Weekly Writing for Rhetoric of Gaming F2017 – Page 4

Project 1 Draft Write-Up

The three games I plan on examining are The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines, and Fallout 3. I plan to explore immersion using a game’s playing on a player’s sense of morality (using Vampire and Fallout), the engagement of the player with the story (using Vampire), and with the player’s engagement with the world-space (using Vampire and Skyrim). The main aspect’s I’ll be looking at with each of these topics is believability (https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/4e2b/c7e3730273f8ef669aaea57a0e590a1957d7.pdf#page=96 deals with all three games I’ve listed) and level of player interaction (ie, how much control does the player have over their own actions? How much does their actions affect the world? Is the player given a solid reason to care about the world?). I’m planning on creating a webspace on wordpress and using gameplay videos (either of my own making or else taken from the internet) to augment and expand upon my points. I also should be able to provide plenty of screenshots of my own.

Thesis: Through an immersive play-space driven by story, world, and sense of morality, video games can engage the player to the point where they mentally transfer consciousness from the real world tot heir character in the game space, creating an escape from the present reality to another one.

Project 1 draft – Emily Castillo and Steph Kimmel

Project 1 Draft 1 (1)

Project 1 process checklist:
Topic Proposal, containing a topic, a working thesis, and at least one primary (game object) and secondary source shared via the weekly blogs, no later than 1159 9/29 (5%) – YES
Presentation of topic proposal, in class 10/3 (5 %) – YES
Defense of topic proposal in conference with me no later than 10/3 (5%) – YES
A draft project overview with a thesis and and no fewer than 200 words, shared on our weekly blogs no later than 10/6 (5%) – YES
Commenting on two other writing projects via the blogs, on or before 10/8 (5%); – YES
A draft conference with me, on or before 10/6 (5%) – YES
Another draft conference with me, showing a substantially finished draft of the project, on or before 10/13 (5%); – YES
A near-final draft, shared/linked from a post on our shared blog, on or before 10/13 (5%); – YES
A final round of commenting on two drafts, due on or before 10/14 (5%); – NO?

Project 1 Overview

I intend to explore the idea that video games provide an outlet for each player to construct, observe, and alter versions or reflections of their own self/subjectivity/ego through the realization of their in-game avatar. This realization includes character creation/customization (designing the avatar), in-game choices/decisions, prioritized activity, speech (personality, style, dialect, etc.), internal dialogue over imaginative processes, performance of player-type characteristics, and so much more. Simultaneously, and arguably inevitably, I will also examine how players construct and critique the subjectivity and identity of other players by encountering their avatars in the game, so that all players are intersubjectively perceiving representations of each other through their interactions. I expect to use mostly role-playing video games (especially online ones) in my endeavors with this project. One game that I’ll use is RuneScape, an MMORPG (fully online). Another game that I’ll use is Dark Souls (both single player and online). And, finally, I’ll use Oblivion (TES IV) as my single-player example. In the realm of theory that I’ll use to back my assertions, I plan on using Jean-Paul Sartre’s Being and Nothingness for its utility in the field of subjectivity/intersubjectivity as it relates to meaning-making, essence-placing, etc. This should provide the rudimentary basis for my arguments, but I will expand on this with “Player Commitment to MMORPGs: An Integrated Model” by Junghoon et al, other scholarly, peer-reviewed articles within a similar vein, and (why, yes, of course) my own original thoughts.

Topic Thesis Draft

The concept of a game is rooted in the idea that, as an item of play, the player interacts with the game in a way that is both meaningful and authentic. The player needs to be inserted into a simulation, make meaningful choices within the game, and engage in play. The question, then, is that do we engage in play, and therefore participate in a game, when we interact with a very particular type of media- an interactive novel? We see numerous examples of interactive novels on the web today, and many we would not consider to be true games, but rather a sort of literature for a more active audience. One studio, however, attempts to break that mold, and market the concept of the interactive novel as a game. The studio in question, Telltale Games, has multiple different series linked to several different pop culture items, including Batman, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Game of Thrones. But while they sell these pieces of media as games, do we really play them? In the following passage, I will attempt to explore this idea of an interactive novel as an item of play, utilizing the Telltale Games’ various works as examples of interactive stories marketed as games, and ultimately answer the question of whether or not an interactive novel, at the magnitude of Telltale Games’ works, can be considered a game.

