Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs)

XXXXXX X XXXX Prof. XXX X XXXXXXX

Human Computer Interaction
May 5 2005

There are major differences when playing chess in person to playing chess in cyberspace. Playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) can become very addictive to the user especially if they are playing from home. Playing chess face-to-face with another person (called OTB, Over the Board) you get a sense of competition where there is tension in the air. I would say the first and most obvious thing that you could have happened playing online chess that would never happen playing face-to-face is losing your Internet connection. Whether you just made your first move our ready to call checkmate once your Internet connection has been severed it is unlikely you can recall that game. With two individual computers connected to the game server, any one of the three could lose connection at any time. Another, thing that you would not have in a face-to-face chess game would be a lot of conversation. In an online chess game you and your opponent have the ability to communicate by text or by voice while playing the game. To further expand on this point of conversation during the game, some opponents use the conversation to taunt and ridicule their opponent. They do this in an effort to distract you hoping you will make a mistake that they can capitalize on. If you are playing a serious game OTB this type of unsportsmanlike conduct would not be accepted. Accidentally making a move that you did not wish to make is another thing that would not happen in face to face game. If you're using a mouse and believe you're grabbing one piece and inadvertently grabbed a different piece it is unlikely that your opponent will believe it was an accident. In a face-to-face game you can get some idea of how long before your opponent is ready to make his next move by his body language. In an online game of chess you have no idea of how long it will be before your opponent's next move. You can only guess if your opponent is even at his computer. Your opponent may have gotten up to answer the front door, get something to drink or eat, or when outside to walk the dog. Meanwhile you are still plotting your next move and waiting for your opponent to make his next move.

The environment of an online game or OTB game may either be a help or hindrance depending on the participants. Comparing the two environments they both have a chessboard though one is an image projected on a computer screen. This image could either be a two dimensional image or a three dimensional image. In the OTB game environment may have small chitchat whereas the online game your opponent may be continuously sending text or voice messages. With online and OTB games you will still have to abide by the rules of the game and make your moves accordingly.

There seems to be a lot more contrasts between online and OTB chess games than there are comparisons. This Wednesday OTB game you are sitting right in front of your opponent and can tell if they are trying to cheat. The online game cannot give you any assurance that your opponent is not cheating. Your opponent could be plotting your moves into another computer in order to get his next move. Also, there is no assurance that the person you believe you are playing is the one you are actually playing. With OTB games you are normally mentally ready and may travel to a friend’s home to play. Having done these things in order to play you are more likely to take the game seriously. With the online game you may just be bored and are looking for distraction meaning you will probably not playing at your best but just looking to kill time. Playing in an online chess tournament would be totally different than and OTB tournament. Because you will be participating in the tournament from the comfort of your home it is unlikely that you will be nervous. With the OTB chess tournament you may have anxiety, butterflies in your stomach and sweat in your palms. There will be some crowds watching your every move along with other players trying to intimidate you. On the other hand if you are a shy person who has played mostly online you would probably be at your best at home. This way your surroundings can be an asset to you and help you to relax and concentrate. There are no crowds to contend with, no opponents who are staring you down, no judges walking about and no chance of embarrassment. During an online game if your opponent makes a mistake or a bad move you may or may not pick up on it. With the OTB game if your opponent makes a bad move you may notice it right away by his gestures or body language. Your opponent may sigh, clenches his fists, hanging his head, or bite his lip indicating to you that he may have made a mistake.

There should be certain guidelines use when designing user interfaces for MMORPGs. The user interface guidelines should take into consideration the type of game being design and its target audience. Using these s guidelines should lead the designers to incorporate other interfaces that will either make again easier to play or more challenging. Designing user interfaces like the one used with the Nintendo Wii has several advantages which in turn gets more people to play their consoles. Not only is the Nintendo Wii interface easy to use with air gestures but it also incorporates directional buttons. I there are other user interfaces that are even simpler than the one used by the Nintendo Wii.

The Microsoft's Xbox Kinect is a completely Air-Base gesture system that uses three-dimensional positioning of the body. The user interface guidelines that should have been used to make this system I believe are range of detection, height of target audience and durability. The MMORPGs that were designed to use with the Microsoft's Xbox kinect should have cooperated more than one user interface. Since a lot of MMORPGs are played on a variety of platforms including Microsoft's Xbox, PlayStation three, and PC the interfaces must match the platform.

User interface guidelines used on other MMORPGs should include: who are our users, does it take too long for the game to load, and is the content appropriate for our target audience. Knowing who you are designing the MMORPGs for gives you what your product will be. You would not design a game for 8 to 12-year-olds that included foul language and nudity although some parents may allow them to play it. Some MMORPGs are very large programs that take up a lot of space on a hard drive and require a significant amount of random access memory (RAM). In the past this may have been a problem with smaller hard drives and slower RAM rates but now the norm seems to be huge data storage hard drives and super fast RAM. If the target audience of a MMORPG is 18 years old and above then that gives the designers a freehand to include all things necessary to make the game a success.

In this paper we have explored the pros and cons of playing games and cyberspace versus James face-to-face. In this we found that face-to-face seems to be the superior choice if you want to experience that comes with it. In your home you may be more comfortable but will miss the excitement of face-to-face competition. We also looked at user interface guidelines used in determining MMORPGs.

References
-------------------------------------------------
"Designing a User Interface (Windows)."MSDN – the Microsoft Developer Network. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 July 2013. <http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/ff728820(v=vs.85).aspx>.
-------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------
"The Daily Dirt Chess News Blog." Mig Greengard's ChessNinja.com – E-mail newsletters and online chess training. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 July 2013. <http://www.chessninja.com/dailydirt/>.
-------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------
"Unrated Online Game vs Unrated OTB Game - Chess.com." Play Chess Online - Free Chess Games at Chess.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 July 2013. <http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/unrated-online-game-vs-unrated-otb-game>.