World of Warcraft, also known as WoW, is a very popular online gaming program where people can create characters and complete quests. For many people who play WoW, it becomes more than a game; it becomes a religion. Applying some of the characteristics of religion presented in Chapter 8, It’s About Faith In Our Future: Star Trek Fandom as cultural Religion, it is evident that World of Warcraft has become a religion.Mythical Narrative/Cannon/Language
WoW has a whole back story that involves dwarves and elves and what-not. While knowing the legend of the World of Warcraft is not necessary, most players know something about it. A few weeks ago, there was a young man who asked a complex question of the game designers regarding the story of WoW. The designers did not know the answer and later honored him with an in-game character for stumping them.
WoW has a unique language. Abbreviations make up a lot of the language, but there are also terms. Here is a small reference guide.
Toon – Character
LFG – Looking for Group
DPS – Damage per second
Noob – New or inexperienced player
Tank – A character in a group quest that can get hurt more than other players
Toon – Character
LFG – Looking for Group
DPS – Damage per second
Noob – New or inexperienced player
Tank – A character in a group quest that can get hurt more than other players
Healer - A character in a group quest that does not fight but only heals other players
Cloth – A character who cannot wear metal armor and cannot get hit a lot
Schisms
In the game, there are two factions, the Alliance and the Horde. While players don’t have to stay true to one faction, they often have a preference and are vehement supporters of the faction they are playing on at the moment.
Organizations/Clubs with Hierarchy
WoW can be a social game if the player decides to join a Guild and play with the same group of people. The groups are run by a Guild Master (GM for short) and officers who are appointed based, in part, on their participation in the guild. While players do not have to play in groups or with other people, the quests are easier when there are more than one player.
Pilgrimage
Every year, the creators of WoW hold a convention known as Blizzcon. Ardent fans of the game come with obsessive and finicky questions dressed in extravagant costumes.
Cloth – A character who cannot wear metal armor and cannot get hit a lot
Schisms
In the game, there are two factions, the Alliance and the Horde. While players don’t have to stay true to one faction, they often have a preference and are vehement supporters of the faction they are playing on at the moment.
Organizations/Clubs with Hierarchy
WoW can be a social game if the player decides to join a Guild and play with the same group of people. The groups are run by a Guild Master (GM for short) and officers who are appointed based, in part, on their participation in the guild. While players do not have to play in groups or with other people, the quests are easier when there are more than one player.
Pilgrimage
Every year, the creators of WoW hold a convention known as Blizzcon. Ardent fans of the game come with obsessive and finicky questions dressed in extravagant costumes.
Guides/Affects People’s Lives/Sacrifice/Devotion
WoW, though only a video game, drastically affects people’s lives if they allow it to. Addicts or adhereants will put WoW before family, work, church, etc., just to play more World of Warcraft. News articles have linked extreme cases of WoW addiction to cases involving death (just News Google “World of Warcraft death”). It is also not uncommon for people who are in the same guild to schedule real life meetings where they hang out for a weekend.
Another way people express their devotion to WoW make videos and post them online. There are many popular videos (Leeroy Jenkins, World of Warcraft Dancing, Mr. T WoW commercial), but a lot of those have strong language. There is even a web series called The Guild that focuses on a woman with and addiction to WOW. This is one of the few inoffensive videos I could find. You don’t have to watch the whole thing, just the first couple lines of the song.
WoW, though only a video game, drastically affects people’s lives if they allow it to. Addicts or adhereants will put WoW before family, work, church, etc., just to play more World of Warcraft. News articles have linked extreme cases of WoW addiction to cases involving death (just News Google “World of Warcraft death”). It is also not uncommon for people who are in the same guild to schedule real life meetings where they hang out for a weekend.
Another way people express their devotion to WoW make videos and post them online. There are many popular videos (Leeroy Jenkins, World of Warcraft Dancing, Mr. T WoW commercial), but a lot of those have strong language. There is even a web series called The Guild that focuses on a woman with and addiction to WOW. This is one of the few inoffensive videos I could find. You don’t have to watch the whole thing, just the first couple lines of the song.
Stigma
There is a stigma associated with people who play WOW. They are thought of as single nerdy people in their thirties and forties.
By fulfilling these criteria, World of Warcraft can be regarded as a religion. What do you think? Can World of Warcraft be viewed as a religion?
There is a stigma associated with people who play WOW. They are thought of as single nerdy people in their thirties and forties.
By fulfilling these criteria, World of Warcraft can be regarded as a religion. What do you think? Can World of Warcraft be viewed as a religion?
WoW could probably be viewed as more then a religion for many people. As Latter Day Saints we are one of the more heavily devoted religions. More so then most Christian religions we spend lots of time out of church focusing on different church-like activities. But for all the time I've spent focusing on LDS things, I've never dressed up as Nephi, I rarely hold meetings with people to role play various characters. The WoW people are more devoted to the game as a religion then most people are devoted to a religion as a religion.
ReplyDeleteI think that WoW could be considered a religion to those that are involved with it. It appears that like other religions it has a lot of ritualism in it, the fact that they meet together and act out scenes from WoW or have discussions about the game. Honestly I think anyone can call anything a religion if they devote their life to it.
ReplyDeleteWoW would always be considered to be a way of life for people. The example of the kid with the red shirt is evidence of that. He was so consumed in the storyline of WoW that it could be compared to Christians who memorize passages from the Bible, Muslims from the Koran or Jews from the Torah.
Emily Borders
Absolutely! And since you can't serve two masters, extreme players will eventually choose the religion of WoW over their own faith. I've seen the game take out an Elders Quorum president and an Executive Secretary in my time at BYU, as well as a dozen or so friends back home. They observe the tenants of the game and put a lot of effort into it, much like faithful members of a church would.
ReplyDeleteBack in high school I met some white kids who decided they would become "Rastas" and have marijuana become their religion. I decided, based on how they acted then and how they turned out in high school, that it wasn't worth it to smoke weed. For me, WoW fanatics are the exact same thing.
This whole topic reminded me of a video I saw a few years ago.
ReplyDeleteSo, in one of these guilds there was a lady who actually did pass away in real life. Her guild friends accessed her account and took her character to this lake in a snowy mountain area that she really liked and "brought her peace." Everybody in her guild met at the lake (online) and held a funeral procession for her.
Do I consider WoW a religion? Most certainly. If people are willing to "find peace" at an online lake and then hold a funeral at that place there's no way that it's not a religion.
(So, here's the video, but I must declare that it's not peaceful. It's actually really funny since another guild caught word of the funeral and decided to ambush it. [I know I'm a horrible person] There's some dialogue at the beginning that's pretty rough. It's all the commentary on what happened. So, I'd skip to about the 4:00 minute mark. The action kicks in at about the 4:30 mark. Enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHJVolaC8pw&feature=related)
No it can't be, you can't get a tax exemption playing WOW
ReplyDeleteThis was really an interesting topic and I kinda agree with what you have mentioned here!
ReplyDeletewow