Project 1 draft write-up

For this project, I will argue how different personality types influence different aspects of gaming and the types of interactions and fulfillment that individuals look for when they choose to play games. The main personality type test that these arguments will be based on is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, which splits people into 16 different types of personalities. These personalities are based on introversion or extroversion (I/E), sensory or intuitive (S/N), thinking or perceptive (T/P) and perceptive or judgmental (P/J).

After focusing on the different things that each personality type looks for in a game–board game and video game–then I’m going to shift focus to how different personality types may play a similar game. Specifically I’ll be looking at how different personality types may be apt to play role playing games and sandbox games, in this case Skyrim, Dungeons and Dragons and Grand Theft Auto. In order to better explain the decisions that different personalities make in these games, there will be an incorporation of scholastic texts and articles in order to better understand different rhetorical appeals and understandings of definitions of play. By defining what play is, or could be, one will better be able to see what ways an individual seeks out games that invite and encourage their definition of play.

Thesis: While different games obviously have appeals to different people, the following that games gain is based on how they appeal and are able to appeal to varying personality types. These different appeals manifest through differing definitions of play which are directly related to the personality type of an individual.

Player Commitment to MMORPGs: An Integrated Model

Moon, Junghoon, et al. “Player Commitment to Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs): An Integrated Model.” International Journal of Electronic Commerce, vol. 17, no. 4, 2013, pp. 7–38.

This study seeks to understand the popular success of MMORPGs through how they motivate players to commit to the gameplay and fictional dream. In particular, the authors argue that MMORPGs, give players the ability to fully create and control their own avatar, which includes constructing an online identity used to navigate the game’s social community. This, Junghoon et al hypothesize, is the relatively unexplored secret to how MMORPGs garner commitment, dedication, and loyalty from their players, so they go in-depth on how ownership and social identity can be potent forces in driving someone to play a game.

Topic Proposal

For my project, I will be using prompt #2 to discuss the relationship of play and player when looking at popular sporting video games, and the game modes that involve a creation of a personal player and the playing of that player in game modes that have you build your character to become a hall of fame caliber player. Though in the game modes, one will usually tend to creat players that look at even play the sport like they feel they play as, I would like to point out that the overall goal of the player of the video game would be to construct the greatest version of them selves and creating a more than ideal version of a life they create in the game. I will be looking mostly at the NBA 2K franchise, as well as the Madden games.

Project One Rough Draft/Thesis #1

Since the introduction of digital gaming in 1958, video games have expanded the space of play, forging a strong relationship between physical and digital worlds. With the increasing dependence on technology as a whole, it certainly follows that we can now look to technological spaces for personal development and growth. Theoretically, the mental aspects of play-through-gaming can develop the mind in ways that traditional learning spaces cannot, because players have to, for example, learn to think quickly and critically in short periods of time in order to complete a certain task. However, “games are [also] an active medium that requires constant physical input by the player: action, doing, pressing buttons, controlling, and so on” (Galloway 83). Therefore, this combination of mental and physical engagement creates a foundation for growth in many different types of literacies. Games teach us visual, critical, technological, and linguistic literacies that further help us to develop not only how we play games, but how we enjoy play. Furthermore, Jonathan Alexander makes a brief suggestion in his article that people may not necessarily be addicted to the video games, but to play itself (36). Although the word addiction may be a bit ambitious, Alexander is getting to a valid point. The literacies learned from games help the player to enjoy play more because they are actively understanding both the technological, linguistic, and visual spaces within the game, which then gives them governance within the game. These literacies can also certainly carry over into the real-world, providing players with advantages in school, career, and relationships. Furthermore, the more technologically literate an individual is, the better equipped they are at operating within our technologically dependent society.

