The reading mentioned “militainment”, where there is blurring of boundaries between military conflicts and entertainment in games (and films). For example, ordinary citizens can experience military conflicts through games while these military games can also be used for military training.
The reading also noted that virtual cities are increasingly being used as the setting for such military games, although the city's everyday flows (e.g. traffic and other civilian activities) are diverted for the game. This may be due to 21st century warfare shifting from international conflicts to peacekeeping within the city. The city is targeted for its population density, where terrorists can inflict more damage. In response, technological advances give a smaller number of soldiers greater power to maintain order (i.e. there is asymmetrical warfare). Due to the city's vulnerability, there may be increased surveillance in the city to prevent terrorist attacks.
However, some players resist the “militarization of everyday life” in games through hacking. The author draws relations to Situationists' games where the flows of daily activities are set aside to explore urban spaces in a ludic manner. This is because hacking also disrupts the flow of gameplay. Uninvited exploration is the primary motivation for hacking, and it can be a form of play in itself. Frictions and misunderstandings result from hacking, especially when it borders on game-breaking. The author also feels that hacking does not mock the seriousness of war, as protests (another form of resistance) have become performative and artistic too.
MapleStorySEA is not exactly a military game, but one can find parallels (e.g. if one thinks of killing monsters as killing enemies in military training). For example, players can form guilds to kill more monsters and advance in the game. This can be likened to military strategies and military units where there is a leader who directs the efforts of the unit in achieving military goals (i.e. killing monsters in MapleStorySEA). Hence, albeit in a cuter and more unrealistic way, Maplers can still experience some kind of “militainment”.
(There are, however, different kinds of guilds. Apart from the more ambitious guilds that aim to advance in MapleStorySEA, some players may form guilds to socialize. The latter are hence less military-like. The same goes for party quests as no leader is required. Nevertheless, players leverage on the advantage of the party, or “unit”, to advance in the game.)
I also found an example of hackers deleting guilds:
This is similar to the city being targeted for its population density, as destroying guilds probably has greater impact than hacking individual players: guilds allow players to advance faster (for the ambitious guilds), and a guild can have up to 55 or more players. Hence, more friction can result (as the comments to the above Youtube video show), which probably gives more satisfaction to the hackers.
In addition, asymmetrical warfare is also seen in the Youtube video above, where one player can save many others from the hackers through technological skill.
Increased surveillance in cities can also be related to hacking, as hackers are like terrorists who disrupt the flow of gameplay, hence surveillance by administrators is needed to prevent them from wrecking havoc in the towns (or cities) of MapleStorySEA.
Question: Does “militainment” make players more violent?
* I feel my advancement to Level 20 is still not enough to join party quests or form guilds. (I'll probably be lose at party quests or get expelled for being at the lower end of the guild. Or maybe I have not interacted enough to know others at my levels...) Hence the information above is based on what I have found in forums.
References:
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