Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

This paper examines one of China’s earliest and most influential hobbyist game-making communities, 66RPG. Through digital ethnography and archival research, it explores how 66RPG functioned as a participatory playground where hobbyists engaged in both game creation and collective ludic practices. The study shows how members collaboratively built virtual storyworlds, engaged in MMOG-like creative experiences, and performed group identities through gamified systems from the mid-2000s. By introducing the concept of collective creational play, it theorizes a culturally situated mode of produsage in which the process of making games was itself experienced as a multiplayer, affective, and socially embedded activity, revealing the utopian, collectivist, and gamified creative cultural forms of early Chinese digital culture.

Keywords

hobbyist game indie game community 66RPG collective creational play China

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Anderson

(2006). Imagined communities: Reflections on the origin and spread of nationalism. Verso.

Ang

C. S.

Zaphiris

(2008). Social learning in MMOG: An activity theoretical perspective. Interactive Technology and Smart Education, 5(2), 84–102. https://doi.org/10.1108/17415650810880754

Banks

(2013). Co-creating videogames. Bloomsbury.

Boellstorff

(2008). Coming of age in second life: An anthropologist explores the virtually human. Princeton University Press.

Bruns

(2007). Produsage: Towards a broader framework for user-led content creation. In Proceedings of 6th ACM SIGCHI conference on creativity and cognition 2007 (pp. 99–105). https://eprints.qut.edu.au/6623/

Bruns

(2013). From prosumption to produsage. In Towse

Handke

(Eds.), Handbook on the digital creative economy (pp. 67–78). Edward Elgar.

Bulut

(2020). A precarious game: The illusion of dream jobs in the video game industry. ILR Press, An Imprint of Cornell University Press.

Caillois

(2001). Man, play, and games (M. Barash, Trans.). University of Illinois Press.

Capcom . (2013). Devil May Cry [Video game]. Capcom.

10.

Chandran

(2010). Rainblood I: Town of death. RPGFan. https://web.archive.org/web/20200727215016/. https://www.rpgfan.com/reviews/Rainblood_Town_of_Death/index.html

11.

Chen

(2023). “Bring games back into art”: Chinese contemporary art and video games culture from 1989 to 2010. In Sun

Deng

(Eds.), Introduction to Chinese game studies (pp. 25–53). East China Normal University Press.

12.

Crogan

(2018). Indie dreams: Video games, creative economy, and the hyperindustrial Epoch. Games and Culture, 13(7), 671–689. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412018756708

13.

Deng

(2024). The history of the twentieth-century Chinese game industry: The practice of domestic games as evidence. In Chen

McAllister

K. S.

Ruggill

J. E.

(Eds.), The Chinese video game industry (pp. 23–40). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-41504-3

14.

de Peuter

Young

C. J.

(2019). Contested formations of digital game labor. Television & New Media, 20(8), 747–755. https://doi.org/10.1177/1527476419851089

15.

Farmer

(2021). Arrested (game) development: Labour and lifestyles of independent video game creators in Cape Town. Social Dynamics, 47(3), 455–471. https://doi.org/10.1080/02533952.2021.1999632

16.

Fiadotau

(2019). Dezaemon, RPG Maker, NScripter: Exploring and classifying game ‘produsage’ in 1990s Japan. Journal of Gaming & Virtual Worlds, 11(3), 215–230. https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw.11.3.215_1

17.

Foxman

(2019). United we stand: Platforms, tools and innovation with the unity game engine. Social Media + Society, 5(4), Article 2056305119880177. https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305119880177

18.

Freeman

McNeese

Bardzell

(2020). “Pro-Amateur”-Driven technological innovation: Participation and challenges in indie game development. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 4(GROUP), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1145/3375184

19.

Guevara-Villalobos

(2011). Cultures of independent game production: Examining the relationship between community and labour. In Proceedings of DiGRA 2011 conference: Think design play (pp. 1–18). DiGRA.

20.

Guevara-Villalobos

(2015). Independent gamework and identity: Problems and subjective nuances. In Proceedings of DiGRA 2015 conference (pp. 1–19). DiGRA.

21.

Guevara-Villalobos

(2021). Playful peripheries: The consolidation of independent game production in Latin America Orlando. In Ruffino

(Ed.), Independent videogames: Cultures, networks, techniques and politics. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

22.

Hichibe

Tanaka

(2016). Content production fields and Doujin game developers in Japan: Non-economic rewards as drivers of variety in games. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-43817-7_3

23.

Hristova

Lieberoth

(2021). How socially sustainable is social media gamification? A look into Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. In Spanellis

Harviainen

J. T.

(Eds.), Transforming society and organizations through gamification: From the sustainable development goals to inclusive workplaces (pp. 225–245). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-68207-1_12

24.

