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Online Games and Popular Culture: What Makes Millions of People Play ‘World of Warcraft’?

A game is a play or sport. It’s usually a competitive one that’s being played according to rules and decided by strength, skills, or mere luck. When the computer was invented and the Internet came, games continued to progress in jaw-dropping twists and turns.

It moved from a simple game on the computer or the cell phone to games promoting online involvement. Technological advancement has a significant impact on the online gaming industry, making it progress rapidly in the past decades.

World of Warcraft and Online Games: The Current Situation

When Covid-19 became a pandemic and people urged to stay indoors, feelings of isolation and loneliness became more prevalent. To combat loneliness, many people turned to online games. It became the most engaging form of entertainment today. It also connected and has been connecting friends or lets people find friends online while playing.

However, online games such as video games played online were once widely perceived as antisocial. The media claimed that violence and other crimes were due to the influence of video games. But many players and studies proved otherwise.

In an online poll made by Qutee’s research, 93% of gamers think that the standard view that video games lead to violence and other antisocial behavior is incorrect. Gamers also formed strong friendships. Around two-thirds of gamers claim to have up to five friends, and another 37% say they have made even more.

One of the most popular online games today is the “World of Warcraft” (WoW). Like other online games, it provides a common ground and great entertainment to spend time together and build strong friendships.

What Is World of Warcraft All About?

World of Warcraft (WoW) is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) released on November 14, 2004, by the American company Blizzard Entertainment.

Like any other online game, the setting of this game is a fictional world. It allows players to create avatar-style characters and explore the universe while interacting with non-real players called non-player characters (NPCs) and other real-world players (PCs).

If this is your first time encountering WoW, this is one of the best video games you will experience online!

Credit: Blizzard Entertainment

The World of Azeroth

The setting of the game is a fictional world of Azeroth. Various quests, battles, and missions should be completed alone or in guilds. The reward for success will include weapons, gold, or valuable items used by players to improve their character. The characters will advance by killing other creatures to earn experience. After acquiring enough experience, the character gains a level, which increases its power.

WoW offers a rich class of characters such as priests, druids, paladins, rogues, and other fantasy-related classes. Guilds may achieve notoriety if they can finish certain quests or defeat specific monsters quickly. This way, a hierarchy system established in the game.

Credit: Blizzard Entertainment

Boosting Services for WoW

Since WoW is a very competitive game, many players who enjoy the game use Mythic +15 services for boosts and promotion. Their services are customized because customers can choose through the options available to add any assistance they need. These services tailor their services based on what the players ask of them.

Impact of World of Warcraft on Pop Culture

Pop culture or popular culture is a type of media with mass accessibility and appeal, such as television, radio, music, art, and books used by most of society’s population. It refers to the traditions and material culture of a particular community.

World of Warcraft (WoW) was a massive success for its developer, Blizzard, because it understood the power of direct network effects on video games. Multiplayer gaming such as WoW exhibits direct network characteristics, increasing the number of players. The popularity of this game led to a cinematic adaptation called “Warcraft” (2016), which expounded upon the mythology of Azeroth.

WoW on Fighting the Pandemic

What made WoW so much fun for users is the interaction of users in the game. Since players play with a massive number of players, many users report a stronger sense of social identity, decreased feeling of loneliness, and higher levels of self-esteem. Multiplayer online games such as WoW can also foster a sense of camaraderie. This kind of game is essential to most of its players as it combats the potential social and psychological impacts of the coronavirus pandemic today.

Building Alliances Within WoW

Besides gaining strong friendships, playing online games like WoW can also help players build resilience, perseverance to attain goals and improve communication skills. Online games that require strategy and problem-solving skills to win can enhance their memory, brain speed, and concentration. Games that require players to find items while fighting off other opponents can increase quick reaction and attention to detail, improving multitasking skills.

There are many traditional ways to combat the psychological effects of the pandemic and recover from stress, like reading a book or watching a movie. These traditional ways are very helpful because they can offer relaxation. But they don’t provide the opportunity to experience mastery and control like what online games can do.

Online Gaming in Society

The online gaming world is not perfect, however. It may lead to gaming addiction that needs to be addressed. Some also claim that it makes players violent, although these are rare cases. However, despite this concern, online games remain fun and practical to combat feelings of isolation and boredom and maintain social relationships with appropriate precautions.

The voice of the gamers can play a significant role in the gaming world as it continues to develop and grow. It is time to listen to their stories and experiences and focus on the advantages rather than blaming these games for the violence they see on the news.

 

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