Appendix a terminology

Question 6 asked for the respondents’ marital status. Options included ‘single’, ‘in a relationship’, ‘engaged’, ‘married’, ‘divorced’, ‘widowed’, ‘other’, and ‘I’d prefer not to answer’ (see Figure B.7). This question attempted to understand the lifestyle of those who attended video game events.

Question 7 asked for the respondents’ yearly income. Options included ‘£20,000 or less’, ‘£20,001- £30,000’, ‘£30,001 - £40,000’, £40,001 - £50,000’, ‘£50,001 - £60,000’, ‘Over £60,001’, ‘I’m unemployed’, ‘I’m a student’, and ‘I prefer not to answer’ (see Figure B.8).

Question 8 asked for the respondents’ source of information to attend video game events; in particular, how did they hear about it? Options included ‘Family’, ‘Friends’, ‘Internet’, ‘Radio’, ‘Billboards’, and ‘Other’ (see Figure B.9). This question attempted to provide an understanding of the strength of advertisement through the social media; such as ‘word of mouth’, radio, billboards and much more.

Question 9 was concerned with the respondents’ companionship to attend video game events. This was an open-ended question for the researcher to code into groups later (see Figure B.10).

Question 10 asked for the respondents’ motive for attending video game events. This was an open-ended question for the researcher to code into groups later (see Figure B.11).

Question 11 asked for the respondents’ participation in certain activities within video game events (see Figure B.12). This was a question that allowed multiple ticks; including playing video games, meeting new people, cosplay, attending workshops, purchasing merchandise and others.

Question 12 asked if the respondent had particular intentions to purchase specific merchandise. This was an open-ended question for the researcher to code into groups later (see Figure B.13). This question attempted to identify patterns of consumption within video game events.

Question 13 asked if the respondent had attended to other gaming events. Unfortunately, typeform did not offer ‘jumping questions’ while it was in beta, where different follow-up questions would be asked if the respondent selected ‘yes’ or ‘no’. Therefore, the following question (question 14) was a longer question, which attempted to cover for both responses (see Figure B.14).

Question 14 asked if the respondent had attended to intent to attend to other gaming events, and if they had not attended to other gaming events, why? (see Figure B.15). This question was useful to determine the researchers’ list of video game events to examine for this thesis.

Finally, question 15 asked if the respondent would like to participate in a follow-up interview or group interview (see Figure B.16). If the respondent would like to participate, they were asked to provide an email address to be contacted at a later date.

The research questionnaire consists of additional questions that were added then removed, because the responses to these questions were inconsistent – almost half the respondents left these questions blank. These questions were moved to the research interviews and group interviews, where these questions could be elaborated.

Additional question 1 considered the difference between playing video games at video game events, and to playing video games at home (see Figure B.17). This question attempted to consider the embodied experience at video game events, in comparison to the embodied experience from playing at home.

Additional question 2 considered the importance of meeting face-to-face with other gamers at video game events (see Figure B.18). This question attempted to consider the importance of meeting other gamers face-to-face, in comparison to those who meet online.

Additional question 3 asked the respondent to provide a short description on their experience at certain video game events (see Figure B.19). This included prompting questions; what have you done so far? And what have you enjoyed the most?

Additional question 4 considers the meanings attached to certain video game events (see Figure B.20). This included prompting questions; is it something more than just playing in front of a computer screen all weekend? How does it enhance your bond with other gamers? and how does it enhance your gaming experience?

Question 3 asked for the respondents’ gender. The options included ‘male’, ‘female’, and ‘I prefer not to answer’. However, upon conducting the research questionnaire, I received a comment from a respondent to consider Facebook’s 50 gender options – an additional option of ‘Other’ was added.

However, due to low response rates and differing figures obtained from the online questionnaires, the online questionnaires responses were disregarded. Overall, a total of 80 online questionnaire responses were obtained from the 15 different video game events from January 2014 to July 2014. The initial goal of the online questionnaires was to obtain between 20–40 online questionnaires from each video game event. The online questionnaire responses ranged from obtaining no responses and between six to twenty-one online questionnaire responses from the list of video game events. Hence, the research questionnaire was only used as a mechanism for obtaining interviewees for the follow-up interview and group interviews.

