Abstract:
The paper considers organised user communities functioning on the Internet, specifically the organised groups of players of massively multi-player online roleplaying games (MMORPGs). The paper defines MMORPGs and points out how organised groups of players in those games – named guilds or clans – can be included in Internet studies. The paper summarises theories of Network Society, Weak Ties and Virtual Communities, and applies them to user communities on the Internet – especially guilds in MMORPGs. By comparing various characteristics of MMORPGs and guilds in those games with the selected theories the paper demonstrates that organised groups of players are an adequate practical paragon of those theories.
