I have never played World of Warcraft. I do not intend to. I have no prejudice against players of this massively multiplayer online game; some of my best friends are deeply engaged in it. And although they keep applying pressure with invitations to virtual dinner parties and online raids, I resist. I will not align with Alliance or Horde, I won't be a blood elf, a tauren or a gnome. I'm quite happy just looking, watching, studying the new world order that they're building.
World of Warcraft and its ilk represent the next phase in human social evolution. Seriously: those people who spend their (virtual) lives dressed up like trolls or people with pointy ears, who feel a sense of accomplishment from smacking digital rats around for hours each night – they are creating the new sovereignty, establishing a nation-state that transcends borders, that challenges traditional ideas of governance, that threatens economic structures and upsets power hierarchies. People, the future is in the hands of a bunch of trolls.
I recently described the auction website eBay as an example of the new governance structures that have emerged with the world wide web. But I knew I was stretching the argument: online game environments such as World of Warcraft are better fits for that kind of mental exercise. Although eBay has its own sovereign communication system (Skype) and currency (PayPal), the game worlds have an additional element that makes them far more powerful: community. They have people who gather and form new social orders.
Now, I don't imagine that any of my mates would be willing to pledge allegiance to Azeroth, the fictional setting for their escapades and dance parties, but without question they experience a sense of togetherness celebrated by academics and philosophers for its emergent governance. Warcraft, Second Life, EverQuest, even the text-based LambdaMOO – all have unregulated telecoms services and thriving and exchangeable unregulated currencies. They also have hierarchies and power structures, justice systems and benevolent dictators.
These spaces threaten world order. Traditional governments have spent the past four years back-pedalling, trying to regulate these spaces, in the name of national security. In fact, they're just trying to make sure that they don't lose control of the people who have gathered together in these consensual hallucinations. And their money, of course.
The web is a truly astounding place. It has generated an incredible potential for the ultimate in social upheaval. Wouldn't it be ironic if the next revolution started with an orc? I'm not taking any sides: I'll just wait and see.