Appendix C - Interview Methodology

Dear,

You have been selected as part of a small group of individuals who will be interviewed concerning with various video game related practices and video game events. You will be contacted by myself in the next few weeks asking you to participate in a short interview, and to arrange a suitable time for this at your convenience.

The interview itself will take only an hour or so of your time, and can be conducted at a time and location suitable to you. The questions are simple and straightforward and related to issues such as, why you first started attending video game events and what a motived you to participate in various video game related practices.

If you do not wish to be contacted, or do not wish to participate any further with this research, please call email me at y.y.law1@edu.salford.ac.uk.

If you have any queries concerning this research, I can be contacted at the above email address. If you have any concerns relating to the authenticity of this research, or my own position within this, please free free to contact the University of Salford (0161 295 5000).

Thank you for your continued support, and I hope to speak to you soon.

Ying-Ying Law,

University of Salford.

The table below presents a list of the thirty participants interviewed. The table includes information on respondent collected; such as their gender, age, residence, event collected from, date of interview and location of the interview (see Table C.1. and Table C.1)

• 
  Age?
  
• 
  Gender?
  
• 
  City and Country?
  
• 
  Current Occupation?
  
• 
  Marital Status?
  

• 
  What types of video games do you play?
  
• 
  How often do you play video games?
  
• 
  Who do you usually play video games with?
  
• 
  Where do you usually play video games?
  
• 
  How does playing video games at video game events differ to playing video games at home?
  
• 
  How does video gaming feature in people’s lives, social identities and networks?
  

• 
  How did you hear about this event?
  
• 
  What is your main reason for attending today? Why?
  
• 
  Who do you go to gaming events with? Why?
  
• 
  What do you do at gaming events? Why?
  

• 
  Game Demonstration?
  
• 
  Purchase Merchandise?
  
• 
  Hanging out with others?
  
• 
  Community practice?
  
• 
  Cosplay?
  

• 
  Do you attend to any other events? Why?
  

• 
  How does this compare to other events?
  

• 
  What conversations do you have that are game-related? What do you talk about?
  
• 
  How does meeting face-to-face with others at these events facilitate your gaming experience?
  
• 
  Do you feel that you belong to a gaming community? Why?
  
• 
  As a community member, what is your role?
  

• 
  How committed are you?
  

• 
  Do you feel there is some form of social status between gamers?
  

• 
  Casual/Hard-Core Gamers?
  
• 
  Professional Gamers?
  

• 
  Do you think social skills are important? Why?
  
• 
  Can you give any examples of negative experiences or conflict within gaming communities?
  

• 
  Do you follow video games through the media?
  

• 
  Such as Internet, magazines, radio, TV?
  
• 
  How frequently do you use/buy these?
  

• 
  Is it important to obtain the latest video game information? Why?
  
• 
  Where do you obtain information about video gaming events?
  

• 
  Do you have a favourite player/team?
  

• 
  Why is this player your favourite?
  
• 
  Why is this team your favourite?
  

• 
  Do you compete in gaming tournaments?
  

• 
  If yes, what? why? And how?
  

• 
  Is it all about winning?
  

• 
  Or learning? What do you learn?
  
• 
  Other motives for competing?
  

• 
  Is it important to become a ‘good player’?
  

• 
  Why?
  

• 
  Is it important to meet other players face-to-face?
  

• 
  Why?
  
• 
  How does this differ to meeting players online?
  

• 
  What video game related merchandise do you buy from video game events?
  
• 
  Do you ever wear or display this outside of video game events?
  

• 
  When and where?
  

• 
  How important is it for you to attend certain video game events? Does it differ across different types of events? Or video games?
  
• 
  How much planning do you go through to attend certain video game events?
  
• 
  How committed are you to attend video game events?
  

• 
  Do you book days off work?
  
• 
  Do you book hotel/travel in advance? How advance?
  
• 
  Do you volunteer?
  

