsConsalvo(2009)said:We cannotunderstandgameplaybylimitingourselvestoonlyseeingactionsandnotinvestigating reasons,contexts,justifications,limitations,andthelike.Thatiswherethegameoccursand wherewemustfinditsmeaning(p.415).Inthenextchapter,Iwillfurtherexplorethecontext ofgaminginthe5Nloungebyexaminingtheindividualexperiences,playingstylesand motivationsofthestudentswhomadeupthecommunity.

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CHAPTERTHREE:ThePlayers
Themembersofthe5Ncommunityplayeddigitalandnondigitalgamestogetherinthelounge, buttheyalsoplayedgamesoutsideofthelounge,withothergroupsofpeople,andontheir own.Iobservedthestudentsplayinggamesintheirroomsandontheirlaptopsthatwerenot thesamegamestheyplayedtogetherinthelounge.Thestudentshadarangeofpreferencesin thegamestheyplayedanddifferentstylesofplayingthem.Ifoundthatthefemaleplayers sharedsimilaritiesinthewaytheywereintroducedtoplayingdigitalgames,butfromthat momentontheirtrajectoriesusuallyvaried.Myobservationsandinterviewswiththe5N communityshowthatgamingpreferencesandstylesaretoosituatedandcomplextobe mappedtogenderalone. Theplayersin5Nalsohaddifferentwaysofidentifyingwithgamingculture.Onlyoneofthe femaleplayersconsideredherselfagamer.Theotherwomennegotiatedusingtheterm gamertoidentifythemselvesbyaddingmodifiers,suchascasualorsoftcore,orthey rejectedthelabel.Thewomen'sunderstandingsofgamerweresituatedintheirsocialcontext andrelatedtotheirownexperiencelevel,aswellastheexperiencelevelsofthosearound them.Inthischapter,Ishowthatwomenplayersenjoyplayingamuchwiderrangeofgames 94

thandigitalgirlgames,andthattheycontinuouslynegotiatehowtheypositionthemselvesin digitalgamingcultureaccordingtotheprevailinggamerstereotypes.

Beginningtogame ArecentPewstudy(2008)suggestedthathighschoolagedgirlsaretheleast'enthusiastic' aboutplayingvideogamesoutofU.S.teens.Becauseoftherelativelylowlevelofparticipation amongfemaleteens,Iwasparticularlyinterestedininterviewingwomenformyresearchwho hadcontinuedplayingdigitalgamesthroughhighschool.Investigatingthereasonswhymany youngwomenloseinterestindigitalgamesisbeyondthescopeofthispaper,butIdidattempt tounderstandhowthestudentsofthe5Ncommunitybecameinterestedindigitalgames,how theyhadsustainedtheirinterestingamingthroughhighschool,andwhytheycontinued gamingincollege. IaskedeachofthestudentsIinterviewed,maleandfemale,totellmetheirgaminghistories. Mostofthestudentstoldmeaboutthedigitalgamestheyplayedinelementaryschool,middle school,andhighschool.Twoofthestudentshadshorterhistories:Jessica,whostartedplaying gamesinhighschool,andJanelle,whohadneverplayeddigitalgames. Onesignificantpatternthatemergedfromthehistoriesofthefemalestudentswhobeganto gamebeforehighschool,wasthattheytypicallyplayedwithmaleplayerswhiletheywere growingup.Inthe1980sand1990sboysweremorelikelytobeplayingdigitalgames,and gamingwasusuallygenderedmale,assomethingboysdo.Klineetal(2003)explainthatthe

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gameindustryatthistimelaunchedpowerfulandcalculatedlygenderbasedappealsthat combinedwiththepowerfulpreexistingdivisionsthatalreadysegregatesomanyformsof entertainment...andwiththeoverallmalepredominanceinhightechactivities,(atleastuntil veryrecently)relentlesslyconstructedthegameplayingsubjectasmale(p.257). Thewomenin5Nwerediscouragedfromplayingdigitalgamestovaryingdegreesdepending ontheirsocialcontexts.Someoftheirparentsweremorewillingthanotherstosupporttheir daughters'gaminginterestsandprovideaccesstogamingplatforms.Mostofthewomenwere abletofindgroupsoffriendsthatacceptedtheirinterestingaming,buttheywereusually majoritymale.Almostallofthewomenwereintroducedtogamingbyamalefamilymemberor friend: Interviewer:Whendidyoufirststartplaying? Lisa:Ithinkmaybearoundfourorfive[yearsold].MydadhadtheSuperNintendo withtheMariogamesandPinkPanther.Weplayedthatlikeeverynight... Interviewer:Butitwasmostlyyourdadthatintroducedyoutogaming? Lisa:Yeahmymomhatedhimforitthough. Jessica:...inHawaiiwithmycousins,Iplayedwiththem.TheyplayedHalo17alot. Interviewer:Weretheyolder? Jessica:Oneofthemisolderthanmebylikethreeyears.Hisyoungerbrothersayear youngerthanme.Theotheryoungerbrotherislikefifteennow. Interviewer:SotheywouldplayHalo?Didyoueverplaywiththem? Jessica:Sometimes,theyletmeplay.Icouldprobablybeattwoofthethree... ThispatternofmalesintroducingfemalestogamingalsoextendedtomanyofthewomenI interviewedatMIToutsideof5N.Theycitedfathers,cousins,unclesandmalefriendsasthe firstpeoplewhoshowedthemdigitalgames.Someofthefemaleplayersrecalledtheirmothers
17

HaloisaseriesoffirstpersonshootergamesforXboxandPCthatcanbeplaysingleormultiplayer.Itisa populargameontheprofessionalgamingcircuit.

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playingdigitalgamestogetherwiththeirfamilies,butnoneoftheintervieweeshadafemale playertomentorthemwhiletheywereyoung. Onemajorfactorinhowwomenbegintoplaydigitalgamesiswhetherornottheyhaveaccess toagamingconsole.SchottandHorrell(2000)foundintheirstudyongirlsandwomenwho playdigitalgamesthatevenowningaconsoledoesnotalwayssecureordeterminegirl gamers'relationshipwiththeirconsole,andthatifmalesalsohadaccesstotheconsole,the femaleplayershadtocompeteforaccess(p.41).[T]hissituationwasbaseduponacommon perception,evidentinallthediscussions,thatmalesare'theexperts'whenitcomestoknowing whatisrequiredandhowitisachieved.Inallcases,malesconstitutedavitalframeof referenceforgirlgamers'gamingpractices(p.41).Whileitisobviouslypossibleforgirlsand womentoplayonconsoles,thereareperceptions,asSchottandHorrellmention,thatframe playingdigitalgamesassomethinggirlsshouldnotdoandthesebeliefsobstructfemaleaccess toparticipation. Theperceptionofmaleplayers'defaultexpertise,asshownbyKlineetal.,mightberootedin similarstereotypesincomputing,whichMargolisandFisher(2002)havealsofoundintheir workinthefieldofcomputerscience: Veryearlyinlife,computingisclaimedasmaleterritory.Ateachstepfromearly childhoodthroughcollege,computingisbothactivelyclaimedasguystuffbyboysand menandpassivelycededbygirlsandwomen.Theclaimingislargelytheworkofa cultureandsocietythatlinksinterestandsuccesswithcomputerstoboysandmen.(p. 4) Itisnotacoincidencethatthemasculinegenderingofcomputingcarriedoverintodigital

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gaminginthe1980sand1990s.Consoleswerenotgenerallyframedasgamingplatformsmade forwomenuntiltherecentintroductionofthemorefemininecodedWii,whichhasabright andsleekdesign,gamesgearedtowardsfamilythemedplay,andmovementbasedcontrols.As computerusageanddigitalgamingbecomemoreubiquitousanddiverse,theymaybecome lessgenderedasmasculine,butthewomenof5Ngrewupatatimewhenbeingagirlplaying digitalgameswasnotthenorm.AsIexplainedinChapterOne,thewomenofthe5N communitysometimeactasmentorstootherfemaleplayers.Itremainstobeseeniffemale playersaremorelikelytointroducedigitalgamestothenextgenerationofplayers. Whilethenumberofwomenwhoplaydigitalgamesoverall,especiallyhandheldandonline games,appearstobeapproachinginsomecasesexceedingthenumberofmenwhoplay,it isstillthecasethatgirlsarelesslikelytohaveaccesstoagamingconsole(Entertainment SoftwareAssociation,2009;Pew,2008).ThewomenIinterviewedhadamixofexperiences withowningaconsole.Somehadtocompetefortimeplayingwithsiblingsorotherfamily members;othershadfullaccess;andothershadtonegotiatewiththeirparentsaround gaming: Rachel:...IvisitedrelativesinSeattle,andtheyhadaSegaGenesis.Itwasamazingto mebecauseIhadneverplayedvideogames...Ihadplayedpinballonfather'scomputer, butthatdoesn'treallycount.Mycousinswerelike,Hereplaythisgame,itsreally cool....Idon'tevenknowwhatI'mdoing,Ijustbuttonmashed...ItwasSonicthe Hedgehog...afterthatIwaslikeDadIreallywantaSegaGenesis...Andhegotmeone formyfifthbirthday.Iplayedreligiouslylikeonceaweek...Itbecameafamilyaffair...My fatherwouldplay,mymomwouldattempttoplay.Itwasafamilybondingexperience. Youcouldnotsavegamesthensowe'dspendsevenhourstryingtowin. Mei:Yeah,IhadaGameBoy,andIhadPokemonRed...Myfriend,hehadPokemon Blueandwejusttraded...andthenmymomgaveawaymyGameBoy.Shesaid,You playtoomuchonitandshegaveitaway.AndthenIdidn'thaveanyportableconsoles 98

