Sociology

Qualitative research

Social science

Biology

Reflexivity

Paleontology

Artificial intelligence

Psychology

Negotiation

Set (abstract data type)

Game studies

Programming language

Context (archaeology)

Virtuality (gaming)

Computer science

Thematic analysis

Media studies

Social psychology

Games and Culture

This study introduces the ludic ethics approach for understanding the moral deliberations of players of online multiplayer games. Informed by a constructivist paradigm that places players’ everyday ethical negotiations at the forefront of the analysis, this study utilises a novel set of game-related moral vignettes in a series of 20 in-depth interviews with players. Reflexive thematic analysis of these interviews produced four key themes by which participants considered the ethics of in-game actions: (1) game boundaries, (2) consequences for play, (3) player sensibilities, and (4) virtuality. These results support the conceptualisation of games as complex ethical sites in which players negotiate in-game ethics by referring extensively – although not exclusively – to a framework of ‘ludomorality’ that draws from the interpreted meanings associated with the ludic digital context.

Ludic Ethics: The Ethical Negotiations of Players in Online Multiplayer Games