Turns out, people who like to play MMOs like to socialize!

Looking at nearly 1,000 online gamers from around the world, researchers found that three quarters of gamers make good friends with the people they meet online. Almost half have met in real-life situations, and one in ten went on to develop physical relationships…

The study also determined that more than 30 per cent of gamers found themselves attracted to another player, and that 40 per cent chose to discuss sensitive issues with online friends rather than real-life friends.

“As well as making good friends online, 81 per cent of gamers play with real-life friends and family, suggesting MMORPGs are by no means an asocial activity, nor are the players socially introverted,” said Griffiths.

Food for thought: World of Warcraft (the most frequently cited game in the study) is often pointed to as an achiever-only game, with specifically little to do for socializers in particular. The fact that there are only 22 RP servers, on which precious little actual roleplaying. Inescapable conclusion from viewing these numbers: socialization is mass market, roleplaying is niche, and RP is pretty much unnecessary for players to have a fulfilling social experience.