Cognosphere

Dataminers, Beta Testers, and Fan Translators: Leaks as Cultural Capital in Gacha Game Communities

This paper, an autoethnographic and netnographic study by Hyerin Shin, examines leaks, the unauthorized circulation of unreleased gacha game content, as a form of cultural capital within gacha game fan communities.

• Leaks of unreleased gacha content are framed as a widely accepted form of 'cheating' (in Mia Consalvo's sense) that players use to counter the fear of missing out (FOMO) fostered by gacha monetization.
• Leaks simultaneously resist and stratify: advance access to information elevates certain individuals into 'fan leader' roles and, in some cases, becomes commodified.
• The study combines an autoethnography of the author's work as an administrator and fan translator for the GRAY RAVENS fan site for Punishing: Gray Raven with a survey of Genshin Impact leak communities based on interviews with anonymous beta testers and dataminers.