online gaming vs. regular gaming

Ok so to be honest, this week's topic is rather foreign to me personally (aside from Mario Bros.). But I did do some research to bring you guys a complete and educated perspective on online gaming v. regular gaming.

- Research participants: boyfriend, boyfriend's brother, my brother, and 10 other close gamer friends

- Polls

-> online = 12

-> regular = 1

The results are clear, apparently playing online adds many perks that regular playing cannot provide. Playing online allows the gamer to talk through a bluetooth or headset to the other players, creating a more competitive game. My response to this was that you can very easily talk to the gamer sitting next to you when you play the video games normally. The research participants quickly responded by stating that it is more convenient to simply log online and find another player than to plan a meeting of friends to play, even if the communication factor is the same. Additionally, it is also more convenient to simply log off than kick you friends out when your girlfriend calls! They were right, when plans change it is much quicker to log off line than change plans with a bunch of friends.

Second, most of the research participants stated that they find the competition better online. There are millions of gamers online and you can see their ranking for each game, and choose them by their level of expertise. Whereas with your friends you are limited to their expertise, and the competition gets stale after a few games.

Third, online gaming is completely accommodating to your schedule. The only other gaming that is 100% in accordance to your schedule is playing the game regularly and alone. Most likely any gamer will agree that playing against another player is much more fun and entertaining than playing against the computer.

There are some downfalls, playing online makes the normal game seem lacking and insufficient. Therefore, when there are internet or wireless issues in your neighborhood a game that would normally save the day is unable to entertain. Some think that there are just some things that should not include the internet. It leads back to the idea of not wanting to put all your eggs in one basket! But the participants were unpersuaded by the chance of the internet failing them, and remained set in their decision.

The results of the research make it clear that gamers prefer to play online regardless of its possible downfall. Playing games simply the games normally as was done before the internet became widely available and fast is an old practice!