Beyond the Game - Into the mind of the professional Warcraft player

More than just a game

For my internship, that I just started at HUMAN, I watched the documentary ‘Beyond the Game’. After having seen this film, that was made by Jos de Putter in 2008, a lot of questions crossed my mind. To clear these out and because the documentary will be on Dutch television tonight (Thursday 3rd of September, Nederland 2, 22.50), I called René Glas (29). René works as a PhD student and lecturer at the department of Mediastudies at the University of Amsterdam. 

A world that most of us cannot fully grasp, and yet on the other hand so normal and ordinary for some people: the world of gaming. Tonight the Dutch broadcaster HUMAN Media gives you a look in the lives of two players. Jos de Putter followed two young gamers of Warcraft III in the running towards the World Championship. Although the focus of his research lies on World of Warcraft, not to be mistaken with the game Warcraft III, René Glas is able to provide us with some more indebt information and his personal opinion on the mysterious, relatively unknown world of game players.   

Because of his work, research and as well in his private life, René is frequently involved in online gaming. In his research for the university he focuses on the power struggles that arise between players of the World of Warcraft (WoW) and producers of the game. The melting pot of interests and personalities that meet in WoW can cause conflicts. That gaming is more than just a game, also becomes clear when watching ‘Beyond the Game’.  

In the documentary we hear and see how living legend and player of Warcraft III, Madfrog (Fredrik Johansson), who retired from gaming at the age of 26 (2005), lives his life after gaming so intensely. Madfrog explains what consequences he has experienced from working as a professional player. 

As for the professionals, René also feels that gaming is a ‘way of life’. Warcraft III and WoW contain major differences (Warcraft III being a strategic, individualistic game, and WoW is more of a role playing game, where groups up to thousands of people play at the same time. Because of this, many friendships originate from playing WoW.) René started as a character in WoW for his research. However he decided to stop playing a while ago: “It took up a lot of my time, it is more than just a game. At a certain point I thought: ‘All this time that I am spending on gaming right now, does not add anything to my research anymore’. And so I quit playing, cold turkey.” At the moment he still participates in some games, yet with ease.

To my question: “Do you believe that the choice for a virtual figure says something about ones personal character?” René answers that he thinks that not the choice for a certain figure, but the way of playing says more about a person’s personality on a professional level. The differences in playing between lead players Grubby and Sky are obvious in ‘Beyond the Game’: Grubby turns out to be the more creative, offensive player. Nevertheless René do feels that on the level of amateurs the choice of figures says more about people. “In WoW you can see that women usually choose the somewhat more social roles, that are a bit in the background of the game, as for the less social, a little aggressive roles, they are often chosen by teenage guys.” 

It turns out to be a culture and a way of living for many human beings. Friendships on the web, scheduled meetings for gaming, movies, books, clothing and even meetings in ‘real life’. Movies like Lord of the Rings, documentaries like ‘Beyond the Game’ and René’s research; it all contributes to the possibility for ‘us’ to enter, feel and experience a bit of a world that is beyond ‘our’ touchable, everyday existence.

Photograph Manuel ‘Grubby’ schenkhuizen

Beyond the game, 3 september, 22.50, Nederland 2.

For more thoughts and insigths from documentarymaker Jos de Putter go to: Jos de Putter.

Watch the documentary ‘Beyond the Game’ online (Dutch version).