Networked Participation sets the Game Free – Warhammer 40k on Tabletop Simulator

Abstract

This study compares analog Warhammer 40k to the way the game is being played on Tabletop Simulator. It focuses on properties of analog and digital gaming as well as player participation in creating both the game and its community. The study uses participant observation and an interface analysis and is based on more than a year of weekly games and participation in analog and digital tournaments. It concludes that the digital version of the game de-emphasizes crafting and making which leads to a reduced barrier of entry. Social interaction is not the same online, but there are moments of collective narrative building. The interface of the game is leveraging the possibilities of digital media and goes in the same direction as design research for table-top games. The biggest difference of that the digital version is networked player creativity that makes it possible to play this game online and improves it.