Thesis: Therefore, it is the literacy-aspects learned through game play that breed competence, allowing the player to expand understanding of technology, mature linguistic practices, and garner critical skills which allows for success not only within the game but within the real world as well. This gives meaning to play while fulfilling one of the most important psychological aspects of play: dominance.

Weekly Research

Assassin’s Creed 2 – Xbox One

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassin%27s_Creed_II

Assassin’s Creed has created multiple installments to it’s franchise but one of the most notable games in this franchise is Assassin’s Creed 2. The story of Assassin’s Creed begins as following the character of Desmond Miles in a world where the memories of people’s ancestors can be accessed through a machine called the Atlas. Desmond finds that the corporation that is using his memories really wants use him to find ancient artifacts for power. This corporation calls themselves the Templars. Desmond’s ancestors are a part of the Assassin Brotherhood that actively fights against the Templars. This is where the story then follows Ezio Auditore. Ezio becomes an assassin when his family is murdered by a member of the Templars. Ezio then goes on a journey to stop the Templars and avenge his family. You fight alongside other members of the Creed with help from Leonardo DaVinci and his engineering prowess to stop the Templars in the Atlas and in the real world.

Topic Proposal

For my project I will be working with prompt number 4, “Games and Life.” I hope to prove the value video games for developing life skills, as well as the format’s unique approach to storytelling and the maturity of the narratives of many popular games. I will be referencing the various studies proving video games’ positive effect on critical thinking skills, and noting the mature writing and literary illusions of games such as Fallout 4 and Bioshock. While I expect to run into some trouble exploring the intricacies of such a relatively new format, by narrowing my focus I hope to produce a mature and extensive commentary.

https://sshelco-primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/primo-explore/fulldisplay?docid=TN_proquest921600826&context=PC&vid=WCHESTER&lang=en_US&search_scope=default_scope&adaptor=primo_central_multiple_fe&tab=default_tab&query=any,contains,video%20games%20drugs&sortby=rank&facet=tlevel,include,peer_reviewed&mode=Basic&offset=0

Fallout 4, Bioshock

Weekly Research

Majewski, J. A. K. U. B. “Cultural heritage in role-playing video games: a map of approaches.” Furnace Journal (2015).

Majewski’s article deals with video games’ evocation of cultural heritage in their settings. Through the utilization of certain cultural influences (like Scandinavian influences in Skyrim), games can draw in an audience that that particular heritage appeals to. Majewski attempts to categorize the different ways games use cultural heritage, and focuses primarily on RPGs.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/39112491/Majewski_2015a_-_Cultural_Heritage_in_Role-Playing_Video_Games._A_Map_of_Approaches.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A&Expires=1506918307&Signature=uIoURiwoQiZjcUdC7MPWzuYeJuM%3D&response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DCultural_Heritage_in_Role-Playing_Video.pdf

Topic Proposal

For my topic, I will be choosing imte number 4, “Games and Life”. There are a plethora of games in the world today that have lessons we can incorporate into our very lives. Unfortunately, the stigma exists that games are nothing more than a time-waster, and many individuals believe them to be a waste of time. For my project, I hope to explain, through the use of a number of games and articles, that the art of video games is more than just a way to entertain and waste the time of the player. Instead, the game can act as a medium for developing life skills and learning valuable lessons about the world.

Game: Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

Article: Eberle, Scott American Journal of Play, Rochester 6.2, 2014. (214-233)

Annotated Bibliography 5

http://www.cupheadgame.com/

“Home.” Home, www.cupheadgame.com/. Accessed 1 Oct. 2017.

Recently, a new game called Cuphead has taken the gaming world by storm. It’s a simple game that seeks to incorporate elements of classic cartoons, such as Steamboat Willie, and bring them to a modern bullet-hell shooter game. I really enjoy how even individuals who’ve never watched those style of cartoons are able to enjoy the beautiful artwork and soundtrack, and those who did experience that cartoon style are filled with nostalgia and awe.

