Lesson 6: Interpreting Games Flashcards
How do we make coherent arguments about game structure?
We need theories and frameworks to work from.
What set the standard for MMOs? What did MMOs add?
MMOs have attracted academics b/c of virtual cultures and how they construct meaning. MUDS (multi-user dungeons) set early standards for genre, but MMOs…Added easy GUI and popular, recognizable settings
What is a theory? (2)
A theory is a framework for abstract thought, which allows for better understanding of a body of knowledge. It is a general claim that should help explain specific instances.
What was the first big MMO, and what two features did it have? What are shards? Why was it viewed as the wild west of MMOs?
Ultima Online took IP players knew, and added an economy and ecosystem that adapted to the player. Coined Shards, diff worlds for diff experiences (PvP). Viewed as the wild west of MMOs b/c of griefing, which MMOs try hard to fix nowadays.
What did Everquest add to the MMO genre? Culturally?
Everquest (1999) added a 3d world with a questing & party system. Culturally, it introduced phenomenons like video game addiction and gold farming.
What happened when Second Life was first released? After? Why is it of interest to academics still?
Second Life (2003) had companies & universities racing to stake a claim that ultimately fizzled, but it has proved of interest to academics b/c of cultural groups that meet and roleplay there.
Why was WoW successful? What did it add to the genre (2)? What did players develop for the game? la…
World of Warcraft (2004) was streamlined, and simple to use/understand. Also used shards for different playstyles, along with raids (massive quests). Contributed to creation of game terms like: gank, tank, DPS, aggro.
What is Structuralism, and which two theorists in the course have structuralist theories? At it’s core it is? What is more important than the individual elements to Structuralism?
Structuralism (Avadon & Joseph Campbell) is the examination of common structures across many different objects of study. It relates human activity to a broader underlying structure. At it’s core, structuralism is about the interrelations between elements. The whole picture is more important than the individual elements it is comprised of.
Name and describe Konzack’s 7 layers of analysis for interpreting games.
- Hardware2. Program Code3. Functionality-How software interface allows user to interact with game and provides mean for action4.Gameplay-Raw software now finally recognizable as a game. Gameplay made up of interconnected systems of space/time/reward/punishment to create unified experience5. MeaningKonzack says semiotics (signs/symbols) proper method of analysis here, meaning of game made while playing it6. ReferentialityHow are game’s meanings connected to other games/media?Game might have in-jokes from previous games or whereverKonzack uses Callois taxonomy to give this structure???7. Socio-Culture Situate player behavior in cultural contexte.g. diff shards (PvP vs. Roleplay) have diff culture to them, competitive doom players experience doom way diff than casualEven though the game is identical, experience is diff depending on cultural/social context
What is post-structuralism in relation to structuralism? What tension does it explore?
Post-Structuralism emerged in the 60s/70s, and is not a rejection of structuralism, but a set of critiques. It is still dependent on some structuralist principles. It explores the tension between the complexity of human nature, and the need to use fixed structures to analyze it. Structuralism cannot account for how history influences meaning in games, and how players create their own meaning.
In post-structuralism, language shapes? When something is named? What is othering, and what can included members do to words? Describe WoW example.
In P-S, language shapes reality. When something is named, it is given a place in reality, and able to be perceived.E.g. The word train in WoW can mean many different things, giving each event a human reality, and players keen to all these meanings can reshape the word. This can lead to othering, process of excluding members of a community.
Jean Baudrillard thought Mainstreet USA was? All of our perceptions are? Explain what this means!
Jean Baudrillard saw Mainstreet USA as an idealized simulation of America. All our perceptions of reality are just nested hierarchies of simulation (we perceive, and therefore have thoughts about, some aspects of reality and must ignore others).
What do simulations do to certain aspects of reality? What would happen if we compiled everyone’s thoughts about WWII? Would it be the truth?
If we compiled everyone’s thoughts about WWII, it would be a mess and no closer to the truth. All media is in fact a selective simulation of reality, and simulations privilege certain aspects of reality to ignorance of others!
What is the fetishization of technology? Games provide a simulation of war that? Describe the game example for this.
War Simulations (e.g. war games) aim to be simulations, and may reproduce details of war technology in excruciating detail, but completely ignore other facets of war such as its horrors. This is known as fetishization of technology. So games in fact provide a simulation of war that never existed in the first place. Medal of Honor: Frontline follows career of Lt. Jimmy Paterson in WWII, but… bodies disappear shortly after death, player can reload… Focuses on technology, and only bears a superficial relationship to war.
Explain Procedural Rhetoric. What does it argue? How is a player exposed to the procedural rhetoric?
Procedure (combination of rules and mechanics that make up gameplay) are used to persuade (rhetoric).Bogost’s Procedural Rhetoric argues that designers intentionally AND unintentionally embed/exclude arguments in games that make value statements reflecting the worldview of the designers.A player is exposed to the procedural rhetoric of a game by playing it, because they are exposed to the arguments that game makes.
