Twelve friends set a date to meet for a bit of fun. Everybody made it, but there were no handshakes or hugs because they were not in the same place. These friends were less interested in face-to-face contact than in competing against each other through the computer.
The growing popularity of online computer games has changed the way people spend time together. It's now possible to have good friends that you've never met in person.
Unlike traditional computer games, online ones involve more than just computers and software. A big part of their appeal is playing against the real people who control the characters they play with in the online world. "The real thrill of an online game is that you are undertaking something with other people instead of working through a computer game alone," explains one player, who calls himself Galhara.
PHOTO: AP
However, even if you are friends with someone online, that doesn't mean you will be friends in real life too. "At some point or another we had a ... get-together, with players really meeting each other -- it was a truly odd experience," remembers online gamer Tanja Hohmann. Galhara also prefers the anonymity of online friendships. "Because you're not seeing who's on the other side of the connection, you're not influenced by prejudices."
However, some people cross the line and spend all their time in the online world, which can have bad results. "When people spend more and more time in the (online) world, then in some cases there is a danger that they (forget) how to engage in real contact," says Juergen Fritz, a professor researching these issues at the Technical College of Cologne. (DPA)
十二位好友敲定日期,要一起找樂子。每個人都到了,但卻沒有握手或擁抱,因為他們不在同一個地點。這幾個朋友對於面對面接觸不感興趣,反而比較喜歡透過電腦來比賽。
線上遊戲日益風行,已經改變了人們相處的模式。現在,與從未謀面的人結為好友並非不可能的事。
不像傳統的電玩,線上遊戲不只牽涉到電腦與軟體而已。線上遊戲有一大部分的魅力在於,在線上的虛擬世界,你可以與控制角色的真人較勁。自稱為蓋哈啦的玩家解釋:「線上遊戲真正刺激的是,你可以與別人一起體驗,而不是獨自一人打電玩。」
不過,就算你與某人是線上戰友,不代表你們在現實生活中就會成為朋友。線上玩家譚雅.荷曼回憶說:「某方面來說,我們??真的遇到並肩作戰的玩家,這真的是奇特的經驗。」蓋哈啦也偏愛線上交友的匿名方式。「由於你見不到另一頭是誰在線上,你就不會受偏見影響。」
不過,也有人玩過了火,終日沉溺在線上世界,導致不良結果。研究這些議題的科隆科技學院教授榮根.佛瑞茲說:「當人們花愈來愈多時間上網,有時會有(忘記)如何與人接觸的危險。」
(德通社/翻譯:賴美君)
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