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Synthetic Worlds - The Business and Culture of Online Games (Paperback, New edition)
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Synthetic Worlds - The Business and Culture of Online Games (Paperback, New edition)
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From "EverQuest" to "World of Warcraft," online games have evolved
from the exclusive domain of computer geeks into an extraordinarily
lucrative staple of the entertainment industry. People of all ages
and from all walks of life now spend thousands of hours--and
dollars--partaking in this popular new brand of escapism. But the
line between fantasy and reality is starting to blur. Players have
created virtual societies with governments and economies of their
own whose currencies now trade against the dollar on eBay at rates
higher than the yen. And the players who inhabit these synthetic
worlds are starting to spend more time online than at their day
jobs.
In "Synthetic Worlds," Edward Castronova offers the first
comprehensive look at the online game industry, exploring its
implications for business and culture alike. He starts with the
players, giving us a revealing look into the everyday lives of the
gamers--outlining what they do in their synthetic worlds and why.
He then describes the economies inside these worlds to show how
they might dramatically affect real world financial systems, from
potential disruptions of markets to new business horizons.
Ultimately, he explores the long-term social consequences of online
games: If players can inhabit worlds that are more alluring and
gratifying than reality, then how can the real world ever compete?
Will a day ever come when we spend more time in these synthetic
worlds than in our own? Or even more startling, will a day ever
come when such questions no longer sound alarmist but instead seem
obsolete?
With more than ten million active players worldwide--and with
Microsoft and Sony pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into
videogame development--online games have become too big to ignore.
"Synthetic Worlds" spearheads our efforts to come to terms with
this virtual reality and its concrete effects.
"Illuminating. . . . Castronova's analysis of the economics of fun
is intriguing. Virtual-world economies are designed to make the
resulting game interesting and enjoyable for their inhabitants.
Many games follow a rags-to-riches storyline, for example. But how
can all the players end up in the top 10%? Simple: the upwardly
mobile human players need only be a subset of the world's
population. An underclass of computer-controlled 'bot' citizens,
meanwhile, stays poor forever. Mr. Castronova explains all this
with clarity, wit, and a merciful lack of academic jargon."--"The
Economist"
" "
""Synthetic Worlds" is a surprisingly profound book about the
social, political, and economic issues arising from the emergence
of vast multiplayer games on the Internet. What Castronova has
realized is that these games, where players contribute considerable
labor in exchange for things they value, are not merely like real
economies, they "are" real economies, displaying inflation, fraud,
Chinese sweatshops, and some surprising in-game innovations."--Tim
Harford, "Chronicle of Higher Education
"
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