Introducing the games

‘FIFA’ is a video game where one plays football. The player controls all the characters in the team. Teams are chosen before the game. It is possible to choose between a range of teams from different countries, either a national team or a club team. If the player chooses to represent a team from a club, he or she can choose club teams deriving from different countries as well. All sorts of teams can play a game against each other; a national team, such as Brazil, can play against a club team, as FC Barcelona. The player can play online with other players across the globe, as well as with someone that is physically next to him or her.

The purpose of the action real-time strategy game ‘LoL’ is to fight a war against another team of players. The team includes various types of avatars (The avatars are equipped with different weapons, and have individual qualities and abilities. They have certain assignments in the war, which are based on their capabilities).The team is supposed to fight their way forward on a map, which has divergent lanes leading to a river. At these paths there are numerous tasks to perform. When approaching the other side of the river there is a similar landscape where there are also three lanes that belong to the opposite team. The task is to fight their way through these lanes as well, and at the end of the path there is a huge crystal- like tower called a ‘Nexus’. The team is supposed to destroy the other team’s ‘Nexus’ in order to win the game. Since it is such a long journey towards the other team’s ‘Nexus’, because of the various tasks required solving on the way, this game can become time consuming. Consequently, the players of this game spend many hours playing.

The role-playing game ‘WoW’ is based on the player steering an avatar and forming an alliance by assembling a group of other players. Then these players work together as a team to kill monsters. The game requires the players to discuss tactics in order to move forward, which obligate them to communicate orally through Skype or Ventrilo. Hence, the game involves abundant teamwork. However, it is not only killing monsters that help the players to move forward in the game. One is also obliged to gather ‘gear’, which is acquired through the killings of monsters. Such gear could include clothes and weapons, etcetera, but the game has no ending since there are always new quests to complete and new ‘gear’ to cease.

‘CS’ is a first-person shooter game constructed with one terrorist team and one counter- terrorist team playing against each other. There are five players in each team who are responsible for one of the avatars. The counter-terrorist team is supposed to stop the terrorists before they detonate a bomb, either through disarming the bomb or killing all the terrorists. The game is executed through playing various rounds and one round can be finished quickly; therefore, the players play many rounds in one sitting.

Warframe is a cooperative third-person shooter video game developed by Digital Extremes for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. In Warframe, players control members of the Tenno, a race of ancient warriors who have awoken from centuries of cryosleep to find themselves at war with the Grineer, a race of militarized human clones; the Corpus, a mega-corporation with advanced robotics and laser technology; the Infested, disfigured victims of the Technocyte infection; and the Sentients, a race of machines that were the chief enemies of the Orokin's during the Old War. To fight back, the Tenno use advanced exo-armor with unique abilities—the eponymous Warframes. Available missions are scattered across the planets of the solar system, the moons Phobos and Europa and dwarf planets Pluto, Ceres, Eris and Sedna. Additionally, players can also access missions set in a pocket dimension known as "The Orokin Void" or "The Orokin Derelict" through the use of keys. Up to four (Trial missions allow eight) players work together to complete missions, such as eliminating enemies, retrieving data from terminals, assassinating high ranking/dangerous targets, defending an artifact, or surviving as long as possible.

Observations

There are five observations done to support the thesis, one for each game. The observations are done in an unstructured manner, meaning that I examine any possible situations and events during the observation; thus, I do not use an observation scheme (11, pp. 25-40). During the observations, I take notes of words and expressions seen in the games and said by the players to find significant key words to the thesis. I do not take any part of the events observed, but sit in the back and witnesses since it is essential that the players act as usual while playing (11, pp. 25-40). During the observations of ‘FIFA’ I observed the terminology in the game, the commentators’ use of English, and the lyrics of the background music. When observing ‘LoL’, ‘WoW’, and ‘CS’ I observed the terminology in the game, the players’ use of English while chatting, and other utterances of English in the game. (The games may possibly have voices uttering phrases similar to commentators’, but not as recurring)

The reason why the observations and interviews are made on seven players who play different types of games is to manage to collect diverse experiences and opinions. It is possible to compare the vocabulary by examining a selection of video and online computer games, and possibly detect patterns of how the games are composed. Since the games differ from one another, the observations and interviews may contribute with contrasting results concerning the use of vocabulary.

