The Korean Digital Republic:
Cooperation and Conflict in the South Korean video
game Domain
Guillaume Pocard
11127481
Master Thesis Contemporary Asian Studies
GSSS, University of Amsterdam
Supervisor: Olga Sooudi
Readers: Gerben Nooteboom and Vincent de Rooij
27 July 2016
With many e-sport competition and the international success of some video game franchises, South Korea has been described as a digital nation, focused on the new technologies and the creative industry, such as the video game sector. The Korean video game industry is an important economic and cultural sector, considered by the Korean government as the spearhead of the Korean economy. In this way, the Korean video game sector has a direct impact on the Korean society, on different aspects. Based on a fieldwork of three months in Seoul, this thesis analyses the three stakeholders of the video game domain (the gamer community, game developer and governmental entities) and their interaction in the video game domain. To have a comprehensive view of their interactions, the video game will be analyzed as an artistic product, developed in an artistic production system, based on Becker’s Art World theory (Becker, 1974, 769). Based on this postulate, the Korean video game is analyzed as a fluid and interconnected artistic domain, where the different stakeholders are appropriating the video game product for social, cultural and political purposes. However, the interconnected system is also a source of tension between the various actors. The conflict around the video game appropriation is based on various societal and cultural factors, such as the generational breakdown or cultural hybridity. It is also argued that the Korean video game domain is an interesting perspective to understand different phenomenon such as artistic movements, Korean soft powers, youth politicizations and generational breakdown in the Korean society.
Keywords: Seoul, South Korea, Video Game, Artistic Domain, Cultural hybridity, Virtual platform.
First of all, I would like to thank my supervisor Olga Sooudi for her comments and suggestions, which have guided me during my fieldwork and the thesis redaction.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the gamers and game developers I interviewed, without them, it would have been impossible to write this thesis.
I would like to thank all my friends who offer their help during my fieldwork in Seoul. Many thanks to Songie Yoon and Hoyeol Jeong for helping me out with the translation process and finding interviewees. I would like also to thank Ida Bulölö for her help on the field.
Part 1 Introduction
1. Research Questions and Objective………..1 2. Theoretical Framework ………...6
i. The video game as an interactive artistic product ii. The video game: an artistic domain
iii. The video game as a “fun” product: The concept of play and the Korean ludic culture
iv. Soft power and Korean pop-culture: The Hallyu Wave
3. Research methods and setting………11
i. Methodology
ii. The fieldwork: Setting and contacts iii. Difficulties and setbacks
Part 2 The three different entities of the video game domain
4. From the keyboard to the PC-bang: Overview of the gamer community……..17
i. Gaming practices: Spatial and cultural practices
ii. Multiculturalism and pop-culture: A hybrid cultural community
5. Between artistic aspirations, economic benefits, and political activism: ……...30 the game developers
i. Evolution of the game developer community ii. Artistic dimension of the video game developer iii. Creation of the Indie game movement
6. States Actors and internal conflicts: ……….43
i. From the 90s to Nowadays: The State in the video game sector ii. Ministerial divisions and opposite discourse
iii. Contradictions and Tensions: Debate about the place of the video game sector among State Actors
Part 3 Korean video game: Evolution and struggles
7. The videogame as a symbol: Struggle and appropriation………...54
i. Symbol of the national identity: The Hallyu movement ii. Symbol of the contestation
8. The video game contents and practices: Between innovation and
creative movement ………..64
i. The creation of a new artistic convention based on the generation breakdown ii. The appearance of a Korean gaming culture based on cultural incorporation,
hybridity, and retromania.
iii. Creative innovation and economic benefits: Duality in the Korean video game domain
Figures:
Figure 1: Game Invitation on Kakaotalk from an unknown person
(Source: Personal screenshot) ………...18
Figure 2:Example of publication in Kakaotalk (Source: KakaoDigit) ………….….26 Figure 3: Memes based on the Japanese video game franchise:
The Legend of Zelda (Source: Naver) ………...……….27 Figure 4: Memes from an American TV-show (Source: THISISGAME)………..…27 Figure 5: Japanese inspiration for a Korean meme (Source: Indiera)……….29 Figure 6: Tweet from a game developer (Source: Tweeter)………...34 Figure 7: Tweet from Sun Park (Game developer) about his gaming philosophy (Source: Twitter)……….36 Figure 8: Tweet from the game developer, Sun Park (Source: Twitter) ..……...…..38 Figure 9: Game Jam event in Busan, the 28th-31th January 2016
(Source: Facebook) ……….40 Figure 10: Game presentation during an indie game event in Seoul
(Source: Facebook)………..42 Figure 11: Korean ranking system
(Source: Game Rating and Administration Committee)………..48 Figure 12: The Cerulean Order (inspired by Confucianism),
in the online game, Blade and Soul. (Source: Blade and Soul official website)…….55 Figure 13: Contestation picture on a Korean developer Facebook Page
(Source: Facebook)………....………..58 Figure 14: Photo editing against game addiction reforms (Source: This is game)….59 Figure 15:Trailer for the video game, Bless Online. (Source: YouTube)…………...60 Figure 16: Example of Japanese pop-culture appropriation
by the online video game, Aion (Source: Aion Online Official Website)…………...66 Table:
Table 1: Company Size in the Korean video game sector, in percentage
1.Introduction:
“Players are artists who create their own reality within the game.” Shigeru Miyamoto (2002) When I was coming for the first time in the capital, after several hours of work, I instantly emerged in a whirlpool of bright colors and music. After I had passed through the heavy iron gates of the city, my protagonist arrived at the Imperial market, the economic heart of the empire. Around me, differrent races, factions and groups are negotiating the prices of exotic, magic or ethereal products. Between the various stalls, the Shugos, a rodent humanoid race, are yelling in an intelligible gibberish. At the right corner of my vision, I noticed different protagonists like me, who are forging and sculpting exotic materials to increase their skills and ranks in the various guilds. I could almost smell the noxious stench from the dyeing tanks. After a few minutes, I remarked a certain complicity between some protagonists. The long embroidered wool mantle that they are wearing seems to be a symbol of their membership to a guild, one of the most powerful types of organizations which exist in Elysea.