Weekly Research 4

Blizzard Entertainment. World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria. Activision Blizzard, 2012. Online.

World of Warcraft is a Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) where players have the ability to choose their own avatar and their primary skills and secondary skills. First, one chooses the race and class of their character where class determines what skills the character can acquire and develop throughout the game. One’s avatar grows up throughout the game and their skills develop as their character progresses. The map is an important aspect throughout Wow as the player goes on different quests and faces different obstacles.

Weekly Research Week 5

De Vore, Paul W. “Technological Literacy and Social Purpose.” Theory Into Practice, vol. 31, 1, 1992, pp. 59–63. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/1477055.

Technological literacy is one type of literacy that I will be discussing and exploring in my first project. The article states that we have now evolved to depend on technology so much, that failure to educate and stay up-to-date on technological literacies will impair social status. We have now come to recognize technological literacy “as a part of basic literacy” (61). This type of literacy, therefore, must become part of the education curriculum, and this article gives guidelines for such curricula. Although this article does not deal directly with video games, it can be argued that video games can be used in curricula to teach technological literacy.

http://www.jstor.org.proxy-wcupa.klnpa.org/stable/pdf/1477055.pdf?refreqid=excelsior%3A67d7f0d1be8669a4ceda82060f21799e

Topic Proposal

https://docs.google.com/document/d/11vD8xOz1lYwjAv4jOOSzfDo7kPIcq6lGc0sgNGRv3IE/edit

Citation

Seok, Soonhwa and Boaventura DaCosta. “The World’s Most Intense Online Gaming Culture: Addiction and High-Engagement Prevalence Rates among South Korean Adolescents and Young Adults.” Computers in Human Behavior, vol. 28, no. 6, Nov. 2012, pp. 2143-2151. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/j.chb.2012.06.019.

“The world’s most intense online gaming culture: Addiction and high-engagement prevalence rates among South Korean adolescents and young adults” is an article in which the author aims to find out how many individuals are dependent on games. Using new and previous research, the authors seek to understand behaviors associated with gaming addictions. 1332 South Korean students in 11 high schools and 1 middle school surrounding the capital of Seoul were given a questionnaire to fill out. They found that “using a monothetic and a polythetic classification system, findings showed rates ranging between 1.7% and 25.5%, with a 2.7% addiction rate when distinguishing core from peripheral criteria.” They believe that this shows that areas often associated with a large gaming culture does not have an addiction rate that was as big as it was expected to be. This is one of the only studies on gaming dependency and can be useful information.

Rhetorical Analysis

Though it fell into and out of face quickly, the phenomenon that was Pokemon Go is a discourse that is still prevalent, as its foundations speak highly on a technological level. The main idea of this game is to incorporate physical activity and social dynamics into the world of gaming, while the cult aspect of its origin media added to its overall allure. However, the workings of this game fall into the world of ubiquitous computing and transmedial constructs, wherein the real world and the created one lively parallel. This hole punctured membrane is an ever increasingly popular tool incorporated into modern virtual game plays, and holds a strongly mimetic and escapist dialogue.

Weekly Research 10/1/17

Natkin, Stéphane, et al. “Creating Multiplayer Ubiquitous Games using an adaptive narration model based on a user’s model.” DiGRA Conference. 2007.

http://www.digra.org/wp-content/uploads/digital-library/07311.31560.pdf

As discussed within this piece, the idea of an obstructed division between reality and virtuality is ever investigated. The idea of mimetic gaming isn’t new, but, as this text proffers, the line between the two worlds is increasingly thinning, with purposefully genre/media-bending discourses being discovered and implemented. More so than almost any other visual media, video games in particular allow for a realistic outlet that is separated by its agency. A player can become their avatar with the right boundaries, and this article adds to the act of doing so. Particularly ubiquitous gaming comes to mind, wherein real life directly impacts the virtual ones.Though this piece acts as an academic “how to” manual for breaking that ‘fifth’ virtual wall, and is benign in doing so, the social narrative therein is of imperative import for a technology obsessed modern society.