afterthat....IgotaWiiforfree.Iwashappy.Itwasacongratulationsongettinginto MITgift...Myparentswerelike,Wewanttosellthis.Iwaslike,Youcan'tsellother people'sgifts.Therewerelike,Fine,butwe'renotbuyingyougames...Iendedup convincingthemtobuymetwogames. Thesepassagesshowadiscrepancyinaccess.Rachelsaidshewasabletoconvinceherparents atayoungagetogetagamingsystem.Shethenhadaccesstoaconsole,butitwassharedby thefamilyandplayedmorebyherfatherthanhermother.Meihadaportabledevicetoplay gameson,butonceherparentsdecidedshewasusingittoomuch,theytookitaway.Theyalso triedtogetridofherWii,showinglittleappreciationfortheimportanceofgamingfortheir daughter.Inbothcases,parentsplayedsignificantrolesingrantingandmaintainingaccessto gamingconsolesforgirls.PopCap.com(2010),apopularcasualgamingsite,foundinasurvey thatparentsandgrandparentsare55percentmorelikelytodiscouragetheplayingof hardcoregames[violentfirstpersonshootersandhorrorthemedgames]bygirlsaged14 yearsoldandunder,comparedtoboysofthesameage.Parents'opinionsabouttheir daughterswhoplaygamesonconsolesarestillcloselytiedtobroaderexistingperceptionsof whatgirlsshouldandshouldnotdo.Becausehardcoregames,areoftenassociatedwith consolegaming,thiscouldleadparentstodiscouragegirlsfromowningorplayingwith consoles. ForMei,itwasnotafamilymemberwhointroducedhertogames;itwashermalefriends.She wasarecentimmigranttoMontanafromChina,andshewasveryawareofbeingoneofthe fewnonwhitepeopleinthearea.Hermalefriendsexposedhertogamingatayoungage: Mei:WhenIfirstcametoAmerica,IwenttoMontana.TherearelikenoAsiansthere. Whatever.Therewasnothingexceptforwhitepeoplethere...ItraveledalotbecauseI wasonswimteam,butneversawonenonwhiteperson.WellIstartedplayingwhenI 99

wasabouteight,Ithink.Mybestfriendswereallguysandtheyplayedvideogames.I meanIhadfriendswhoweregirlsbuttheyweren'tthatgirlyeither.Like,theonly friendsIhadthatweregirlswerethepeopleonmybasketballteam.AndIjustplayed lotsofgames. Meiexpressedselfreflexiveinsightsaboutherracialandgenderawarenessinthisquote.She movedtoaplacewhereshefeltoutofplacebecauseeveryoneelsewaswhite.Sheimplied thatthisfeelingofdifferenceoutweighedanyconcernabouthangingoutwithpeersofthe oppositegender.Meididn'texplicitlyexplainwhy,buthermaingroupoffriendswasprimarily male,andtheyfocusedongaming.Herfriendshipswithgirlsweredevelopedthroughaformof nondigitalgamingbasketball. ThefactthatMeiandtheotherwomenof5Nplayedwithgroupsofboyswhentheywere growingupisnottypicalamongelementaryandmiddleschoolagedchildren.Atthatstageof development,boysandgirlsdobefriendeachother,butithasbeenshownthatitismore commonforchildrentobepartofsamegenderfriendgroups.Thorne(1993)foundthisina studyofelementaryandmiddleschoolstudentsatplayinschoolsettings:[A]lthoughgirlsand boysaretogetherandofteninteractinclassrooms,lunchrooms,andontheplayground,these contactslessoftendeepenintofriendshipsorstablealliances,whilesamegenderinteractions aremorelikelytosolidifyintomorelastingoracknowledgedbonds(p.47). Thorne(1993)hasofferedaconceptualframeworkforthinkingaboutchildren'scrossgender interactions.First,sheexplainedborderwork,whichoccurswhenboysandgirlsinteractinways thatstrengthentheirborders...andevokerecurringthemesthataredeeplyrootedinour culturalconceptionsofgender,andtheysuppressawarenessofpatternsthatcontradictand 100

qualifythem(pp.64,66).Shecitedanexampleofatimewhenboysdisruptgirlswhoare playingjumpropeandtrytochangethetermsoftheactivitytotheirownbyswingingtherope toohardorinadifferentway. Thornethendiscussescrossing,alesscommonactionthatoccurswhenagirlorboymayseek accesstogroupsandactivitiesoftheothergender...withtheintentoffullparticipationinthe activitiesandonthetermsofthegroups...(p.121).Crossingisakintowhatthewomenin5N weredoingwhentheyplayedgameswiththeirmalefriends.Theyhadanearnestinterestin playingthegamesandwerewillingtoparticipatealongwiththetermsofthegroup.Inhigh school,thewomenof5Ncontinuedcrossingastheyplayeddigitalgameswithmajoritymale groupsoffriends.Lisa,forexample,broughtherGameCubetoschoolonedayandhelped createanongoinggroupactivitytosharewithhermalefriends.Theyfoundemptyclassrooms duringfreetimeandplayedSmashBros.: Interviewer:Sothatwasasocialeventoritwasfocusedonwatchingthegame? Lisa:Justsocial,awaytospendourfreeperiod.Itstartedoutbecausebeforejunior andsenioryearswedidn'thaveanycarsandwecouldn'tdoanythingwithourfree periods.SoI'dbringgamestoschool.... Interviewer:Wasitagoodmixofboysandgirls? Lisa:Iwastheonlygirlintheroom. Interviewer:Really?Didthatbotheryou? Lisa:Itwasn'tthatdifferent'causeIhadgrownuparoundguys'causemydadbrought meupasthelittleboyheneverhad.(Laughs)SoIwasalwaysplayingbasketballor footballwithhimwhenIwasn'tplaying[digital]gameswithhim.Imostlyalwaysgrew updoingguythings.IhatedBarbiesanddresses.Justplayingwithguyswasn'tthat strangeforme. Lisarecalledherexperiencesplayingwithherfathertonormalizeherexperienceplayingdigital gameswithagroupofmalestudents.MosthighschoolgirlsmightfindthesituationLisa describestobeawkward,butnegotiatingthissocialterraincameeasytoLisa,becauseshewas 101

abletotranslatethewaysheplayedwithherfathertohowsheplayedwithhermalefriends. LisatookpartinwhatThorne(1993)describesasacomplicatedcontinuumofcrossing(p.112). Thorneoffersthiscontinuumasanalternativetousingbinarydescriptorssuchassissyand tomboy.Lisacrossedintoamasculinizedcontextofvideogamingwithanearnestinterest andtheabilitytosustainparticipation.Thornenotesthatsuccessfulcrossersarethosewho persevereinspiteoftheriskofbeinglabeledorteased(p.130).AnimportantpartofLisa's abilitytocrossintothisallmalegroupwasthatshecontrolledaccesstothegamingbecause theconsoletheyplayedonwashers. Rachelalsoplayedwithagroupofmalestudentsinhighschool.Theywerenotheronlygroup offriends(shehadamoregenderbalancedgroupoffriendsfromhersciencelab),butshe enjoyedhertimewiththeboys.Whilenotingthattheactivitiessheengagedinwithhermale friendsweredifferentfromtheonessheparticipatedinwithherfemalefriends,shefound bothsituationsappealing: Rachel:Forhighschool,ifIplayedwithotherpeopleitwaseitherRPGsorfirstperson shooters. Interviewer:Youplayedthematschool? Rachel:Playedthemmostlyinschool.Wedidn'tplaythemmuchoutsideofschool, mostlybecauseIwasbusy.Ididscienceresearchandstuff.I'vebeentooneortwoLAN partieswithmyguyfriends.Thatwasanexperience. Interviewer:Why?Didyouenjoythem? Rachel:Itwasreallyenjoyable.It'sjustI'veneverbeeninasettingwhereit'sjust purelyguysandmaybelikeoneothergirl.WhenIgotootherpeople'shousesitslikea girlparty,domakeupandgossip,kindofstuff.Sobeingwithabunchofguysseatedin theirlivingrooms,seatedwiththelightsoff,itwasjustkindoflikeawhatever environment.Nobodycaredwhateachotherlookedlike,itsjustintenselyclicking. Interviewer:Didyoufeellikeyouhadtoactdifferent?Howdidyoudealwiththat? Rachel:IfeellikeinhighschoolIwasmostcomfortablehangingaroundguys.Ifeltlike Icouldbemyselfaroundthem,mainlybecauseIwasreallyopinionatedandIwasreally 102

crude.Sowithmyguyfriends,Iwasnotsomuchallowed,butitwasjustnatural.And theyreallydidn'tcare.LikeIcouldsaysomethinginsultingasajokeandtheywouldn't getoffendedoverit.Whereas,ifIdidthatwithmygirlfriends,thereisprobablya chancethattheywouldgetoffendedoverthat.ItslikeIhadtocensormyselfaround them. Interviewer:Youdidn'thavetototallybeadude?Wereyouabletonegotiatethose things? Rachel:Yeahkindof.Theykindofacceptedmeasthetokengirlinthebunch. Rachelidentifiedheremorewiththebehaviorofhermalefriendsthanherfemalefriends.She exhibitedtheabilitytonegotiatetwoverydifferentsocialgroupsandfindpleasureinboth.Her descriptionsofthetwogroupsweregendered,renderingherfemalefriendsasconcernedwith makeupandgossipandhermalefriendsasunconcernedwiththeirappearanceandfocused moreongamesthancommunication. Walkerdine(2006)hasrecognizedthecomplexnegotiationsthatmusttakeplaceforgirlswho playgamesthathavemasculinizedcontentorcontexts: [M]anygamesarethesitefortheproductionofcontemporarymasculinitybecausethey bothdemandandappeartoensureperformancessuchasheroism,killing,winning, competition,action,combinedwithtechnologicalskillandrationality...Mycentralclaim isthatinrelationtogirls,thisconstitutesaproblembecausecontemporaryfemininity demandspracticesandperformanceswhichbringtogetherheroics,rationality,etc.with theneedtomaintainafemininitywhichdisplayscare,cooperation,concern,and sensitivitytoothers.Thismeansthatgirlshavecomplexsetsofpositionstonegotiate whileplaying...(p.520)