However, I was interrupted in my contemplation by a blinking message, on the left corner of my vision: “Time Session Done”. When I was looking around me, I was not in the Capital of Elysea, one of the two factions within the online game Aion, but in one of these numerous PC-rooms which exist in Seoul. The choir of angelic voices which emerged from my headphone was replaced by the muffled sound of the gamers who are typing on their keyboards. In the dark ambiance of the café, the bright light emanating from the computer screens, underlined the concentrated expression of these young gamers, probably in their 20s.
When I left the PC-room, situated on the second floor of a decrepit building, in the student district of Sinchon, I was not totally disconnected from the gaming world. Around me, various advertisements are showing dynamic trailers for different smartphone games. In the cafes, some high school girls are playing games on their smartphone, a cup of cold coffee in front of them. Welcome in South Korea, the Korean digital republic.
With the emergence of video game competitions and the international success of Korean video games, South Korea (from hereon referred to as ‘Korea’) has often been described as a digital nation, and the video game, a national pastime (New York Times, 2014). This representation of the Korean nation is partially based on the economic force of the Korean video game sector. The Korean video game is a growing sector that could not be avoided in South Korea. According to KOCCA1, the 2014 game sales in South Korea represented an amount of 13.85 billion US Dollars (“Game Sales in South Korea 2010-2014 | Forecast”, 2015). This economic power is based on large Korean video game companies such as NC Soft, Nexon, WeMade Entertainment and Webzen. Indeed, these different video games companies have a significant influence on the video game sector. For example, in 2002, WeMade Entertainments has the official Guinness Book Record for most players online at once: 750.000 playing the Legend of Mir 3 (An online video game based on East Asian cultures) (Goulet, 2012).
During my first trip to Korea, in 2014, I was particularly surprised by the importance of the gaming culture in the Korean society. Indeed, the League of Legend Final Championship, in October 2014, at the Olympic Stadium, made me realize the widespread interest in the video game, especially among young Koreans. Based on this personal interest, I decided to conduct a three-months fieldwork in Seoul, between January and March 2016, to analyze the video game domain in Korea and the interactions between the different actors.
Moreover, my decision to study the Korean video game domain was also based on an academic perspective. Indeed, the academic study of game, ludology, is a minor academic field that is concentrated especially on ethnic board games. The integration of video games as an academic topic is relatively new. Except some researchers such as Johan Huizinga and Greitemeyer, the study of video games is an academic niche, underrepresented in social science field, especially in Asian Studies. According to Han, the study of video games is an interdisciplinary domain which included several social sciences such as history, sociology, and anthropology (Han 2013). The study of video
1 Founded in August 2011, the Korean Creative Agency (KOCCA) aims at promoting overseas the Korean
creative industry. In partnership with the Export-Import Bank of Korea, the KOCCA specialized itself in the promotion of Korean cultural content via financial contributions to Korean artists, art studios, university art departments but also via the creation of different cultural events overseas (KOCCA, 2016).
games concentrates principally on sociologic topics as gender perception (Han 2013), ethnic representation (Anders, Carlson, and Enbom 2015) or violence (Greitemeyer 2014). Therefore, the study of video game could be an innovative analysis window to observe some specific aspects of the Korean society. Moreover, the choice of the Korean video game domain is also an opportunity to analyze a cultural and artistic domain under-represented in the academic literature. Except a few scholars such as Dal Yong Jin or Chin Lee, the Korean video game domain, is under-represented comparing to the Japanese or American video game domain. In this way, this thesis is an opportunity to contribute to the analysis of a new sector, which is the Korean video game domain. Research Question and Objectives
Initially, I decided to start my research on the correlation between nationalism and the video game sector. I was expecting to analyze how the Korean nation is promoted in the video game, and how different actors such as the government are reinforcing the national identity via video game contents. Based on the current political tensions between South Korean and its neighbors such as North Korea and Japan, it seemed interesting for me to analyze the emergence of a nationalist movement via the video game sector. However, after several interviews, I have realized that my research question was not accurate anymore. I have observed that the Korean video game actors such as the game developers and gamers are critical against the government. At the opposite, many political actors such as parliament members depict video game as an addiction among Korean youth. Instead of a nationalism collaboration between the different stakeholders, there is a rising antagonism between different actors. So rather than just looking the collaboration between video game actors for nationalist purposes, I decided to analyze the video game based on an artistic approach, which includes cooperation and conflictual relationships. To analyze the video game domain as an interconnected domain, I decided to focus on the three principal actors: the game developers, the gamer community, and the Korean government.
Regarding the terminology of this specific environment, I will use the term “video game domain”/ “video game universe” to qualify the Korean video game artistic system where the different actors are in constant interaction in the production of artistic products:
video games. Moreover, the term “video game sector” or “video game industry” will be used to discuss the economic aspect of the Korean video game.
As the focus of the thesis developed during the research period, so did the research question. To understand the whole scope of the research, the research questions are formulated as follows: What is the nature of the relationships between the three actors of the Korean video game domain (game developers, gamers, and government actors)? How is the video game, as an artistic product, modeled by these different relationships? To answer this question and to meet the objectives of the thesis, the following sub-questions provide the guideline of the research.
What are the precise roles and characteristics of the three key players of the Korean video game domain?
Which kind of interaction exists between the different major stakeholders?
What is the impact of the Korean culture, on the video game domain and the different actors? How do the different actors perceive the Korean culture?
What are the consequences of these relationships?
To what extent, the different actors have an impact on the video game product? On which aspects?
Moreover, it should be noted that the nature of this research is exploratory. The relatively short fieldwork period and fluid nature of the video game domain brings obvious limitations to the possibility to make significant generalizations about the Korean video game domain. In this way, the thesis presents specific results to the research question in a delimited spatial-temporal context.
Thesis Outline:
This thesis is divided into three different parts, to facilitate the thesis argumentation. The first introductory section includes this introduction, the theoretical framework, and the methodology part. These three chapters combined serves as the theoretical basis for the two remaining parts. In the second part, I discuss the three different actors, their natures and different phenomenon existing around key stakeholders. Chapter 4 describes the emergence of the Korean gamer community and analyzes the cultural, spatial practices of this community. Chapter 5 discusses the evolution of the game developers and the creation of a sub-culture movement: the indie game movement. At least the Chapter 6, analyzed the government actions within the video game domain at the political
and legislative levels. In the third and last part of my thesis, I focus on the video game as an artistic object which has been appropriated by the different actors (Chapter 7) but also has evolved over time based on various artistic conventions (chapter 8). In this last part, I briefly conclude the thesis.
