The Social Component of playing Cards
ONLINE gamers have been sensationalized as social misfits, juvenile delinquents, even aspiring sharpshooters. They have been the subjects of psychological studies, including The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology that linked exposure to violent video games to aggressiveness and delinquency.
But the portrait of the online gamer as a young incipient sociopath is inaccurate, game industry experts say. Although fans of violent first-person shooter games like Doom and Quake helped establish the culture of online gaming, there now is an entirely new ruling class. These days, Internet gamers are not some clan of elusive teenage demons. More likely, they are Mom and Dad.
Across the Net, card sites like Pogo and Yahoo are scoring big with casual adult gamers. Card and board games, most of which can be played free, have become a sensation among middle-aged adults and retirees.
According to Media Metrix, a company that measures Internet and digital media use, nearly 50 percent of Web site gamers are over 30 and prefer killing time with classics like hearts, bridge, checkers, backgammon and bingo. Nearly half of all online gamers are women, the company says.
Bruce Ryon, senior vice president and general manager of the new-media group at Media Metrix, said that much of the appeal of these games was their simplicity. ”People want games that don’t require a great learning curve,” he said. ”People don’t want to think that much. They just want to have some fun.”
With these kinds of games, fun does not require the latest technology. Online board or card games, cobbled together as quick and easy Java programs, do not require complicated installations, computers equipped with the latest multimedia technology or even the hijacking of a company’s lightning-fast T-1 Internet connection. Within minutes of visiting a site like Pogo.com or Yahoo, gamers can be tossing the dice, going head-to-head in a game of backgammon.
For the sites offering these games, low-end programs mean low start-up costs. A typical high-end PC game, like those that can be played online, costs about $4 million to produce, according to an estimate by the Interactive Digital Software Association. By contrast, a tiny Java-based parlor game like hearts or spades can be made for less than $100,000.
The social atmosphere often seems to be the biggest draw. Casual games not only offer free and fast competition but also inspire small talk. Instead of going to the water cooler, people can shoot the breeze online while they shoot the dice.
”These games combine all the great elements of the Web: community and entertainment,” said Michael Latham, senior director of production for Yahoo’s entertainment and media group. ”We see this community as something that’s as important as having e-mail or a calendar.”
