In creative industries such as the gaming industry, the failure rate is typically higher in relation to many other industries. This is usually due to the constant need of innovation and the extreme competition in the industry of gaming. Firms in this industry take on multiple innovation projects, which inherently have a high rate of failure. Literature has previously stressed and focused on the importance of failure and how it can enhance learning that can be a crucial asset for any organization. However, failure brings along negative emotions that can slow down or block the learning process of an individual or an organization at large. In an industry where failure is common, it is important for the management to tackle this issue. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to explore the approach the management of small gaming firms take in order to normalize failure. In this study, the data has been collected qualitatively while using a thematic analysis to recognize consistent themes and patterns, which arise from the primary data that was collected. By conducting four semi-structured interviews with two different companies (2 interviews each), we found that both companies have a similar attitude regarding project failure. Both companies either expect failure to happen or even encourage it. One of our key findings was that both companies emphasize failing fast, which allows them to save time, money and resources as well as helps some members of the organization to react less emotionally to the termination of a project. Empirical results were then discussed and analyzed by judging whether the actions these companies took can be classified as a way of normalizing failure. We concluded that there was evidence for management employing various methods of action that would eventually lead to normalization of failure. Some of these actions included the fail fast attitude, failure supportive slogans and the thought of planning for failure beforehand.

This thesis analyzes current status of software distribution in gaming industry and its biggest challenges. Thesis also includes insight in completely different approach to the software distribution -- Cloud Gaming. In practical part are thoroughly tested existing solutions and done functionality analysis. Practical part also includes experiment which regards to building own platform using currently existing tools and it is followed by discussion of results.

This study examines how professional social workers relate to problematic computer and video gaming as an addiction. It is a qualitative interview study aimed to describe and analyze how professional social workers, who in some way work with problematic computer gaming, relate to the player’s problems in terms of a concept of dependency. The theoretical approach is based on social constructivist theories of discourses, normality, the definition of dependency and diagnoses. The study was conducted through five qualitative half structured definition interviews with professional social workers that work directly or comes in contact with problematic computer gaming. The results portray a consistent, yet fragmented understanding of the problem. Daily life is described as "reality" and the problematic computer gaming as "escapism". The player can’t meet the normative requirements of its surroundings and is classified as addicted. The informants describe similar problems related to computer gaming, but have different ideas on how the problems arise. The study concludes that professionals specifically describing problematic gaming as an addiction explain their clients in terminology comparable to substance abuse. Those who don’t relate to the concept of dependence as firmly describe the problematic gaming as more of a consequence of the interaction between the player and its surroundings.

Die rasante Entwicklung von Computer- und Informationstechnologie in den letzten Jahrzehnten hat Gesellschaft und Wirtschaft entscheidend beeinflusst. Völlig neue Geschäftsfelder sind entstanden, wie z.B. das der Computerspiele. Computerspiele wiederum implizierten die Entstehung des eSports - eSport ist das Austragen von Wettkämpfen mittels Computerspielen. Bisherige Beiträge oder Analysen zu dieser neuen Sportart sind kaum vorhanden. Vorliegende Arbeit befasst sich mit einem Teilgebiet des eSports: dem Sponsoring. Ziel ist es, die Situation des eSport Marktes im Allgemeinen zu beschreiben sowie Schwierigkeiten und Entwicklungen für das Sponsoring herauszuarbeiten.

Die rasante Entwicklung von Computer- und Informationstechnologie in den letzten Jahrzehnten hat Gesellschaft und Wirtschaft entscheidend beeinflusst. Völlig neue Geschäftsfelder sind entstanden, wie z.B. das der Computerspiele. Computerspiele wiederum implizierten die Entstehung des eSports - eSport ist das Austragen von Wettkämpfen mittels Computerspielen. Bisherige Beiträge oder Analysen zu dieser neuen Sportart sind kaum vorhanden. Vorliegende Arbeit befasst sich mit einem Teilgebiet des eSports: dem Sponsoring. Ziel ist es, die Situation des eSport Marktes im Allgemeinen zu beschreiben sowie Schwierigkeiten und Entwicklungen für das Sponsoring herauszuarbeiten.:Abbildungsverzeichnis II Abkürzungsverzeichnis III 1 Problemstellung und Zielsetzung 1 2 Sponsoring 3 2.1 Sponsoring - Begriff und Formen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 2.2 Ziele . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 2.3 Vorteile und Nachteile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 2.4 Sportsponsoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 2.5 Planungsprozess des Sportsponsorings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 2.6 Erfolgskontrolle des Sportsponsorings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 3 eSport 15 3.1 Definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 3.2 Historische Entwicklung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 3.3 Aktuelle Analyse des eSports in Deutschland . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 3.3.1 Spielerzahlen und Spielerprofil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 3.3.2 Clans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 3.3.3 Veranstaltungformen und deren mediale Verwertung . . . . 26 3.3.4 Sponsorebene und Sponsormaßnahmen . . . . . . . . . . . 28 3.3.5 Sponsorenpool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 3.3.6 Besondere Einflussfaktoren auf das Sponsoring . . . . . . . 30 4 Qualitative Untersuchung zum Sponsoring im eSport 32 4.1 Untersuchungsmethode Experteninterview . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 4.2 Darstellung und Interpretation der Ergebnisse . . . . . . . . . . . 33 5 Schlussbetrachtung 36 Literaturverzeichnis IV Anhang VIII