The vocabulary of the game is considered during the observations. In the sports games there could be terms as ‘free-kick’ and ‘icing’ found, and in the battle games terms for equipment and warfare, such as ‘sword’, ‘shield’, and ‘grenade’ are possible discoveries. The expressions used in the games are in focus, and the aim is to form an opinion of what vocabulary the players are exposed to. Is it a terminology within the game ‘WoW’ that may be similar to the vocabulary of the Middle Ages, such as ‘realm’ or ‘castle’, or how does such vocabulary influence the players’ language proficiency of English? When the observations started, the players began to play the game as usual. The investigator sat in the background and took notes of all possible events occurring in the game, as well as writing down words that seemed interesting. Difficulties with observing was to not influence the players since the investigator had to sit close to the computer or the TV in order to see the events and read the written words in the games. However, the players did not seem disturbed by the investigator’s presence since the games required their full attention.

When observing ‘LoL’, ‘WoW’, and ‘CS’ there were two additional chat-programs used supplementary to the games’ chats, which were Ventrilo or Skype. Both Ventrilo and Skype have a microphone-function. The players spoke with each other rather than wrote, which was beneficial for developing their listening and speaking abilities. These programs seemed to be used because the players could communicate at a faster rate by speaking instead of writing. In games where one has to make fast decisions, concerning directions or tactics, the communication between players needs to have a certain flow.

Furthermore, the games ‘LoL’ and ‘WoW’ were comparable. Both games can be put in the genre of fantasy, which explains the similar terminology of the games, including words as ‘demon’ or ‘dragon’. ‘CS’ could not be associated with these games since the environment differed in large amounts, and the game was fundamentally different in the execution of it.

RESULTS

In this section the observations and interviews are discussed. Every sub-heading to this heading will be connected to a certain game.

4.1 Observing ‘Federation International de Football Association’

During the observation of ‘FIFA’, it became evident that the vocabulary in the game mostly consisted of sports expressions. There were terms that might not be recognized or understood in other contexts. The game had menus for deciding the squad’s starting players and tactics, such as formations. The words used in these menus could be ‘player-biography’, ‘home kit’ and ‘formations’; these are words that seemed more difficult. Still, players had no difficulty navigating through the menus. While preparing for the game the background music had English lyrics (Examples of songs played in ‘FIFA’ could be: On Top Of The World by Imagine Dragons and Feud by Band of Horses) Thus, players would be exposed to spoken English from listening to the music. It should be mentioned that in the new editions of this game it is possible to change the language in the menus into many different languages; hence, the exposure of English could be less distinctive.

When the game started the commentators were speaking English with a British accent. They spoke in a fast rate, which occasionally made it difficult to perceive their dialogues. However, player did not seem to take note of this since he was engaged in the game. Nevertheless, I was still exposed to the English language, by unintentionally listening while playing. The commentators used expressions as ‘keep possession’ and ‘one-touch football’, which would probably not be used in everyday language or school.

During the interview, player mentioned that he played the game three times a month, and for approximately three to five hours each time. He continued with discussing the language in the game, and according to him it was not challenging to understand words and phrases. Nonetheless, he continued by stating:

“I probably learned some words about football from playing the game, like ‘tournaments’ I would never say that word in school.”

Examples of songs played in ‘FIFA’ could be: On Top Of The World by Imagine Dragons and Feud by Band of Horses.

“I have become better at the listening part of English from hearing the commentators talking. In the beginning, I didn’t understand them, but now I do.”

As some words and phrases, used by the commentators, were recurring it resulted in the development of his listening ability. He mentioned that it was similar to practicing vocabulary in school. Inquiries show that video games can affect players’ learning technique (5, pp. 26-28). However, it seems as player has done the opposite since he has taken strategies of vocabulary learning in school and applied it to video gaming.

When answering the question whether he had started to use the English language differently since he started playing, player said that he probably had not. Although, it is imaginable that he is using some of the phrases while watching a football game on TV, or in reality. Moreover, he thought that he possibly would have a wider vocabulary than others of the same age concerning sports phrases. However, he did not recognize any advantages regarding general English.

