In these photos, the many complexities of raids can be seen.
(Above) At the bottom of the screen, the users abilities are shown (attacks, utilites, etc.). This is the default layout.
(Below) At the bottom of the screen, the player's abilities are show, but in a different layout. This is an addon that facilitates the communication of a player's abilities from the game to the player.
(Both) Other addons are also present in both photos such as those giving information such as the boss's attacks of the current status (health, dead/alive, etc.).
The number of players are also shown. This is the grid-like window open on the left side of the screen on both photos. These players must all work together.
Online Games
Mason reiterates this for our own reality, saying the activities of gamers have changed in recent years because while the offline single player genre is still popular and even growing in many ways, online games that allow communication and interaction between groups of players in-game are becoming increasingly prevalent.
Many parallels are found to this online multiplayer world in World of Warcraft:
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Seeing other players in the world facilitates communication to complete quests, kill bosses, etc.
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Economy is made entirey by players through the auction house.
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Raids require groups of anywhere from 10 to 40 players (pictured below).
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Require communication between players.
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Make use of addons to convey information more easily.
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These addons facilitate communication between players by condensing information and simplifying it (or making it more complex in some cases.
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Roleplaying events are fun activities in which players take on the role of their character and must communicate and act in-character.
Photo by Telwyn from GamingSF
Photo by Lorie from WoW Girl
There are up to 6 healers, 2 tanks, and the rest of the players are those that focus on dealing damage to the boss:
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Healers must focus on keeping everyone alive by restoring their health, but also by giving them "buffs" or stat enhancements.
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Tanks act as group leaders, and communicate different situations to the rest of the group. They also must absorb the damage of the bosses, and keep them from attacking other players
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The rest of the group deals damage to the boss and must stay alive. They must listen to tanks and healers and sometimes communicate their own situations as well.
Online video games are becoming more and more mainstream in today's society.
In Ready Player One, there is a massive online game called the "OASIS." This game has captured the lives and imagination of nearly everyone in the world, and offers an array of activities for players to attend as well. Unlike the games in reality, the "OASIS" is seen as a necessity - an alternative to life itself, and it warrants extended playtime for activities such as virtual schools for students to attend (which is required similarly to the real world) or even jobs that pay in-game currency.
In addition to this, Cheri Li offers information on the idea that this did not begin recently, it only grew in popularity recently. Multi-user games first came about in 1979, though they only existed in the form of text in which players from around the world could communication with and work together to complete a dungeon. There were called MUDs (or Multi-User Dungeons).