2. Theoretical Framework
The video game as an interactive artistic product
To analyze the existing relationships regarding the Korea video game domain and their impacts on the video game productions, I decided to start my conceptual framework with a simple question: “Can the video game be considered an artistic production?”. Based on the application of artistic theories, such as Tavinor theory (2009), the definition of the video game as an artistic product could be a pertinent initial postulate to understand the dynamics and tensions, existing in the video game domain. Moreover, it is important to emphasize the artistic dimension of the video game domain, in order to understand the emergence of different phenomenon and factors such as the rising game developer artistic identity.
Since its creation, the video game has always been the center of fierce debates, regarding its place and artistic nature. With the multiplication of video game contents and the emergence of a dynamic gamer community, the video game artistic meaning is becoming an important debate within the philosophy of the arts. Different authors such as Aaron Smuts depicted the video game as a new form of artistic product, which challenge the conventional concept of Art (Tavinor, 2009). To prove the artistic essence of the video game product, the author is basing his argumentation on a disjunctive list of conditions from the philosopher, Berys Gauts. Therefore, different traditional artistic characteristics are used to prove the artistic nature of the video game product: “Possessing positive aesthetic properties, such as being beautiful, graceful, or elegant (properties which ground a capacity to give sensuous pleasure) / being intellectually challenging (i.e. questioning received views and modes of thought” (Gauts, 2000). Moreover, Tavinor argued that the video game includes properties not typical of traditional arts: “They broach the conceptual territory occupied by sports and games. But these cultural similarities are ubiquitous: art overlaps with craft, which itself overlaps with hobbies.” (Tavinor, 2010). Even if the video game artistic product refers to classical artistic characteristics, we can also have observed the emergence of new features such as artistic interactivity.
According to Dominic Lopes (2001), the emergence of new technologies has developed a new aspect of the artistic domain: the interactive art. The interaction between the artist, artistic product, and the public is challenged by the emergence of new products
such as the video game, which offer a strong interactivity: “Games are strongly interactive” because their users’ inputs help determine the subsequent state of play. […] Strongly interactive artworks are those whose structural properties are partly determined by the interactor’s actions.” (Lopes, 2001, 68). In this way, the actions of the gamers have a specific impact on the video game product. The video game is challenging the traditional interaction between the public and artist. Therefore, the video game product is an interesting artistic product which is based on a strong interconnection between the artist and the gamer. Therefore, an analysis of the video game could be an interesting way to understand the relationship existing between the Korean artist and the society.
The video game domain: an artistic domain
“The artist works are in the center of a large network of cooperating people, all of whose work is essential to the final outcome […] The people with whom he cooperates may share in every particular his idea of how their work is to be done. This consensus is likely when everyone can perform any of the necessary activities, so that while a division of labor exists, no specialized functional group” (Becker, 1974, 769). Howard S. Becker has developed a vision of the artistic production system (or artistic domain), based on a pattern of mutual interdependence, between the different actors of the artistic sphere, such as the artist themselves and the publishers. Becker claimed the existence of a division of labor within the artistic domain which enables the creation of artistic productions/performances (Beckers, 1982, 3). Therefore, this network of interaction, composed the fundamental pillars of the Art World concept, defended by Becker and Sarah Thornton (2008). However, the idea of Art World is not referring to a unique artistic domain, but to a multiplicity of dimensions which depends on different spatial-temporal environments but also different artistic fields. Therefore, it could be interesting to analyze if the Art World theory could be applied to the Korea video game domain and how video game contents are the product of different influences and interactions.
According to Turner, Thomas, and Owen (2013), the video game domain is a “vast trans-disciplinary mix of the fields of art, narrative, programming and design, as well as areas usually considered the purview of screen media and entertainment”. The video game domain is often described as the intersection between different artistic worlds which incorporated artistic techniques and technologies from software developments. Based on the incorporation of
various artistic techniques and the emergence of an artistic sensibility among the game developer, we could define the Korean video game as an artistic domain (Becker, 1976, 703). The video game domain includes individuals who conceive the video game concepts (video game developers), the people who execute it (the gamers) and the actors who support the legislative and economic framework for the development of video game contents (the States actors). Based on the specific role of each player, a strong dependency exists in the Korean video game domain.
Therefore, defining the Korean video game domain as an art world could be an instructive theoretical approach to observe the different actors on the Korean video game domain. It will also be an opportunity to observe how the three main stakeholders have appropriated the video game in order to express a specific message, but also how these different appropriations have an impact on the development of the video game content. To understand their influences and impacts on the video game actors, it is essential to go beyond Becker initial postulate and observe how the interactions between the actors, not only cooperation but also conflictual relationships, have shaped the Korea video game domain and video game content.
The video game as a “fun” product: The concept of play and the Korean ludic culture Beyond its artistic characteristic and the creative dimension, the video game sector is also considered as a leisure sector, whose goal is to entertain the gamer and produce fun. According to Silverstone, the concept of fun is essential to the player’s experience, but also in the elaboration of video game contents. The concept of fun, described as an “intrinsic satisfaction to the player”, is an elusive concept, which could be difficultly defined in an objective way (David&Carini, 2005, 50). However, to facilitate the conceptualization of “fun”, Davis and Carini, have determined different factors which commonly emerged in the description of video games, considered as fun. For example, a complex narrative, dynamic gameplay, but also immersive environment are different factors used to describe a fun game. In this way, the production of fun, for the gamer, could be enhanced by the immersion of the gamer in the video game.
Therefore, the concept of fun could be linked with another idea: the concept of play. With the new technologies, the video game is a new form of ludic product, which
facilitate the exchange between the player and a mediated environment. The playful nature of the video game allows interaction between the inner reality of the individual and the shared reality of the world that is external to the individual (Winnicott, 1991, 64). The game and by extension the video game is an essential product to understand the identity production and culture making: “Play enables the exploration of that tissue boundary between fantasy and reality, between the real and imagined, between the self and the other. In play, we have license to explore, both ourselves and our society. In play, we investigate culture, but we also create it” (Silverstone, 1999, 64). The video game works, as a third space which enables the player to suspend the rule of every day for creating a space that allows experiencing the taboo, the challenge, and the “passionately desired” (Dovey, 2006). It is a way for the gamer to play different roles and test the limits of the society but also to understand his identity. The concept of play and fun are two essential concepts which must be considered to understand how the video game by its ludic nature, could influence the Korean video game actor identities.
