Great article. It's amazing sometimes the bonds that we form with people before we are even aware of it. Online games like this are really no different than any other hobby or sport. I'm not sure why we think that the only way to connect with someone is to be able to see them. In many cases people find themselves spending more time with their online friends than those people around them. I have made friends and enemies online that are no more or less real than ones I make in person every day.