The travelling gamer : an ethnography of video game events

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THE TRAVELLING GAMER:

AN ETHNOGRAPHY OF VIDEO GAME EVENTS

Ying-Ying Law

School of Nursing, Midwifery, Social Work

& Social Sciences

University of Salford, Salford, UK

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List of Figures

Figures

page Chapter 2

Figure 2.1 The King of Kong – Drawing markings on screens to practice 24 timing and precision - Gordon, S.(Director). (2007). King of

Kong. [Film]. United States.

Chapter 4

Figure 4.1 Photographs of the researcher doing push-ups and getting stuffed 101 into ‘The Box’ (Taken by Multiplay Photographers)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/mpuk/albums

Figure 4.2 Gold’s (1958) classification scheme of participant observer roles 102

Chapter 5

Figure 5.1 A diagram showing three types of video game attenders 121 Figure 5.2 The ‘after-party’ pub gathering after London MCM Comic Con 133

[Photographed by Ying-Ying Law]

Figure 5.3 The exhibition hall of Insomnia57 (i57) 137 Figure 5.4 The Distant Worlds (2014) Meet & Greet [left], and 146

‘The hands that touched Nobuo Uematsu and Arnie Roth’ [right] [Photographed by Ying-Ying Law]

Figure 5.5 Signed items from the Distant Worlds (2014) Meet & Greet 147 [Photographed by Ying-Ying Law]

Figure 5.6 Photographs of Final Fantasy fans at a social gathering, posing 148 with the Louis Vuitton advert, featuring Lightening from

Final Fantasy XIII [Photographed by Final Fantasy Fans]

Figure 5.7 The researcher in cosplay – Character: Hanji (Attack of Titan) 149 [Photographed by Ying-Ying Law]

Figure 5.8 Cosplay trend in 2012 (Sword Arts Online), 2013 150 (Attack on Titan) and 2014 (Frozen)

http://static.fjcdn.com/pictures/Cosplay+trends_f851b4_5082824.jpg

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Figure 5.10 A group photo of Attack on Titan cosplayers 153 (London MCM Comic Con, 2013)

http://foxseye.deviantart.com/art/All-the-Attack-On-Titan-410848325

Figure 5.11 The researcher and Attack on Titans cosplayers role-playing 154 [Photographed by Ying-Ying Law]

Figure 5.12 Opening Ceremony at i50 – BYOC gamers trying to obtain 157 ‘The Box’

Figure 5.13 Pub Quiz – i56 159 Figure 5.14 Building the biggest beer and pizza box tower [left], 160

and competing in the boat race

[right]-Figure 5.15 LAN treasure, an extension cable (left) and a grimy keyboard 163 (right) [Photographed by Ying-Ying Law]

Figure 5.16 A photograph of seven pairs of shoes outside the hosts flat 168 [Photographed by Ying Ying Law]

Figure 5.17 Insomnia Gaming Festival Event Crew Application 170 Figure 5.18 Play Expo Blackpool (2014) staff photo with Jesse McClure 172 Figure 5.19 A diagram showing rules on how to play ‘man hunt’ 174

(Cabin Fever 1, 2014)

Figure 5.20 FalcoMaster3000 playing in tournament (left) 180 and a short animated video of FalcoMaster3000 on YouTube (right) Figure 5.21 Group stages (Insomnia53) 182 Figure 5.22 The career of a sport fan/ video gamer (Crawford, 2012, p.63) 183 Figure 5.23 Researcher hitting Legend in Hearthstone 184 Figure 5.24 A ‘painted’ customised controller (left) and GCC mod controller 187

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Figure 5.25 A Hearthstone player receiving a cheque for coming third at 188 Insomnia52

Figure 5.26 Prof Pro vs. Rolex $100 money match 189 – Prof Pro’s ‘salt dance’ from winning the first game

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3VQUEmsO8M

Figure 5.27 Prof Pro vs. Rolex $100 money match 190 – Rolex’s ‘salt dance’ after winning the second game

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3VQUEmsO8M

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Chapter 6

Figure 6.1 Photograph of Distant Worlds [Photographed by Ying-Ying Law] 206

Figure 6.2 A photograph of a BYOC gamer’s dinner (Insomnia i53 – LAN) 219 [Photographed by Ying-Ying Law]

Figure 6.3 A photograph of the researchers’ neighbours ‘food supply’ at 222 Insomnia53

Figure 6.4 A photograph of a tower made from energy drinks (Insomnia i53) 224 [Photographed by Ying-Ying Law]

Figure 6.5 A photograph and eating chicken together 225

Appendix B

Figure B.1 The information section of the Typeform questionnaires. 251 Figure B.2 Question 1 - The consent form section of the Typeform 252

questionnaires

Figure B.3 Question 2 – How old are you? 252 Figure B.4 Question 3 – What gender are you? 253 Figure B.5 Question 4 – Where have you travelled from? 250 Figure B.6 Question 5 – What is your current occupation? 254 Figure B.7 Question 6 – What is your martial status? 254 Figure B.8 Question 7 – What is your yearly income? 255 Figure B.9 Question 8 – How did you hear about this event? 255 Figure B.10 Question 9 - Who do you attend to these video game events with? 256 Figure B.11 Question 10 – What is your main reason for attending video 256

game events?