At least, Cobus van Staden analyzed the role of the relationship between the play and creativity in the Japanese society, and how the Japanese government has an impact on the emergence of the Japanese youth culture, based on this correlation between playfulness and creativity. Therefore, it would be interesting to analyze the case of the Korean society, and how the Korean government has an impact on the gaming culture via different ways, such as the national promotion of the video game as a diplomatic vehicle.
Soft power and Korean pop-culture: The Hallyu Wave
The Hallyu movement or the Korean wave described the spread of Korean culture through movies, dramas, pop music. According to Doobo Shim, the Korean wave emerged around 1997, with the growing popularity of Korean films. The Korean Wave, or Hallyu, is often described as the way for the Korean government to promote a particular image of South Korean on the international stage. In this way, the Hallyu movement is a way for the South Korean government to increase its soft power. However, the Korean government also promotes a specific vision of the Korean culture, based on different creative industries, such as the music, cinematographic and video
game sectors. Various national institutions have an important role in the construction of a national culture at the international level but also within Korean national borders.
The principle of soft power is essential to understand and to analyze in the context of this Korean wave. The soft power concept has been created by Joseph Nye, to describe “the ability of a country to persuade others to do what it wants without force or coercion” (Ikenberry, 2004). In this way, via different economic and cultural institutions, a country applies pressure on a different actor to achieve a national goal. In the context of the video game domain, the soft power is an essential concept to understand the appropriation of the video game culture by various actors for different purposes.
3. Research Methods and Setting
In this chapter, I am going to discuss the academic methods used and the process of data collecting during the fieldwork. The final part of this chapter will be about the specific context of Seoul and the aspects of the setting relevant for the case-study.
3.1 Methodology:
Between the 7th January 2016 and the 28th March 2016, I have done an academic fieldwork of three months in South Korea. This academic fieldwork was an opportunity to collect information, based on a specific methodological framework which included diverse methods (online observation, semi-structured interviews, document analysis, e.g.). Based on this methodological framework, I tried to gain a complete picture of the Korean video game domain by getting data from the three most important stakeholders but also external actors such as game bloggers and embassy employees.
Informal semi-structured interviews:
During my fieldwork, sixteen informal, semi-structured interviews have been done among different targeted populations. The informal interview methodology was instructive to understand their trajectories, motivation, and opinions of various actors who are interacting in the video game domain.
These interviews could be divided into three categories: Game developers (8), Gamers (7) and a journalist (1). This categorization process has also been decided based on practical reasons: it was impossible to organize an interview with a governmental organization member. On seventeen interviews, there were thirteen men and two women, all Korean. Moreover, all the interviews have been conducted in Seoul; except two interviews of game developers in Busan.
Official Document and government website analysis:
To understand the Korean legislation and also the official position of the video game industry, I have decided to research and analyze the content of different official websites.Indeed, it was necessary to analyze the government attitude regarding the video game domain and also the legislative framework which regulates and influences the relationship between different actors. Therefore, I analyzed the contents of four ministry websites, but also the Rating and Administration Committee and the Game Rating Board.
Based on the South Korean government database, I have also analyzed five legislative documents, amended between 2007 and 2013. At least, I have also examined a diplomatic report on the Korean video game domain, from the French Embassy, to enhance the viability of my research.
Online Observations: Social Media, forums, newspapers, and blogs.
Thanks to the digital nature of the Korean video game domain, different stakeholders are very active on the web. I have observed the existence of various forums, specialized newspapers and Facebook page where the online community is debating about several issues such as major news, video game releases or technological innovation. I have divided these different websites into three categories: Korean blog and newspapers, the political internet sites (government, political parties, syndicates and contestation movements e.g.) and virtual social platforms. The last categories included the different interactions within the same community (Game Developer Facebook group e.g.), but also virtual platforms where the various stakeholders are in interaction.
Video Analysis
As a third way of getting information, I used the method of video analysis. The analysis of video contents was necessary to underline the crossover nature of the Korean video game domain. Indeed, different artistic and media platforms are used to promote a certain definition of video games. Certain actors such as game developers, media art artists, and government institutes are using the video media to promote an engaged message or a specific vision of the video game domain (such as addiction campaign, interviews, video game and event promotion trailer).
Event observation session: Social event, creative festival, and political demonstration The event observation methodology was an opportunity to understand the transition from virtual relationship to real interactions between different actors. Based on online exchanges, many events were organized to concretized the relationship for various purposes such as game competition, political demonstrations or networking events. These events could be divided into three categories: Social event (3 sessions), Artistic Festival (2 sessions) and political demonstration (1 sessions). Regarding the social event category, I have done two observations sessions at the Seoul indie games monthly meetup events and one session at a computer cafe, in Sinchon. In a second part, I have participated to the
Busan game jam, during the 30-31 January 2016. It as an opportunity for me, to analyze the interactions between the game developers during an artistic event. At least, I have also done some observations during the Amnesty International Virtual Reality demonstration, the 24 February 2016.
Video Game Analysis:
During my fieldwork, I have analyzed Korean video game contents. Via the study of video game contents, I wanted to understand which issues are put forward in video game contents and how these different issues are constructed. The choice of three online video games is based on the context of the Korean video games sector. Indeed, the PC-game sector is a small niche market, and the popularity of Korean online PC-game was a decisive factor in my decision to analyze those three video games.
For the reliability of my research, I have developed a coding procedure based on Aarseth methodology (Maillet, 2007). Therefore, I have selected eight issues that will be critical during video game content analysis: audiovisual style, narration, the complexity of controls, game goals, characters and object structure, the balance between user-input, pre-programmed rules and spatial properties of the game world and social interactions (Appendix). The purpose of this coding procedure was to analyze the presence of different phenomenon such as the incorporation of foreign cultural features or to analyze the gamer practices within the game.
3.2 The fieldwork: Setting and contacts
Location:
During the fieldwork, I was living in Sinchon, in the city center of Seoul. The choice of this place was based on practical reasons, but also to be close with my future informants. Indeed, Sinchon is a student area close to three different universities (Yonsei, Sogang, and Hongik University). The proximity of these three different universities has allowed the development of a rich and dynamic student life in Sinchon.
