for science
Massively Overthinking: Competition vs. community in MMOs
Quantic Foundry, the games research group we've been tracking ever since it posted its original Gamer Motivation Model, has a new piece out this...
SuperData February 2017: World of Tanks perks up, Hearthstone is sinking
Happy SuperData day! That's the monthly holiday when we pore over the market analysis report, freak out over something doing well, freak over something...
Researchers study ArcheAge’s beta wipe for real-world apocalypse behavior
If the world was to end this week, how would people react? That's an interesting question to ponder in the abstract, but researchers took...
Elite: Dangerous is adding in the Trappist-1 system… which was already almost there
If you care at all about space (and you should, because we're all in it), you probably heard about NASA's discovery of the Trappist-1...
EVE Online’s new ‘citizen science’ project will ‘refine the search for exoplanets’
Those of you who've known me a while probably know that my husband is an astrophysicist, which means that astronomy is a passion in...
Take a look at how EVE Online made a game mechanic out of scientific research
You doubtlessly have a pretty clear idea of what goes on in EVE Online at this point. Players mine resources, build ships, screw one...
SuperData: Pokemon Go sinks during record-setting December sales season
The analysts at SuperData have released to the public part of a report on December 2016's gaming industry today, calling December a "weak month...
Examining the potential for exercise and exploration in Pokemon GO
Just in time for your New Year's resolution, we reported on how Pokemon Go was featured in a peer-reviewed study on getting people to move more. But...
Quantic Foundry’s findings on WoW, SWTOR, and gender
Quantic Foundry, the gaming analytics consulting firm we've been following since late 2015 thanks to its Gamer Motivation Model, has a new blog post...
MMO lockboxes, keys, and booster packs: Gambling or gaming?
Lockboxes have become a hot topic over the last couple of years. Last month, both our writers and readers crowned SWTOR worst business model of...
Pokemon Go: Increasing physical activity in the US, blockaded in China
Is Pokemon Go making you healthier? Maybe not yet, but researchers from a Stanford/Microsoft team have determined that Pokemon Go play correlates with increased physical...
Tolkien Prof offers free LOTRO course starting today
Ever wanted someone knowledgeable about Lord of the Rings to explain the books and give you a hands-on tour of Middle-earth? Then you're in...
Recapping MMORPG science in 2016
You guys may not have consciously noticed it, but we've been working harder and harder on our science-related articles in the past couple of...
The best Massively OP MMO polls of 2016
Every week for the last few years, we've expanded on our "Daily Grind" theme with a Leaderboard poll. I've had a blast taking over Leaderboard;...
New research suggests head-mounted VR sets are unintentionally sexist
A new research study conducted by University of Minnesota researchers Justin Munafo, Meg Diedrick, and Thomas A. Stoffregen says that head-mounted virtual reality is unintentionally...
A Parent’s Guide to Video Games: Condensing ‘The Video Game Debate’
Remember The Video Game Debate? The game research book edited by Thorsten Quandt and Rachel Kowert, the latter of whom we've been covering here since Massively-that-was? Good....
The Daily Grind: Is Twitch chat just MMO general chat writ large?
Last week, an Indiana University Bloomington team released its analysis of over a billion comments made on Twitch over a two-month period in 2014...
Academics assess Pokemon Go’s value to conservation and education
Let's cap off the evening with some feel-good, sciency stories about Pokemon Go, shall we?
Zoologists at Oxford University are studying Pokemon Go to determine...
For Science: A third of our polled social media users quit Pokemon Go over trackers
Pokemon Go has received some large updates recently: the buddy system, medals, some big gym changes (twice), and now we've got dailies. We've been dazzled...
Flameseeker Chronicles: Gaming playstyles, science, and Guild Wars 2
I was curious recently about what specific personality traits or personal qualities lead to my enjoyment of MMOs in general and Guild Wars 2 in particular,...