This study is about inclusion in digital environments with a focus on videogames. The purpose of the study is to provide insight into how to increase inclusion in the digital environment, primarily for women, and provide examples of how to apply good information design to digital spaces to contribute to increased inclusion in videogames. The aim is also to increase the understanding of how spatial design affects inclusion for users and which parts of the spatial aspect are important for the environment to be perceived as inclusive or not. The goal is to try to raise awareness about inclusion in the gaming environment and to get people to question the design. The methods used are questionnaire, interview workshop, site analysis and traditional masculine and feminine scale, as well as human centered design as a method and process in the work. Of these methods, prototypes were made and used to produce different notions of what is masculine or feminine, as well as what the users in the study perceived as more inclusive designs. The results show signs that the spatial environment gives signals to be able to behave in a certain way that can be linked to hypermasculinity. The users in the study perceived the most popular games to be in the more masculine direction with Counterstrike as the most masculine direction. The attributes of the game's environment and spatial elements were perceived by the users in the study as violence and terror, which may in this way send signals to the users that it is okay to behave in a more hypermasculine way as one of the attributes of hypermasculinity is violence. The conclusion is that a larger study would need to be carried out on the interaction between the environment and its signals to the users to see if it has a greater impact on the inclusion of the users, as there are signs that the spatial design also contributes to a hypermasculine environment in the digital space. / Det här arbetet handlar om inkludering i virtuella miljöer med fokus på spel. Syftet med studien är att ge insikt i hur man kanske kan öka inkluderingen i den digitala miljön för främst kvinnor och ge exempel på hur man kan tillämpa god informationsdesign på digitala rum för att bidra till en ökad inkludering. Syftet är också att öka förståelsen för hur den rumsliga gestaltningen påverkar inkluderingen för användarna och vilka delar av den rumsliga aspekten som har betydelse för att miljön ska uppfattas inkluderande eller inte. Målet är att försöka höja medvetenheten kring inkludering inom spelmiljön och att få människor att ifrågasätta designen.Metoderna som används är enkät, intervjuworkshop, platsanalys och traditionell maskulin och feminin skala, samt human centered design som en metod och process i arbetet. Av dessa metoder gjordes och användes sedan prototyper för att ta fram olika föreställningar om vad som är maskulint eller feminint, samt vad som användarna i studien uppfattade som mer inkluderande design. Resultatet visar tecken på att den rumsliga miljön ger signaler för att kunna eventuellt bete sig på ett visst sätt som kan kopplas till hypermaskulinitet. Användarna i studien uppfattade de mest populära spelen åt det mer maskulina hållet med Counter-Strike som det mest maskulina hållet. Attributen i spelets miljö och rumsliga element uppfattades av användarna i studien som våld och terror, vilket kanske på så sätt skickar signaler till användarna att de är okej att bete sig på ett mer hypermaskulint sätt då ett av attributen för hypermaskulinitet är våld. Slutsatsen är att det skulle behövas genomföras en större studie kring samverkan mellan miljön och dess signaler till användarna för att se om det har en större påverkan för inkluderingen av användarna, då det finns tecken på att det även den rumsliga gestaltningen bidrar till en hypermaskulin miljö i det digitala rummet.

The Swedish national regulations and advice that the Covid-19 pandemic has entailed have resulted in individuals staying at home to a greater extent. This has led to individuals not having physical social interactions to the same extent as before the pandemic. These limitations have meant that digital technology has become an important role in today's society where individuals in virtual groups and virtual communities have had their social needs met online rather than in real life. This is a qualitative survey in which results are based on six semi-structured interviews and 192 questionnaire responses. The respondents consist of adults living in Sweden. Results show that participation in gaming-based voice-mediated online communities helps individuals to fullfil their social needs as well as reduce feelings of loneliness and depression. The availability of such communities enables them to replace social contact when it is otherwise impractical to meet in real life, for example during the Covid-19 pandemic or when the individuals are geographically separated. Individuals in gaming-based voice-mediated online communities have often been attached to other members for a long time, the interactions are not limited to gaming and they can integrate individuals in these communities to their offline-life. They also have greater control over when and for how long they participate along with flexibility which allows the participants to decide how involved in the conversation they wish to be at any given time. Through internet-based communication individuals can selectively and strategically present themselves, which in a positive way distorts the perception between the individuals and result in more intimate and intensive conversations.

