Gendered Gaming Experience in Social Space: From Home to Internet Café

This study, presented at the DiGRA 2005 conference, examines how the social relations embedded in different gaming spaces shape online gamers' experiences, with particular attention to how gender structures those experiences. It focuses on MMORPG players in Taiwan and compares three sites: the home, where parental surveillance and family routines govern play; the Internet café (NetCafé), a stigmatized public space dominated by male customers; and the gender-segregated college dormitory. The central argument is that online gaming functions primarily as a social activity, so access to both virtual and physical spaces matters greatly to enjoyment.

The research draws on twenty in-depth interviews and nine focus group interviews with 56 participants, including players and family members, selected through purposive snowball sampling to capture variation in age, education, location, and sexual orientation. Participant observation in Taipei NetCafés supplements the interview material. Ages of respondents range from 11 to 54, with 22 women among the interviewees.

Findings indicate that girls face stricter regulation than boys at home and are discouraged from visiting NetCafés, particularly with friends, which widens gender disparities in public gaming. In the home, boys are often prioritized for shared computer access, though girls actively contest this. Male dormitories foster a competitive, performance-like gaming culture, while female dormitories show lower visibility of gaming and a more supportive, low-profile culture. Across spaces, the size of a player's social circle shapes gaming culture: larger groups exert peer pressure on non-players, while smaller circles mean fewer resources and a more isolated experience.

The authors conclude that girls' restricted access to public gaming spaces reduces their co-players and shared experiences. Contrary to the common assumption that girls reject masculine game content, interviewees reported no objection to killing or combat elements; instead, girls cited a shortage of female players as the main drawback.