Ethics.... If You Choose

As we have looked deeper into the different facets of the gaming world, we have learned that these MMORPGs' uses go far beyond that of simply entertainment. We have seen evidence of players fulfilling their need for social interaction and belonging in these games among other things. The readings today suggested--or denied-- that players engaging in MMORPGs are also developing their sense of ethics through the interactive play. This seems to be a reasonable claim, as long as the player has chosen to take the oppurtunity.

It is true that playing a game such as World of Warcraft may increase ones moral fiber if one is so inclined. If the player has chosen to play on the benevolent side these kind of games encourage and even require good communication and cooperation skills. These games also generally reward the avatar's positive behavior, which certainly would help convince a player to develop some sort of a code-- even if only to keep a supply of rewards.

On the other hand, if one chooses a game such as Grand Theft Auto, and bad behavior is that which is being rewarded, then the opposite may occur. This is not to say that playing such games may cause one to go on a car jacking shooting rampage. A regular player of such games, however, may not place as much value on ethics or morals, because they have had practice in the opposite direction. The players of the first group of games has had practice thinking and acting ethically while the player from the second group has not, and as we all know, practice makes perfect!