The emotionally charged term
Introduction
It is incredible how “people respond differently to the emotionally charged term game depending on whether they played or did not play video games while growing up.” (Zyda, 2005) Virtual life can have an immense reflection and a significant influence on the player. The impact can be traced by the psychological effects that push a player to choose a particular playstyle over the other. Several online games can be used to study and determine the kind of environment which a game designer needs to have in mind. Grand Theft Auto V is a virtual game which contains different characters with different temperaments which are triggered by the situations that they find themselves in. The ability and determination to overcome the challenges that they face lure a role in wanting to identify with them. Therefore, a game designer needs to understand the environment that the game will take and the impact that it will have on the players.
A game designer should be able to come up with a game that is violence sensitive. The gamer should also consider the end purpose of the game as purely entertaining in that, picking deviatory behaviours from the game becomes a personal responsibility (Kie et al., 2011). GTA V gives the player a chance to make a decision (though the options are limited). What a player becomes in real life should not be blamed on the designer. The sole intention of a game designer is to provide an avenue for entertainment explicitly.
Literature review
With the advancement of technology, virtual life is becoming the most natural way of expressing what we feel and how we relate to one another. The world is a global village, thanks to technology has made life more comfortable that a player in Europe can play a game with another player in the Middle East. It is with this regard that even other industries and spheres of human life are embracing this virtual and simulated way of life. Medical fields employ this technology where the students can operate on a dummy with all the semblances of human anatomy. Automobile assembly plants no longer require a human being to test the endurance or the speed of a prototype since a robot can virtually do that. Virtual life has attracted several writers who in various fields of application have given their input.
Unity Virtual Reality Projects by Jonathan Linowes gives the best insights into understanding virtual life. This book is his second edition, provides the whole vast area of virtual reality. It considers what is to be considered virtual and what is not, the type of mounts, that is, desktop and mobile mounts, technical skill required in virtual reality and the experiences that come with it. Since we are exploring the reasons why a player would choose a particular playstyle over the other, the experiential aspect comes in handy. Regarding the experiences, he says that the result in the virtual world ensure that the player needs to feel as if it was real and is transported there forgetting that it was a virtual world (Linowes, 2018). An interactive virtual environment where you can communicate with other objects in the game via an avatar is what GTA V entails. Social virtual reality makes it even interesting since there is the social interaction of players via various avatar forms they embody.
Another essential text that gives the experiential perspective of the player in a virtual world is Game Feel by Steve Swink. The aesthetical sensation, an extension of senses and identity, and interaction with a different physical reality within a game (Swink, 2009). The player can experience a new different world since the sensation given by the virtual world in a game improves what one is in real life. For instance, if a player can somersault in a virtual world, but in real life, it has never happened, a player develops a feeling that there is an extension of potentiality.
Grand Theft Auto IV Comes to Singapore: Effects of Repeated Exposure to Violent Video Games on Aggression is a standard article that looks into the possible effects that the earlier version GTA IV had in Singapore. There is s high tendency that the players who are exposed to a violent game can turn out to be aggressive and show no empathy (Kie et al., 2011). A good game developer should look into the extremes which a game can go and determine whether the game will have mild or no influence on the player. However, the designer should be able to weigh the magnitude of the entertainment as compared with dire effects that can result from explicit scenes.
Testing the Effects of a Virtual Reality Game for Aggressive Impulse Management (VR-GAIME): Study Protocol also looks into the possible damaging outcome which player can develop when exposed to virtual games. The games in question vary with the environment and how interactive they are with the player. Those who do not create a ‘real-world’ virtual experience tend to have lesser effects than those where the player is directly involved in making the decisions (Smeijers and Koole, 2019). A good game designer should be able to understand the audience and minimize scenes where there is violence or any action considered immoral. There should be age censorship, lest adult contents are deliberately exposed to minors.