• 
  How important is it that your friends/family attend? Would you go if they weren’t going?
  
• 
  How often do you attend certain events repeatedly? Which events have you stopped attending to repeatedly? And why?
  
• 
  What do you think about the people who attend particular video game events? Similarity? Difference? Who attends? Why?
  

• 
  How do common interests for gamers enhance, facilitate and support social interaction and contacts between regular and occasional players?
  
• 
  Examples of video gaming in facilitating the spectacular and the mundane?
  
• 
  Other interests?
  

1. 
   Demographics
   
   1. 
      Age
      
   2. 
      Gender
      
   3. 
      Locality
      
   4. 
      Employment
      
   5. 
      Income
      
   6. 
      Others
      
2. 
   First time
   
   1. 
      First impressions?
      
   2. 
      Why they first attended?
      
   3. 
      Preconceptions
      
3. 
   Multiple times
   
   1. 
      Second/third/etc… expectations?
      
   2. 
      Good changes
      
   3. 
      Bad changes
      
4. 
   Reason for attending video game events
   
   1. 
      Socialisation
      
      1. 
         Friendly atmosphere
         

• 
  Friendship
  
• 
  Peer pressure
  

1. 
   Like-minded people
   

• 
  Similar interests
  
• 
  Hang-out
  
• 
  Conversation
  
• 
  Drink (alcohol) - get drunk together
  

1. 
   Relaxation
   
2. 
   Social Networking
   

• 
  Career opportunities
  

1. 
   Participation
   
   1. 
      Play
      

• 
  Latest demos
  
• 
  Practice games – for tournament purposes
  
• 
  Play games together (besides gaming in front of a screen)
  

1. 
   Consumption
   

• 
  Exhibition Hall
  
• 
  Merchandise
  
• 
  Food
  

1. 
   Fandom
   

• 
  Fan knowledge – sharing information
  
• 
  Fan collections
  
• 
  Signing sessions
  
• 
  Workshops
  

1. 
   Cosplay
   

• 
  Content creating
  
• 
  Building techniques
  

• 
  Cosplay Competition
  

1. 
   Tradition/Ritual Practices
   

• 
  Event activities
  
• 
  Community activities
  

1. 
   Competition
   
   1. 
      Attitudes to winning - strategy
      
   2. 
      Learning to be competitive – e.g. sponsored player
      
   3. 
      Interaction with other competitive players
      
   4. 
      Good tournaments
      
   5. 
      Bad tournaments
      
   6. 
      Spectatorship
      

• 
  Live matches and live streams
  
• 
  Commentators
  

1. 
   Lack of female presence
   
1. 
   Importance of video games in live (routines surrounding video games)
   
2. 
   Career of video gamers
   
   1. 
      Change in behaviour – ‘learning’ to be a ‘good player’
      
   2. 
      Where they learning (e.g. behaviour and rules) from?
      
   3. 
      Who they have taught (e.g. behaviour and rules).
      
   4. 
      Leaving the game scene
      
3. 
   Patterns of Video Game Communities
   

• 
  Levels of commitment
  
• 
  Maintenance of communities – good and bad communities
  
• 
  Inclusiveness
  
• 
  Exclusiveness
  

8. 
   Identity
   

• 
  Sense of belonging
  
• 
  ‘Us’ and ‘them’
  

9. 
   Embodiment – Five senses
   
   1. 
      Sight
      

• 
  Visual experience
  
• 
  Spectatorship
  

2. 
   Sound
   

• 
  Voices – conversation/singing
  
• 
  Music - specific sounds – for example, controllers
  

3. 
   Smell
   

• 
  Human sweat
  
• 
  Warm machines
  

4. 
   Taste
   

• 
  Sharing Food – junk food – form of escape
  
• 
  Drinking – energy drinks and alcohol
  
• 
  Cultural Markers – acceptance and non-acceptance
  

5. 
   Touch (Feel)
   
   1. 
      Physical presence
      

• 
  Touch – physical/comfort
  
• 
  Atmosphere – cultural
  
• 
  Intimacy – memories