What makes a community 'real?' Aren't they all?

I belong to a couple of online communities that include: Facebook, LSBN Toronto, and Brock Pride.

Facebook, as everyone knows, is one of the largest online social communities (for now) and I use for a variety of different things. Obviously the main reason is to socialize with my friends and family - but what might be different for me than everyone else who uses it is that 90% of my family lives overseas and we only ever get to see each other on Christmas. Because of this, it's nice to have a common place where we can talk to each other free of cost, we can check out each other's pictures and see what's been going on for the past year or so, we can wish each other happy birthday and thanksgiving - or send our wishes on any other holiday throughout the year - and we can make plans to when we can see each other next over a period of time (ie. facebook inbox).

LSBN Toronto is a social community created by the group 'Lesbians of Toronto' who wanted to create a safe space for women. Because I fall into this category, it's nice to have a place where I can talk to others like me, meet new people, or learn about resources in the community. Not only is it a place to chat, the website is dedicated to posting information about workshops, events, and any other opportunity that is offered for lesbians in the area.

For me, virtual communities are 'real' communities because it is a place where I can socialize with others and learn about new things - and for me, that is what a community is. It's a place where I can feel safe to be myself without hesitation. A community is different for everybody and I can understand why others might not think that online communities are 'real' but for me - they are nothing but.

The benefits for players or participants belonging to communities - whether physical or virtual - are that they provide them with a sense of belonging, a place where they can be themselves, somewhere that they can meet new people and make new friends, a place where they can escape from reality and the stressors of everyday life, as well as a place where they can just have fun and build new skills or abilities. They also offer the opportunity to socialize with others who share the same commonalities and interests as you.

As for my game or virtual world for my paper - I think I am leaning towards Zelda. I have been really busy these last couple of weeks and haven't had much time to really play - but from what I have experienced so far - I enjoy it a lot. I haven't had the chance to really get in depth about the community elements or potential for interaction between players yet - but I plan on being able to do this in the next couple of weeks (once midterms are out of the way). Once I experience this - I will be back to blog about it!!

Zelda Proves Feminism as a Fake!

For this blog, I focused my attention on "The Legends of Zelda: Twilight Princess" trailer as found on youtube. It is for the newest Zelda to be released this year (the month has not yet been determined).

Unlike many other video games, the main character in Zelda is a woman, and throughout the trailer she is depicted as the village hero who fights battles, completes challenges - and is victorious doing so! With regards to femininity and masculinity - this completely goes against what is depicted as the norm. Females are more often shown as the 'eye candy' for the game or as the 'weak' link that is given unimportant minor roles. However, Zelda is portrayed as having extreme strengths and powers with her shiny armor and giant super sharp sword. She also rides her horse with both legs on either side of the horses body whereas most females in video games ride as the stereotypical woman who has both legs on one side.

The message that Zelda sends is that women can be victorious no matter what battle they may face. The lifestyle that Zelda chooses to live is one where she is constantly tested on her skills and abilities and it is shown through this that facing obstacles can be exhilarating as well as 'if you put your mind to it - you can do it.'

Different people might understand this message different than me by thinking that women may be seen as being put on a pedestal - facing the unobtainable. Some of the challenges and quests that Zelda must conquer can be quite difficult and it is up to the gamer to reach success as Zelda. Women may feel that they are not skilled enough to complete such tasks - and men may feel that they don't want to play as a woman character.

24 Hour Days Just Aren't Cutting It For Me!

As of right now I do not have any current avatars or characters due to the lack of time to play.

However! When I create any sort of character it is very important to me what they look like and what their personality consists of as well. When I create a character, I like her to be muscular and strong looking - but feminine and attractive as well. Looking like a female hero is of importance to me because regardless of my playing abilities, I would like others to somewhat feel intimidated. I work hard at achieving different items of clothing, armor, accessories, etc. and I like to save up my 'coins' or 'cash' that I earn to spend them on the more expensive purchases. However, I only care what I look like when I am playing games of challenge and competition between others. Games such as WOW (World of Warcraft) are included in this mix. However, in games like Super Mario Bros. it does not really matter to me which character I am.

Discussing identity in digital leisure practices is significant because everyone has their own vision of how they feel they need to portray themselvesand everyone does it completely differently. Attributes such as performance, complexity and multiplicity all play a role in the way a gamer chooses to dress their avatar, the behaviours and actions they make them display as well as the very nature of how they mentally play the game.

With regards to current gaming experiences, I do not have any on the go. However, past games that I have escaped into include Syberia, WOW, Tycoon adventure games (ie: rollercoaster, seaworld), The Sims, Super Mario Bros., Harry Potter, and Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events. I completed Syberia on my computer within 9 days and enjoyed it very much. I had to discontinue my WOW account for the time being due to my financial status, and every so often I like to catch up on my Tycoon's. I have created amusement parks, animal kingdoms as well as real life scenarios within The Sims. Lately I have been finding myself getting lost in Harry Potter and Lemony Snicket's as a simple way of letting go for a maximum of half hour at a time due to the fact that I really don't have the time to spend on video games right now!

I look forward to seeking out new adventures within another PC game VERY soon and am actually in the works of discovering something new and exciting to play!

Any suggestions on games would be greatly accepted!!