Huizhuanshousi . (2017). 运行了12年的66rpg论坛即将关闭: 中文RPG Maker游戏的过去, 现在与未来 [The 66RPG Forum, After 12 Years of Operation, Is Closing: The Past, Present, and Future of Chinese RPG Maker Games]. SOHU. https://www.sohu.com/a/www.sohu.com/a/190411199_116000

25.

Hurel

P. Y.

(2016). “Playing RPG maker”? Amateur game design and video gaming. In Proceedings of 1st international joint conference of DiGRA and FDG (pp. 1–10). DiGRA.

26.

Isbister

(2016). How games move us: Emotion by design. The MIT Press.

27.

Ito

(2005). Possibilities of non-commercial games: The case of amateur role playing games designers in Japan. In Proceedings of DiGRA 2005 conference: Changing views – Worlds in play (pp. 1–11). DiGRA.

28.

Jinglingshizhe . (2008). [恢复][中秋节活动]游戏作品展示 [Restored][Mid-Autumn Festival Event] Game Showcase [Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-70555-1-7.html

29.

Jiulei . (2006). 66RPG站庆之会员id谜语猜猜猜(圆满结束!)[66RPG Anniversary Event – Member ID Riddle Guessing Game (Successfully Concluded!)][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-20782-1-9.html

30.

Keogh

(2021a). Hobbyist game making between self-exploitation and self-emancipation. In Game production studies (pp. 29–46). Amsterdam University Press. https://doi.org/10.5117/9789463725439

31.

Keogh

(2021b). The cultural field of video game production in Australia. Games and Culture, 16(1), 116–135. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412019873746

32.

Keogh

(2023). The videogame industry does not exist: Why we should think beyond commercial game production. The MIT Press.

33.

Kim

(2015). Chapter 1. The popularity of gamification in the Mobile and social era. Library Technology Reports, 51(2). 2.

34.

KIWIJiang . (2019). 橙光之起源,你听说过RPG制作大师吗? [The Origin of Chenguang: Have You Heard of RPG Maker?]. https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1642726520853272659&wfr=spider&for=pc

35.

Kücklich

(2005). FCJ-025 precarious playbour: Modders and the digital games industry. https://fibreculturejournal.org/fcj-025-precarious-playbour-modders-and-the-digital-games-industry/

36.

Kultima

Laiti

(2019). Sami game jam – Learning, exploring, reflecting and sharing Indigenous culture through game jamming. In Proceedings of DiGRA 2019 (pp. 1–18). DiGRA.

37.

Laona . (2015). 人物专访橙光CEO柳晓宇:游戏十年,从业余开发到原创游戏平台搭建 [Interview with Chenguang CEO Liu Xiaoyu: Ten Years in Games, from Amateur Developer to Original Platform Builder]. Chao Hao Wan. https://www.18touch.com/renwuzhuanfangch1434450763.html

38.

Leiounade . (2007). 6R 风云人物 [66RPG Celebrities] [Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-42179-1-1.html

39.

Leiounade . (2008a). 【活动】RMVX城市创作大赛(已收录31作,投稿截止) [Event] RMVX City-Building Contest (31 Entries Collected, Submission Closed) [Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-81628-1-7.html

40.

Leiounade . (2008b). 【活动】【支持奥运·加油北京】6R火炬传递者 [Event][Support the Olympics, Go Beijing!] 6R Torch Relay Participants [Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-85901-1-6.html

41.

Leiounade . (2009). 【元旦活动】撞墙大会规则说明帖 + 报道帖∼ [New Year Event] Wall-Crashing Contest: Rule Guide + Event Report∼ [Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-114118-1-1.html

42.

Liao

S. X. T.

(2016). Japanese console games popularization in China: Governance, copycats, and gamers. Games and Culture, 11(3), 275–297. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412015583574

43.

Linden Lab . (2003). Second Life [Video game]. Linden Lab.

44.

Lindtner

Dourish

(2011). The promise of play: A new approach to productive play. Games and Culture, 6(5), 453–478. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412011402678

45.

Liu

(2005). Hei’an Shengjian Chuanshuo (Dark Night Saga) [Video game]. 66RPG.

46.

Liuliu . (2006). 仙剑同人《灵儿续传》最终发布版 (v1.01) [Ling’er Xuzhuan: A Legend of Sword and Fairy Fan Game – Final Release Version (v1.01)][Online post]. https://rpg.blue/thread-34429-1-1.html

47.

Liuliu . (2007). 《66RPG 幻想世界》人物随想 (一) (4/10) [66RPG Fantasy World: 66RPG Celebrities Fantasy Part I (4/10)] [Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-49537-1-1.html

48.

Luo

(2015). 16年的长度记录中国独立游戏 [Sixteen Years of Documenting China’s Independent Game Scene]. Sina. https://games.sina.com.cn/zl/duanpian/2015-04-03/1538151.shtml

49.

