Abstract
Online video games have become more popular among the youth and young adults in the past decade. These games are exceedingly addictive. The youths and young adults engage many hours of their day playing these games. This article is an attempt to understand the players’ perceptions and reasons for spending hours playing it. This article also explores the factors responsible for the growth of video games as a trending popular culture. The current study examines the impact of excessive gameplay on a gamers’ life as a whole. This study found out that graphics, gameplay, and story line of a gameplay play a vital role in the popularity of a particular game. It is the extra-realistic gaming experience that online games offer, which makes it so addictive. It is also revealed that players felt socially stigmatized for being a gamer since playing video games is not a socially accepted form of a hobby in Arunachal Pradesh unlike in some parts of the world. Basically, this article focuses on the insights of players about their experience as an insider in this gaming culture.
Introduction
Online video games are an important source of entertainment and has become a common hobby. The popularity of video games has grown immensely over time across cultures all around the world. These Internet-based information and communication technologies have led to the formation of new sorts of communities and cultural communicative practices (Wilson & Peterson, 2002). Video games have enabled the emergence of a virtual world, a world that functions as a self-contained and autonomous displaying structures and processes not explained by the actual world (Boellstorf, 2008). Virtual worlds are immersive and compelling to the players because they look and sound exactly like the real world for the reason that the player can manipulate elements of the modeled world and thus experience the degree of presence (Golub, 2010). Moreover, these online games give the players a chance to subsist within the rules decided by themselves (Nair, 2016).
Video games have been increasingly alluring not only as entertainment but also as an area of interest in academic research (Rebetez & Betrancourt, 2007). It has become one of the newest popular media forms to discover themselves under scientific study (Ferguson, 2010). Over the past two decades or so, the positive and negative aspects of video games have been contested within the research community as well as within popular media (Anderson, 2013; Anderson et. al., 2010; Ferguson, 2007; Snodgrass, 2016). Current literature also addresses moral panic and the problems with labeling video gaming as an addiction (Billieux et al., 2015; Golub & Lingley, 2008; Kardefelt-Winther et al., 2017; McLean, 2013; Nair, 201; Szablewicz, 20106). This growing culture of video games can be seen trending among the youth and young adults in Arunachal Pradesh, India, also. The time they spend in the virtual world far exceeds the time they spend with the real people in the real world. This is a bit concerning because the social and cultural development of a child is affected by the activities they engage on the computer and smartphone screen. (Palmer, 2006). As a result, video games have always been a controversial topic across the globe. Recently, one of the most popular online video games, ‘PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds’ (PUBG) was banned in some countries and faced a potential ban in many parts of India (Mamun & Griffiths, 2019) because of the alleged negative impact on education, health, and psychology of the youth (Sekhose, 2019). For the same reasons, in Arunachal Pradesh also, the state government has initiated the process to ban this game in July 2019 (Arunachal24, 2019) after outrage by parents and many civic societies. Amid these controversies, the youth and young adults continue to play online video games as a hobby but sometimes as addiction. The present study is an attempt to understand the players’ subjective perceptions of how younger generations embrace video games to a greater extent as cultural representation and how the growing popularity of this culture among the youth in tribal societies of Arunachal can have multiple influences and effects on the players.
Methodology
The study is conducted in the capital complex of Arunachal Pradesh, which includes Itanagar, Naharlagun, Nirjuli, and Doimukh. The capital complex is a cluster of settlement, inhabited by different ethnic groups such as Adi, Galo, Nyishi, Apatani, Idu Mishmi, Tagin, Monpa, Aka, Miji, and many other small tribes. The main reason for the selection of capital complex for this study is because of the multiethnic allocation of people from different parts of Arunachal Pradesh along with other migrant ethnic groups from across the states. Moreover, this study aims to explore the trending video game culture among the youth. The target population is abundant in the capital complex because it has the largest number of schools, colleges, and universities as compared to the rest of the locations in Arunachal Pradesh. The sample of the study is selected using a nonrandom sampling method where only people who play video games were considered.
