Small Worlds: Competitive and Cooperative Structures in Online Worlds

This is the expanded, complete version of the talk on graph theory, social networks, game theory, and Pareto’s Law that I gave with Rich Vogel as an advanced design talk at GDC 2003. If you were at this talk in person, here’s the key differences: a bit more explanation of graph theory, some ancillary discussion of social network stuff, and a very long Conclusions section that sets out in written form all the “concrete advice” that the mathematics seem to offer for online world designers and managers.

Audio

A recording of the session is available for free on the GDCVault.