My name is Mary and I am a student at the University of Victoria, currently conducting a study on the Guild Wars 2 community for a class on Ethnographic Methods for my degree in Cultural Anthropology.
I have been a Guild Wars player for nearly four years, introduced to the game from a friend of mine overseas. I began by playing Nightfall as I was drawn to the exotic design. After finishing that campaign, I was convinced to buy both Prophecies and Factions to continue my Tyrian adventures. I never amassed much wealth in-game, but my proudest possession was my Ritualist Elite Luxon armor. And then Guild Wars 2 was announced and I waited anxiously for information with the rest of the community, devouring each piece that was dangled from ArenaNet's fingers. Since the release in August, I've been consistently playing and leveling up my main character, a Sylvari Ranger by the name of Finley Oakes. I am working towards my World Completion medal and currently stand at 85%, while at the same time saving up for Cultural Armor, of which I already have the first tier.
So, this is why I have chosen to do my ethnography project on Guild Wars 2. I have seen such a diverse community of players who share a common passion for the game, and I've always witnessed the strong connecitons between guild mates and marvelled at the friendships. I seek to examine these online relationships through interviewing participants and joining them in-game to play and engage in their interactions. For those interested, I have an official consent form as put forth by my university, to protect anonymity and confidentiality. I do NOT require any personal information such as age, gender, location, or real name, and if any contact is made via email, I encourage the use of an email that is not attached to your game account. Any people who are willing to volunteer or have any questions are welcome to contact me via private message, or in-game message Finley Oakes.
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