The study is both qualitative and quantitative in its approach, and fieldwork was conducted for approximately 6 months from November 2018 to April 2019. Data were collected using both questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. An online questionnaire with both close-ended and open-ended questions was set up, keeping the main objectives of the study in focus. To ensure that questions were clearly articulated, a pilot study was conducted to cross-check if the questions were enough to reach the research goals and to find out whether the questions were smoothly executed with the respondents undertaken. The questionnaire was then modified, incorporating the views and suggestions of the respondents in the pilot study. Further, semi-structured interviews were conducted on the selected respondents to find out deeper significance and knowledge around the themes that emerged from the online survey through the questionnaire.
The questionnaire was distributed online to the respondents by posting it on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp groups. The respondents were also asked to share the link to the people they know to be video gamers. In total, 153 respondents filled the questionnaire out of which 136 were males, and 17 were females. Semi-structured interviews were conducted on 18 respondents. The sample population of this study included mostly high school and college students, and young adults who acknowledged themselves as gamers. The majority of the respondents (42.5%) held a college graduate degree from different colleges, and the remaining 54.8% were either in college or were high school graduates. The respondents were mostly between the age group of 18–27 years.
Findings and Discussion
Game and Gender
Video games have rapidly become a popular mainstream culture in many different parts of the world. The youth and young adults are very much exposed to this culture and have included it as their everyday activity. Results from in-depth interviews and online surveys show that video gaming is very high among the youth in Arunachal Pradesh, though it is not yet a socially accepted common hobby like those in some other parts of the world. The popularity of video game culture is found to be soaring with male gamers more than female gamers. One of the probable reasons for the higher number of male gamers as compared to female gamers could be linked to the patriarchal system that exists in these societies. With utmost male-centeredness, division of labor is prevalent. Females from a very young age are seen to be involved in household chores, agricultural activities, etc., with girls having less or no time to spare for other leisure activities like video gaming. Whereas, on the other hand, males or particularly boys’ involvement in such chores is not seen. For this reason, the male members have more leisure time compared to female members of the society. Another reason could be the contents of these video games. Most of the video games are action-oriented and contain some or other form of violence, wars, action, and sports. So, those kinds of video games are made targeting the male populace and may have a higher chance of increasing its popularity within the male gaming group.
Perception of Video Gamers among Players
Video games allowed gamers to play out their ‘ideal selves’, allowing themselves not only to be braver, mightier, and more fearless but also intensifying their emotions to the most (Przybylski et al., 2012). People, especially the youth are more attracted to online video games because these games allow them to reach their ideal aspects of themselves. One of the most human needs is to self-actualize themselves, and, therefore, several well-known game enthusiasts consider that self-actualization is what games are supposed to deliver to the video gamers (Przybylski et al., 2012). To the question ‘why they play video games?’, many among the respondents are of the view that they prefer playing online games because it offers them an ability to connect with hundreds of gamers every time they play. This is an important finding because one of the current discourses about video gamers is the question of their social involvement. There is a general notion that gamers are lonesome and reserved persons. However, from the present study, it is understood that gamers find it easy for them to connect with hundreds of other gamers online, playing together and sharing their experience about the games they play. Many of them are satisfied with the bond they develop with other like-minded gamers in their virtual world. They have the outlook that this virtual world created by these games is persuasive among gamers and is compelling or addictive because to them it looks and sounds exactly like the actual world. For some, these online games are not merely entertainment that gives a thrilling experience but also acts as a medium to release all the stress and worries. It keeps them busy and provides self-satisfaction.
