An exploratory investigation of player loyalty to online games knowledge-based organization

Online games have become the focus of entertainment and multimedia industries as the developments in computer technologies are accelerated and the use of the Internet diffuses broadly. In spite of such growth of online games, academic discussions regarding online games are relatively limited. This research examines several factors that affect player loyalty to online games. In this research, the loyalty is classified into two categories, the behavioral loyalty measured by the intensity, volume, and frequency of use, and the cognitive loyalty measured by the degree of immersion in online games. In this research, an integrated model to explain and predict player loyalty to online games is proposed. Two studies are conducted to test the research model. Through analyzing 334 respondents, the first study finds that the impulsive personality of individual players significantly affects both behavioral loyalty and cognitive loyalty. Additionally, it finds that, whereas the behavioral loyalty is influenced by the convenience of online game playing, the cognitive loyalty is influenced by the motive of game playing and the playfulness of games. The second study finds that the behavioral loyalty differs across demographic differences of players (age and occupation), preferred online games of players, and online game playing locations, but the cognitive loyalty differs across only age differences of players. This research has opened a forum for social awareness about the online game culture, provided information to guide online game producers to prepare customer-oriented online games, and created a foundation for academic research on online game industry.