Project 1 Proposal

Play and the Player: Metroid Series

For this first project I aim to explore the ways the player inhabits the subjectivity of bounty hunter Samus Aran. Throughout the series, a balance of action and exploration form the basis for gameplay. Super Metroid is the quintessential example of this, allowing the player to explore a vast interconnected subterranean world, shoot aliens, and discover weapons upgrades which improve your in game abilities. Metroid Fusion, while staying true to its base gameplay tropes, feels almost entirely different. The world is more linear, Samus is more stripped down than ever, and your in game progression is more narrative based. This has huge implications on the way one plays Fusion. After expanding on how these differences change the space of play, and thus how the player experiences play, I will also explore how these differences found their way into the newest addition to the series, Samus Returns. To help me, I will incorporate the Ideas of Sebastien Genvo from Chapter 7 of the Video Game Theory Reader, titled, Understanding Digital Playability.

Project 1 Proposal

For the first project, I plan to use the “Play and the Player” prompt to explore the player’s relationship to both their character and to the game world in assorted RPG’s. In particular, I wish to examine how through the creation of an immersive game-world and play system a game temporarily creates a new identity for the player that subsumes the player’s real world identity for the duration of play. The game’s through which I plan on exploring this are open-world rpg’s like Skyrim and the Fallout series, and more narrow rpgs like Dragon Age. A quick search uncovered a wealth of information on Skyrim, with articles like “Unbroken Immersion: The Skyrim Experience” (Simkins, David, Seann Dikkers, and Elizabeth Owen. “Unbroken Immersion: The Skyrim Experience.” Well Played–Vol. 2, No.: 13.) being ubiquitous.

Project 1

For our first project, I plan to explore the topic “Games and Life”, and how games can be used as a learning tool for relationships, and decision-making in the real world while broadening social and cultural knowledge. The technology of gaming today allows people to easily be connected across the globe. Playing massive multiplayer online role playing games or MMORPG allows for this. Role playing games allow the players to choose an avatar and create it how they would want to be depicted in the game, having specific skills and character development as the game moves along, like in World of Warcraft. I will be using this game along with a card game, Magic, and board games as my three sources.

I also plan to talk about how the mind creates games for itself during certain situations, such as when wanting to succeed or “win”, and gain the feeling of pleasing someone. As Huizinga states, “play is older that culture” and is a part of nature (Huizinga 2). Play is necessary whether someone is conscious of the play they’re participating in or not.

Source: Huizinga, Johan. Homo Ludens: a Study of the Play Element in Culture. New York, Roy Publishers, 1950

Secondary Source: Wang, Chee Keng John, et al. “Passion and Intrinsic Motivation in Digital Gaming.” CyberPsychology &Amp; Behavior, vol. 11, no. 1, 2008, pp. 39–45

One game source: Blizzard Entertainment. World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria. Activision Blizzard, 2012. Online.

Project Proposal

Video games are an outlet for people of many different ages to learn a diverse amount of skills and vast information that is useful in everyday life. Video games can teach us cognitive skills, history, creativity, and sometimes about mental illness. They teach us in an interactive fashion that draws the player into a fun and immersive world without feeling like a learning experience. I will prove this point through explaining different games and their corresponding aspects of play that seek to teach players. Games like Destiny 2 or Overwatch (Teamwork), Hellblade (Psychosis and Mental Illness), Fable (Sense of morals), Assassin’s Creed (A loose base of history), Civ Rev (Strategy), Portal (Spacial Awareness, Problem Solving), Dark Souls (Motivational), and Minecraft (Creativity) can teach players many different things. Using these examples, Isabela Granic’s article “The Benefits of Playing Video Games” among other articles, and my own personal experience, I can show how video games directly teach players.