Walkerdinehasproblematizedtherelationshipoffemaleplayerstotheoftenmasculinized contentandcultureofvideogaming.Rachelfiguredouthowtonegotiatebetweenthesetwo genderedcontextsandparticipateinboth.Doesthismakehermoremasculine?Insome people'seyes,thatwouldbethecase.However,themorecomplexquestioniswhetherthe assumptionofmasculinetraitsthenmakesherlessfeminineoverall? 103

 AstudybyRoyseetal.(2007)foundthatwomen'snotionsoftheirgenderedselfaretiedto theirlevelofparticipationingameplay(p.573).Forthewomeninterviewedwhoplayeddigital gamesoverthreehoursperweek,theyfoundthatgamesandgendermutuallyconstituteeach other,meaningthesewomenhadfewerboundariesbetweentheirgameplayandreallife thanwomenwhodonotplaygameswiththesamefrequency(p.573).Thoughsomewomen mayundergoacomplexperformanceofgenderwhileplayingdigitalgames,manyareabledo sowithoutjeopardizingtheirabilitytobefeminine.Theirsituatedpleasuresofbeing competitiveorkillingotherplayersinagamedonot,tothematleast,threatentheirabilityto findpleasureinmorefeminizedactivitieslikesocializingorgroomingofappearance. Thewayacommunityregulatesgenderrolesisimportantbecauseitcanmakeparticipatingin masculinegenderedactivitiesmoreorlesspossibleforwomen.Whilemostofthefemale playersinthe5Ncommunitydidnotseeaproblemwiththeirparticipationindifferently genderedactivities,itispossiblethattheyhaveencounteredsocialcontextswhereitwas problematicforothers.RachelandLisawereabletoparticipateingroupsthatengagedin traditionallyfemininepracticesandgroupsthatengagedintraditionallymasculinepractices. Whathelpedthemdevelopthisabilitytonegotiatebothsituationsistoocomplextodrawsolid conclusionsaboutinthisthesis,butitlikelystemsfromacombinationofthesocialcontextof eachgrouptheyplayedwithandtheirindividualexperienceswithgaming.Itisnotable, however,thatthenegotiationbetweengenderrolesisanabilitythathashelpedLisaand Rachelsustaintheirparticipationingaming,andothermaledominatedenvironments,suchas

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thosetheylikelyencounteredatMIT. TheundergraduatepopulationatMITisalmosthalffemale,butbecauseofthegreaternumber ofmalefacultyandmalegraduatestudents,manydepartmentsstillmaintainmoretraditionally masculinizedculture.Thismasculinizedcultureisdifferentfromthemasculinityofmalesports teamsandoffraternities.Itisinsteadageekmasculinityfocusedlessonphysicaldominance thanpowersoftechnology,science,rationality,andintelligence.MargolisandFisher(2002),in theirstudyofcomputersciencemajorsatCarnegieMellonUniversity,explainedtheinfluence ofgeekcultureonpeoplewhoparticipateinit,butdonotidentifywithit: Anexceptionallyhighlevelofobsessionandexpertisehasbecometheexpectednorm andhasraisedthebarforthelevelofknowledge,interest,andexpertiseidentifiedwith computersciencemajors.Forwomen,seeingmostoftheirmalepeersastotally absorbedincomputing,thefearthatIdon'tseemtoloveitasmuchasthemen,and thereforeIdon'tbelong,lurksinmanywomen'sdoubt.(p.70) Theviewthatyouneedtobeobsessedwithcomputersordigitalgamestobeacceptedinthe culturesthatsurroundthemisanobstacletoparticipation.Peoplewhoworkwithcomputersor playdigitalgamesalsohaveotherinterests.Thewomenof5Nhavehelpedcultivatea communitywherehavingotherinterestsisthenorm.Gamesarejustoneofmanyactivities availableforthemtobeactivecontributorstotheircommunity. Thewomenofthe5Ncommunityhadexperiencesinmaledominatedandhighlygendered contexts,whetherplayingdigitalgamesorparticipatingincomputerscienceandphysicsclasses inhighschooloratMIT.Theyarepartofaparticularpopulationofwomenwhohavethissetof experiencesandhavelearnedhowtonegotiatebetweengroupsofdifferentgenders.Asthe 105

focusofthisthesis,theyarenotmeanttorepresentwomeningeneral,butinsteadtheystand asexamplesofwomenwhohavesustainedaninterestinvideogamingthroughhighschooland intocollegedespitethemasculinestereotypesassociatedwithit. Wehaveseenthatthewomeninterviewedcametodigitalgamingthroughdifferentpathsand haveenjoyedplayingarangeofgamegenres.Atayoungage,allofthewomenweresituatedin groupsoffriendswhoplayedandsharedknowledgeaboutgames.Boysweretheprimary membersofthegroupstheyplayedwith,butthiswasdueinparttocircumstancesinwhich boysweretheonlyonestheycouldplaydigitalgameswith.AsRachelsaid: [I]fyougavemethechoice,wouldyouratherplayDDR[DanceDanceRevolution]18or CounterStrike19?Iwouldn'thavechosenCounterStrike,butIguessthepeopleIhung outwithplayedthatallthetimeandifyoureallywantedtogamewiththemthat'swhat youhadtoplay.Itwasreallyfun.IsuckedatFPS[firstpersonshooter]games...soit wasn'tthatIlikedtoplaythemcompetitively,ortobegoodatthem,Iplaythemmore forthesocialaspect,tohangoutwithmyguyfriends. Formostofthewomenin5N,theirchoicesatayoungeragewerelimitedbyaccesseitherto gamingplatformsortogroupsoffriendstoplaywith.Allwereabletofindboth,butthese factorsconstrainedhowandwhattheyplayed.Now,incollege,someoftheseconstraintshave beenliftedastheyhaveaccesstomoreresourcesandmoreagencyintheirgamingdecisions. Theyareabletonegotiatetheirwaysthroughvariousgamingcontexts.Howdothesewomen, whonowhavemorecontrolovertheirowngamingcontextsandpractices,interactwiththeir peersandwiththegamestheyplay?
18

DanceDanceRevolutionisanarcadeorconsolegamethatrequiresplayerstostomponshapesundertheirfeet alongwiththerhythmmarkersshownonthescreen.Itisoftenplayedsolo,butsomesetupsallowfor competitionbetweentwoplayersatonce. 19 CounterStrikeisanextremelypopularmultiplayerfirstpersonshootergamethatallowsplayerstoplayon eitheraterroristorantiterroristteam.

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 DifferentContexts,DifferentModesofPlay Whilethereweresomecommonpatternsinthegaminghistoriesofthestudentswhohangout inthe5Nloungenamelybeingintroducedtogamesbymaleacquaintancesandfamily members,playingwithmostlymalegroupsofplayersinhighschool,andfeelingcomfortable interactinginthosegroupseachofthestudentsdiscusseddifferentpreferencesforgames, differentwaysofplayingthem,anddifferentpleasurestheyexperiencewhileplaying.These variationswereoftenrelatedtotheplayers'socialcontextsatthetime. Carr(2005)hasacknowledgedthecomplexrelationshipbetweensocialcontextsofgaming, gender,andplayers'preferences: Mappingpatternsinpreferencesispossiblebutpreferencesareanassemblage,made upofpastaccessandpositiveexperiencesandsubjecttosituationandcontext.The constituentsofpreference(suchasaccess)areshapedbygenderand,asaresult, gamingpreferencesmanifestalonggenderedlines...Toattributegamingtastesdirectly, solely,orprimarilytoanindividualsubjects'genderistoriskunderestimatingthe complexitiesofbothidentityandpreference.(p.479) Inaddressingstudiesthathavetriedtoascribegamingpreferencestoagender,Carrrecognizes thatthereismuchmoretounderstandinghowplayersinteractwithgamesthancanbe attributedtoanysinglefactor,especiallygender.EvidencefrommyresearchagreeswithCarr's assertionthatthereisabackandforthrelationshipofinfluencebetweengenderandgaming preferencesthatalsoispartofalargernetworkofpreviousexperienceandthecontextthe gametakesplacein.Iwasnotabletomaptheirgamepreferencesandplayingstylesalong genderlines,oranyonefactor.Insteadmyintervieweespreferencesandstyleschanged

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dependingonhowmuchexperiencetheyhad,whotheyplayedwith,andwhattechnologywas availabletothem. Therehavebeenseveralattemptstocategorizeplayertypesandplayingstyles.Bartle(1996) hasstudiedMUDs(online,usuallytextbasedvirtualworlds)andidentifiedfourapproachesto playingthatarisefromtheinterrelationshipoftwodimensionsofplayingstyle:actionversus interaction,andworldorientedversusplayeroriented(p.1).Thefourplayertypesrepresent thepossibleintersectionsofthesedimensionsandaredescribedasachievers,explorers, socialisers,andkillers(p.3).Bartlerecognizesthattheseapproachescanoverlapdepending onplayermood,butthatmany(ifnotmost)playersdohaveaprimarystyle(p.3).Intryingto makesenseofthedifferentplayingpreferencesofthewomenandmenIinterviewed,however, Ifoundthesecategoriesinsufficientforexplainingtherangeofmotivationsthestudentshad forplayinggames.Yee(2006)expandedBartle'splayertaxonomyinordertoorganizeplayer motivationsinMMORPG's.Hisfindingsresultedintenmotivationcomponentsthatareclosely tiedtothemechanicsandcultureofMMORPG's.Whilethecomponentsofferedawiderrange ofmotivationsforplay,includingrelationships,customizationandroleplaying,theyweretoo specifictotheMMORPGgenreofgamestoorganizetheplayermotivationsinthe5N community. Inordertomakesenseofthediversemotivationsandstylesfortheplayersin5N,Iadapted categoriesfromBrown&Vaughan(2009),whicharemorespecificthanBartle's,butnotas specifictoMMORPG'sasYee'sframework.Brown&Vaughancalltheircategoriesplay

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personalitiesordominantmodesofplay(p.65).Forthisthesis,thinkingofthemas personalitiesisnothelpfulbecausenoplayerstrictlyheldtoplayingaccordingtooneoverthe other.Consideringthemasmodesinsteadallowsmetospeakofthefluidityofstylesofmostof thestudentsin5Nandincludeinformationabouttheirchangingbehaviorsaccordingtowhat wasbeingplayed,whoelsewasplaying,andwhereitwasbeingplayed. Brown&Vaughan'smodesarenotspecifictodigitalgamesorgamesingeneral.Theyare relatedmoregenerallytoplay.Sincetheyarenottiedtogamingcontexts,theyallowforthe incorporationofopenendedtypesofplay.Theyarenotmeanttobeanexhaustivelistofthe waypeoplecanapproachplay,buttheyarehelpfulheretoorganizethegamingmotivations, pleasures,andstylesofthemenandwomenIinterviewed.BelowIwillusefourmodesthat builduponthoseidentifiedinBrown&Vaughan'swork,jokingaround,competing,directing, andcollecting,alongwithoneofmyown,socializing.