4.2 Observing ‘League of Legends’

This game had an unusual vocabulary in the menus as one could find words like ‘minions’, ‘jungler’, and ‘gank’. ‘Minions’ are enemies who attack players in groups, the ‘jungler’ is an enemy hidden in the jungle, and to ‘gank’ is when one traps the enemies with the assistance of other players. These words are created exclusively for this game since they are not actual words of the English vocabulary. ‘Minions’ is an exception, but it has a unique meaning for the game. However, players who speak with each other through the various chats speak an everyday language with some abbreviations and words from the game and one example of that could be:

“I am being ‘ganked’!”

This phrase was uttered when player was trapped by a group of players from the opposing team. During the observation, player’s team was a combination of Swedish and British players.

Therefore, they spoke English throughout the game. They used Skype to communicate, making the communication mainly oral. The players seemed to understand each other, and I never heard anyone ask someone to repeat themselves. There was a chat available within the game that was in English, but it was not many players chatting there.

Also, there was a built in female voice in the game, which said some recurring phrases during the fights, such as:

“An enemy has been slain”

“The enemy is on a killing spree”.

The above utterances were repeatedly said on different occasions. The female voice spoke with an American accent and with a voice resembling a robot. I knew the phrase ‘killing spree’ but not ‘slain’. At first I thought that the voice said ‘slayed’, which would also have been an appropriate word for the situation. It was when the expression was shown in writing that I identified it, and found it interesting since it seemed rare. The investigator noticed another word that appeared as unusual, although, several minutes passed until I understood the meaning of the term. The voice said:

“Your turret has been destroyed”

The voice was referring to the tower, ‘Nexus’, which had been demolished.

There were words in the game that could be related to the language of the Middle Ages, such as ‘veil’, ’gauntlet’, and ‘Emblem of Valor’. However, most words were connected to the fantasy genre and referred to magic, as ‘potion’, ‘spell’, and ‘epic monster’, etcetera.

Player mostly plays the game seven days a week, and for two hours a day. The language used in the game is English, but he thought it would be possible to switch to other languages in the menus. However, there were not many choices and Swedish was not available yet. Player stated that more languages would become available in the near future since ‘LoL’ is the most popular online computer game in the world at the moment. The chats were constructed with English and players used English there. If someone wrote in a language that the other players did not understand they could report this person, resulting in him or her being ‘banned’ and consequently prohibited to continue the round.

When asking Player what he thought was difficult concerning the language in the game, he said that there was nothing in particular that he had trouble understanding. He continued:

“For beginners it is difficult to understand some of the terms since some terms are unique for this game. It was difficult to understand some words and abbreviations in the beginning, but after some time playing I understood them, maybe not the exact meaning of them, but I could understand why they were used.”

Player is referring to the beginners of such games in general, not merely beginners of ‘LoL’. For beginners of ‘LoL’, it would be of assistance to have played similar games before because of the similarities of vocabularies. The investigator asked how player approached challenging words and phrases and he said that he usually asked the other players online or friends who play ‘LoL’ about them.

To questions about how his language proficiency had developed from playing the game, he answered:

“I’m noticing new words when I chat with other players. The writing part of the game helps me to keep up with the English language. I don’t use English when I’m not playing, and since I write a lot in the game I develop that skill of the language.”

Player believes that he is detecting new words and uses of the language from chatting with other players. The chatting is also assisting him when developing his skill of writing in English.

Furthermore, he mentioned that it is not only on account of ‘LoL’ that his language proficiency has developed. Formerly played games, such as ‘WoW’ and ‘Tibia’, have also facilitated the development. Player claimed that those games require more conversation than ‘LoL’. ‘LoL’ is a fast moving game that can become stressful if one loses focus by talking and, therefore, there is not as much conversation transpiring in ‘LoL’ as in the other games.

Player stated that he had developed a better fluency when writing in English, and acquired a broader vocabulary through playing these types of games. He said:

“Since I speak with people from other countries we have to understand each other. The level of written English in the chat is high, maybe not the Russian players’, but I often talk with players that are better English speakers than me. That helps me to learn new words and to see how I’m supposed to build better sentences.”.