Moreover, Sinchon district is located strategically at the epicenter of Korean modern culture. Indeed, I was living close to two instructive districts for my research: Hapjeong and Hongdae. Over time, these two residential districts have evolved quickly to host the new generation of Korean artists. For two decades, Hongdae regrouped the headquarters of the creative industry companies. At the opposite, Hapjeong represents
alternative movements in the Korean modern cultural landscape. Since less than a decade, many artist studios and organizations have decided to move in Hapjeong. Nowadays, Hapjeong district hosts small artistic studios and independent events which contrast with Hongdae companies. Hongdae and Hapjeong district have been strategic locations for my research. An important part of my data collection (informal interviews, observation sessions) have been made in these two different districts.
Moreover, Seoul as the epicenter of the Korean cultural, economic and political life, is an important location. With, the presence of political institutions but also Korean companies’ headquarters such as Samsung, Seoul is also an active city on the cultural and intellectual stage. Many Korean newspapers and universities are concentrated in Seoul such as Chosun Ilbo or the Korean time. However, at the end of January, I have also been a weekend to Busan, the second largest city in South Korea. In the context of a Game Jam festival, I have the opportunity to meet the Busan indie game community. With different cultural events such as the Busan International Film Festival (one of the biggest Film Festival in Asia), Busan has developed a rich cultural life, based on new technologies and the movie industry.
3.3 Difficulties and setbacks:
Language: Barrier and communication
Though the majority of the interviews were conducted in English, the language barrier was a significant problem during the fieldwork. The English level among the researched population (video game actors) is relatively low. During the first interviews, it was complicated to ask some of the complex questions regarding the current situation of the video game sector or for my informants to develop elaborated answers. To solve this problem, I asked some Korean friends to assist me during the interviews. Three interviewees such as the Studio Shelter members or Seongwan Kim have asked a friend/colleague to translate some part of the interview. Via the assistance of different persons, it was possible to bring complex concepts during some interview. The collaboration of a translator was also an opportunity to incorporate a new interlocutor in the conversation. Regarding the analysis of online documents and official bills, the language factor was also problematic. Indeed, the Korean gamer community uses a
specific vocabulary which could be called “Internet slang.” The use of an interpreter was sometimes necessary to understand some complex exchanges on different Korean websites.
Limited access to Korean servers and specific places:
Based on the restrictive nature of the Korean Internet system, it was impossible to access to some specific websites and Korean online game servers. Indeed, for many websites such as OkTickets, a Korean social security number is necessary to complete the registration. Because of this restriction, it was impossible for me to book some tickets for e-game events such as video game competitions. Moreover, many online game servers required a Korean social security number to log in on the Korean servers.
Confronted with these administrative problems, it was necessary for me to find an alternative way to collect some data on the Korean gamer community. Therefore, the online observation method on different forums and Facebook groups was another opportunity for me to collect some data about interactions between the gamers and also their personal opinions about certain topics.
Difficulties accessing the Korean gamer community:
During my fieldwork, one major difficulty was to get in touch with Korean gamers and organize a constructive exchange for my research. It was unexpectedly easier to access to the game developer community or the media actors. They are generally working in a video game company or artist studio. Therefore, it was easy to have access to concrete information such as websites, phone numbers or address to contact them.
By contrast, it is difficult to have access to the Korean gamer community. The large size of this targeted population makes it difficult to get in touch with some specific gamers. Indeed, the gamer community mainly exists on virtual platforms. For the Korean gamer community, the anonymous factor is essential via the utilization of different avatars and pseudo. Because of that, it is difficult to get in touch with Korean gamers which are cautious about their personal information. Moreover, the anonymous factor on the web was also the opportunity for many Korean gamers to react aggressively to my demands. To overstep this difficulty, it was necessary to contact Korean gamers via my personal network. Indeed, making direct contact with the gamers, via some friends, was the opportunity to create a direct connection with Korean gamers.
Part 2: The three different entities of the video game
domain
4. From the keyboard to the PC-bang: Overview of the gamer
community
Based on the interactive nature of the video game, the gamers have an important role within the Korean video game domain. As executor of the video game, the gamers are in interaction with the game developers, via the development of gaming practices. In this way, to analyze the gamer identity, it is essential to discuss the Korean gaming practices and their impact on the Korean gamer community. Gaming practices are an interesting perspective to understand how the gamers are interacting with the different stakeholders via different practices but also cultural norms.
4.1 Korean gaming culture: Spatial and cultural practices
Sun Park, a game developer at the Cream Turtle Studio, underlined the specificity of the Korean gaming practices as inherent to the Asian gaming culture: “Korea is a really good example of Asian gaming culture… […] Like really fast internet speed, country of Samsung and Android [sic]. And yeah, we have good pro-gamers, the best pro-gamers in the world”. According to him, the Korean gaming culture is based on specific gaming practices and values such as farming practices, competitivity, and cultural hybridity. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the Korean gaming culture and the different cultural and societal norms which have influenced its development.
Based on the analysis of different interviews with Korean gamers, pro-gamers, and online observations, I have noticed the construction of the Korean gaming cultures base on two separate kinds of practices: the spatial practices and cultural practices.
4.1.1Cultural Practices: Competition, Hardcore gaming, and gendered practices
Based on their social interactions within the Korean society, the gamers are influenced by different social and cultural factors which have an impact on their gaming practices but also their gamer identity (Tardini, 2005, 373). For example, the Korean education and economic systems are often described by my informants, as competitive where the ranking system (academic or economic rankings) has a significant influence on the everyday life. This competitive environment is reinforced with a strong social pressure from the familial structure, but also the rest of the Korean society (state, media
e.g.). Within this competitive society, the video game is often described as an opportunity for the Koreans to release stress and temporally escape from the pressure from the reality: “Korean life is very stressed, especially for young people. To get in the university. […] We have to be good at English, we need to have good grade in university, have some certificate, internship experiences. We have to be good at everything. So we don’t have time to enjoy our youth.” (Songie Yoon, January 2016). Via the gaming experience, the Korean gamers are looking for temporary benefits such as releasing stress, have fun and also forgetting temporary the social pressures of the society.
However, we can observe an interesting paradox regarding Korean gaming practices. If the Korean gamers are looking to escape the competitive societal environment, there is an existing strong competitive system within online and mobile games. Video games, especially online games, offer to the player to compete with his/her friends to have a better rank in the in-game classification. With a higher rank, the player has access to better equipment, items, and privileges. Therefore, the player is encouraged to compete with his/her friends, but also with some unknown peoples. Paradoxically, the Korean gamers are playing a competitive game to escape the competitive environment of the Korean Society (Rossignol, 2008, 68). This paradox could be explained by the video game companies’ marketing choices. With these different competitions, the gamer community has to stay active in order to receive in-game benefits. Moreover, via game invitations, the game community could grow for the interests of the video game company. The firm competition within the gamer
community has been a major factor in the developer of specific type of gaming practice: Hard-core gaming.