Spel är en av de största underhållningsbranscherna, vilket ger utvecklare möjlighet till stor lönsamhet. Syftet med denna studie är att identifiera faktorerna för varför spelare känner behov avatt göra köp av virtuella produkter i onlinespel och hur det kommer att påverka spelupplevelsen.Detta hjälper spelutvecklare att skapa en bättre affärsmodell med mer optimerade produktergenom att ge spelarna vad de önskar. Denna studie kommer att använda en kvalitativ forskningsdesign eftersom det gör det lättare att ta del av olika spelares åsikter. Resultatet från studien visar att emotionella och funktionella faktorer har störst inverkan på beslut att köpa virtuella produkter i onlinespel, och att spelupplevelsen gynnas så länge inte produkter påverkadespelmekanismer. / Games are one of the biggest entertainment industries, which provides an opportunity for developers to generate a lot of money. The aim for this study is to identify the factors why playersfeel the need to make in-game purchases of virtual products in online games and how this willaffect the gaming experience. This will help game developers create a better business modelwith more optimized products by giving players what they desire. This study will be using aqualitative research design since it will make it easier to take part in different players' opinions.The results from the study show that emotional and functional factors have the greatest impacton decisions to buy virtual products in online games, and that the gaming experience benefitsas long as products do not affect gaming mechanisms.

Studien undersöker hur design kan främja positiva beteendeförändringar för vuxna gamers, med fokus på hållbarhet. Gaming är den snabbast växande nöjesindustrin och med det ökar omsättningen av tillbehören gamers använder. Elektroniskt avfall är ett snabbt växande problem där användarna inte ser hur sin roll som konsumenter kan göra skillnad, samtidigt som de pressar tillverkarna till att agera mer hållbart. En designprocess påvisar hur motivation från normativ och social press kan facilitera interaktioner till att forma användarens beteenden positivt. Genom en identifierad ovilja om att förändras från både nuvarande tillverkare och konsumenter av gamingrelaterade tillbehör, påvisar studiens resultat att det inte räcker med att fokusera på hållbara alternativ för att facilitera ett hållbart beteende. Ur designprocessen framställs ett designbidrag, Kolla klockan, som exemplifierar hur en designer kan arbeta med användarbeteenden som verktyg för hållbar utveckling, istället för mer traditionella metoder som vanligtvis föreslås i en sådan process. / This study examines how design can promote positive behavioral change for adult gamers, focusing on sustainable behaviors. Gaming is the fastest growing segment within the entertainment industry and the growth is contributing to a raised number of accessories gamers consume. Electronic waste is a growing concern where the user doesn’t see themselves as a part of the problem, but at the same time pressure the manufacturers to act sustainable. A design process shows how motivation from norms and social pressure can facilitate interactions that shapes the user behavior in a positive way. By identifying an unwillingness to change from both the manufacturers and consumers of gaming accessories, the study shows that it is not enough to develop sustainable alternatives if one aims to facilitate a sustainable behavior. From the design process the study creates a design proposal, Kolla klockan, that exemplifies how a designer can work with sustainable development from the use of behavioral change as a tool to do so, instead of the more traditional methods more commonly promoted within the field of design.

The thesis concerns factors that affect the intensity of MMORPG playing and the gaming addiction symptoms. In the theoretical part, I discuss approaches to the excessive and problematic gaming. I argue for the shift of perspective from gaming addiction disorder toward self-regulation, time perspective, activity theory and habitual regulation. Two inventory-based studies were conducted in order to empirically verify the effect of proposed variables on MMORPG usage. First, the significant role of Time Perspective (TP), measured by Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (ZTPI), has been confirmed. Second, the habitual regulation had been identified to significantly affect the usage. The habits related to usage were measured by the new psychometrical tool - Cues Sensitivity Scale (CSS). TP and habits influence the usage together - the effect of TP is partially mediated through Cues Sensitivity as well as through the players' deliberate regulation of playing time. All measured variables showed stability in time (measured after three years in subset of respondents). Data was analyzed with statistical methods, mainly with Partial-Least-Squares Path- Modelling (PLS-PM). The part of the data - respondents' strategies of playing time regulation - were analyzed qualitatively.