Class Is In Session

From the "Gee, I Wish They Had Classes Like That When I was in College Department":

Yes, as seen in this thread on the official forums, a group of students are studying "The Ethnography of On-line Role Playing Games" by playing EQII. You heard me right, they are playing Everquest II for college credit.

Now, that sounds like fun and everything, but it actually looks like a pretty work-intensive class. You can check out the course description here, the reading material here, and the assignments list here. Now come on, you're only allowed to miss three classes? How the heck are these students supposed to raid for phat lewt with that kind of distraction?

This is the same class (though not the same students) which wrote research papers on WoW last semester. And they're going to be doing the same thing for EQII. How awesome is that? Okay, kids, you're going to be getting Aggro Me grades as well as your classroom grades so do a good job.

What's even cooler is that all the students are keeping blogs. You can check them out here. You have the option to read them all simultaneously as one giant blog but I found it a lot more fun to read each one individually.

Their first blog entry assignment was apparently to comment on the "newbie experience" in EQII. It's a pretty nice reference for SOE to take a look at and see what new players think of starting out in the game. Unfortunately, their comments come a little too late as the newbie revamp is pretty much completed.

They go on to do some "roleplaying" on their blogs and it isn't bad at all. This was my favorite:

"I was thrilled when I proved to the Ambassador that I was more then capable of handling myself and I was quickly allowed to head to Qeynos where I was given a room at the local inn. Talk about insulting. A mage of my caliber and birth deserves better then a dank room with a lone table and picture."

Not bad. A lot of the blog entries have a fresh take I find enjoyable, though I'm sure they will devolve into complaints over failed loot rolls and guild drama soon enough.

Well, here's my advice to these aspiring EQII experts:

1. Read Aggro Me daily.
2. Learn 2 Play, Newbs!
3. Repeat as needed.

In all seriousness, I think this is a great and viable idea for a college course.

Luckily, these students are being hosted by the Vindicators, the guild run by Scott Adams. From what I know of the Vindicators, they are a very helpful bunch who will provide an excellent playing environment for these students to learn and have fun in.

While I do think certain people tend to "over-intellectualize" MMO's and drift more into social experimentation as opposed to fun gameplay, I certainly feel they are a compelling area for academic study. I've read a few of the texts on that reading list myself.

Now where's my Honorary Doctorate Degree in Aggro Studies?