Hardcore gaming is a specific set of gaming practices commonly shared among the Korean gamers. Linked with the concept of passion and dedication, Hardcore gaming is often opposed to casual gaming. For example, a Hardcore gamer is going to spend
Figure 1 Game Invitation on Kakaotalk from an unknown person (Source: Personal screenshot)
more time and efforts in the game than a casual gamer who only plays a few hours per week to a video game (Bailly, 2014, 15). According to Bailly, the definition of Hardcore gaming depends on the cultural and historical contexts. For example, the definition is not based on the same criteria in France and Korea, but also between 1990 and 2016 (Ibid, 16). Regarding the Korean context, according to a KOCCA survey, in 2013, the average online game time was 16h22 per week. Korean gamers are especially dedicating time for online games, with a mean duration of 11.3 months (KOCCA,2014).
The effort investment, promoted by the hardcore gaming culture, can be explained by a common feature in Korean games: the farming system. A farming video game system is a video game where the gameplay system forces the player to repeat frequently the same action to progress in the game. This system is particularly important for the evolution of the protagonist, especially to acquire some specific skills. This gameplay feature is particularly present in different genres (fighting or role-playing games e.g.) but also on various platforms (smartphone, computer e.g.). For example, in a Korean massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), the different quests and missions are always following the same pattern such as escorting someone from A to B or eliminating a specific number of enemies (Bailly, 2014, 10). Therefore, this specific gameplay system, have allowed the development of Hardcore gaming practices, based on repetitive actions and time investments. Since a decade, these farming games have become popular in Korea, especially in the online game sector. In 2014, Blade and Soul (an online game based on East-Asian Culture), has registered 1.5 million users in Korea (Blade and Soul, 2014).
Some Korean cultural practices can explain the rising popularity of these farming games and the hardcore culture. Regarding Korean cultural traits, the repetition is not perceived as pejorative (Yoon&Cheon, 2016 475). The Korean education system is based on rote learning and repetitive actions. Korean students are required to develop their memory and not an analytical thinking. One member of the animation studio, Studio Shelter, emphasizes this rote-learning system: “In case of student in Art, the competition is so hard to enter the university. Every artist is trying just to copy the drawing. Korean artists, during the test, don’t look the figure, they don’t look that. Just draw it by memory [sic]”.
Therefore, the system of rote-learning based on memory and repetitive actions have influenced the gamer practices, allowing the emergence of a Hardcore culture, based on farming games. Therefore, the hardcore gaming practice is a good example to underline the Korean society influence on the development of specific gaming practices. Moreover, according to Aubry Bailly (2014), the Hardcore culture is particularly strong among male gamers. To understand the concentration of male gamers, practicing Hardcore gaming practices, it will be essential to analyze the gendered division existing regarding the video game practices.
Gendered gaming practices:
“Women and men are so different, in Korea especially. Not special in video games only, but in another kind of things. When women want to change their minds, they don't play games… They don't like it, for example, any girl is going to shopping [sic]. But men are playing games during the weekend” (Jin Yeong, January 2016). In this interview with Jin Yeong, she described a clear gendered division regarding game practices. According to her, there is a gap between male and women about leisure and entertainments: “Women don't like watch competition programs and LOL (Leagues of Legends, an online video game)). We think that men are foolish and addicted. We prefer to focus on the study. Some of them don't think about
it.”. If Jin Yeong has a specific opinion about games, a general pattern seems to exist in
the Korean gamer community. Based on a KOCCA survey, in 2013, 45.5% of the female respondents commonly play mobile games, and their preferred game genre is “casual game” (23.5%). According to Korean women, casual games allow them to “clean their minds” and release stress from the professional or academic life. However, some alternatives such as shopping or sports will be privileged by the women, to have social relationships, especially with friends.
Korean men seem to have developed alternative gaming practices. Korean male gamers privilege online game and role-playing games. According to some Korean male gamers that I have interviewed such as Hoyeol Jong, Seong Chan Lee or Deong Si, the video game is a way to escape the social pressures of the society, but also a social platform: “Because students are very close to an academic environment. Like a school and study every day and all days so they want to make some relationship. But real relationship is strict. So one of the releasing ways is game, in my case [sic]. So multiplayer is important. But the
multiplayer is very big. And big society like clans [sic]. My friends, they met some people there and wanted to drink alcohol together.” (Deong Si, January 2016). In this way, the video game is a way for Korean male gamers to create social relationships and be integrated into virtual social entities. In the online game Lineage 2, gamers have to belong to virtual social entities called “blood pledge” to achieve specific missions (Yoon&Cheon, 2014 477). The in-game cooperation is an opportunity for the gamers to create some links and create a social group based on their passion for the same video game. This virtual community could also move to the real world with the organization of real-life meetings: “I played to Lineage, there is a …. which I mean a guild, and I actually met them in Daegu [sic]. I went there, and I played with them. After being an adult, I also meet them and drinking alcohol” (Hoyeol Jeong, January 2016). Via this virtual community, the video game is perceived by the Korean men as a social and collective activity contrary to the women who defined video game as a solitary practice. Male gamers consider gaming as a collective practice, associated with other social activities such as drinking games.
Based on new gaming practices, video game became an important social platform for both genders, especially for young couples. Since several years, it is common for the Korean youth to have a date in a pc-café, play video game in couple and also to meet his future boyfriend/girlfriend online: “As a middle school student. I was playing MMORPGs, and I was in a guild with a friend. And my friend was in a relationship in the game with a woman. They can meet in real. I think that it is not important that it was not a real relationship [sic]” (Deong Si, January 2016). New virtual social entities, existing in video games, became an opportunity for the Korean gamers to socialize and start a relationship. For example, I have observed that different online game has added a new system which includes a wedding and housing system. Based on online observations and interviews, I have observed that these couple features in-game, are popular among both genders. Therefore, the integration of video game in the couple culture has allowed the development of couple practices in video game, especially online game.
