In Torpor, Not Dead

Vampire: The Eternal Struggle (VTES) is a multiplayer Collectible Card Game (CCG). Being one of the first CCGs released in the mid-1990s, VTES has survived going out of print twice. An active community still plays and supports the game. This paper examines the history, the community, and the factors that may have kept the game strong over eighteen years. The paper also aims to capture players’ reactions to the game going out of print and publisher stopping support for the second time. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected from multiple resources: online survey, interviews, and observations. Preliminary analysis revealed that the community involvement is multilayered and encouraged by the game mechanics. While complex multiplayer game mechanics require interaction among players and foster community creation, it also intimidates new players joining the community. After examining the preliminary results, we will briefly discuss implications for community building.
 

A Look at a Collectible Card Game
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https://doi.org/10.1184/R1/6686786.v1