Jokingaround Allofthestudentsin5Njokedaround,eventhosewhodidn'tplaygames.Asexplainedearlier, jokingaroundwasoneofthemostvaluedformsofinteractioninthe5Nlounge.Studentstold recurringjokesaboutcharacterswhileplayingBrawlandparticipatedinwittybanterduring moviesorTVshows.Laughterwasaconstantpresenceinthelounge.Thegaminginthe5N loungetookplaceinaplayfulenvironmentwhereruleswerestretchedandmodifiedto maintainalightheartedandfunenvironmentforallparticipants.Patexplainedhowthepeople intheloungeappreciatedfunniness: Pat:Welikethingsthatarefunny.WehaveaFacebookpagewherepeoplepostthings 109

theythinkarefunny.Welikethingsthatareawesome.There'snotalotofTVwatching, wewatchalotofFamilyGuy.IfnooneturnsofftheTVafterFamilyGuy,we'llwatch TwoandaHalfMen.LotofpeoplelikeHouse,butwerarelywatchHouseontheTV becauseHouseistooserious.Wedon'twanttoinfluencepeoplewithseriousness.

Patgavecriteriaforwhatisvaluedparticipationforthestudentsinthelounge.Ifsomethingis tooserious,itdidnotbelongthere.Thisisnottosaythatseriousthingsdidnothappeninthe lounge.Aswesawearlierpeopledidtheirhomework,ate,andworkedoutgroupissuesinthe lounge,butalwaysinawaythatkeptthemoodinthespacelightheartedandhumorous. Often,theseseeminglyproductiveactivitiesactuallymaintainabalancebetweenplayand work.Brown&Vaughanhaveproposedthat[t]hequalitythatworkandplayhaveincommon iscreativity...Playhelpsusdealwithdifficulties,providesasenseofexpansiveness,promotes masteryofourcraft,andisanessentialpartofthecreativeprocess(p.127).Studentsinthe loungeplayfullyapproachedmoreserioustaskslikecookingdinnerordoingtheirhomeworkto helpeachotherexplorenewpossibilitiesandsolvedifficultproblems.

Competing Severalstudieshavehypothesizedthatfemaleplayersareaversetoplayingcompetitively,or thatcompetitionisinconflictwithdoingafemininegender.(SchottandHorrell,2000; Walkderine,2006)AsIdiscussedabove,JensonanddeCastell(2008)arguethatcompetitionis notincompatiblewithfemininity,butthattherearewaysofbeingcompetitive,including benevolentcompetition,whichcanbeconstructedasmoreorlessmasculineorfeminine(p. 17).Boththemaleandfemaleplayersin5Nenjoywinning,butformostofthemitisnotthe primaryreasontheyplay.Throughjokingbanterandtrashtalk,mostoftheplayersrelishina winningmoment,buttheydonotlettheenjoymentofdominatingthegamelingermuch 110

longer.Rather,thegroupmovesontothenextround,gameoractivitywiththebeliefthat anyonecouldwinorlosenexttime. Benevolentcompetitionwasnottheonlytypeofcompetitionthefemaleplayerswere interestedin.CompetitioncameupininterviewswithbothJessicaandMei,whoeachsaidthat theyhadplayeddigitalgamesinothersocialcontextswherefellowplayershadpickedonthem ormadefunofthem.Thepleasuretheygotfromwinninginthesesituationswasmoreintense. Eachofthemdescribedatimeshewonwhileplayingagainstpeoplewhohadpickedonherin thepast: Jessica:Well,[amaleplayerfromdownstairs]isagamerdefinitely...Therewasone dayIwasreallymad,soIdragged[him]andtwoothersto5NtoplaySmash.They're completelybadatit.SoIcheeredupbecause,dude,I'mbeatingupthreebigguys! (laughs)So,[he's]thisbuff,kindofscarylookingguy.SoI'mbeatinghimandI'mlike, Yes! Mei:...Iwasreallyhappythisonetimebecause[twomaleplayers]alwaysmadefunof me.Therewasthisreallyfatcharacterin[LeagueofLegends,aMMORPG]...andthey're like,Youcan'tkillhimever.Someandtwofreshman,wedidatwoontwo...andwe likewhoopedtheirasses...andhewasplayingthereallyfatguy...andIkilledhim!Like4 times,Iwasreallyhappy.Andtheyendedupsurrendering.Itwaslikeeighttotwo.We won!Causetheykeptonmakingfunofmeforbeingacrappyplayer,andIwaslike, pwned20yourasses! Bothwomentookpleasureinhavingdefeatedsomeonewhohadteasedormadefunofthem inthepast.Theytookonmorecompetitivepersonalitiesbecausetherewasmoreatstakefor them.Theyhadareasontowanttoprovethemselvesasskillfultotheotherplayers.These instancesweredifferentcontextsfromtheplaytheyusuallyengagedinwhileplayinginthe5N lounge,wheretherewaslessemphasisonwinning.
20

ThewordpwnedismostoftenusedinInternetanddigitalgamingcontextstomeanthatyoubeatsomeone.

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 Directing MeiandPatwerebothnamedbyotherintervieweesasleadersinthe5Ngroupthoughthey hadverydifferentstyles.Theywereusuallythestudentsdirectingthesocializingaroundthe gamesbeingplayed.PatwasmentionedafewtimesasAndres0.9,ajokethat acknowledgestheinfluenceAndreshadonformingtheexuberant,trashtalkingstyleofplaying gamesinthelounge.The0.9playsonthewaymostsoftwareisnamedwhenitprogresses intoanewerversion.Inthiscase,however,PatisdeemedAndres0.9insteadof2.0 becauseAndreswassuchabigpersonalitytoreplaceinthecommunity. Playingwithtraditionalgenderroles,RachelexplainedhowPatandMeiareoftenseenas havingtwoverydifferentwaysofdirectingthecommunity: WeoftenjokethatMeiisourfatherfigureandPatisourmotherfigure.CausePat's morelike,hefocusesmoreonthesocialaspectandmakingsureeverybody'shavingfun, whereasMei'slike,Noyoumustbegood,youmustbereallygood.

RachelpresentedMeiandPatasleaders,butinwaysthatresembledthetraditionalrolesofthe oppositegender.Meiwasseenasacoachinthecommunitysomeonewhopushedother studentstoplaytothebestoftheirabilities.Patwasthesocialleader,directingconversations, suggestingactivitiesforthegrouptodo,andmakingsureeveryonewashavingagoodtime. Theywereperformingrolesthattraditionallyhavebeenassociatedwiththeoppositegender themalestudentasthecaringmother,thefemalestudentasthetoughlovingfather.Inthe 5Nlounge,genderroleswereplayedwithandwerenotheldasrigidlyasinothercommunities. Theconsequencesofdoingsomethingtraditionallyassociatedwithanothergenderwerelow.

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 Collecting Rachelwastheplayerwhomostexplicitlyexpressedaninterestincollecting.Shewasableto findpleasureinaccumulationbyplayingPokemon,agamethatincludeshundredsofcharacters thatplayerscansearchforandcapturefortheircollections. Rachel:I'mahugecollector...I'mprobablyOCD[ObsessiveCompulsiveDisorder]about collecting.I'mapackrat.Iguessthataspectofthegameandhowthere'slikeasetway toprogressthroughthegame,butthere'salotofdeviationsthroughoutthegame.You havetogothroughallofthemandgetbadges,trytogetthroughPokemonLeagueand collectthemall,butthere'salotofsidegamesyoucandelveintoandhiddenitemsand tweaksinthegame.It'sreallyfuntogothroughandfindthemall.Especiallybackthen whenwedidn'thaveanywalkthroughs.Itreallywasjustanexplorationprocess,andI thinkthatwasahugepartofoursocialgaming.

ForRachel,Pokemonofferedheramixedpleasureofexploringandcollecting.Sheself

identifiedasapackratatermmostoftenusedtodescribethecollectionofphysicalobjects. SheenjoyedboththecollectingofthecharactersingameandthePokemonrelatedfigurines outofgame.Theactofcollectingisnotjustapleasureinandofitselfthough.ThePokemon charactersonecollectsinthegamecanhelponeadvance,becauseastrongergroupof characterswillhelpaplayerwinbattles. Thereexistsablurrylineingamesbetweencollectingforthepleasureitbrings,andcollecting items,coins,orpointstoprogressinthegameoftencalledachieving.Jasondescribedhow heusedhistimeplayingalonetodothis: Jason:IfI'mbymyself,Iendupachievementhuntingcauseit'ssomethingtodowhen thestoryisover...I'llplayagainjusttotwiddle...withoutadirection,noendgoal.You getthefeelingthatyoucouldbedoingsomethingmuchmoreproductive.Partofthe appealoftheachievementsandtheiranalogsingeneral,becauseitgivesyousomething toaimfor,'speciallyincaseslikeBrawlorHalo.You'realwaysstrivingtogetbetter,but 113

thatfeelslikeworkalotofthetime. Interviewer:Soachievementisgoodwhenyou'reonyourown? Jason:Yeah,it'slessimportantwhenI'mplayingsocially,'causethefunshiftstobeing morerelatedtothecompany.Theinteractionthere,becauseit'sasharedexperience youcantalkaboutit,respondtoeachotheryoucancritiqueorcomplimenteachother, itsnotsomuchaboutkillingtime. Jasonexplainedhowhecouldhavedifferentpleasuresinthesamegamedependingonhis socialcontextwithotherpeopleoralone.Thiskindofachievingmightleadtoaslippage betweenplayandwork,aswesawabovewithRachel'sexplanationofhowsheplaysgames whenshewantstotakeabreakfromhomeworkinordertofeelasenseofaccomplishment. Thisapproachactuallychangedfromwhenshewasinhighschool: Rachel:Iwasnotlikethatinhighschool.WhenIgamedinhighschoolitwasforactual entertainment.Like,IwantedtoplayDDRorPokemonforthesakeofplayingPokemon. Notlike,Ineedabreak,nowIshouldplayPokemon.

