When a Game Becomes a Job - World of Warcraft Raiding Guilds

"Why did you decide to apply for an open position here? Do you have any references? What time commitment can we expected from you? What might sound like a job interview to most, is indeed a typical application procedure - for top raiding guilds in World of Warcraft. They pride themselves in being the most skilled players and they are just as picky if it comes to select new members. Is this just tough corporate guy acting, or have player-made organizations evolved into something much more complex than ever anticipated?

For most of the six million World of Warcraft players, slaying the biggest dragons on the servers, getting the mightiest swords or becoming one of the most powerful mages is their biggest dream inside the game. There is just one little drawback: You don't get there alone. This is one of the reasons why players band together in guilds - groups of players with a common interest. For the really big goals, you need lots of friends. 40 is the maximum and often required number of players it takes to kill the mightiest dragons in ""WoW"" - the affectionate abbreviation World of Warcraft players use for their game. Guilds that specialize on those big hits, are being referred to as raiding guilds.

It's a little bit as if the table has been turned around on Super Mario. Instead of one hero fighting never ending waves of foes, it's groups and armys of players now fighting one big evil monster. These epic battles in the virtual realm require strategy, coordination and practice. Players discuss possible strategies in chats and forums, play together every evening to make their teamwork perfect, use headsets and Voice-over-IP (VoIP) software to coordinate their efforts vocally, watch videos on YouTube of other groups fighting them and read up on strategy guides how to beat the next big dragon in their path. They are full-time players, members of raid guilds.

Members of raiding guilds often recount their ""raiding schedules"" - sometimes with pride, sometimes with a tired sigh. Weekly attendance requirements usually have them play 5 hours on 4 evenings a week. And those time frames are meant only for actual raid encounters and do not include preparations inside and outside of the game. This of course leaves little free time for other activities, though most of them seem content with that. They work together to achieve a common goal and upon success, they see their long preparations and teamwork rewarded, while looking forward already to the next raid.

The level of organization becomes apparent when looking at the tools a leader of a raiding guild uses to manage his members:

- Guild portals to manage guild websites, news, member listings, openings and updates
- Forum software to facilitate discussions of strategies and publish announcements
- Server licences and servers for multi-conference VoIP applications
- Mailing software to notify members of emergencies and short notice raids
- Incentive databases to track raid attendance by members allowing to reward them accordingly with virtual items

There are dozens of different providers for guild portals, databases and game-specific VoIP programs that cater to the need of raiding guilds and other professional players. Software sellers adapt more and more to this emerging market and recognize the earning potential. The guild's requirements rise and the growing number of vendors suggest that they are taking their organizations serious enough to spend significant money on them.

Already there is a Leadership e-book on the market, written specifically for guild managers in World of Warcraft. The World of Warcraft Guild Management Guide (http://www.killerguides.com/guides/wow/guide/world-of-warcraft/guild) adds a game-specific twist to the self-help, how-to and leadership literature. It seems to be only a matter of time before the first guild consultants pop up.

Raiding guilds still seem to be in their infancy when looking at their recent and silent rise. Maybe the competitive members of those online game sports clubs manage to take things a little further. It happened before - take a look at the nationwide success, TV broadcasts and tournaments for the game Starcraft in Korea. If serious sponsors become interested, who knows - maybe dead dragons will soon be presented by Pepsi and you'll see Lenuvien, the Elf popping a can for the next commercial."

Addiction to Online Games - And How to Cure It

"When players of massive multiplayer online roleplaying games (MMORPGs) talk about ""death penalties"", they refer to the resources they lose when the character they are playing dies. Usually this can be anything from invested time, items they acquired in long play sessions or their virtual currency. Recent games, like World of Warcraft (WoW) avoid that penalty in order to make the game ""more fun"". Unfortunately it's not as easy to remove real casualties that result from those games - from suicides of addicted players to parents who neglect their children to the point they starve while they are playing World of Warcraft.

Not all stories of excessive play end that bad, but the extent of the problem is being underestimated. Those high profile cases are certainly the saddest examples of what can result from excessive play. But in regards to the people who are affected by serious online gaming addiction, they represent only the tip of the iceberg. What goes unnoticed are the thousands of stories of players who get involved in an online game to the point that they seriously neglect or even abandon school, work, friends and families. There are no statistics on the depressions that result from extensive immersion in virtual worlds. There are no statistics showing how many careers have been destroyed this way. There are no statistics showing how many divorces this has caused.

As one of the oldest MMORPGs, Everquest is still very popular with around 450,000 subscribers. A google search for ""everquest addiction"" returns 234,000 results. But it gets worse: Final Fantasy XI currently has 650,000 players and it's still growing fast. Number of results returned for ""final fantasy xi addiction""? 2,140,000. That's 10 pages for every single gamer. While not all of them are directly related to cases of addiction, it certainly shows the importance of the issue. If for every player of a game, ten feel compelled to discuss a possible addiction, it's a phenomenon that has to be taken seriously.

