A hybrid cultural ecology: world of warcraft in China

We analyze online gaming as a site of collaboration in a digital-physical hybrid. We ground our analysis in findings from an ethnographic study of the online game World of Warcraft in China. We examine the interplay of collaborative practices across the physical environment of China's Internet cafes and the virtual game space of World of Warcraft. Our findings suggest that it may be fruitful to broaden existing notions of physical-digital hybridity by considering the nuanced interplay between the digital and physical as a multi-dimensional environment or "ecology". We illustrate how socio-economics, government regulations and cultural value systems shaped a hybrid cultural ecology of online gaming in China. ACM Classification Keywords H5.m. Information interfaces and presentation (e.g., HCI): Miscellaneous. General Terms Human Factors, Design. Author Keywords Hybrid ecology, virtual worlds, games, ethnography, mixed reality, World of Warcraft.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2008
• Where: CSCW
• Authors: Silvia Lindtner, Bonnie A. Nardi, Yang Wang 0005, Scott D. Mainwaring, He Jing, Wenjing Liang
• Keywords: CSCW 2008, Hybrid Cultural Ecology, Keywords Hybrid Ecology, Online Gaming, Social Sciences