MangguobingOL . (2020). 从RM爱好者的净土到橙光平台:「66RPG」沉浮录 [From a haven for RM enthusiasts to the Chenguang platform: The rise and fall of 66RPG]. Gcores. https://www.gcores.com/articles/119154

50.

Martin

C. B.

Deuze

(2009). The independent production of culture: A digital games case study. Games and Culture, 4(3), 276–295. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412009339732

51.

Microsoft Corporation . (1999). Age of Empires II [Video game]. Microsoft.

52.

Mustafa

Hamzah

(2011). Online social networking: A new virtual playground. International Proceedings of Economics Development & Research, 5(1), 314.

53.

NetEase Games (2014). Phantom Blade [Video game]. NetEase.

54.

Nicoll

Keogh

(2019). The Unity game engine and the circuits of cultural software. Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25012-6

55.

Nieborg

D. B.

Van Der Graaf

(2008). The mod industries? The industrial logic of non-market game production. European Journal of Cultural Studies, 11(2), 177–195. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367549407088331

56.

O’Donnell

(2014). Developer’s dilemma: The secret world of videogame creators. The MIT Press.

57.

Parker

(2013). Indie game studies year eleven. In Proceedings of DiGRA 2013: DeFragging game studies (pp. 1–11). DiGRA.

58.

Pearce

(2006). Productive play. Games and Culture, 1(1), 17–24. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412005281418

59.

Pearce

(2009). Communities of play: Emergent cultures in multiplayer games and virtual worlds. MIT Press.

60.

Pelletier

(2022). Charming work: An ethnography of an indie game studio. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies, 28(2), 561–578. https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565211072636

61.

Perry

M. J.

(2009). WIRED: New digital socialism and dot-communism. American Enterprise Institute - AEI. https://www.aei.org/carpe-diem/wired-new-digital-socialism-and-dot-communism/

62.

Poell

Nieborg

D. B.

Duffy

B. E.

(2022). Platforms and cultural production. Polity Press.

63.

Postigo

(2007). Of mods and modders: Chasing Down the value of fan-based digital game modifications. Games and Culture, 2(4), 300–313. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412007307955

64.

Postigo

(2016). The socio-technical architecture of digital labor: Converting play into YouTube money. New Media & Society, 18(2), 332–349. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444814541527

65.

Potter

Cowan

(2020). Playground as meaning-making space: Multimodal making and re-making of meaning in the (virtual) playground. Global Studies of Childhood, 10(3), 248–263. https://doi.org/10.1177/2043610620941527

66.

Qiao

(2022). 游戏论·历史的维度|宽泛定义下的中国独立游戏小史 [Game Studies: The Historical Dimension | A Brief History of Chinese Independent Games Under a Broad Definition]. The Paper. https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_16370628

67.

Rainyfly . (2006). Ling’er Xuzhuan [Video game]. 66RPG.

68.

Rheingold

(1993). The virtual community: Homesteading on the electronic frontier. Addison-Wesley Pub. Co.

69.

Richardson

Hjorth

Davies

(2021). Understanding games and game cultures. Sage Publications.

70.

Richardson

Hjorth

Piera-Jimenez

(2022). The emergent potential of mundane media: Playing Pokémon GO in Badalona, Spain. New Media & Society, 24(3), 667–683. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444820965879

71.

Ruffino

Woodcock

(2021). Game workers and the Empire: Unionisation in the UK video game industry. Games and Culture, 16(3), 317–328. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412020947096

72.

Santianhou (2006a). [恶搞]二月份Miss 66RPG [Parody: Miss 66RPG – February Edition][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-9139-1-9.html

73.

Santianhou (2006b). [全板活动]※●※66童话世界※●※结束 [[Full-Forum Event] 66 Fairytale World – Event Concluded][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-15077-1-9.html

74.

Santianhou . (2008). 有没有人想要入住6R梦幻城?!(3/3更新!)[Anyone Want to Move into 6R Fantasy City? (Updated on 3/3)] [Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-75710-1-6.html

75.

Saterick . (2007, August 1). 【6R幻想世界】星语者 Star Whisper 策划 [6R Fantasy World: Star Whisper Planning Document][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-63176-1-1.html

76.

Saterick . (2008, January 27). 【半广告】Veralith Saga v1.0与6R幻想世界 [Semi-Promo: Veralith Saga v1.0 and the 6R Fantasy World][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-73870-1-1.html

77.

Siren . (2005). 地图绘制大赛第一期圣诞截止∼∼ [Map-Drawing Contest, Round One – Deadline: Christmas][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-2717-1-9.html

78.

