In computer and video gaming, a clan or guild is a group of players who regularly play together in a particular (or various different) multiplayer games. The word "clan " comes from the gaelic word "clann" meaning group of children. These games range from groups of a few friends to 1000-person organizations, with a broad range of structures, goals and members. Numerous clans exist for nearly every online game available today, notably in first-person shooters, massively multiplayer games, role-playing games, and strategy games.

Player organizations probably emerged in the earliest networked multiplayer computer games that brought together disparate groups of players, such as players in a MUD from two rival universities. The first turn-based or RPG clans were the player guilds in the first graphical MMORPG, Neverwinter Nights, which ran on AOL from 1991 through 1997. The first real-time game clans as we recognize them today were formed in 1996, around games such as Quake, Descent, and the Netmech multiplayer expansion pack for the PC game MechWarrior 2: 31st Century Combat.

Starting with small groups, referring to themselves as guilds or clans, these organizations typically involved gamers playing one particular game. Around 2000, it seems that several of the larger groups formed themselves into multi-game organizations, allowing gamers to play with the same people in many different games.


Why Gamers join clans

Joining a clan places one within a social network which provides access to resources, knowledge, and help needed to accomplish many game related goals. In addition, banding together with like-minded players seems to fulfill a human desire for social interaction. Taken together, these two factors can vastly enhance the gameplay experience of many players.
Clan members often use a variety of methods to collaborate, communicate and improve their gameplay.

Internet

A website is often the central focus for publicising upcoming activities such as training sessions or official matches in leagues. It will also be used for sharing tips and tactics, jokes, and general discussion topics. This all helps people to get to know each other and build team spirit (yet conversely can also cause personality clashes).