There are also signs in the offline world that this problem is existing and growing. In July 2006, the first detox center for gaming addicts in Europe opens in Amsterdam. More than 20 players have already been enlisted in the 8 weeks program. They range from 13 to 30 years of age, showing that this is not something that only happens to teenagers. In Canada and the US there are already multiple clinics and even in China a facility has opened already.

Families and friends of affected players are often at a loss as to how they can help them. Addicted players will often react disinterested or even aggressive when confronted with their behavior. They become socially isolated, no longer accessible to persons that used to be close to them and tend to loose interest in anything that happens outside of their game worlds. A successful anti-addiction strategy thus has to come from within.

One possible solution was unintentionally described over a hundred years ago: ""There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it "" Oscar Wilde might have got it dead on for online gamers. Constantly struggling in their virtual world to get better equipment, more money and a higher level and looking for a way to advance faster, online gamers are usually trapped in a vicious cycle. But what happens if those challenges become obsolete? If they simply achieve those goals without effort? What if you can cheat?

Single player games have cheat codes, allowing you to bypass any difficulties of a game with a few ""code words"". Everyone who used a cheat code in a game knows, that from there on the hours of entertainment are numbered. It is simply no longer of interest to invest your time since all achievements have become meaningless. Fortunately for addicted players, this also holds true for online games. Only, there are no cheat codes. What there is though, are unintentional flaws, glitches and bugs in the games. If you know them, you can skip difficult parts, get rewards with ease and cut down on the time investment significantly. Swimming in virtual currency after a few mouse clicks tends to remove the incentive to ever spend hours again, trying to get it.

There are sites that specifically research those loop holes in order to outwit the game companies. Depending on the game someone is addicted to, they can find help. For Everquest, Final Fantasy XI and World of Warcraft exploits are by now freely available through a simple google search. If you want to help someone, compile a list of those sites. Alternatively you can use the resources provided below:

- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/auto_assault/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/dungeons_and_dragons_online/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/eve_online/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/everquest_2/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/final_fantasy_xi/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/guild_wars/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/lineage_2/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/runescape_2/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/star_wars_galaxies/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/world_of_warcraft/

Point addicted players to those resources - chances aren't bad that they end up curing themselves. Even if the addict won't stop playing instantly, making the game less attractive for them will help you with your future efforts when you're offering help.

Unorthodox problems ask for unorthodox solutions. If you know somebody who is trapped in a virtual world, why not give it a try?"

Addiction to Online Games - And How to Cure It

"When players of massive multiplayer online roleplaying games (MMORPGs) talk about ""death penalties"", they refer to the resources they lose when the character they are playing dies. Usually this can be anything from invested time, items they acquired in long play sessions or their virtual currency. Recent games, like World of Warcraft (WoW) avoid that penalty in order to make the game ""more fun"". Unfortunately it's not as easy to remove real casualties that result from those games - from suicides of addicted players to parents who neglect their children to the point they starve while they are playing World of Warcraft.

Not all stories of excessive play end that bad, but the extent of the problem is being underestimated. Those high profile cases are certainly the saddest examples of what can result from excessive play. But in regards to the people who are affected by serious online gaming addiction, they represent only the tip of the iceberg. What goes unnoticed are the thousands of stories of players who get involved in an online game to the point that they seriously neglect or even abandon school, work, friends and families. There are no statistics on the depressions that result from extensive immersion in virtual worlds. There are no statistics showing how many careers have been destroyed this way. There are no statistics showing how many divorces this has caused.

As one of the oldest MMORPGs, Everquest is still very popular with around 450,000 subscribers. A google search for ""everquest addiction"" returns 234,000 results. But it gets worse: Final Fantasy XI currently has 650,000 players and it's still growing fast. Number of results returned for ""final fantasy xi addiction""? 2,140,000. That's 10 pages for every single gamer. While not all of them are directly related to cases of addiction, it certainly shows the importance of the issue. If for every player of a game, ten feel compelled to discuss a possible addiction, it's a phenomenon that has to be taken seriously.

There are also signs in the offline world that this problem is existing and growing. In July 2006, the first detox center for gaming addicts in Europe opens in Amsterdam. More than 20 players have already been enlisted in the 8 weeks program. They range from 13 to 30 years of age, showing that this is not something that only happens to teenagers. In Canada and the US there are already multiple clinics and even in China a facility has opened already.

Families and friends of affected players are often at a loss as to how they can help them. Addicted players will often react disinterested or even aggressive when confronted with their behavior. They become socially isolated, no longer accessible to persons that used to be close to them and tend to loose interest in anything that happens outside of their game worlds. A successful anti-addiction strategy thus has to come from within.

One possible solution was unintentionally described over a hundred years ago: ""There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it "" Oscar Wilde might have got it dead on for online gamers. Constantly struggling in their virtual world to get better equipment, more money and a higher level and looking for a way to advance faster, online gamers are usually trapped in a vicious cycle. But what happens if those challenges become obsolete? If they simply achieve those goals without effort? What if you can cheat?