In the present study, gamers spend an average of 3 h per day for 6 days per week in playing video games. The study also shows that 5% of the respondents play video games for more than 10 h a day. Moreover, for some players, it serves as a medium to liberate all the stress, especially during exams, and they agreed that they have a propensity to play more during exams. The results of the quantitative analysis suggest that out of 153 respondent, 41.2% of the video game players are proud to be a gamer, 7.2% are ashamed, and 51.6% feel indifferent about their video game playing habit. The fact that players who are ashamed of their video gaming habit reveals that they conceal their gaming from non-gamer friends and parents for the fear of being tagged as a childish, lazy, good-for-nothing, and time wasters, etc. Those in the late 20s seem to show the highest label of distress and shame. Sometimes, they felt they get so lost in the virtual world of gaming and worried if they were too much addicted to video games. For a good number of the participants (45.1%), video games are not that important. They think of video games as just another leisure activity, which they play whenever they are bored. But for the rest (54.9%), video games have become a very important part of their lives. They even made an analogy between food and video game. Some were of the opinion that they would rather spend their time playing a video game than spending time with their partners. The study result specifies that 63.4% of the total respondents agreed to the point that video games can be educational, for instance, there are games made on ancient mythology, historical events, and geographical places too, which can offer knowledge to the person who plays it and can enhance a person’s interest in history and ancient culture. Several respondents were of the view that playing video games can promote practical knowledge rather than theoretical knowledge.
Gamers feel themselves that playing video games improved their self-control behavior, resulting in a better mood and boosting their self-confidence. Moreover, there are those players for whom gaming is an escape from the real world, where the people are subjected to all kinds of pressures, for instance, to behave in a certain manner, think, and interact in a certain way, whereas, in the case of video games, there are no such pressures. The virtual world created by video games offers them to be free and to be who they really are. This is the reason why gamers are so engrossed in the game.
Factors Responsible for the Rise in Popularity of Video Games
One of the objectives of this study was to find out why people play video games and the elements of a video game that attract them. Apart from the reasons discussed earlier, some other important key factors for the popularity of video games, according to the respondents, are the story line, graphics, sound, gameplay, and control of the game. The amazingly realistic features of the game’s in-built characters or graphics and sounds help the players to perceive the more compelling game experience. But that is not all; there are also a variety of tiny factors in a game, which adds to the popularity of a particular video game. For instance, there are multiple online games that call for team play such as ‘PlayerUnknown’s Battle Grounds’, ‘Mobile Legends’, ‘Clash of Clans’, etc. Players become committed to the collective project of gaming together as a team. It is this commitment to the collective project of gaming whether it is knowledge production, raiding, or fighting together in a Massively Multiplayer Online Game, which are the true grounds of the incredible dedication of the gamers that make them addictive.
The second factor responsible for the growth of video game culture among the youth is the improved Internet facilities, which provide easy access to these online games. With easy access to the Internet, video games, especially those which are available online, have been invading every corner of the world, leaving no society behind. The fast and easy access to these games and other social media through the web of cyberspace has an enormous effect on the growth and development of video games and its culture among the youth and young adults. Video games have come a long way and improved so much in the past decade, attracting people more than ever before with its extra realistic features and extraordinary gaming experience. In India, in 2017, 222 million people were reported to have been playing mobile games, and 89% of all game revenues in India were produced through these mobile games (Wijman, 2018). The respondents also spoke a lot about the exciting experiences that a game provides. For example, playing a game can take a person through different kind of feelings such as pleasure, excitement, enthusiasm, delight, anticipation, fever pitch, adventure with different genres of games available, amusement, a sense of satisfaction when one does well in a game, pride when one wins, enchantment, and mostly enjoyment when one plays a video game.
Impact of Video Games on a player’s Life as a Whole
Since its development four decades ago, video games have escalated quickly and demands attention from different disciplines. There are gamers who very much enjoy the game for their own good reasons. The flip side of the coin is that the gamers faced many negative consequences as well. On the one hand, gaming is a source of enjoyment and delivers gamers a feeling of self-worth, while, on the other hand, gaming has led an individual to stay socially isolated in the actual world with the people around them. Other impacts like drastic reductions in the physical movement were reported by many respondents, and it also hampers relationships with close and dear ones.