Figure B.12 Question 11 – Have you considered doing any of the following 256 when attending gaming events?

Figure B.13 Question 12 – Is there anything you intend to purchase 257 specifically from this event?

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Figure B.17 Additional Question 1 – How does playing games at video 259 game events differ in comparison to playing at home?

Figure B.18 Additional Question 2 – Do you consider meeting face-to-face 259 with other gamers important? And why?

Figure B.19 Additional Question 3: Please write a short description of your 260 experience at certain video game events

Figure B.20 Additional Question 4: what does attending certain video game 260 events mean to you?

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List of Tables

Tables

page Chapter 1

Table 1.1 The five major types of analysis and their characteristics 8 (Egenfeldt-Nielsen et al. 2013., p. 10)

Chapter 4

Table 4.1 List of the Video Game Events 83 Table 4.2 Pilot Study Questionnaire – What is your gender? 93 Table 4.3 Pilot Questionnaires – What is your age? 94 Table 4.4 Pilot Questionnaire – What is your current occupation? 94 Table 4.5 Pilot Questionnaire – Have you considered doing any of the 95

following when attending gaming events?

Table 4.6 Interview Participants 98 Table 4.7 Group Interview Participants 99 Table 4.8 Timetable 110

Chapter 5

Table 5.1 The Typology of Video Gamer Roles – Mundane and 123 Spectacular Moments

Table 5.2 The first episode from the series of video game events in the UK 138 Table 5.3 The Four Stages of Competitive Gaming 179

Appendix C

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Acknowledgments

I would like to thank my supervisors Prof. Garry Crawford, Dr Victoria Gosling and Dr Daniel Muriel for all the advice, invaluable guidance, and support provided throughout this research. I would like to thank my personal tutor, Dr Andrew Clark for providing guidance and support. I would also like to thank my family and friends, especially my Mum and Dad, two sisters, Yuen-Man Law and Po-Yee Law, and last but not least, Anthony Lee for the support and encouragement they have given me over the last four years. Finally, I would like to thank anyone and everyone who participated, contributed or commented on this research – in particular, this memorable comment:

‘Keep writing, do it for us’

Throughout this research, I have travelled a lot - hence the title of this research, ‘The Travelling Gamer’. However, the title does not represent my efforts for travelling to numerous video game events, but the thousands of people, who are usually separated by distance, coming together to pursue their interests in video games. Video game events are not just about playing video games, it is about the gamers, the organisers and the volunteers who make it happen - without your dedication, socialisation, and tuition, this research would not have been possible.

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Abstract

This thesis is an ethnography of video gamers and video game events. It considers the social and cultural practices of video gamers away from the video game screen, and in particular focuses on those who participate in, and attend, various video game related events. Previous studies on video games have often focused on the isolation of video gamers (in small groups) or the textual analysis of video games themselves. However, these focuses have often been too closely aligned with a very narrow understanding of (direct) play, which often ignore the social aspect of video gaming away from the video game screen.

Using an ethnographic approach, consisting of questionnaires, interviews, group interviews, and extensive observational research, this research considers the social significance of video games in enabling and maintaining social networks, patterns and the identity formations of those who attend various video game events across the United Kingdom; including video game conventions [MCM Comic Con, Eurogamer/EGX Rezzed, Play Expo], tournaments and competitions [Edmas 2, Edintines, Manchester Monthly Regionals], local area network parties [Insomnia Gaming Festivals i50/i51/i52/i53/i54/i55/i56], game related musical events [Video Games Live, Final Fantasy Orchestral concerts and Legend of Zelda Orchestral concerts] and other video game practices away from the video game screen.

The research findings suggest that video game events are not just about playing video games. Video game events provide a unique opportunity for video gamers, who are usually separated by distance, to come together and interact in meaningful ways, besides gaming itself. Many of those who attend video game events often engage themselves through various forms of socialisation, tuition, and social progression, that are often taken for granted. Therefore, this research seeks to provide an understanding of an important, but largely under-researched aspect of video gamer culture.

Supervisor: Dr Victoria Gosling

The travelling gamer : an ethnography of video game events