Should I Stay or Should I Go Exploring

“Should I Stay or Should I Go? ” Exploring the Determinants of Player Cessation in MOBA Games Etmaal van de Communicatiewetenschap 2017 – Tilburg Twitter: @R_Daneels Rowan Daneels 1 1 KU Leuven – Instituut voor Mediastudies (IMS) Tony van Rooij 2 2 Universiteit Gent – Media & ICT (imec-MICT) Joyce Koeman 1 Jan Van Looy 2

Introduction Why we start playing games: “classic” motivations • Lots of research – little integration Why we stop playing games: cessation behavior • • Little to no research Differentiation between session and game cessation Goal: to explore the factors leading to cessation behavior

Research Importance Interesting for game developers (cf. retention research) • • Online platforms (Steam ; Play stores) More competitive market New business models (subscriptions; free-to-play) Retention = key! Multiple applications: • • DGBL: understanding dropout of certain serious games or trainings Preventing excessive play behavior and promoting responsible gaming

Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) Recent & popular genre • • • Especially among young players e. Sports tournaments Free to play Little academic research on MOBA genre Mechanics: • • Online; teams of 5 vs 5 Strategy needed Different roles Lots of items, abilities, etc.

Theoretical framework Different frameworks to conduct motivations research: • • • Uses & Gratifications theory Self-Determination Theory Social Cognitive Theory (Katz, Blumler & Gurevitc, 1973) (Ryan & Deci, 2000) (Bandura, 1986) Our framework: Social Cognitive Theory • Broad framework • Context (De Grove, Cauberghe & Van Looy, 2016) • Habits (Lee & La. Rose, 2007) Behavior Personal factors Environmental factors

Research questions Which factors influence adolescents/young adults to end a MOBA gaming session? Which factors influence adolescents/young adults to end a MOBA game ‘for good’?

Methodology Qualitative research design • • In-depth interviews Topic list • • • Player Motivations Player Habits Social Context – Family Social Context – Peers Play Context – Content & game mechanics Sample: N = 15 2 13 12 -22 y

Results (1) - Session Cessation Discontinuation of player’s starting motives • Social Interaction Negative player experiences • Saturation • Long play hours • Repetitive nature MOBA’s • Frustration • Match loss • Bad team • Bugs Contextual elements • Social context • Family • Peers • Play context • Alternative games/leisure activities • Game related issues Physiological reasons • Tiredness • Headache • Hungry

Results (2) - Game Cessation Discontinuation of player’s starting motives • Social Interaction • Challenge • Competition Negative player experiences • Saturation • Repetitive nature MOBA’s • No new content Contextual elements • Social context • Peers • Play context • No more free to play • Alternative games/leisure activities • Game related issues

Discussion Limitations & Future research: Cessation Behavior • No play habits • Better instrument/more objective measures? • No (real) framework for experiences • Other additional theories? • Personal Motives & Experiences Social & Play Context Predictive power of gamer, content and contextual factors in cessation • Especially relations between factors (not mutually exclusive) • Through more quantitative research?

Questions?