Paul Barret wrote an article, White Thumbs, Black Bodies: Race, Violence, and Neoliberal Fantasies in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, on an earlier version of GTA. The fantasy that is elicited by the virtual game is immense. There are some negative values which a player might pick if there is not objectivity (fun and entertainment) which might lead to racism where “…there is a glamorizing, and even spectacularization of violence, a marking of young black bodies as disposable, an insistence on a culture of cynicism…”(Barrett, 2006). The mood of the game should not distract the designer onto giving nuances of racism or liberalism where defiance to authority and the rule of law becomes obsolete. The virtual experience should provide thrill and excitement, but shreds of deviation are avoided.
Research design and methods
This research seeks to understand what a game designer can learn from the players who take various play styles and understand their way of life. As noted earlier, there are multiple reasons why a player may choose to play a particular character over the other. In most cases, this is not coincidental. This research will take a qualitative approach where non-numerical data that will be collected. This approach will be the best because the social life of the players will be studied. The virtual players of GTA V assume a virtual experience which reflects their real life, and which influence them in choosing the play styles.
The decision to use this method was arrived at based on the fact that gaming is a social venture which affects the social life of the players. Social sciences employ this method for the simple reason that the methods used in the surveys involve the participants directly. The qualitative analysis does not only show the connection of one variable to another, but it sheds more light as to why such a relation exists (Williamson, Given and Scifleet, 2018). The methods employed are direct observation of the participant. The participant is observed while playing the game and reasons deduced as to why the choices to play the game are. Another method will be content analysis. The player’s choice is studied, and the role in the game sheds more light, that is, the reasons that moved the player to choose it. The other method will be surveyed, which are open-ended. This method will not just seek to collect data but also will be open enough for the participant to expound further why the choice was preferred.
In conducting the research, the methods will factor the fact that virtual life comes with its limitations. For instance, a virtual social world may require modifications from a player to simulate an avatar. A game designer needs to understand that there can be versatile options that call for a creative mind. A good game designer should allow feedback and work on improving the suggested area. Only then would the satisfaction of the players be met. As it is with many players, their virtual life simulates their real life. The choice of play in a virtual game poses semblances with real-life and nuances on how the player can handle a given challenge in real life (Haagsma et al., 2013). These will be the gist of the research.
Findings
There are model questions that will serve as the guideline in the research. Each method that will be used will focus on the player by seeking to why virtual life depends on roles played. The questions are:
- Do you play GTA V Online?
- Which playstyle description suits you best?
- What do you enjoy most about GTA V online?
- Is there any similarity between your Playstyle in GTA V and your everyday life?
Though the methods, a good sample gave a considerable amount of data that the above questions sought the answers. The versatility of the choices and the customizable settings to fit the preferences of the players made the outcome of the data to be broad. However, the data were categorized sorted out and put into several groups.
There are those players who could not identify the category, and they assumed any role at random.
The Law Enforcer
These players like to enforce the law in GTA V online by patrolling the streets of Los Santos, paying attention to those performing acts that would be seen as crimes in the real world. Like all players, law enforcers play the game because they enjoy it and participate in the same activities as the other Playstyles.
The Assassin
Those who enjoy seeing their peers in agony and any chance they get, terror is unleashed. Slaughtering other players for their gain is their intention, and they are usually unstoppable due to their firepower and an amazing fleet of cars, making it hard to repay the favour, that is if you approach GTA V with a different playstyle.
The One-Man Army
The best way to explain the One-Man Army player in GTA V is using explosives, tanks and War stock Cache & Carry loyalty member. With enough artillery to fight a war, some players in other Playstyles are scared to bump into them. These players have worked hard and put in the hours. The only way different Playstyles can survive the game is to be-friend these players.
The Workaholic
Quiet and focused on the job, the workaholic is the players who are in it for achievements and completing missions, heists and races. Minding their business, the workaholic does not believe in the fancy lifestyle with the most expensive apartments and clothing. Their satisfaction comes from hammering away at the game all night doing what simply needs to be done.
The Explorer
Confusion may arise between the explorer and the workaholic. The difference between these two Playstyles is that instead of doing the job, the explorer simply enjoys cruising around Los Santos with Los Santos radio on full volume and enjoying the views.