Player claims that the chatting players of ‘LoL’ are using a high level of English when writing. Consequently, this results in players affecting each other’s proficiencies by displaying new words and phrases to each other. According to Mauranen (9, pp. 25-30), non-native speakers are more tolerant towards people from other linguistic backgrounds. However, player makes a comment on Russian players’ poor language proficiency in this quote. His opinion could indicate that non-native speakers of the ‘Expanding Circle’ may have higher expectations on other non-native speakers’ proficiency since they have been taught proper accuracy in school. Player was asked if he had started to use the English language in a different way since he started playing the game. He answered that his English language skills were questionable before he started playing ‘LoL’ and the other games. However, now he had acquired a better fluency in writing, and also gained a larger vocabulary. When asked if he had noticed if his

English vocabulary differed from others’ at his age, he answered:

“That depends; the other players have the same type of vocabulary. I think that it could be an advantage to have that vocabulary, and be good at writing when talking to people who do not play the game”.

This vague statement says that he has gained a vocabulary useful for other situations than playing, despite the fact that the vocabulary is different from general English.

However, some of the words and phrases in the game would not be useful on other occasions than playing, as with the terminology in ‘FIFA’ and ‘NHL’. Moreover, Player said that there are many words and abbreviations, which originally derive from these games that have reached the rest of society. Some terms have developed into universally used expressions, even for those who do not play these types of games. (An example could be: ‘GLHF’, which stands for ‘Good Luck, Have Fun’) These terms are examples of coining, as Seidlhofer discusses, newly created words mostly derive from innovations of technology today.

4.3 Observing ‘World of Warcraft’

During the observation of ‘WoW’ player and his team also used Skype to communicate with each other, as player did in ‘LoL’. Player’s team was discussing the game while playing. However, they also discussed issues that were not related to the game, such as:

“You should come and join me at the Chamber of Masters, I’m waiting here. Where did you buy your headphones by the way?”

First they discussed tactics for the game and then they continued by discussing computer equipment for actuality.

All of the players from player’s alliance were from Sweden; hence, they spoke Swedish with each other. However, there was a chat within the game where they wrote in English, mostly to players of other alliances who were their enemies. This game had expressions connected to the fantasy genre, such as ‘livid magic’, ‘demon’, ‘orch’, ‘potion’, ‘warlock’, ‘critter’, and ‘spell’. In addition to the fantasy expressions, the game was constructed with words associated with the Middle Ages. The investigator found words as ‘chamber’, ‘burning wrath’, ‘oath’, and ‘realm’. Several of the terms appeared challenging. Numerous expressions in the game were connected to warfare, for example, ‘leaving combat’, ‘enemies spotted’, ‘high threat’, and ‘vanquisher’. The word ‘vanquisher’ seemed most problematic and unusual. There were some words that could be used in general English, but also appeared to be difficult and some of those words were ‘riptide’, ‘ancestral’, and ‘unyielding’.

Player said that he usually plays ‘WoW’ every day, for approximately four hours a day. However, while he went to upper secondary school he occasionally would call in sick and play for a whole day. When discussing the language in the game, player said that the language was quite challenging. Players discuss a lot of tactics that require the ability of describing places to go and necessary actions to perform. Although the language is problematic, it is beneficial to have experience of playing similar games before since the terminology is comparable. The main difficulty was to comprehend the abbreviations found in ‘WoW’, but one would eventually learn their meaning. The abbreviation ‘LFG’ for example, stands for ‘looking for group’ and is often seen in the chat, while ‘SMC’, meaning ‘Silvermoon City’, describes a city in the game. Player explained that he had learned the abbreviations by using Google or asked his team about them.

When talking about how his English language proficiency had developed from playing ‘WoW’, Player said that he solely spoke English while playing and all the instructions and menus were written in English, which consequently improved his proficiency. On account of playing the game he used the English language as frequently as he used the Swedish language. Player chatted with other players through Ventrilo, and they only communicated in English. Since ELF values communication rather than linguistics it is believable that the lingua franca in ‘WoW’ has helped Player to develop his proficiency in English. Player presumed that by playing ‘WoW’ he received better grades in the subject of English in school. Sandford et al. (12, pp. 45-50) argue that to combine pupils’ leisure interests and educational exercises is ideal for language learning. Player continued by discussing the developments he had noticed:

“All areas of English, from understanding speaking, listening, writing and reading.”.

