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Project Massive Results And Survey Iteration

Posted by Zonk on from the more-statistics-means-more-flavour dept.

Project Massive, a study being run out of Carnegie Mellon university into the tendencies of MMOG players, has released the findings of its second wave of testing and the third iteration of the survey. From the site: "Previously, Project Massive has investigated player communication and organization in PC based, Massively Multiplayer games. While this work continues, the inquiry has been expanded to address the impact of online play on the players' real life activities, perceptions, and experiences. No longer is the study limited to PC based MMOs. A number of online genres including first-person shooters and real-time strategy games have been added. Further, both console and PC player populations are included in the sample."

19 comments

  1. Crap... by game+kid · · Score: 3, Funny

    they took the name of our adult film study!

    --
    You can hold down the "B" button for continuous firing.
    1. Re:Crap... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      get it mods? Project Massive? as in MASSIVE PENIS, being associated with adult film, which often features PENIS' that could be described as MASSIVE. never mind, gees.

  2. Cost - 1993 vs. 2005 by MiceHead · · Score: 4, Informative

    In 1993, players would routinely pay around $3-$6 per hour for text-based, commercial multiplayer online games versus today's ~$14.95/mo flatrate.

    I got my first job in the industry working for a company that produced such a game. If memory serves, players for that game could get a dedicated Tymnet pipe to play the game, flatrate, for a mere $1,000.00/mo.

    We politely referred to those players as being "dedicated." Or, on occasion, "committed."

    --
    We're indie. We're working on our 14th game.
    1. Re:Cost - 1993 vs. 2005 by jbellis · · Score: 2, Interesting

      hmm...

      1997: Andor announces that instead of $10/month + $2/h, it will now only charge $25/month, flat.

      1998: SOE launches Everquest, charging $12/month flat.

      I think I see what happened...

    2. Re:Cost - 1993 vs. 2005 by Andy+Mitchell · · Score: 1
      In 1993, players would routinely pay around $3-$6 per hour for text-based....

      I'm amazed people were paying! There were thousands of free muds back in 1993. Surprisingly, many of them are still going today. This is rather impressive when you consider how dead the single player text based adventure has become.

    3. Re:Cost - 1993 vs. 2005 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The popularity and activity of the free text-based adventure scene today is probably in the same proportion to the Infocom days, as MUDs today are to their early-90s (?) heyday. Just google for "inform", "graham nelson" and "andrew plotkin," or combinations thereof.

      Disclaimer that I never got into MUDs per se; my friends would mock me for playing "Sorcerer" when I could do the same thing in a social atmosphere. I couldn't quite tell them, that the reason was that "Sorcerer" required thought. That and, more pathetically, I was too socially incapable to MUD - I would always ask my party practically before making any directional movement.

  3. MODS ON CRACK! by Frodo+Crockett · · Score: 1

    Offtopic? Someone didn't get the joke....

    --
    "The newly born animals are then whisked off for a quick run through a giant baking oven." --heard on Food Network
  4. Most Addictive by Aenox · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Does slashdot count as a MMORG?

    1. Re:Most Addictive by DrunkenTerror · · Score: 3, Funny

      I would think so... Choose you faction, (Slashbot, Elitist IT Douchebag, Mod on Crack, Troll, Lurker, Normal Human, etc) and set out on a quest for Excellent Karma. Along the way you make friends and foes that can help or hinder you as you strive to the goal. Then, once you reach lvl 50, the endgame really sucks... It's just like the 49 other levels, only you have no goal and can't advance any further. At this point you must choose to stay as a benevolent lvl 50 user and get into managing your resources (journal entries, subscriptions), or succumb to the call of darkness and start using your levels to terrorize your foes, both real and imagined.

    2. Re:Most Addictive by Ayaress · · Score: 1

      Normal Human? I take it that's one of those nerfed classes that nobody picks?

    3. Re:Most Addictive by DrunkenTerror · · Score: 1

      Yeah, you get no special powers, but you just don't give a shit. :D

    4. Re:Most Addictive by Reignking · · Score: 1

      I'd say Anonymous Coward is naturally nerfed, because he can't accrue Karma...

      --
      One man's Funny is another man's Offtopic.
  5. Survey Says by deathwombat · · Score: 2, Funny

    Since the addition of the /pizza command in EQ2 the average weight of it's players has nearly doubled!

    And violent tendencies in WoW players is up 400% due to downtimes and exceedingly long queues for realms.

    Also that 75% of all statistics are made up!

    --
    Accept any challenge, No matter the odds.
  6. Suspicious by MBraynard · · Score: 1

    I suspect that this study is merely a cover/excuse for the grad student(s) doing the study to play games for 8 hours a day and get the Uni to pay for it.

    1. Re:Suspicious by patio11 · · Score: 2, Interesting
      Ah, university, what a great racket. I had a grant proposal for $200 to buy a Japanese PS2 ("Cultural Studies") written up but chickened out at the last minute, but my prof said it would have been golden (hard for a guy whose research speciality is manga* to say your field lacks academic merit).

      * You'd expect it to have been the worst class in terms of actual content in my college career, but it was EASILY in the top half once you cut past all the BS that was on the syllabus to convince the department that there was a Prestigious University Education happening in there.

      --
      Help poke pirates in the eyepatch, arr.
    2. Re:Suspicious by Kalak · · Score: 1

      I want to do my dissertation on this, and I'll do it w/o the university paying for it. Heck, in '98 I should have done it, as all I had to do was to collect logs, etc from my addiction to net games. *sigh* I guess these guys beat me to it (I was too busy playing to do the Lit Review.)

      --
      I am, and always will be, an idiot. Karma: Coma (mostly effected by .hack)
  7. Conclusion by Reignking · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I know this survey is supposedly ongoing, but it would be nice if the authors could at least offer some conclusions. After going over some of the data, nothing surprised me. I'm not sure what they hope to find, or what their objective is.

    --
    One man's Funny is another man's Offtopic.
  8. Damn... by FreakyControl · · Score: 1

    15% of the players reported playing on average 21 hours per week. That's a part-time job! With the advent of selling property online for cash, one wonders if playing MMOG's will become a part-time job...

    Though I question the accuracy of some of the statistics, since it's nearly impossible to play for 156 hours per week as that would only allow for 12 hours of sleep per week.

  9. Is it just me? by Kelbear · · Score: 1

    Nobody finds it interesting that City of Heroes is actually leading World of Warcraft in "What MMOG do you play the most?"? City of heroes has far less suscribers than World of Warcraft, peaked at 180,000 down to about 120,000 last I heard. Not to rip on CoH since I actually enjoyed it more than WoW, but it's just odd that the distribution of results seems so far from the sales quotes from the companies. Any ideas on why?