Social Networks in "The Mana World" - an Analysis of Social Ties in an Open Source MMORPG

Abstract

A social network analysis is conducted in an instance in the Mana World, an open source massively on-line role playing game (MMORPG), during a controlled experiment in which data from 181 player characters was gathered during a period of 2 months. The presented results are part of the first phase of the Model MMORPG (Large-Scale Multi-Agent Modeling of Massively On-Line Role-Playing Games) project in which players played a specially designed quest to find patterns of organizational behaviour between players. Results give an insight into the various networks that formed during the experiment based on numerous criteria including in game friendships, parties, and various types of communication.