Collectingcanbepleasurableinandofitself,butitcanalsobecomeworklikeandcompetitive, andinsuchinstancesitrevealstheproductivefluidityofBrown&Vaughan'scategories.We oftenthinkaboutplayastheoppositeofwork,butBrown&Vaughan(2009)actuallysawplay andworkasmutuallysupportive.Theyarguedthatpeopleneedboththenewnessofplay

andthepurposeofwork(p.126).ForRachel,thecontextofMIT,whichplacesvalueonbeing constantlybusy,influencedherviewthatgamingisnotawasteoftimelikewatchinga movie.Whereassheusedtoplayforthesakeofplaying,Rachelnowseesplayingasawayof accomplishingduringabreakfromschoolwork.Rachelstillplaysthesamegame,butnowshe hasadifferentmotivationbecauseofhernewcontext.

ThemostpopularreasonforgamingamongallthepeopleIinterviewedin5N,maleand

Socializing

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female,wastosocializewithotherpeople. Rachel:ThethingthatmadeRockBandsoappealingtomewasthatitwasa communityeffort.IfIhadstartedplayingitbymyself,Iprobablywouldn'thavelikedit, andIstilldon'tlikeplayingbymyself,butwhenIplaywithmyfriends,it'sreallyfun. Oneofmyfriends,Mei,kindofdrilleditintous,causeshe'skindofhardcoreabout RockBand.

Interviewer:Whatarethegamegenresyoulike? Jason:...Typicallyoffline,even[games]withstrongonlinecommunitiesI'llplayoffline. PartlybecauseofthetimeandthecommunityIdon'tfindcompelling.Beingincollege youaresurroundedbycommunityalready.Itsmuchmoreengagingtotalktopeople yourage,yourlevel,withwhomyouhavealotincommon,don'tseenecessityofgoing online.Especiallysinceyou'resurroundedbygameplaysopeoplegetfixatedonthat. Becomeshardertotalktopeoplethatway...Rhythmgamestoo,IlikeRockBand,Igeta kickoutofit.Ithasaparticipatoryaspecttoit. RachelandJasonexpresshowmuchtheyenjoyplayingagamecollaborativelywithothers.This isespeciallytrueofgameslikeRockBandwhereplayerscanhelporsaveoneanotherwhile workingtowardsacommongoalofcompletingasongorearningmorepoints.LisaandJessica alsorealizedthattheyplaydifferentlywhentheyarearoundothers.Somethingthatcouldbe mundanewhenplayingalonebecomesperformativeandmorefunwithagroupoffriends: Lisa:Idefinitelygetinto[RockBand]sometimes.Ijuststartwailingrandomlyandnot actuallyplayingtherealnotes.Butwhenyou'resingingitwillactuallyhelpthegroup,it willbebettersocialatmosphereintheroomifyouactuallyactoutyoursingingandstuff orwhenyou'replayingguitarifyoudance.

Jessica:...asIsaidI'mmostlyasocialgamer.Ifthere'snobodyplaying,I'mnotgoingto play...likesomeofmyhighschoolfriends;theystillplaybecausetheyhaveonline friends.Ijustneverfeltverycomfortablewiththat...Itsjustboring.IgoonConquer...if I'mbadatsomethingIcangokillabunchofthings...butintheend,there'snothing accomplished,nosocialinteraction...AndI'mjustlike,Idon'tseethepoint...Iguess Smashislikethat;gokillthesethreepeople;butit'smorethanthat.You'veheardus play... Jessicareferredtothewittybanterandtrashtalkingthatwentonwhenmorethanoneperson playedBrawlinthelounge.Brawlboutswereneveraboutwhowins,somuchaswhocould

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helpkeepthewittybantergoingormakefunofthecharactersandtheirmovesthemost.Lisa andJessicabothvaluedtheperformativenatureofplayingwithotherpeople.Theycouldplay RockBandorBrawlalone,butthentheirpurposewouldbemostlyfocusedonbeatingthe game.Thepleasureinplayingthesegamesinsteadcamefrominteractingwithotherpeople andhavinganentertainingexperience.

Whatisagame?Whoisagamer? Indoingthisresearch,Iwasinterestedinwhetherornotmyintervieweesconsideredgamingas partoftheiridentityandhowthatmightaffecthowtheyplayed.Inordertoexplorethis,I askedthestudentswhoplayedgamesin5Nwhethertheyconsideredthemselvesgamersor not,aswellaswhattheyconsideredtobeagame.Boththetermsgamerandgamehave takenonspecializednotionswithindigitalgamingcultureandtheyusuallyprecludenondigital gamingliketabletoporcardgames.Theboundariesofwhomorwhatislabeledwitheach termarecontinuallycontestedandredrawn. SchottandHorrell,(2000)concludedtheirstudyongirlsandwomenwhoplaydigitalgamesby offeringanalternativeconcepttothemasculinisedheavygamer:thegirlgamer(p.50).But thisnewcategorizationresultedinthecreationofafemalestereotypethatdoesn'trecognize therangeofgamingstylesandmotivationsthatgirlsandwomenhave.Theirfinding,suchas: girlgamersrejectedgamessuchassportsgamesandviolent,combatfocusedgamesthatare notopentocreativeinterpretation,domoretocompartmentalizetheinterestsoffemale players,thanshowtheirdiversityofinterests(p.50).

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Intheexcerptsbelowfrommyinterviews,thesubjectsusethetermgameasasynonymfor digitalgame.Theabsenceoftalkaboutnondigitalgameswasmostlikelybecausethe interviewswereinitiallyframedtobeaboutdigitalgames.Ithadbeenmadecleartothe intervieweethatIwasprimarilyinterestedindigitalgaming,sowhenIaskedaquestionsuchas Whatisorisnotagametoyou?theyansweredintermsofdigitalgames. Someofthestudentsin5Nrelatedstaticimpressionsofwhatagameis,suchasMeiwhosaid thatgameshadtorequiresomekindofskill.Thiswasinresponsetoaskingheraboutthe popularFacebookgameFarmville,whichshedidnotconsideragame.GameslikeFarmvilleand TheSims,bothofwhichhappentobeverypopularwithfemaleplayers,aresometimescalled simulationsinsteadofgames.Theyareopenendedandoftenmimicanaspectofreallife.Jason recognizedthisasanareawherewhatisandisn'tagamestartedtoblur: Jason:SimsIwouldconsideragame;Idon'tplayFarmvillesoIreallydon'tknow. There'sthatfineline,orblurry,betweengamesandsimulation...withdigitalgamesit's easytomakethedistinctionifit'snotagame,it'samovie.

Rachel'sdefinitionofagameismoredynamic.Shestatesthatherconceptionhaschangedover theyearsdependingonhersocialcontext: Rachel:Forvideogames,definitionshavekindofchangesthroughoutmylife.Inhigh school,avideogameeithermeantanMMOoranFPS.PeopleneverthoughtofDDRor RockBandasavideogamesomuch.ToplayavideogamewaslikeSmash,Counter Strike,WOWguildwars...IfyouweretotalkaboutPokemoninmyhighschool...they'd consideritagame,butnotagamergame.It'snotatypicalgamethatwouldbeplayed bythegamerbunch. Interviewer:Whatmadethatdistinction? Rachel:Idon'tthinkhandheldgameswerebig...ItwasalotofconsolegamesandPC games.Idon'tknowwhatitwasabouthandheldgamesthatdidn'tappealtothem... Interviewer:WhataboutFarmvilleandtheSims? Rachel:IplayCafeWorldallthetimeonFacebook.Yeahitwouldbeagame.Notquite inthesocialcontextofagamergame,butIfeelliketheusualtypeofgameforgamer 117

communityisconsolegamesorPCgames.Whereasontheoutskirtsofthatwouldbe handheldgames,onlineflashgames. HereRachelexplainedwhatagamewasinhersocialcontextofhighschool.Sheadmittedto beingapersonwhoplaysgamesmostlyforsocialreasons,andweseeinheranswerthatshe waslookingtohowotherpeopleinhersurroundingsdefinedgamestoconstructherown understandingofwhatdidanddidnotfitin.GamesforRachelinhighschoolmeant, MMORPG'sandFPS'sthatpeopleplayedtogether.Otherpopulargamesthatwerenotplayed withothersweregames,butnotgamergames.Shecreatedthecategoriesgamergames, socialgames,andhandheldgamestodifferentiatebetweenthegamessheplayedandsaw othersplay.Thegamergameswerethefirstcategoryshedrewout,anditwasthemost sociallyacceptabletypeofgametodiscussandplaywithothersatschool.Shealsopointedout theimportanceofplatform,whichweseecomeupaswellwhenpeopledefinegamer.Console gamesandPCgameswererelatedwithbeingagamerandplayingmorecompetitively. Contributingtothisunderstandingcouldbethatthemosthighprofilegamingtournaments usuallyinvolveconsolegamingoracomputerLANparty.Handheldgameswerenotpopular, althoughsheisnotsurewhy;butitislikelytheywereassociatedwithyoungerormore femininegenderedgames. EachpersonIinterviewedhaddifferentcriteriaforwhatisagameandwhoisagamer.For games,thecriteriaranged,fromwhetherornottherewasagoaltowhatplatformitwas playedontowhetheritrequiredstrategy.Aperson'scriteriaforwhoisagamerdependedon thelevelofexperienceofthepeoplewhoplayedgamesaroundthem,whatwasbeingplayed, andthelevelofintensityofplay. 118