Though we can observe the exportation of couple practices within Korean video game, both genders are often limited to a specifically gendered role. Indeed, the woman gamers are usually playing a defensive character who supports their friends/boyfriends, and the men gamers are playing a more offensive role, such as a warrior who have to protect his friends or girlfriend: “Yes, it is very common. The boyfriend is a warrior and the
girlfriend a priest for example. Like, MMORPG thing.” (Seong Chan Lee, January 2016). Therefore, gendered roles continue to exist and delimit a cultural frontier between the different genders via the perpetuation of gendered gaming practices. In this way, different Korean cultural traits such as the gendered separation, rote-learning system and social competition have allowed the development of specific gaming practices which characterize the Korean gamer community.
4.1.2 Spatial practices in the Korean Society: Socialization and intimacy in a specific spatial environment
Conflict between familial socialization and intimacy: gaming practices in the parental home
In addition to the existence of cultural practices, Koreans have developed a specific representation of the space dimension based on various factors such as family socialization and intimacy. Indeed, the familial circle has deeply influenced the gaming spatial practices on different aspects. Based on historical and cultural features such as Confucianism, the family is considered as the most valued social cell, and the familial house as a private environment (Gelézeau, 2014, 176). Based on this private perception of the household, entertainment activities, such as gaming practices, are often externalized to public locations such as PC-bang (PC-café) (Huhh, 2008, 31). For example, the living room is mainly devoted to the television instead of video gaming: “In Korea, most of the parents don’t like playing games in the living room. Because, TV is for watching news, baseball game, basketball” (Sun Park).
Based on the private nature of the Korean house, the console market is almost nonexistent in South Korea, especially Japanese consoles. However, political and social factors could also explain the rejection of the video game from the living room. Due to the long-standing concern with Japanese cultural invasion and the conflictual relationship between the two countries, the Korean government banned Japanese cultural products and contents, such as video game, manga and console games, from the end of the Japanese occupation until 1998 (Jin&Chee, 2008). Therefore, this economic blockade has also complicated the integration of the console games into Korean gamer practices. The
Korean market opened slowly to Japanese cultural products with the official release of Japanese console games only in 2002 (Jin&Chee, 2008).
However, the older generation was also deeply influenced by the anti-Japanese movement and had also contributed to the difficult integration of the Japanese console within the familial space. The anti-Japanese movement was also supported by different media who claimed that the Japanese consoles were the principal causes of epileptic crisis among Korean youth (Baily, 2014). In this way, during several decades, the game console was considered as a threat for the future generations, by Korean parents. This video game negative perception has enlarged the generational gap. The older generation (born before the economic boom of the 80s-90s) have developed a negative perception of video games. In contradiction, the following generations arose in a socioeconomic situation which has allowed the emergence of new sectors, such as the entertainment industry or the video game sector. These new forms of entertainments are considered as “time wastes” and “useless” by the older generation, influenced by a different historical mindset (Baily, 2014). The negative perception of the video game is essential to understand the video game rejection within the familial structure and the development of alternative gaming practices. Indeed, the familial circle has deeply influenced the spatial gaming practice of the Korean gamer community.
The generational breakdown can explain the rejection of the video game from the family home, especially in the living room. In different interviews with Korean gamers, I have observed that the older generation, often described by the filiation relationship (“My parents,” “My father”), have deeply influenced gamer practices. Indeed, the older generation is described as a strict authority who have a negative perception of the video game, considered as a minor leisure. Therefore, the rejection of the video game from the house common room is often linked to parent restriction regarding games. According to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family: “7 out of 10 parents restrict the duration (69%) and contents (65.5%) of the Internet use” (2012). According to Songie Yoon, Korean young gamer: “Usually, my parents were not very happy when they saw me playing video games. Especially when I was 15, I was at school. So most time, they criticize it. They…didn’t banned it at all. However, she let me play. Maximum 2 or 3 hours per days.”. The familial rejection has
confined the video practices to some specific places such as the individual room or PC-bang where video game practices become an individual activity.
The computer: limit between virtual and public place
Based on the weak presence of console games and the parental pressures, computers became one of the main platforms for gaming. The evolution to the PC-platform was natural for Songie Yoon: “Most of Korean gamers should play games in their own room with the PC because Korean parents don’t want to buy something only for gaming. So they don’t like to buy a console. But Pc is very useful for another thing like homework or internet. They can buy it and…but…everybody plays games with the PC [sic]…”. As a multitasking platform, the computer is for Korean gamers, a way to combine different activities such as studying and playing games (Jin&Chee, 2008). Over time, the computer became a video game symbol for the Korean gamers collective imagination. For example, Sun Park told me that he was surprised, during international game convention, how the Korean gamers have developed a specific vocabulary and symbols which differs from other countries: “When I was in JDC, several years ago, I found really interesting things about gestures. Me and other countries game developers. I used to…me and most of the Korean game developers… explain about play game like this (imitating mouse and computers) but also, game developers outside South Korea use to do like this (imitating game console joystick)”.
The use of the computer has also developed a distinction between real and virtual social practices. The rejection of the gamers from the living room to their rooms has developed video game as a solitary activity: “Gaming in the same room is unfamiliar, except Pc-bang.” (Sun Park). Video games became a solitary practice delimited in a spatial location such as a room or a PC-bang. Though the development of solitary gaming practices is not limited to South Korea, the console game market absence and the rejection of video game as a social activity by the familial structures, have reinforced the introvert nature of Korean video game practices (Rossignol, 2008, 64).
To offset the lack of interactions between gamers, the Korean gamer has developed a strong virtual community centered on various websites and online games. Technological innovations and the expansion of the Internet network on the Korean territory, have allowed the Korean gamers to have easier access to virtual platforms. Jaz Hee-Jeong Choi describes Seoul as “a city in flux, of screens and bangs” to underline the
rising importance of the new technologies and social networks in the composition of the modern urban landscape and the Korean population (Choi, 2009). For example, it is essential to underline the role of the smartphone revolution in the digitalization of the gamer community.
