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In most Massive Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs), the Game Code is regarded as law designed by game developers to regulate the actions of game players, in the same way that laws in real-world governments use to regulate the behavior of their citizens. Richard Bartle in Burke suggests that every change in game code is a change in law in a MMOG. Whether the change is positive or neutral, each player will be affected equally (Burke 2004).
Accoring to Near Death Studios (2005), in comparison to traditional single-player games, MMOGs are very unique in that players are able to interact with other players. This interaction often brings the players unique gaming experiences which can not be found in the single-player format. Sometimes, it can also cause conflicts between the players. In addition, the introduction of the game code is an attempt to help the players know what is and what is not a suitable action in the gaming world. Near Death Studios (2005) states that a well-constructed game code can reduce or stop players from benefitting at the expense of the enjoyment of other players. Conversely, a poorly designed game code can affect gamers from enjoying their gaming experience in MMOGs . For example, Lineage, a multiplayer online game is player-versus-player (PvP) based. In Lineage, there is a tendency for players with high-level rating to prey on new players as the game code does not prevent this sort of behaviour. Such activities can reduce the new player's interests and discourage them from participatying in the game (The Mangle of Play 2005).
Game Code can be categorized into two types. The codes are used to regulate game players' behaviours during gameplay inside the online gaming environment and when the player is offline.
Firstly, the laws used in online gaming worlds are usually made into game programs. Particularly, it is used to prohibit conflicts between the game players. Language filters , for example, are used to prevent the game players from using foul language in chat sections of the MMOGs(Burke 2004).
In addition, the game code used in online game worlds are also made into physical documents. Because, in many cases, the real-world capacities of humans essentially surpass the technical capacities of programs bound by code, therefore these codes can be exploited by users. For example, the language filter program that stops gamers saying “fuck�? may not be able to deal with “f*u*c*k�? (Burke 2004). The developers of the online Role Play Game (RPG), Meridian 59, have made laws regarding the regulation of the gamers’ behaviors in their game's physcial document. Gaming behaviour such as cheating and online harassment are all covered in a online rule document for Meridian 59, which the game code can not otherwise prevent. Briefly, the document illustrates policies which specifically tell gamers what they can't do and why they can't do them (Near Death Studios 2005).
Secondly, the game code used to regulate the gamers’ behaviors besides actual gameplay is made into document. The document is called End User License Agreement (EULA). The EULA helps game developers claim virtual property rights and forbids the gamers to sell and buy virtual items outside of the gaming worlds. The selling of virtual items in the real world will be seen as a violation of the game developers’ law (Bellevue Linux 2005).
Bellevue Linux. 2005. EULA definition. http://www.bellevuelinux.org/eula.html (accessed October 3, 2005).
Burke, T. (2004) Play of State: Sovereignty and Governance in MMOGs, http://weblogs.swarthmore.edu/burke/?page_id=32. (accessed October 14, 2005)
Near Death Studios. 2005. Rules of Play. http://billing.neardeathstudios.com/M59-RulesOfPlay-01.shtml. (accessed October 14, 2005).
The Mangle of Play. 2005. http://64.233.187.104/search?q=cache:X8T_S3isJuYJ:www.academiccolab.org/resources/documents/Steinkuehler_mangle.doc+MMOG+regulation+rule+law+&hl=en (accessed October 15, 2005).
The link to key entry:Computer Games - Ethics
--Chang I-Jung 17:54, 20 Oct 2005(EST)