 Themeaningsofgamertotheintervieweeswerejustasvariedastheywereforgamebutthere wasmoreatstakeinthedefinitionbecausetheywerealsodefiningthemselves.Fronetal. (2007)exploretheimplicationsofhowgamerhascometobegenerallydefinedindigital gamingculture. Thenotionofthegamerwhichhasdefinedtherhetoricofgamemarketingand fandom,hascreatedasubculturewhichisexclusionaryandalienatingtomanypeople whoplaygames,butwhodonotwanttobeassociatedwiththecharacteristicsand gameplaystylescommonlyassociatedwithhardcoregamers.Thisstereotypemay actuallypreventsomepeoplefromplayinggamesentirely.(p.310) AsIwillshowthegamerstereotypethatFronetal.discussaboveisaguidepostforhowmost ofthe5Nstudentsmadesenseoftheirowngamingidentity.Anotherfactorthatmadethis stereotypeevenmoreexaggeratedfortheseplayersin5Nwasthatthestudentsweresituated atMIT,wherethereisaheavygamingandgeekpresencethatcanraisethebarofwhoself identifiesasagamer.Thestudentsdefinedthemselvesrelativetootherpeoplearoundthem. ForsomestudentsinthisgroupatMIT,gamerstoodforthemostextremeplayers.Itwasa labelreservedforonlythemostdedicatedandskilledplayersoftraditionalhardcoredigital games. DuringaninterviewwithJessicaandMei,Iuncoveredatensionbetweenthemsurroundingthe negativeconnotationsometimesassociatedwiththetermgamer: Mei:IguessIplayalotmoregamesthanJessica.I'manavidgamer. Jessica:Idon'tconsidermyselfagamer. Interviewer:Howdoyoutwodefinegamer? Mei:Iguesssomeonewhoplayseveryday?NowthatI'mnotatmyparents'Iplaya gameofLeagueofLegendseveryday. Jessica:Ithinkit'sforme,itspeoplewhofeellikethere'ssomethingmissingifthey 119

don'tplayagame.Kindoflikeaddicts. Mei:Hey! Jessica:Ifwetookawayallyourgamesupplies,wouldyoufeellost? Mei:Yes,Iwouldinfact Jessica:Thereyougo.Withoutmystuff,I'dbeok. Interviewer:Soyouthinkitbecomesapartofyouridentity? Jessica:IstoppedplayingConqueronceIgotherebecausenoneofmyfriendsIonly wentonlinebecausemyfriendswereonlineandIwouldjustplaywiththembecauseI can'tcontactthemthroughanyothermeans.AndthenSmashissomethingIjustdo, Ohheywe'reallplayingSmash,playSmash...Idon'tfeellikeitspartofwhoIam.They don'tsay,OhsheplaysSmashalot,orShegoesonlinealot.Ijustdon'treallythink thatit'sthatmuchapartofmeiftherewasnoWiianymore.I'dfeelsadcauseIwould missplayingbutIwouldn'tbelike,OhIneedtogogetaWii. Mei'scriterionissimpleandonefaceted;frequencyofplayismostimportanttoherwhen decidingwhoisagamer.ToJessica,though,gamingforagamerismoreofahabit.Meiis immediatelyoffendedbyJessica'sview.Thetwostudentshaveverydifferentconceptionsof thetermgamer,whichareinfluencedbytheirexperienceswithgamingandtheirmotivations forplaying.Jessica'sidentityismuchlessintegratedwithgaming.Sheframesgamingasan excusetosocialize,notasanactivitythatoffersenoughpleasureforhertoparticipateinitifno oneelseisplaying. Surprisingly,LisaprobablyplayedthemostdigitalgamesofanyoneIinterviewed(threetofour hourseverydayandmoreontheweekends),yetshedistancedherselffromthetraditional gamerstereotype.Shemadeadistinctionbetweenhardcoreandnonhardcoregamers. Juul(2010)hasrecognizedthisgrowingdichotomybetweenstereotypesofhardcoreand, whathecalls,casualplayers: Stereotypeofahardcoreplayer...hasapreferenceforsciencefiction,zombies,and fantasyfictions,hasplayedalargenumberofvideogames,willinvestlargeamountsof timeandresourcestowardplayingvideogames,andenjoysdifficultgames. 120

Stereotypeofacasualplayer...hasapreferenceforpositiveandpleasantfictions,has playedfewvideogames,iswillingtocommitlittletimeandfewresourcestoward playingvideogames,anddislikesdifficultgames.(p.8) Juulhasadmittedthesearestereotypesthatdonotfittherealityofmostplayers,buttheyare representativeofcommonconceptionsoftwoverydifferenttypesofplayer.Inherinterview, Lisadrewasimilardistinctionbetweenhergroupoffriendsandhardcoregamers.However, shetiedherdescriptionsmoretotheplatformandthelevelofcompetitionthanthekindsof gamesorhowmuchtimewasspentplaying: Interviewer:Doyouconsideryourselfagamer?Whatkindsoftermsdoyouuse aroundgaming?Doyoucallyourfriendsotherthings? Lisa:Idefinitelycallus,allmyfriends,gamers,butIwouldsaythatwe'remore leisure,softcore,artisticorfun,socialgaming.Ipicturegaminglikethere'shardcore, whichismostlyFPStheygetintotournamentsandcompetitiononline.MostlylikeXbox centered,Iwouldseeaslikehardcoregaming.AndsoftcorewouldbelikeNintendo,the Wii,mostlylikejustfungamesyouplaywithyourfamilyandfriends. Interviewer:Soisthatwhatyouthinkisimportant?I'veheardthatbefore,thatyou're softcoreyou'reacausal,you'redoingitforthefunandifyou'rehardcoreyou're doingitforsomethingelse,likework.Doyouagreewiththat?Arehardcoregamers doingitforfun? Lisa:Ithinkthere'sfuninitforthemto,butItrytostickmoretojustplainfunandless competitionfun.

Lisaacceptedthelabelofgamerhereforherselfandherfriends,butquicklyspecifiedasub

categorymarkedbymediatingtermslikeleisure,softcore,artistic,fun,andsocial. Sheaddedthesemodifiersbeforethetermgamertodistinguishthequalitiesthatmadeher differentfromastereotypicalhardcoregamer.Sheunderstoodherwayofgamingtobemore abouthavingfunthancompeting,whichsuggeststhatshesawatensionbetweencompetition andfun.Somepeoplewouldsaythatmorecompetitiongeneratesmorefun,butLisastated thatthiswasnottrueforher.Attimes,shefitthestereotypeofhardcoregamer,butshe resistedthelabelgamer.Whilesomepeoplewhoplaygameswanttodissociatethemselves

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fromcasualorsocialgaming,Lisahadtheoppositereaction.Sheidentifiedmorewithcasual gamingbecauseshedoesnotwanttoidentifywithhighlevelsofcompetitionorgamingthatis tooserious. Whenaskedaboutgamers,Rachel'sdefinitionchangeddependingonhercontext.Shewas affiliatedwithagroupofpeopleshecalledgamersinhighschoolbutdidn'tfeellikeshewasa partofthegroup.Shedidplaygames,somegamergames,butalsootherkindsofgames.She calledherselfmoreofacasualorsocialgamer: Interviewer:Doyoucallyourselfagamer? Rachel:Neverthoughtaboutthis.Mydefinitionofagamerhaschangedalot throughoutmylife.Inhighschool,gamerswerethepeoplewhosattogetherandhad LANpartiesontheweekendandtalkedaboutCounterStrikeallthetimeandguildwars andstuff.Therewasaclearlydefinedgamerbunchatourschool.Iwasnotpartofthe gamerbunch.Iwasprobablyintheoutskirtsofthegamerbunch.Ihadconnectionsto thegamerbunchthroughmyAPcomputerscienceclass,buteventhepeopleinmyAP computerscienceclassnotallofthemwereinthegamerbunch.Alotofuswerejust friendswiththepeoplewhoweregamers...Ifeellikethepeoplewhoaregamersarethe oneswhoarereallyintoit.That'sliketheirmainhobby.Whenagamecomesoutthey'll bethefirstpeopletobuyit...Whereasthere'sjustcasualgamers,likeI'mkindofa casualgamer.Orasocialgamer,likeMMO'saremoresocialgamingforme.Idon'tgo onforlevelingupandthesakeofguildraids.Igoontohangoutwithmyfriends.