Thus, he stated that he has developed all the skills of the English language by playing. Furthermore, he believed these improvements to be possible because:

“I was so interested in the game and, therefore, I had to learn English to become a good player.”

The latter statement shows that language proficiency became a requirement in order to succeed in the game. Additionally, player mentioned that he did not use the English language differently since this vocabulary is only used in the context of playing the game. However, he argued that his proficiency was better, and as a consequence he had gained a stronger vocabulary than others of the same age.

4.4 Observing ‘Counter Strike’

The observation of ‘CS’ did not give me much information of how player and his team use the English language since they spoke Swedish while playing. The team was representing the counter-terrorists. They used Ventrilo to communicate, making the communication purely oral. There was a chat available within this game as well, but the usage was limited, and when used, they mostly wrote abbreviations.

As in ‘LoL’, there was a built-in voice uttering short phrases, but they seemed insignificant. The vocabulary was related to warfare, finding expressions like ‘Fire in the hole!’, ‘neutralizing the enemy’, and words like ‘flashbang’ and ‘knife’. An interesting event occurred during this observation; in the game’s chat the computer, and not a player, produced the expression ‘everything is up to date’. When this occurred, player asked the others:

“What do they mean with ‘everything is up to date’?”

They answered that they had no idea. In this scenario, it was unclear whether player did not understand the expression, or if he had trouble linking the expression to the situation. The players did not take time to solve this problem, instead they continued playing. Another interesting phenomenon seen through this observation was that, unlike the other games, ‘CS’ was played at a remarkably fast pace. It was stressful to watch. Every act had to be done speedily since otherwise one risked being killed by one of the terrorists.

The player interviewed about ‘CS’ was a former professional player of the game; he is referred to as player in this section. Subject of inquiry played ‘CS’ five times a week, and for 5 hours per session. During tournaments, he played for approximately six to nine hours.

Player’s thoughts of the development of his English language proficiency by playing the game were that he had a good proficiency before he started playing. He had never considered studying English in school to be a challenge. However, he also said:

“The game itself does not require a high level of English. The terms are pretty simple; there are hardly any dialogues within the game. There is a chat available, but it is not based on dialogues. There are short, trivial expressions like ‘Fire in the hole!’ If one is playing with friends one can use the chat to talk, but the game is not based on chatting. We use Skype or Ventrilo instead.”

Player believes that playing the game does not require a high level of proficiency since the terms are uncomplicated. He continued by stating that he had developed his speaking abilities enormously since he orally communicated with people from different countries. Concerning Skype and Ventrilo he said:

“When I played together with foreign players I deepened my knowledge of English. It was very good for developing my speaking and listening skills. I learned a lot of English, not only words and phrases but how to describe certain places, etcetera. I learned the most from the small-talk between rounds.”

According to player, the discussions between rounds were both connected to the game and could involve conversations about the players’ interests in reality. Therefore, those discussions were educational because of the variety of language use.

He had been traveling to various parts of the world to play tournaments. During the tournaments he gained new friends, both native and non-native speakers of English. He said that all of these aspects of language use had helped him improve his English speaking skills. His fluency of speaking became better from the continuous interaction with other players.

His opinions of how these improvements were possible were described with the statement that the use of discourse develops into a social act adjacent to the game, by chatting with that many people. This leads to improving the English skills of speaking and writing. He then compared ‘CS’ to role-playing games:

“It is not comparable with role-playing games as WoW, for example, where one is more guided. Therefore, chatting in Skype is very important while playing ‘CS’.”

Player states that ‘CS’ does not have any guidelines available for players during the rounds and, therefore, players have to guide each other, making the chatting a vital part of playing. He also mentioned:

“I have gotten a broader vocabulary; earlier I only used simple words when speaking English. Also, now I have learned to articulate words better, with more advanced English, from chatting.”

Player refers to advanced English in this quote, meaning that he has developed his language proficiency so that his English is more appropriate to use in other contexts than playing.

He was asked whether his English vocabulary differed from others of the same age, he believed that it was a possibility. He has had a continuous interaction with native speakers who speak at a fast rate and use idiomatic expressions, which one who is not exposed to the language as abundantly may not comprehend. From talking with native speakers, he has begun to speak faster and started using idiomatic expressions.

