Thammasat Int. J. Sc. Tech., Vol. 16, No. 2, April-June 2011 Perceived Benefits Gained From Online Game Playing among University Students in Bangkok Pawana Techavimol1 and John Walsh2 Shinawatra University,Vibhavadi-Rangsit Road, Bangkok 10900, Thailand. 1Tel. 081-869-5656 Fax. 66-2-653-1318. Email: [email protected] 2Tel: 66-2-949-2118 Fax: 66-2-949-2228. Email: [email protected] Abstract Although presumed negative aspects of online game playing are widely disseminated in the media, the possible benefits that might be derived from this appear much less frequently. Possible benefits include the reduction of stress, promotion of analytical skills and team-work and the fostering of relationships with other people around the world. Using a specifically- designed questionnaire, the authors investigate the extent to which a sample of 610 Thai undergraduate students from a variety of universities in Bangkok feel that they have benefited from online game playing and which of the various benefits appear to them to be most relevant and most often achieved. The results are discussed and recommendations drawn to incorporate greater use of game-playing modalities into the classroom environment and to enhance the link between education and industry by fostering partnerships to create more location-specific Thai-language content for use in the education system. Keywords: Online games, Online computer games, Computer game industry, Online education, Benefits of games 1. Introduction education, and led to poor health, and diminished future products. What is only People generally think of online rarely reported is the positive use of online games as an unproductive means of game play and the many opportunities the spending time and money prevalent among, online game industry has provided for principally, young adults. Coverage of such everyone [2]. games in the mass media generally focuses To help ease concerns, governments on negative aspects of online play, such as in many countries try to issue laws to protect crime and health issues. There are reports of game players from over-consumption. For thefts of valuable items and cases of murder example, KGDI (Korean Game caused by online games, among a small Development and Promotion Institute) under number of obsessive online game players. the Ministry of Culture and Tourism has as While virtual objects can become valuable one of its working objectives to reduce commodities for other players [1], the games negative attitudes to play as well as assisting and game play does not necessarily cause young adult problems in playing games [3]. these behaviors These news stories have In Thailand, the Ministry of Culture many parents fearing that their children will launched a law in 2009 to control internet become addicted to play, neglect their café playing-time for young adults in different age groups. Young adults under 15 54 Thammasat Int. J. Sc. Tech., Vol. 16, No. 2, April-June 2011 years old can use an internet café from with a lower education standard than many Monday to Friday, 14:00-20:00 hours and other countries in Asia. Thai students are official holidays including school breaks better at memorizing than analyzing and from 10:00-20:00 hours. Young adults from being creative [7]. Can online games help 15-18 years old can use an internet café students learn how to analyze and make Monday to Friday from 14:00-20:00 hours themselves more creative? and official holidays as well as school It is not easy to control how gamers breaks from 10:00-22:00 hours [4]. should play their games. The rules are In spite of fears and restrictions, created to protect people by setting online game businesses have been rapidly boundaries, but rules and regulations are growing every year. The market is very unlikely to stop them playing altogether. strong in Asia, having reached a value of Very few researchers study the positive US$3.4 billion in 2005 and is expected to be aspects of online game usage. Most research US$13 billion in 2011 [5]. The industry has studies concern the technical and also now created up to 100,000 jobs, which commercial aspects of gaming. This paper represents an increase of some 25% per year aims to investigate: 1) what are the positive from a base of 34,000 jobs in Korea in 2002 usages of online games for consumers who [3]. The online game business has played an are university undergraduate students, as important role as one of the principal export representatives of future knowledge workers products of Korea and has contributed and qualified parents; 2) how important are strongly to overall economic growth. In they, with a view to identifying the extent of Korea, online game professionals not only future utilization of games and what have as many fan clubs as movie stars, but recommendations can be made to the also earn good income from salaries, prizes relevant agencies to help improve the Thai and sponsorship by playing games education system. exclusively. There are many career opportunities for people who want to work 2. The Games Market in the game business, ranging from engineer, artist, producer, developer, sales and Online games have become a marketing staff to professional gamers. The universal feature of popular culture [8]. The development of this industry has resulted market for games is competitive and from deliberate policy decisions made by the growing around the globe. According to Korean government and enacted by its DFC, the worldwide interactive agencies and the private sector [6] entertainment industry is poised to grow In Thailand, there are not enough from approximately US$29 billion in 2005 skilled people in the game business, to US$44 billion in 2011. Brightman [9] also especially developers and artists, to keep up found that DFC’s forecast takes into account with demand. Some universities offer degree revenue from all areas of gaming, including courses on game design and development in console video games hardware and software, order to produce qualified professionals for portable hardware and software, PC games the market. So far, Thailand is a big and online PC gaming. DFC’s President, consumer of online games but only a small David Cole, pointed out that by 2011 DFC producer of high quality games. It is more forecast, that all console software combined difficult to develop good games than to play will only account for about a third of them. Most online games are imported from worldwide sales. overseas, mainly from Korea, China and Taiwan. The country also faces a problem 55 Thammasat Int. J. Sc. Tech., Vol. 16, No. 2, April-June 2011 3. Online Games in South Korea portals and international expansion. Korean game companies have been able to expand The predecessors of online games their offices outside the country to help were video games, PC games and arcade support growth and find local expertise to games [10]. Online games were first cover new territory, especially important in developed in 1969 in USA with the non-Korean contexts. However, market emergence of the TCP/IP network competition has become overheated and new communication agreement at that time. In companies have focused on distinct game the early 1990s, the computer multi-media contents and finding themselves a niche functions and world-wide-web (www) market, rather than competing on a mass brought online games to a newborn stage. marketing basis. Korea was a net consumer of foreign From Table 1, it can be seen that the packaged games prior to the year 2000 [11]. growth of online games has been notable The game industry is the largest business from 2004 to 2005, at 41.3% and, for the sector within the set of cultural industries. years 2005 to 2006, 2006 to 2007 and 2007 The support of the government for the game to 2008, growth forecasts were 26%, 21% industry is based on the concept of the “Law and 17%, respectively. The growth of of Music, Video, and Games.” The Korean mobile games and console games has been games market is expanding internationally positive too, but not the growth in the PC and it has become first in online gaming and games sector. Although online games rely a third overall in mobile gaming worldwide great deal on the presence of internet cafes, [12]. the growth of internet cafes in Korea has In 1999, the Korean Games declined over the years, perhaps because of Development and Promotion Institute was the approach towards saturation. The global founded and it has subsequently played a sales revenue of online games was estimated key role in developing game industry policy. to have risen to second place in the world in According to [12], since 1998, the Ministry 2003, while South Korea is the largest of Culture and Tourism has assumed market and Taiwan is the second largest responsibility as the competent ministry for market worldwide overall [13]. By the end the games industry. There has been an of 2009, the Korean market alone is attempt to establish One-Stop support for the estimated to reach US$1.7 billion [14]. sector, including support for games industry infrastructure, promotion for game experts, Table 1 Sales Amount and Growth of Total human resource training specific to the game Shipment (2004~2008) industry, information services, technology Unit: hundred million Won Online Mobile Console PC Internet Year development and so forth. games games games games cafes The internet has driven many of the 2004 10,186 1,617 1,866 534 16,772 changes in the Korean game industry [8]. 2005 14,397 1,939 2,183 377 19,923 2006 18,140 2,385 2,576 320 22,712 The size of the global online game market (E) has increased by 44% from US$4.5 billion 2007 21,950 2,790 3,091 285 24,756 in 1999 to US$6.5 billion in 2000 (E) 2008 25,681 3,209 3,555 271 25,994 (www.mct.go.kr).