By Joseph Andrew Lee

Sailors Adrian Senteno and Robert Korjeski don’t enjoy talking on the phone, but they do enjoy communicating with their family through World of Warcraft, their favorite online multiplayer video game.

“My father since he plays, a couple of my buddies, since they play, one of my brothers–he played for a little bit, but … they all have a way for me to contact them back home without using cell service or anything like that,” Senteno said.

Instead of talking on the phone, their connection takes place through the Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) game World of Warcraft, as well as other online video games. Both Senteno and Korjeski use these games to connect with family and friends back home.

“At the USO they give us free Wi-Fi,” said Senteno. “The Wi-Fi connects us with our game systems and our game systems allow us to see certain people or talk to certain people back home.”

Most USO centers have gaming consoles available to service members and families, and for those deployed to the field, the USO provides the Mobile Entertainment Gaming System (MEGS).

“It helps us out a lot, not only with communicating with our families but just overall morale as well,” Korjeski said. “We’re in a better mood, we take that mood back to the ships, everybody else feeds off that better mood and it’s just a chain effect.”