the phenomenon MMORPG
MMORPGs (massively multiplayer online role playing games) have been around for some years now, so you can hardly talk about a new “phenomenon”. still, it continues to amaze me how players are fascinated by such games and virtually (pun intended) drawn into the fictional worlds. due to my case study of Neocron i arrived at a plausible, psychoanalytical explanation and i really want to share this “revelation” with you. the game is not interactive but what Zizek would call “interpassive”: you as the player have to be active (doing quests, slaying creeps and so on) so that the game can be “passive”. that means that although you think you are “enjoying” the game you are actually not enjoying it: the game does that for you. Zizek often quotes the example with the “canned laughter” in sitcoms: it’s the television set that is “laughing” for you so that you don’t have to. however, you still feel sort of “relieved” afterwards because someone else (the television set, the game) is doing something (laughing, enjoying) for you. i guess here lies the “lure” of MMORPGs: just by playing the game you don’t have to enjoy it but still feel some kind of gratification…
January 31st, 2005 at 2:37 pm
So would that work for all games or merely MMORPG’s? I mean, if I were playing a game of cards with other folks would there still be “passive”/”interpassive” relationship with the other people I am playing with? I would think though that when I’m playing CoH, that I am interacting with other players so it does add to the enjoyment of the game since I laugh, curse and celebrate when we accomplish a certain objective or mission.
Intersting thought though.
January 31st, 2005 at 5:15 pm
Hum, this is very intersting…. I’m not addicted to videogames at all, except maybe for the Sims
My boyfriend, however, is totally addicted and can spend HOURS (if not days!!!) in front of his computer either playing on the net with other players or by himself… and trust me, it’s no piece of cake to deal with all this! I’ll think about all this next time I’m arguing with him about all the time he spends with his computer! 
February 1st, 2005 at 9:34 pm
Gil - “interpassivity” works for videogames and especially for MMORGGs. when you are playing CoH, you are not interacting with other players, it’s your character that does that.
Lulu - i just recently read an article about the SIMS and interpassivity. it’s in german only though, but to summarize it that players project their “secret” fantasies into their SIM characters and sort of enjoy them by doing so.