It's not a dating site, but it led to an online romance — and then a real one — just the same.
Tamara Langman logged onto World of Warcraft one night. Her avatar helped slay Prince Malchezaar, a yellow-eyed demon, and then went for a walk with John Bentley's avatar.
Soon Bentley was storming castles for her.
The conversations that followed led to love. The couple met in person two months later. Langman and Bentley have been together for two years, thanks to the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG).
"There's something magical about falling in love with someone just through writing and then waiting for a reply," said Langman. "It's evocative of ancient romances where pen-and-ink love letters were delivered on horseback. Just the kind of forgotten world that Warcraft seeks to recreate in digital space."
James Cameron couldn't have scripted it better.
Their story isn't unique.
MMORPGs are responsible for love stories everywhere. It makes sense. There are exponentially more MMORPG-subscribers than there are on most dating sites. The collaborative environment and dependence on other players creates a space conducive to relationship building.
Ramona Pringle, professor of new media at Toronto's Ryerson School of Image Arts, told The Chronicle Herald that MMORPGs give people what they're often missing in the real world: the need for someone else.
"We have a society that's really built upon self-sufficiency and independence and yet it's not sustainable," she said. "You need someone with your complementary skills to get through it."
Avatars can explore fantastical landscapes, chatting with one another via an instant-messaging feature or voice-communication software.
Gamer Hannah Romero married her avatar crush. She says that the experience of chatting with a digital character created an intimacy that was greater than merely a voice-only phone conversation.
"When you're talking on the phone you can say all of those things, but there's no physicality to it," said Romero. "And in the game, even though somebody's 2,000 miles away, they've made an effort to sit down and hold your hand. Even though it's not real, the emotion of it is real."
(Photo credit: Sean Gallup/Getty)
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