Play as co‐created narrative in computer game consumption: The hero's journey in Warcraft III

Computer games are now a significant consumption activity in consumer culture. Informed by interdisciplinary studies and drawing on data from in‐depth interviews with players of the Warcraft III computer game, we explore the relationship between play and storytelling during digital play. Understanding that such play is determined by systems of game rules and that computer game characters and settings are capable of conveying cultural meanings to players, we found that the rules of play in computer games can be designed in ways that encourage consumers to co‐create meaningful story plots derived from their knowledge of myth and fiction. In the case of Warcraft, these plots resembled the archetypal plot of the hero's journey. We conclude that computer games immerse consumers in a form of playful consumption that engages them in memorialised, co‐authored storytelling. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.