More than just 'XP': learning social skills in massively multiplayer online games

Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs) have become complex social worlds. As such, playing these games requires more than accomplishing simple objectives: it is also a process of socialization into a community of gamers. Through our observation of players' activities we describe how MMORPGs provide opportunities for learning social skills such as: how to meet people; how to manage a small group; how to coordinate and cooperate with people; and how to participate in sociable interaction with them. We show how this social learning is tied to three important types of social interaction that are characteristic of MMORPGs: players' self-organization, instrumental coordination, and downtime sociability. We conclude by discussing the societal impacts of our findings and how the features of MMORPGs could be repurposed in environments specifically designed for social learning.