Rachelselfidentifiedsomewherebetweengamersandnongamers.Shehasplayedavarietyof digitalgames,butitwasnottheonlypastimeshehad.Shementionedthatherpurposein gamingwasnottolevelupbuttosocialize.Sheemphasizedthatgamersplaygamesforthe sakeofwinningorprogressinginthegame,whichwasnotasimportanttoher. Sohowdidthetermgamercometorepresentsuchanicheofgamingculture?Ifsomeone playsgamesoften,butdoesitforareasonotherthanwinningorcompeting,whyarethey

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calledagamer?Shouldtheywanttobecalledone?Thereistensionaroundtheterm gamerbecauseitisbeingusedtorepresenttoosmallofaportionofthegamingparticipants. Itisasifthetermfilmgoerwasonlyusedtorepresentteensthatwatchscarymovies.There arespecializedtermsinfilmthatdescribeslicesofthefilmgoingaudience,forwhomwatching filmsiscentraltotheiridentity;forexample,cineaste.Withgaming,however,thereexistsno suchnuancedterminologyforthegrowingnumberofidentitiesassociatedwithit.Also,the termswedouseupholdnormativeunderstandingsofgender.Sofar,theindustryandthe peoplewhogamehavebeensofteningorsharpeningthetermgamertofittheirpurposes. Thefutureofthetermisuncertain,andevenifitdisappearsfromthenomenclatureofgaming culture,woulditsbanishmenteliminatetheviewthatconsolegamingisaboy'sworld? JasonandPat,thetwomalemembersofthe5NcommunitywhoIinterviewed,bothidentified themselvesasgamers,buttheyalsohadflexibleunderstandingsofwhatthatmeant.WhenI askedPathowhedefinedagamer,hisanswerwasmoreopenendedthanthehardcoreand casualstereotypesofferedabove.Heputthedecisionofwhetherornotsomeoneisagamer inthehandsofthepersonbeinglabeledinawaythatisreflectiveoftheinclusivecultureofthe lounge: Interviewer:Wouldyoucallthepeopleonthisfloorgamers?Whatdoesthatterm meantoyou? Pat:Idon'tthinkIwouldcallanyoneagamer.That'satermthatyoucanonlydecideif itappliestoyourselfornot.IknowsomepeoplewhoplayonlythingslikeWiiSportsand theyconsiderthemselvesgamersbecausetheygetreallyintowhattheydo.Orpeople wholikecasualplayreallyhardcoregameslikeHaloorGearsofWar. Interviewer:Soyouthinkhastobeaselfdefinition? Pat:YeahIdo.Sosayyouonlyplayonegamebutyou'rereallyintoit,oryouplaya wholebunchofgamesbarelyscratchingthesurface.It'shardtosay.WouldIconsider myselfagamer,yes.ButIcan'texplainwhy.It'snotlikeanobjective;I'veplayedthis 123

percentageofthegamesthatexistintheworldforthisamountoftime. Interviewer:Soisitlikewhenyouembraceit? Pat:Yeahit'sanidentityyouhavetoembrace. Patseemedtorecognizetheroleofsocialcontextandthemultitudeofcriteriathatare involvedinmakingsenseofwhatagamermightbe.Underhisterms,thepeopleplayinggames havetheagencytoclaimthatidentityforthemselves.Thisisnottoignorethatmanypeople, includingthegamesindustry,donothavetheabilitytonamewhoisinthegamerclubandwho isout,butPatgivesusaglimpsehereofanewapproachtodefininggamerthatpermitseach persontodecideforthemselvesiftheywillaccept,reject,ornegotiatethelabel.Thisapproach isonepossibilityfornegotiatingtheterm,butfornowgamerislikelynotahelpfultermfor describingmostpeoplewhoplaydigitalgames.

Conclusion
Thischapterexplainstheindividualexperiences,motivations,andpreferencesofsome membersofthe5Nplaycommunity.Therearemanyotherstudentswhoparticipatein activitiesintheloungeorpassthroughnowandagain.Theirstoriesarelikelytooverlapat pointswiththosepresentedhere,butmorelikelytheywouldvarybasedontheirowngaming histories(orlackthereof),playingstyles,andsocialcontexts. Understandingplayersattheindividuallevelisimportantinordertoshowthattheir relationshipstogamesarenotstatic,butinsteadareconstantlychangingalongwiththeir currentsocialcontext.AsIshowed,outofthecurrentwomenwhoplaydigitalgamesinthe5N lounge,mostofthemplayeddigitalgamesgrowingupandtheyplayedalongsidemales.There

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werenotmanyfemalegamingmentorsforthemwhilegrowingup.Thismeantthatstudents likeLisa,Mei,andRachelhadtonegotiatehowtoparticipateinmalemajoritycontexts.Now, whileattendingaprestigiousuniversitythatfocusesonscienceandtechnologyandhasalong traditionofsupportingageekculture,itispossiblethattheywilldrawontheirabilitiesto interactintraditionallymaledominatedfields.Therewillalsobenewrolesforthesestudents asmentorstootherwomenwhotheyintroducetodigitalgameplay.Thisinformalmentoring systemisalreadyoccurring,asIshowedinChapterOneanditwillbeinterestingtoobserve whetherthereisashiftinwhointroducesthenextgenerationofgirlstodigitalgaming. WorkingoffofBrown&Vaughan'smodesofplay,Iwasabletomapthevarietyofmotivations forplayandgamepreferencesexhibitedbythestudentsinthe5Ncommunity.Thesearenot genderspecific,butinsteadarerelatedtowhataccessthestudentshavetogames,their experiencesgamingindifferentcontexts,andwhatkindsofplaytheygetpleasurefrom. Socializingwasthemostprevalentmotivationforboththefemaleandmalestudents,whichis nottypicallyaqualityassociatedwithdigitalgameplay.Theindividualmotivationstosocialize whilegaminghelpedmakethe5Ncommunitywhatitwas,andtheyalsoallowedroomfor otherinterestsandsocialmotivationsofothernongamingstudents.Thesestudentsplayed digitalgamesthatrequiredothercontextsoraccesstoequipmentlikeRockBandorMMORPG's likeWorldofWarcraft,buttheywerealsointerestedinthekindofcolocated,multiplayer,low stakessocialgamingthatwentonthe5Nloungeasawayofinteractingwiththeirfriendsand beingexposedtootheractivitieslikedoinghomework,eating,orwatchingmovies.

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Inthesamewaythatgamingpreferencesandmotivationsamongthestudentsvarydepending oncontext,sodidtheirunderstandingofthetermsgameandgamer.Whilethesamplesize wastoosmalltodrawgeneralconclusions,itwasinterestingthatthetwomaleplayersdidnot hesitatetocallthemselvesgamers,butmostofthewomenresistedthattermormodifiedit withwordslikesocialorcasual.Gamerhascometobeatermthatistiedtoastereotype thatdoesnot(orneverdid)effectivelydescribetherangeofpeoplewhoplaydigitalgames. Becauseofthis,women,andpresumablymen,whodonotwanttoidentifywiththehardcore stereotypefeeltheneedtonegotiatethemeaningofthetermandchangeittofittheirown gamingstyles.Gameralsofailstoincludemanypeople,likeJanelle,whoplayonlynondigital games.Themorenarrowlypeopledefinethesetermsthemoretheycanbeleveragedto excludeplayersfromgamingculture.Forthispaper,findingtheessenceornatureofeachof thewordsisnotrelevant(orpossible).Instead,thefocushasbeenonunderstandinghow peoplesociallyconstructthemeaningsofeachterm,whatfactorsaffectthosemeaning,and howthosemeaningscanaffecttheparticipationofothers.

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CONCLUSION

Groupsofplayerslikethe5Ncommunityhaveyettoberesearchedextensively.Theyareyoung adults,whogathertogetherinacommonspacewithasharedinteresttosocializewithone anotherandplaygames.Itislikelythattherearesimilargroupswhoplaygamestogetherin othercollegedormsorintheirhomes,butresearchersdonotfocusonthemoften.Inmany ways,the5Ncommunityisapositivemodelforwhatmainstreamgamingculturemaylooklike withinthenexttenyears,withmoreequalnumbersofmenandwomen,peopleofcolor,and participantswithdiverseinterestsandmotivationsforplaying.Ilocatedseveralaspectsthat werekeytoattractingadiverserangeofparticipantsandmaintaininganinclusivecommunity.

UsingworkingdefinitionsfromSalenandZimmerman(2004),Iemphasizedthedistinction betweengamesashavingquantifiablegoalsandplayasbeingmoreopenendedtoshowthat the5Ncommunityvaluedtheplayprocessovertheresultsofwhowonorlostgames.The studentsplayedgamesthatforthemostpartwerenotcollaborativeandthathadquantifiable goals.Formalgoalswereimportantinhelpingshapetheplayprocessandinmotivatingeach studentsactionsduringthegame;moststudentsenjoyedwinning.However,whetherornot someonewonthegamedidnotaffecthowheorshewasacceptedinthecommunity.Instead, howthestudentsinteractedduringthegamewithhumor,kindness,andsociability

Focusonplayratherthangames

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determinedthevaluedmembersofthecommunity. The5Ncommunity'sfocusontheplayprocesshelpedmaketheirgameplaymoreinclusive. Studentswholackedexperienceorskillwerenotkeptfromparticipating.Severalofthewomen inthecommunitywerefortunatetohavelonghistoriesofplayingdigitalgames,accessto consoles,andnetworksofotherexperiencedfriendstohelpthembuildupskilllevels.This addedtotheirabilitiestoparticipateinthegamingontheirfloor.However,therewerefemale andmalestudentswhodidnothavethisbackgroundandwerestillabletoparticipateinone formofgamingoranother.Thesharedgoalofalltheplayers,whichwastotakepartina playfulsocialactivity,influencedthestandardstheyusedtoacceptnewplayers.Thesocial barrierstoentryandtheinterpersonalstakeswerealmostalwayslow. Thegamesthatwereplayedbythestudentswereusuallyeasytolearn,andiftheywerenot,as wasthecasewithTractor,therewereotherstudentswhowerewillingtomentornewplayers. Evenifsomeoneattemptedtoplaythegameafterlearningthebasicrulesanddidnotplaywell aswasthecaseformethatplayerwasnotseenaswithoutvaluetothegame.Newcomers couldparticipateinthesocializingaroundthegamewhetheritwasthewittybanter,telling storiesandjokes,orsingingsongs.Evenstudentswhodidnothaveanyinterestinplaying digitalgamescouldfeelaconnectiontoplayersbyengaginginthesocializingaroundthegame. Asaresearcher,choosingtoframethestudentsof5Nasaplaycommunityinsteadofagame community,allowedmetoshowhowgamingwaspartofanetworkofsocialactivitiesthattook

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placeinthelounge.Whengroupsplaydigitalornondigitalgamestogether,wecanbequickto definethembytheirinterestingamingalone.AswesawinChapterThree,mostofthefemale studentschosenottoidentifyasgamers.Theynegotiatedhowtheypositionedthemselves withdigitalgamingculture.Digitalgamingisbecomingmoreubiquitousandfittinginto people'slivesinnewanddiverseways.Asresearcherswehavetorecognizethatgamingcanbe justoneofmanyactivitiesinwhichpeopleparticipate. Gamesstudiesisamaturingfield.Gamesresearchersshouldconsidertheaffordancesof broadeningtheirscopeofresearchtoincludemoreoftheprocessofplayanditscontext. Gamesasformalsystemsare,ofcourse,akeypartofresearchinthefield.Awiderscopeof researchthatincludesmoreopenendedplaywillhelpusformamorecompletepictureofhow gamingfitsintopeople'slives,themanypurposesitserves,anddiversepleasuresitoffers.