4.5 Observing ‘Warframe’

During the session game in ‘Warfame’, players communicate with each other via built-in playing recognition voice technology. As in the game “CS” there are certain short phrases and expressions in order to communicate with each other. Furthermore, the datum was downloaded in which I found plenty of abbreviations and expressions used in game “Warframe”. It has been a while since ‘Warframe’ became available to players. In a game community driven, specific lingo eventually arises. Acronyms, references, unusual names the community calls stuff in ‘Warframe’ that could make any new player scratch their head. Players of ‘Warframe’ during the game used expressions and terms in different situations. For instances, in trading they used such abbreviations and terms as (most of them are used in world-wide games as well) WTB (want to buy for platinum), LF, (looking for stuff and items) and; overall they used following abbreviations: Grinding (to do one/several mission(s) in order to obtain something specific) lotus (the symbol of warframe or the lady who talks to you during missions) and liset (your ship). Bulk of these words used during the game by players. For instance, player said during one session via built-in playing recognition voice technology:

“Do you hear me? OK. I am in liset now. What do you think of my WF? I’d rather use first one or second?”

According to this, he was wondering what kind of waframe he should use, but not about asking his opinion of the game “Waframe” in general. It depends, of course, on situations and context where it was used.

Players were asked in what way by playing ‘Waframe’ they improved their language proficiency. As they were playing in cooperative mode and communicating with each other via built-in recognition voice technology it is valid that impact of the game could influence their skills of English language. For examples, one player said:

“I have been playing ‘Warframe’ for 2 years. And while playing it my skills of English language has increased significantly. Before playing ‘Warframe my level of English was as low as it was possible to be. And now I would say I can speak much better that before.”

DISCUSSION

The vocabularies the players of these games are exposed to can be argued to differ depending on the game. In ‘FIFA’ the vocabulary that player subjected to was a combination between everyday language and sports expressions. It was targeted to a sports audience and one who is not interested or well-grounded in that area could have trouble understanding the terminology. ‘LoL’ and ‘WoW’ had a similar dilemma with fantasy expressions and words specific to Middle Age warfare since words like ‘sword’ and ‘shield’ were seen. ‘CS’ on the other hand had a vocabulary consisting of modern words connected to warfare, as ‘grenade’. In the game ‘LoL’ words such as ‘slain’ and ‘killing spree’ were expressed. Those words can be suggested to be difficult and would not be acquired in school. Chik (4, pp. 95-114) states that learning does not exist solely in schools; therefore, these players could be considered as learners when discovering new expressions while playing.

Additionally, the investigator found the word ‘turret’ in ‘LoL’ interesting. The word is a synonym for ‘tower’, and this word seemed unusual and challenging. It could be argued that this word would not be taught in a school environment either. On the other hand that word may not be of use in other contexts than playing.

During the observation of ‘CS’, player had problems understanding the phrase:

“What do they mean with ‘everything is up to date’?”

I had difficulties recognizing whether player of ‘CS’ and his team had problem understanding the expression, or if the circumstances in the game did not fit the use of the phrase. It is debatable whether the phrase ‘everything is up to date’ was understood since that idiomatic expression is often used in general English. Hence, the players should have understood the phrase, although possibly not the relevance of its usage in that situation. Also, since the players seemed indifferent to why the expression arose it could indicate that they knew its meaning, but did not see the importance of knowing why it came up while playing. Assuming that the players understood the phrase and were merely questioning why it was written could indicate that they normally use active strategies to understand the language. When Seidlhofer (13, pp. 18-20) discusses negotiation of meaning, she points out that non-native speakers try to understand the context of what is said, thus distinguishing the meaning of challenging words. Also, Gee (5, pp. 26-28) mentions that such games can improve players’ learning technique. Thus, it seems that players attain learning strategies.

This method of learning was also seen in other contexts during the interviews. The players were asked what they did when they detected a challenging word or phrase. This question was asked to discover whether they engaged in a negotiation of meaning. Players of ‘LoL’ and ‘WoW’ said that they asked them to explain challenging terms. These answers were disappointing since the games ‘LoL’ and ‘WoW’ are the most communicative among these games, and presumably have a larger impact on players’ vocabulary.

Date: 2016-04-22; view: 896