Single player games have cheat codes, allowing you to bypass any difficulties of a game with a few ""code words"". Everyone who used a cheat code in a game knows, that from there on the hours of entertainment are numbered. It is simply no longer of interest to invest your time since all achievements have become meaningless. Fortunately for addicted players, this also holds true for online games. Only, there are no cheat codes. What there is though, are unintentional flaws, glitches and bugs in the games. If you know them, you can skip difficult parts, get rewards with ease and cut down on the time investment significantly. Swimming in virtual currency after a few mouse clicks tends to remove the incentive to ever spend hours again, trying to get it.

There are sites that specifically research those loop holes in order to outwit the game companies. Depending on the game someone is addicted to, they can find help. For Everquest, Final Fantasy XI and World of Warcraft exploits are by now freely available through a simple google search. If you want to help someone, compile a list of those sites. Alternatively you can use the resources provided below:

- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/auto_assault/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/dungeons_and_dragons_online/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/eve_online/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/everquest_2/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/final_fantasy_xi/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/guild_wars/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/lineage_2/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/runescape_2/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/star_wars_galaxies/
- http://www.strategyfreaks.com/games/world_of_warcraft/

Point addicted players to those resources - chances aren't bad that they end up curing themselves. Even if the addict won't stop playing instantly, making the game less attractive for them will help you with your future efforts when you're offering help.

Unorthodox problems ask for unorthodox solutions. If you know somebody who is trapped in a virtual world, why not give it a try?"

When a Game Becomes a Job - World of Warcraft Raiding Guilds

"Why did you decide to apply for an open position here? Do you have any references? What time commitment can we expected from you? What might sound like a job interview to most, is indeed a typical application procedure - for top raiding guilds in World of Warcraft. They pride themselves in being the most skilled players and they are just as picky if it comes to select new members. Is this just tough corporate guy acting, or have player-made organizations evolved into something much more complex than ever anticipated?

For most of the six million World of Warcraft players, slaying the biggest dragons on the servers, getting the mightiest swords or becoming one of the most powerful mages is their biggest dream inside the game. There is just one little drawback: You don't get there alone. This is one of the reasons why players band together in guilds - groups of players with a common interest. For the really big goals, you need lots of friends. 40 is the maximum and often required number of players it takes to kill the mightiest dragons in ""WoW"" - the affectionate abbreviation World of Warcraft players use for their game. Guilds that specialize on those big hits, are being referred to as raiding guilds.

It's a little bit as if the table has been turned around on Super Mario. Instead of one hero fighting never ending waves of foes, it's groups and armys of players now fighting one big evil monster. These epic battles in the virtual realm require strategy, coordination and practice. Players discuss possible strategies in chats and forums, play together every evening to make their teamwork perfect, use headsets and Voice-over-IP (VoIP) software to coordinate their efforts vocally, watch videos on YouTube of other groups fighting them and read up on strategy guides how to beat the next big dragon in their path. They are full-time players, members of raid guilds.

Members of raiding guilds often recount their ""raiding schedules"" - sometimes with pride, sometimes with a tired sigh. Weekly attendance requirements usually have them play 5 hours on 4 evenings a week. And those time frames are meant only for actual raid encounters and do not include preparations inside and outside of the game. This of course leaves little free time for other activities, though most of them seem content with that. They work together to achieve a common goal and upon success, they see their long preparations and teamwork rewarded, while looking forward already to the next raid.

The level of organization becomes apparent when looking at the tools a leader of a raiding guild uses to manage his members:

- Guild portals to manage guild websites, news, member listings, openings and updates
- Forum software to facilitate discussions of strategies and publish announcements
- Server licences and servers for multi-conference VoIP applications
- Mailing software to notify members of emergencies and short notice raids
- Incentive databases to track raid attendance by members allowing to reward them accordingly with virtual items

There are dozens of different providers for guild portals, databases and game-specific VoIP programs that cater to the need of raiding guilds and other professional players. Software sellers adapt more and more to this emerging market and recognize the earning potential. The guild's requirements rise and the growing number of vendors suggest that they are taking their organizations serious enough to spend significant money on them.

Already there is a Leadership e-book on the market, written specifically for guild managers in World of Warcraft. The World of Warcraft Guild Management Guide (http://www.killerguides.com/guides/wow/guide/world-of-warcraft/guild) adds a game-specific twist to the self-help, how-to and leadership literature. It seems to be only a matter of time before the first guild consultants pop up.

Raiding guilds still seem to be in their infancy when looking at their recent and silent rise. Maybe the competitive members of those online game sports clubs manage to take things a little further. It happened before - take a look at the nationwide success, TV broadcasts and tournaments for the game Starcraft in Korea. If serious sponsors become interested, who knows - maybe dead dragons will soon be presented by Pepsi and you'll see Lenuvien, the Elf popping a can for the next commercial."