Thetermgamerisnothelpful Thestereotypicalunderstandingofgamertoooftenmakesassociationsonlywithplayers whofollowthehardcoreethicandmakedigitalgamingcentraltohowtheydefine themselves.Thetermgamerdoesnotadequatelyrepresentthemajorityofpeoplewhoplay digitalgames.Italsorarelyisusedtorefertopeoplewhoplaynondigitalgames,whichcan limitourunderstandingofhowdigitalandnondigitalgamingpracticesoverlapandintersect.In research,weshouldrecognizetheweightthathasbeengiventothetermgameranduseit carefully.Itisalsonotsufficienttorelyonmodifierslikecasualorgirltostretchthewaythe termcanbeused.Thesemodifiersmaintainadefaultunderstandingofgamerashardcore, male,andoftenwhite. 129

 Irefrainedfromusingthetermgamertodescribeanyoneinthisthesis,unlesstheychosethe term.Instead,Ireferredtomysubjectsasstudentsandplayerstermsthatcarryfewer normativeassumptionsaboutgender,age,race,ethnicity,oridentificationswithcertainmodes ofplay. Iamnotsuggestingthenthatwechangethemeaningofthetermgamer,butratherthatwe lookfornewandmoreopenwaystodescribepeoplewhofindpleasureinplayinggames, digitalandnondigital.Byusingthewordplayerwhenreferringtosomeoneinvolvedina game,theimplicitemphasiswouldshiftfromtheformalobject(gamer)totheactionofthe participant(player).Fornow,theusageofthetermgamernarrowsourunderstandingof whoplaysgamesandhowtheyplayattheverymomentwhengamingisspreadingtonewer andmorediverseaudiencesandvenues,including,classrooms,retirementhomes,andcell phones.Weshouldbeeagertoincludemoreplayersingaming.

Itisworthbelaboringcommonsenseknowledgethatdigitalgamescanfacilitatesocial interaction.AsIshowedwiththe5Ncommunity,facilitatingplayfulsocializingwasthemain purposeforplayingdigitalandnondigitalgamesinthelounge.Gamescanstillbesolitary activities;studentsfromthecommunityplayeddigitalgamesaloneattimes.Yetthereis nothinginherenttodigitalgamesthatmakesthemsociallyisolating.Nondigitalgameshave longbeenunderstoodassocialtoolsforbringingpeopletogetherwhetheritisatthelocal bridgeclub,onthehopscotchcourtatrecesstime,oratalargearenaforasportingevent.

Digitalgamescanfacilitatesocializing

130

 Digitalgamesinthe1980'sand1990'stendedtobesingleplayerordesignedforheadtohead competitionbetweenplayers.However,gamesnowarebecomingnetworkedonlineor designedtoincludecollaborativemodeswherelargenumbersofpeopleplaytogethertowards thesamegoals.Wearestilltryingtobreakfromthemoldsofearlierdigitalgamedesignand stereotypicalconstructionsofwhoplaysandhowtheyplay.Researchaboutonlinegaming oftenrecognizesthesocialaspect;perhapsthatisbecausecommunicationisusuallyrecorded onchatscreensormessageboardsandcanbebetterdocumentedthantheconversationsthat occurduringofflinegameplay.Ihaveattemptedtocapturesomeoftheephemeralbitsof conversationthatoccurredduringgaminginthe5Nlounge,butthereisaneedformore documentationandresearchthatexploressocialaspectsofdigitalgamesthatareplayedin othercolocated,offlinecontexts.Wecanthenlearnmoreabouthowthesedifferentsocial contextsinfluencewhoparticipatesinplayingandwhoisleftout.

Thefemaleplayersof5Nplayedafewofthesamegames,buttheyeachplayedothergames withdifferentgroupsofpeopleorontheirown.Theyplayedgamesfromdifferentgenresand ondifferentplatforms.Thisfindingfitswithagrowingnumberofstudiesongenderandgame playthathavemovedonfromsimplebinariesofwhatagirlmight'like'or'dislike'to understandthathow[girls]playisalwaysnegotiable,contextdependent,andusuallynot necessarilyinthecompanyofothergirlsorfemaleplayers(Jenson&deCastell,2010,p.56). Femaleplayersengageinavarietyofplaystyles,havearangeofmotivationsforplaying,and enjoyplayingarangeofgames.

Thereisnotypicalfemaleplayer

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 Somegamedesignerswouldsurelyliketofindtheelementthatwouldmakeallfemaleplayers lovetoplaytheirgames,butthisisimpossibletodoforanybroadcategoryofplayer.Women's interestsingamingareinfluencedbyinnumerablefactorsincludingage,previousexposureto games,otheravailableplayers,race,andclass.Thequestformakingtheultimategirlgame willnotsucceed;fortunately,itcanbeabandonedforthemorehelpfulprojectofdesigning gamesthatappealtodiversegroupsofplayersandareflexibletotheireverchanging motivationsandplayingstyles.

Allofthefemaleplayersin5Nwereintroducedtoplayingdigitalgamesbymaleplayers.In addition,mostofthesewomenwentontoplaygamesingroupsthatweremadeupmostlyof maleplayers.Insomeways,theseinteractionsmayhavebenefitedthewomenastheylearned howtonegotiatesocialinteractionswithgroupsoftheirmalepeers.Nowthatthewomenare atMITtheyarelikelytofindthemselvestheonlywomaninsomeclassesorlabs.Perhapsthey willdrawonthisfamiliaritywithnegotiatingmaledominatedcontextsasaskilltobetter positionthemselvesforsuccess. Womenplayanewandgrowingroleindigitalgamingculture.Thewomenwhoplayinthe5N loungehavethepotentialtointroducenewgirlsandwomentothepleasuresofplayinggames. Thisgenerationofyoungfemaleplayerswillbethefirstsizeablegroupthathashadthe opportunitytoplaydigitalgamesforalmosttheirentirelives.Itisyettobeseenhowthenext generationofgirlswillbeaffectedbytheirmentoringrelationshipswitholderfemaleplayers. 132

Theroleoffemalementors

Mentoringmightmakegirlsmorelikelytoidentifywithgamingculture,orchangepopular conceptionsaboutwhoplays.Itispossiblethatgirlswillbeexposedtodifferentkindsofgames thantheywouldiftheywereplayingwithboys.WouldRachelorLisahaveplayedthesame gamesgrowingupiftheyhadhadfemalementors?Thepointwouldnotbetomovetowardsa segregatedmodelwherewomenintroducegirlsandmenintroduceboystogaming.Instead, femaleandmaleplayersshouldbeintroducingbothgirlsandboystodigitalgames.Forachild tohavebothamotherandafatherasgamingmentormightshowherorhimdifferent approachestoplayingagameorplayingwithothers.Havingmorefemalementorswillatthe veryleastopenupthepossibilitiesofwhatgamingculturecanbeandoffermoreoptionsfor newplayers.

Myaccesstoconductparticipantobservationsandinterviewswithmembersofthe5N communitywasinvaluabletounderstandingwhatfactorsinfluencetheinclusivenessofa communitythatplaysdigitalgamestogether.Givenmoretimeandaccessthough,Iwouldhave likedtohaveincorporatedotherdimensionstomyresearch.First,Iwasnotabletosetup interviewswitheverymemberofthecommunity.Whilethismaynothavebeennecessary,I wouldhaveespeciallyliketotalkedtomoreofthemalestudents,aswellasmorestudentswho didnotparticipateingamingactivities.BytalkingtwothesesubgroupsofthecommunityI couldlearnmoreabouthowtheirexperiencesdifferedoroverlappedwiththoseofthefemale players. Second,Iwouldliketohavemademystudymorecomparativewithothergroupswhoplayed 133

Furtherresearch

digitalgamestogether.Inthesamedormasthe5Nloungetherewereatleasttwootherhalls thathadgroupsofstudentswhoplayedgamestogether.Bothgroupsweremadeupofmostly malestudents.OnegroupplayedmorefirstpersonshootergamesonXboxorPS3'sintheir individualrooms.TheothergroupplayedBrawlandMelee,aswellassomeWiibasedRPG's.I talkedwithMeiandJessicabrieflyintheirinterviewaboutthelattergroupandinquiredwhy, eventhoughtheywerefriendswiththoseplayers,theydidnotplayBrawlwiththem.Jessica responded:Icangohangout,butIdon'tquiteIdon'tfitin.Ifeelveryfemale.Ihadhoped tohavetimetospendinthisotherspacewithsomeofthefemaleplayersfrom5Ntofigureout whatmadethemfeeldifferent,butunfortunatelyIwasnotableto.Thiskindofcomparative studywithothergroupsatMIT,orothergroupsatadifferentcollegecouldyieldvery interestingevidenceofhowsocialcontextinfluencesplayersofdigitalgames. Furtherresearchcouldfillmanyofthegapsthatremaininunderstandingtheadvantagesof creatingspacesfocusedonplayasopposedtogaming,includinghowitmightenablemore peopletoparticipate,especiallythosepeoplewhofeelliketheycannotorshouldnot participate.Thestudentsinthe5Nloungeweregenerouswiththeirtimeandtheirhonesty abouthowtheycreatedandsustainedtheircommunity.Theyarenotmeanttobeportrayed hereasanutopia,butinsteadasanexampleofanalternativetothemorestereotypicalgaming culturesweoftenseeinmovies,gamingmagazines,andeveningamesresearch.Mypurposein analyzingthiscommunity'ssocialcontext,gamepreferences,playingstyles,andpersonal experiencesistoaddtothebodyofevidencethatshowsdigitalgamingcultureisintransition, evolvinganddiversifying.Itisuptousasresearcherstokeepupwithitspace,ifnotpushit evenfurthertowardsgreaterinclusiveness. 134

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