Sociological analysis of the use of digital games: Example of Donanımhaber Playstation 5 Forum site

The entry of video games into our lives as an entertainment tool has been possible thanks to the developing computer technologies. The fact that life fits into the screens with the pandemic has also been an important turning point in terms of new social relations. The virtual world, where the limits of time and space are overcome, and needs and desires are reproduced, has earned a representation with digital games. Equipped with the richness of signs and the dizzying transformation of reality, video games have been reproduced as consumption objects by million-dollar companies and turned into an audience of which players are a part of. Since digital games are intertwined with daily life and this subject has not been studied enough in the literature, it is anticipated that the study will bring innovation. In this context, the general structure of digitalized games, starting from the classical games in the theoretical framework, has been included in the study. While the concept of digitalization and digital society, the relationship of digital games with postmodernism and consumption are detailed using domestic and foreign sources, the virtual relationship network of the Playstation 5 console, which is the research subject, on the Donanımhaber Forum site has been examined on a sociological level. In the theoretical framework, the views of names such as Castells, Baudrillard, Fromm and Ritzer were used. Qualitative research method was used in this study. Digital ethnography was determined as the qualitative research design. Digital ethnography was used to analyze the game usage of individuals on the forum site, which is a digital space. The interactive use of visual data and interaction through digital games and platforms as a popular culture element have brought the digital ethnography method to the fore. Screenshots of 33 separate posts on the forum site were selected and evaluated in relation to the subject. The findings are grouped under three headings as brand equity, earning making and interaction themes. In the study, it has been examined that digital games and platforms, which gain symbolic meaning with brand value, encourage individuals to new socialities. The interaction of individuals through games and services has been researched through the forum site, which is a digital space. In the research, it was seen that the use of digital games was reflected in the forum site shares, and individuals interacted with each other. In the context of the results, it is aimed to understand the digital game phenomenon and digitalization elements and to create a social awareness.