World of Warcraft

The design I chose was the very popular online game called World of Warcraft. With over 10 million people playing it at all times worldwide, this seemed like the perfect example of a communication device.

Trustworthy - Created by Blizzard, one of the largest names in computer gaming, and backed up by nVidia, one of the largest graphic hardware companies in the world. Definitely something you can trust.

Appropriate - I would say this game is appropriate. It has something for everyone, and is a great way to relax. Some people take it too far in their gameplay time, so it would be nice to see some restrictions applied.

Smart - It is a combination of social interaction, communication skills, computer skills, time and priority management. And within all this, it follows an interesting storyline for all to enjoy.

Responsive - World of Warcraft is for sure a responsive piece of software. Every button on your keyboard has its action, and the many things on the screen have their functions. There is no delay time between giving the command and seeing it happen on the screen.

Clever - It is clever in the sense that it is a brilliant way for Blizzard to make money. This game is a combination of many different pieces that appeal to different people in different ways. These pieces flow one into another making the game very addictive. It is a cleverly designer piece of software that makes many unfortunate people less clever by turning them into drones that start to 'live' in the game.

Ludic - Before one can properly play the game, a person needs to spend some time reading the manual, and once in the game, there are many tips that help with understanding of what to do. Since it is a pay to play game, the target audience is most likely an audience of already gamers, or people who are a little more serious about their computers than others. In other words, people who are experienced enough with computers to understand some common sense commands that they will have to use in the game. As far as the general public goes, It is probably a challenge to understand even the basics, but as far as the people being targeted by the marketing of this game, it is a piece of cake.

Pleasurable - People definitely take pleasure in using this software. Like I mentioned before, there is something for everyone in this game. If it wasnt pleasurable, 10 million players would not spend $15/month on it.

There is one large problem with this product. The problem directly affects the users, and largely benefits those who made the game. about 50% of the players are addicted to the game, they abandon their friends, some drop out of school, some simply spend every ounce of their free time playing. Their argument is that they have new friends and new lives in the game. This is good news for Blizzard, bad news for the many people affected by this.

I myself play this game casually, and it is honestly a challenge to play moderately. Every chance i get to get away from it, I take.

Credits: www.worldofwarcraft.com