The Hustler
All GTA V players have at least been in the shoes of the hustler. This Playstyle involves wading your way through with only a handful of cash. As GTA V award you for successfully committing a crime, these players would rather spend their time robbing local stores than spend trying to escape a 4-star wanted level for a Bank heist.
These findings place the player in a category where each would go for if given a chance to make another choice. However, it is paramount to remember that these are the responses from the players who expressed the need to be identified with a particular playstyle each time they had a chance to play GTA V online.
Analysis and discussion
The primary purpose of this research is to help the game designer to understand the players in their actual playing mode. Several outcomes can be deduced from the data that was collected. The information was obtained from players who ranged between 14 to 58 year and who played for varying numbers of hours per week. When the players were asked how it feels to play the game online, there were varying answers too. The findings are categorized in the order of popularity.
Thrilling
A good number considered the game thrilling when the Playstyle gives an advantage over other Playstyles. There are those players who thrill in seeing others suffer while others find to raise their adrenaline by showing resilience as they climb their way up. For instance, an assassin takes pleasure in hurting others while a one-man army is gratified by the effort made while playing and winning alone. This thrilling feeling makes the players forget their daily cares, and if their mood was disordered, they find the desired order in the game. This satisfaction causes the player to increase the number of hours they spend while playing, and it keeps on growing (Haagsma et al., 2013). When the players were asked whether there was any semblance of their virtual life with real life, only a quarter responded in affirmation. Some of the players were bullies in real life, while others failed to remember an instance when they expressed empathy after playing the game. This would pose a real-life threat to behaviour control since the players would want to express their simulated self quite often (Barrett, 2006). This situation would be a key area for a game designer to consider.
Humorous
The interactive dialogue and set of instructions in the game made another set of gamers to come back and choose the same role. They expressed pleasant instances where some even went ahead to cite phrases that they found funny. This set of players find the game entertaining, especially when they feel like it is happening in the real world. The players who fall in this category were from different Playstyles, and each found the game generally entertaining. The real-life of these gamers in this set had humour, and they discovered that semblance both in virtual and real life. The sensation they get from the game change even their real-world (Swink, 2009).
Engaging Narrative
Although the set of instructions are limited (to the extent that a player cannot customize or even improvise out of the range given), some players choose a particular playstyle by considering the character they assume and the voice over that is used. Those characters that their views are deep and terrifying are always feared, and the gamers wanted to associate with them. This sensation gives them the experience they seek since it feels like they are in the real world (Swink, 2009). When they were asked to relate their real-life with the virtual life, a good number of them tend to impersonate the voices even in their day to day conversations.
Therefore, the other Playstyles found themselves stuck or assimilated in the others, and whenever they go online to play, they do it just for the sake of it. Some are out to have fun, and each Playstyle they choose depends solely on the availability. This group of gamers is well balanced in their real life, and if they get influenced by the game, it is not immense. The sole purpose of their participation is fun and spending time online (Zyda, 2005). Therefore, the game designer ought to consider this group and include entertaining elements in the gaming environment.
Throughout the survey, some of the players had their feeling about the game. It was a coincidence if two players who participated in the study gave the same answers. However, it was a good indicator that GTAV was versatile enough to inspire and attract different feelings from the players. The consistency in choosing the Playstyle also indicated that the game had a progressive nature. The players can identify with the characters, and at the end, they become those characters they simulated. This game was also cited as educative regardless of the bad behaviour or two that a can develop(Taguchi, 2019).
Conclusion
There is a meeting point where the game designer can meet the player. That point is at the gaming environment. The player can come into the thoughts of the designer, and they interact through the set codes and commands. As a game designer, there is a need to ensure that the interaction is fruitful and the player can identify with the game. The Playstyles help the game designer to understand the needs of the player to a point where the next version caters for those needs. The players who choose roles or characters that resemble their day to day life feels extended into a virtual world, which to them, appears real. Some players are not confident enough to face real-life either by being introverts or having low self-esteem. The gaming experiences that give them a platform to become better serves a great purpose. Therefore, a game designer needs to understand his target players and this will enhance the quality of the game.