MMORPG science in 2015

    
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Better not scoff at academic research: From Superdata to in-house economists, from feminist theory to Bartle, and from education applications to NASA mapping, science is shaping the video games we play — and vice versa.

Read on for a recap of our best science-related MMO articles from 2015. Don’t worry; there won’t be a quiz at the end!

Researcher studies City of Heroes memorymaking - City of Heroes players, did you ever think your beloved old world would be the subject of academic research? Olle Sköld from Uppsala University in Sweden recently examined the extant City of Heroes community in an "interpretative…
EVE Evolved: How many subscriptions does EVE have? - Two weeks ago, a mathemagician over at The Nosy Gamer published some interesting calculations showing that EVE Online's subscriptions may have dropped by around 18% in the past two years. CCP has always prided itself on…
Elite: Dangerous generates its galaxy with NASA data - Elite: Dangerous is a work of science fiction; that's not under discussion. So as in all science fiction, the developers just created a galaxy by selecting random areas and dropping in planets or stars. By which we of…
The Soapbox: MMOs and the power of habit - I've been reading this book by Charles Duhigg called The Power of Habit. Actually, the full title is The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and in Business, but that was…
Massively Overthinking: Let’s take the classic Bartle test - Here's something you probably didn't know: Online worlds researcher Dr. Richard Bartle didn't actually write the Bartle test. His original research explored, analyzed, and defined the four player archetypes -- killer, socializer, achiever, and explorer -- but…
New research illuminates our gaming motivations - If you've ever thought that the Bartle test was a bit outdated, game analytics consulting firm Quantic Foundry has a new gamer psych chart for you. This past week, it released its Gamer Motivation Model, which groups gamer types…
The Daily Grind: Will you Kickstart any video games in the new year? - A recent piece on Gamesindustry.biz posits that while there the crowdfunding "bubble" hasn't burst, the crowdfunding scene, at least insofar as video games, is experiencing decline. Author Thomas Bidaux explains, "2015 has been an excellent year for Kickstarter…

Want more science with your gaming? Check out this week’s podcast!

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