Smartphone revolution: creation of new spatial practices
The smartphone is deeply integrated into the Korean society and have changed the spatial practices of the Korean gamer. According to Yonhap news, 4 in 5 five people in Korea own a smartphone which makes South Korea the fourth-highest smartphone penetration rate in the world (Yonhap, 2015). With the explosion of the smartphone industry in Korea, the mobile game sector began to expand geometrically. According to Korean Creative Content Agency 2014 White Book, 87.2% of the respondents were found to use mobile games. The rising popularity of mobile games could be explained by practical reasons. According to the KOCCA survey, many respondents claimed that mobile game is a good way to: “To spend one’s spare time (61.5%), followed by convenient enjoyment at any time (56.4%)” (KOCCA). Compared to Pc-games, mobile gaming is considered as a solitary and casual practice. Lim Hyun Li, a game developer at Pied Pipers Studios, underlined the personal meaning of the smartphone: “Mobile phone is a very personalization device. It is like an individual space.” According to him, the smartphone contains personal contents, but also professional information which allow the gamer to combine the different spaces of the Korean society. The Korean smartphone revolution, have allowed a rising interconnection between the three different spaces of the Korean society, described by Choi: the first place (home), the second place (work) and third space (community interaction) (Choi, 2009). The interconnection between these difference spaces of the Korean society, have been reinforced by the development of virtual social platforms. In this way, it is interesting to underline how different factors such as the familial structure and technologic innovation have allowed the development of specific spatial gaming practices within the gamer community. The combination of different factors has also enabled the development of a hybrid gamer community, between real and virtual platform.
4.2 The virtual dimension of the gamer community
4.2.1 Creation of a virtual social community: codes, language, and norms of this social group.
Over time, the democratization of the computer and smartphone have allowed the development of a gamer community based on different virtual platforms. The computer and smartphone platforms have offered to the gamer a way to develop social relationships based on a virtual spatial location such as forums and social medias. Indeed, the lack of social connection in the “real world”, is compensated by social interactions, in the virtual dimension. A virtual social platform could be defined as a website, social network or application which enable the gamers to communicate and exchange different contents such as video or pictures. For example, the smartphone application Kakaotalk, is commonly used by Korean gamers, to talk, play games and share images and news (Figure 2). Korean gamers are particularly active on the social medias but also on three main video game websites: Thisisgame, Inven, and GameMeca. These three different websites, regroup various articles about video game such as game
released, game solutions and forum section. On these virtual platforms, the gamer community has developed social and cultural specificities which differ from other social groups.
Figure 2 : Example of publication in Kakaotalk (Source: KakaoDigit)
Firstly, the Korean gamers have developed a specific language which has been influenced by e-sport events and video games. This gaming “slang” is frequently used on gaming websites and social medias by the gamer community. For example, the word, 네임드, (Nae-im-deu), come from MMORPG games that have "named weapons," i.e. unique and particularly strong arms and described something famous. Moreover, the Korean gamer population has also integrated some specific terms from the Korean internet, such as “ㅋㅋ” (Korean version of “LOL”, laughing out loud).
Secondly, Korean gamers have also included alternative practices. On various forums such as Thisisgame, gamers often shared a picture or animated picture like GIF (graphic interchange format), to underline their arguments. These different
Figure 3 Memes based on the Japanese video game franchise: The legend of Zelda. Link is the main character name of the Zelda saga (Source: Naver).
Figure 4 Memes from an American TV-show (Source: THISISGAME)
pictorial representations are a way for the gamer to describe their feelings regarding a given situation or idea.
When the Korean gamer community frequently shares a picture, this picture could be transformed as a Meme. According to Patrick Davison, in his essay The language of
Internet Memes (2009): “An Internet meme is a piece of culture, typically a joke, which gains
influence through online transmission” (Davison, 2009, p122). Via the utilization of these pictures which depict a specific situation, the Korean gamers could identify themselves and create an interaction with other gamers based on the same image. Therefore, the gamer community is developing a visual idiom, based on shared video games references (Figure 3). The gamer idiom, composed of a specific vocabulary and Memes, is also influenced by foreign cultural references which underline the cultural hybridity of the gamer community.
4.2.2 The gamer community and pop culture: A hybrid cultural community
The transnational nature of the Internet has allowed cultural exchanges and the creation of a hybrid virtual culture in Korea, based on different cultural references, especially from the United States, Europe, and Japan. Many Memes and pictures used by Korean gamers originally come from American or European websites such as Imgur, or MemeArcade. The Memes, which depict a specific situation, have been appropriated by Korean gamers to describe a local phenomenon such as Korean social inequalities (Figure 4). Via the consummation of comics, American TV-shows, and western video games, Korean gamers have developed a hybrid culture, between Korean gaming practices and American pop culture references. For example, Korean gamers are using English video game terms such as “Tank”2, “Healer” or “Owned”3 in their online discussions. These different game terms come from popular American video games, like World of Warcraft, which has influenced their perception of video games and also their interactions between the gamers via the incorporation of these terms in the Korean language.
2 A tank in a typical role-playing game is the character who, alone or in a group, is always the first to attack
a monster. The monster will direct its attacks at the first person that hits it, so in a group the tank is generally some character with enough health points to withstand this punishment. (Tower J. Tarin, 1996)
3 In the video game context, « owned », mean a situation when a player embarrassed another player (during
Moreover, since the 1990s and the end of the economic embargo on Japanese cultural contents, Korean gamer community have been deeply influenced by the Japanese pop-culture productions such as video games, manga and animation products. The popularity of Japanese video game franchises such as Zelda, Pokémon or Tekken, was an important factor for the Japanese pop-culture appropriation by the Korean gamer community. The Korean gamer community has incorporated different features of the Japanese cultures such as Japanese pop designs and some specific Japanese terms such as Otaku (오덕후: a passionate person, with an unusual and specific area of interest). For example, the Korean game community has assimilated Japanese manga specificities to develop a pop-culture representation which combines text and image (figure 5).
Therefore, via the incorporation of foreign cultural features, the Korean gamer community has developed its codes and norms which regularize the social relationship. Based on the inclusion of foreign products and the development of a specific vocabulary, the gamers have to build a specific perception of their environment and social relationships.
However, the emergence of a hybrid gaming culture could also be explained by the incorporation of foreign features, by the game developer. As the gamers, the game developers have also been influenced by different foreign movements and replicate certain cultural features in their creations. Therefore, the game developers have a significant impact on the Korean gamer community. This impact could be explained by the production of video game contents but also by the game developer multiple identities. In general, the game developer is also a member of the gamer community. The game developer could also interact with the gamer community as a gamer itself. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the different actor identities could be intertwined, on some specific aspects. However, it will also be interesting to analyze the game developer identity, and how this identity differs from the gamer actor.
Figure 5: Japanese inspiration for a Korean meme (Source: Indiera)
