Found this Master Thesis about Project Entropia today whilst doing a bit of googling.
Its in Swedish I think, but theres an English Abstract that reads:
Abstract
Project Entropia is an online virtual game world created by Swedish developer MindArk PE AB. The game has a unique revenue model with an in-game currency which has a fixed exchange rate against the US dollar. So far the game hasn’t quite succeeded to attract online-gamers in the same numbers as many other games in the genre. This master thesis is an ethnographic study of the economy in this virtual world with the purpose of exploring some of the problems that MindArks revenue model poses for the company and the users.
The thesis employs a theoretical framework from the field of science and technology studies which highlights the negotiations that takes place around a technology due to the different interests of the involved actors. It also makes use of the distinction between strategy and tactic proposed by Michel de Certeau to analyze the different means the players and the company has at their disposal in the negotiation process.
The reached conclusion is that the negotiation space concerning how much participation should cost that is opened up because of MindArks revenue model leads to a conflict between MindArk and the players. These particular conflicts are lacking in other online games and those are therefore better off in this in aspect. This conflict leads however to a long range of creative uses of the game world by the players, including an emerging film industry.
Hehe Azi… amazing. Actually about 8 months back I was contacted (along with many others via EP I believe) to partake in a study by a player that was doing his MA, so this is probably the same one
Very interesting indeed. And if that abstracts anything to go by it suggests that the conflict between MA and the community encourages innovation and creativity. Which is an interesting thought
I think it’s a pretty old one allready, I think the guy that wrote it is a stratics op named gryphix (or something like that :silly2: ).
If I remember correctly one of his conclusions was that MA was an illegal bank.
I am recalling now that the one I partook in was in English and the guy was from the States… so there have been AT LEAST 2 dissertations on the subject now :eek:
[QUOTE=Einstein]
I think it’s a pretty old one allready, I think the guy that wrote it is a stratics op named gryphix (or something like that :silly2: ).
If I remember correctly one of his conclusions was that MA was an illegal bank.
[/QUOTE]
This one was published in February 2005 by a guy can Peter Jakobsson, which really rings a bell but I can’t work out why. It looks recent, it puts a reference to the SMA website, using the new design, so must be quite new.
Think the paper you’re referring to is: http://www.handels.gu.se/epc/archive/00003250/
Damgaard, Ida (2002). Legal Implications of the Project Entropia: Conducting Business in Virtual Worlds. Magisterupp
hmmmm… that makes three of us then… im using EP, in combination with several other MMORPGs to do my psych thesis while im here in america ;p
glad to know im not the only one
[QUOTE=Dash Smashing]
[and as for ma being an offshore bank.. well.. its not illegal.]
yea. they setup meth labs in roadside motels all across the country and deposit *000’s of dirty money into swedens GDP.
and 6 months later its squeaky clean.
[/QUOTE]
you know, thats not a half bad idea… not that id ever thought of it before cough or that id ever use it more coughing but its not a half bad idea…
:laugh:
no, my use of PE is STRICTLY EDUCATIONAL. as you can tell
[QUOTE=Zasz]
you know, thats not a half bad idea… not that id ever thought of it before cough or that id ever use it more coughing but its not a half bad idea…
:laugh:
no, my use of PE is STRICTLY EDUCATIONAL. as you can tell
[/QUOTE]
heh.. IRL I refer to MA as ‘the laundromat’ ..
of course, I dont have any dirty money that actually needs cleaning.
but in theory.. if the withdrawls didnt take 3+ months for verification..
in theory .. it would work fantastically. =)
Yup theres a lot of scope for writing stuff about PE, so I doubt theres much getting away from the lab for us all.
Yonks back there used to be a MUD called lambda moo (think text version of “second life”) which had a lot of journalists and researchers dropping in.
I think there is (or was) some guy doing research into Sims online too. Read something about it on the BBC. I imagine PE doesn’t attract as much attention as Everquest or some of the other big ones but it it probably gets more than what would normally be expected due to its economic aspect.
