starch131 ([info]starch131) wrote,
@ 2006-04-06 00:41:00
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After some council with Dr. D, I've decided it will be nearly impossible to talk to any of the game designers involved in WoW and EQII. So, I'm going to change my topic slightly and deal with the more administrative role of GMs in handling cheating and ensuring people follow the policies of the Terms of Agreement in-game.

To that extent, I have modified my 'boilerplate' message slightly.

To whom it may concern, I am a student attending Trinity University in San Antonio, Tx. I am enrolled in a class designed around web based multiplayer gaming where we participate in ethnographic research into the gaming community through EQII. I am currently working on an essay that looks at the methods that game administrators for EQII and WoW utilize in order to maintain order throughout their virtual world environments. I would like to ask you a few questions about your role in designing and implementing the rules that govern these virtual spaces so that I may better understand the impact they have on these virtual worlds. I understand that privacy is a concern and so I offer an e-mail address you may e-mail me at outside of the game with questions and at no time will you be asked to divulge personal information. You may also contact me in-game on this character if you wish. A copy of the finished essay will be forwarded to you if you wish and any questions can be answered by contacting me or the website [url to faq site].



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[info]newtonfig
2006-04-07 10:50 pm UTC (link)
I think I was supposed to comment on this.

Assuming that you're only going to be talking to GMs, it sounds pretty good. As for as suggestions go, I would use the full names of the games (Everquest II and World of Warcraft. It just sounds more professional that way) and if this is only going out to GMs, I would make the message more personal by using the word "you" more often. If this is going to be posted in forums then you don't have to, but really you're trying to get comments from the people who maintain order in the game, so if you were to say something like "what do you do to maintain order" or "what do you think if effective" when discussing measures that they take. Dr. D may shoot me down regarding this (maybe it's better to make the message more vague) but it seems like it would work for your particular project.

Also, I would suggest that you set up a separate e-mail for the project (I can send you a gmail invite, but I'd imagine if you wanted an account by now you would have one). I'm also going to push the forum thing, because I think it's one of my better ideas.

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