Date of Graduation

5-2019

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Geography (MS)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Geosciences

Advisor/Mentor

Davidson, Fiona M.

Committee Member

Paradise, Thomas R.

Second Committee Member

Cothren, Jackson D.

Keywords

conflict; economics; EVE Online; mediation; movement; online games; quantitative data; video games

Abstract

EVE Online is a massively-multiplayer online game with complex interactions between players and their unique, virtual environment. These relationships are the ongoing results of a conflict-driven economy, but they vary both in duration and by location.

This study attempts to quantify the direct effects of movement and indirect effects of conflict upon economic activity in the form of currency creation and delineate how successfully these relationships can be quantified by narrower time-spans and areas. Results of the mediation models used in this exploration indicate the changing relationship between movement (Ship Jumps), conflict (Ship Kills), and currency creation (Faction Kills) is measurable, but they demonstrate the difficulty in assessing the effects in smaller time-spans.

The success and difficulty of this study in attaining more granular results reinforces the value of longitudinal statistics to model in-game relationships for successful, long-term game analysis and development.

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