Sledgianowski

Kulviwat

(2009). Using social network sites: The effects of playfulness, critical mass and trust in a hedonic context. Journal of Computer Information Systems, 49(4), 74–83. https://doi.org/10.1080/08874417.2009.11645342

79.

Softstar Entertainment Inc . (1995). The legend of sword and fairy [Video game]. Softstar.

80.

Sotamaa

(2010). When the game is not enough: Motivations and practices among computer game modding culture. Games and Culture, 5(3), 239–255. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412009359765

81.

Soulframe . (2010). Rainblood: Town of Death Windows game. IndieDB. https://www.indiedb.com/games/rainblood-town-of-death

82.

SoulframEE . (2014). 什么促使你走上独立游戏开发者之路? [What Made You Become an Independent Game Developer?] [Zhihu Answer]. Zhihu. https://www.zhihu.com/question/21719532/answer/28509886

83.

Sullivan

(2000). Dot-communist manifesto. The New York Times Magazine. https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000611mag-counterculture.html

84.

Terranova

(2000). Free labor: Producing culture for the digital economy. Social Text, 18(2), 33–58. https://doi.org/10.1215/01642472-18-2_63-33

85.

Tianshengdemajia . (2009). 【幻想】Over Paradise Isolated·遗世天国之上 v1.03 [Fantasy: Over Paradise Isolated: Above the Worldly Heavens v1.03][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-129878-1-1.html

86.

tjjlb . (2013, July 31). 66RPG第一届评选你心中最喜欢的管理层人员【A区投票】 [The First 66RPG Poll: Vote for Your Favorite Administrator – Area A][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-323919-1-4.html

87.

Toffler

(1980). The third wave. Bantam Books.

88.

Tönnies

(2001). Community and civil society (J. Harris, Ed.; J. Harris & M. Hollis, Trans.). Cambridge University Press.

89.

Wanick

Stallwood

(2023). Brand storytelling, gamification and social media marketing in the “Metaverse”: A case study of the Ralph Lauren Winter escape. In Bazaki

Wanick

(Eds.), Reinventing fashion retailing: Digitalising, gamifying, entrepreneuring (pp. 35–54). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-11185-3_3

90.

Weigetoutaile . (2006). Jieyu Yingxiong (Jailbreak Heroes) [Video game]. 66RPG.

91.

Wenger

(1998). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge University Press.

92.

Westecott

(2013). Independent game development as craft. Loading, 7(11), 78–91.

93.

Weststar

(2015). Understanding video game developers as an occupational community. Information, Communication & Society, 18(10), 1238–1252. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2015.1036094

94.

Wirman

(2009). On productivity and game fandom. Transformative Works and Cultures, 3. https://doi.org/10.3983/twc.2009.0145

95.

wu3846111 . (2007, December 24). 【圣诞活动】抢占圣诞树(报名贴) [Christmas Event: Capture the Christmas Tree (Sign-Up Thread)][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-69555-1-7.html

96.

Xiaochuanzi . (2012). 《世界末日》寒假活动:“世界末日”主题游戏制作大赛 [“End of the World” Winter Break Event: Themed Game Development Contest][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-219030-1-5.html

97.

Xieyanjun . (2016, July 29). 论坛活动【聪聪的化妆舞会III】 [Forum Event: Cong Cong’s Masquerade Ball III][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-394980-1-2.html

98.

Kwon

(2022). Research of the influences of Doujin culture in game operation. International Journal of Advanced Smart Convergence, 11(3), 85–92. https://doi.org/10.7236/IJASC.2022.11.3.85

99.

Yewufeng . (2007). 【牵手七夕】你告我吧!七夕论坛告白活动结果揭晓!! [Qixi Special: Confess to Me! Results of the Qixi Festival Forum Love Confession Event Announced][Online post]. https://rpg.blue/thread-65886-1-8.html

100.

Yuexiayelufu . (2013). 第一届【Material化妆舞会】 [The First Material Masquerade Ball][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-336094-1-1.html

101.

Yueyeshenyin . (2011). 6R世界大作战——活动关闭 [6R World Grand Battle – Event Closed][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-215418-1-4.html

102.

Zeiler

Mukherjee

(2022). Video game development in India: A cultural and creative industry embracing regional cultural heritage(s). Games and Culture, 17(4), 509–527. https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120211045143

103.

zh99998 . (2010, March 1). 66RPG第一届萌战(已截稿,评审中) [The First 66RPG Moe Tournament (Submissions Closed, Under Review)][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-138954-1-5.html

104.

Zidanjun . (2014). 【暑期捕虫大会第二届】预告帖&规则帖 [Second Annual Summer Holiday Bug-Catching Contest: Preview & Rules][Online post]. Project1. https://rpg.blue/thread-366818-1-3.html

Collective Creational Play: 66RPG and the Hobbyist Game-Making Cultures in Early Chinese Indie Game Community

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References