Cross-cultural differences of digital gaming

Abstract

Digital gaming has fast become a favourite pastime of individuals worldwide owing to the rapid advancement in technology and globalization today. Culture is an important determinant in deciding the popularity or degree of acceptance in a society due to the varying preferences each has. Globalization and the increase of multi-cultural societies have therefore increased the importance of cross-cultural research. We seek to examine existing internal and external factors that determine how Eastern and Western players adopt different preferences with regards to digital gaming. We strive to understand how (a) play time; (b) parental control; (c) governmental and societal support; (d) laws of industry; (e) availability of resources; (f) player type and motivation; (g) social learning effects; (h) game genres; (i) flow in games; (j) psychological well-being; and (k) socialisation would impact different cultures. Analyses and literature reviews of the field have revealed cultural differences and showed how both internal and external influences have affected players in the gaming sphere. Looking at the results, we found key internal factors that have displayed cultural differences. Eastern player types have been shown to have an Achiever and Explorer focus while Western players typically fall into the Killer player. Flow in games and psychological well-being are also achieved differently among players in separate cultures. This review aims to broaden the field of research of digital gaming among different cultures and bring to light the impact it has on our technologically reliant society today.