Positive Impacts
In the present study, 24.8% of the respondents agreed that video gaming has positive impacts on their lives. Playing video games helps them to develop patience, realize the importance of teamwork in both the game and the real world, and relaxes their mind after a long exhausting day. When they feel lonely or gloomy for any reason, games are always there to lighten up their mood with countless exciting and fun features to offer. It not only helps them emotionally but also improves their cognition too, for instance, games are found to sharpen the mind and is a great way to exercise one’s brain from time to time. The finding of this study indicates that the hobby of playing games as a pastime has a great impact on the lives of players. The most popular genre or type of online game is that of Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG). The respondents agreed that playing such online video games increased their cooperative skills and social acceptance. Playing online games helps them to communicate with other gamers across the world via text and/or voice chat and therefore helps them improve their English language as well. Further, the video game offers excitement, fun, brain stimulation, adventure, and entertainment in a very inexpensive mode and explores the world without going out of the room.
Negative Impact
This study also found that 23.5% of the respondents have experienced negative impacts of video gaming in their lives. For instance, playing video games has made them lazy, hampering other activities such as delaying works, forgetting deadlines, wastage of time, poor academic grades, and different health issues related to intensive video gaming, and poor unhealthy living style. The players also reveal how they fear to be negatively stereotyped in society, such as time-waster, lazy, nerdy, antisocial, childish, good-for-nothing, etc.
A study has shown the association between violent gameplay and increasing aggression in players (Anderson & Bushman, 2001). The present study concurs with this earlier study. For instance, players self-reported to have damaged their phones or even harmed themselves involuntarily by punching a wall or hitting something else with their fist when they faced some kind of defeat in a game. Intensive video gaming may also lead to some serious health issues. Further, 64.7% of the respondents reported having not suffered from any kind of physical problem while video gaming, but the rest 35.3% of the players seemed to have faced various physical pains. The most common types of health-related problems found are neck pains and other joint pains because of a prolonged stay in the same position while playing video games. Other problems are back pain from lying down for hours, problems related to eyes due to staring at the phone or other gaming devices like laptops or computers, etc., for hours, holding and dragging a mouse while gaming for too long cause pain on the wrist and sometimes also leaves marks on it, lack of sleep due to gaming overnight, in turn, led to several other serious health-related issues, headaches, etc. Some cases have also been reported where video game players felt too much gaming caused unhealthy sleeping habits, unhealthy diet patterns, withdrawal from family and friends, and conflicts in couples. They felt that the video game had taken most of their time and replaced the outdoor games in an individual’s life.
Conclusion
Video games are an important source of entertainment and most commonly played hobby among the youth in the capital complex of Arunachal Pradesh, India. Looking from the emic perspective, many players thought of playing video games as a very essential part of their daily life. Video games let the players play out their ideal selves by heightening all kinds of emotions as they play and letting them who they want to be. Moreover, now, video games are highly interactive than ever before. It connects together limitless players from different places all around the world, blurring geographical boundaries, culture, language, age, gender, etc. So, video gamers not only play to conquer a game but also to build up social relationships with other gamers. Additionally, there is an indication that some video games can be educational and beneficial to those who play it in areas of cognitive, mental, and social aspects. Many respondents in this study agreed to the abovementioned point that they have received practical knowledge which otherwise traditional education system could have never provided, and this has made them able to think out of the box.
Gamers have talked about both the positive and negative impacts of gaming. There were gamers who enjoyed the game for their own good reasons, but then, many of the respondents claimed to have lost track of the real world. Some of the respondents also felt gaming caused them to lead an unhealthy and unhygienic lifestyle. These impacts were found to be persuading in different areas of their lives such as physical health, personal development, mental and emotional state of mind, and their social aspects as well. The findings could also provide some insight into why video games are important to the people involved in this culture and might actually be beneficial to some extent, irrespective of how immersive and addictive this culture could be.
Additionally, this study could bring out some other issues which need further research, for instance, various health-related problems have been associated with intensive video gaming. In-depth studies could be carried out to examine video gaming and its impacts on the youth and children’s lives, and these studies may come up with preventive measures to avoid the damages. So, there is a call for future researchers in this study area since this study is the first of its kind conducted on the subject of video game culture in Arunachal Pradesh.
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
Funding
The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.