Amateur filmmakers use game graphics engines to create clips

Interview with Hugh Hancock who runs Strange Company

Games Act Like Films.

Dyer Witherford article and another.

America Online has had volunteer Moderators and SysOps for their message boards for over a decade. Just as volunteers in the MMORPGs, they helped members online with problems and answered basic questions in exchange for having their account fees waived. In late 2000, a group of volunteers filed suit against America Online for back wages. They claim that they were treated more as employees than volunteers and therefore should be compensated as if they were employees. Soon after, a group of volunteer guides for Ultima Online filed a similar suit against Electronic Arts, the parent of Origin Systems.

The suits are based upon law established for the protection of employees from underhanded employers. It is less expensive for employers to treat personnel as independent contractors than to consider them actual employees. Independent contractors are not eligible for benefits and protection that costs the employer money. The law also prevents employers from requiring employees to provide a number of "volunteer" work hours in order to keep their jobs.

Whether or not someone is considered an employee, independent contractor or volunteer is up to the discretion and interpretation of a judge. The decision is made based upon a weighing of factors including: Degree of control, relative investment of worker and alleged employer, degree to which the employee's profit and loss is determined by the employer, the skill and initiative required by the employee, the permanency of the relationship and other factors. The weightings, the interpretation and the laws themselves can vary greatly depending upon the state in which the suits are filed.

Although the cases are still pending, developers are taking protective action against potential suits. In early 2001, Microsoft completely dismantled their volunteer program and was forced to hire full-time employees to replace the volunteers. MMORPGs that are still in development have been forced to re-think their support plans. Funcom, makers of Anarchy Online, is strongly considering keeping their customer service out of the United States entirely. Mythic Entertainment, makers of Dark Age of Camelot, has no plans for a volunteer program as of June 2001.

The impact on gamers and the community is far reaching. In an interview with CheatSearch, Mark Jacobs, President and CEO of Mythic Entertainment called the suits, "disgraceful." "It hurts the industry and community," he continued, "they should be ashamed of themselves." In addition to a loss of trust between developer and fan, it will drive the monthly fees of games up. The $9.95 monthly price point could be a thing of the past. Anarchy Online has already announced a monthly service fee of $12.95 and other developers are still deciding how much they need to charge now that volunteers might not be an available resource.

Does this mean the end of online gaming communities? No. It does, however, significantly hinder developer