Rhetorical Analysis 5: Old School RuneScape

Evan Cowgill

ENG 400

Dr. Cream

28 September 2017

Rhetorical Analysis 5: Old School RuneScape

Link for Reference: http://oldschoolrunescape.wikia.com/wiki/Old_School_RuneScape_Wiki

Old School RuneScape is an MMORPG set in the medieval, fantasy world of Gielinor. The game used to be called just RuneScape, but now there’s a current version of the game (officially called RuneScape 3) that arose by way of all the various updates that turned RuneScape into something different than what it used to be. Old School RuneScape, however, reverts the game to its 2007 iteration and beckons old players of the game to pick up the mouse again.

The game’s developers strategically draw from wholly retrospective appeal. The graphics are kept at their now ancient quality; the mechanics are almost entirely point-and-click; the combat is of a clunky, turn-based nature; and the leveling system requires unrealistic patience. Old School RuneScape, at first look, doesn’t boast any features that would be respected or even accepted in the modern gaming industry, yet its popularity reveals success in some other, more complex criteria: nostalgia. The game’s charm comes from these arguably negative features as they contribute to a playing experience that pulls each player back into the memories of their childhood, and Old School RuneScape boasts of this quality at every chance – even in the title.

Pokemon Silver/Gold

https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Gold_and_Silver_Versions

Pokemon Silver/Gold, just like most other Pokemon games, is a top-down RPG that throws you into a world full of magical animal-like monsters called Pokemon that become your companions along the way. Quickly, you become an official Pokemon trainer and have to battle other trainers, defeat gym leaders to earn badges, and search for rare Pokemon to collect along the way. The game has two ultimate goals for the player: to complete your Pokedex (a research database) by catching every Pokemon and to defeat the Elite Four (a series of battles similar to a “big boss” mechanic) in order to become a Pokemon Master. In order to do so, players will need to build a team of battle-ready Pokemon with trust and dedication. Without this foundation, each player will surely fail.

Rhetorical analysis

In my Spanish film class this week, we watched Alejandro Amenábar’s film Open Your Eyes, which made me think about how the rhetoric of games and play can be found beyond what is typically thought of as games and play. In the film, César seems to be stuck in a loop of an inability to discern between real life and fantasy, which is evident in the multiple dream sequences. What this represents is how when someone feels helpless in life, it is almost as if they are playing a game of which they are unaware of the rules.

César is unable to find solace in anything, even Sofía, which seemed to be the only rule of the game he can figure out. This idea suggests that like in games, life can only be worth playing if the ones playing are aware of the rules and ideas that govern interaction. When one is unaware and does not know how to play, they want to tap out and find something different to do. Much like when playing a game with a friend who gives up and does whatever they feel like because they are unable to figure out how to play.

Rhetorical Analysis 3: Enchiridion

When I first glanced at the syllabus and noticed we were going to be reading The Enchiridion, I was curious as to how it would factor into our course on the idea of play and the game. As far as I was aware, the Enchiridion was a manual for the best way to live life in Greek culture. So that got me to think, “Did the Greeks consider play an essential part of life?” And if so, why did they find play to be so important? Much of The Enchiridion supports the notion that life, itself, is one colossal play, with all of us playing small parts. A culture that supports that kind of notion would almost certainly support the idea that the act of playing is, in it of itself, essential to life. Other parts of The Enchiridion, however, support the idea that being playful and frivolous in life is shameful, and should be frowned upon. So what, really, is this piece trying to say about play? Or, rather, to what extent do we allow ourselves the freedom of play?

Rhetorical Analysis 4

Cards against humanity is a card game for young adults, or even older generations to have fun and play a game without too much seriousness. The cards use obscene language and scenarios to make the game humorous and easy to laugh with friends and family. However, this quality of the game may not appeal to every type of personality. Someone may be at the age appropriate to play this game, but may not find this kind of language funny, thus taking away from the play of the game for that specific person.

This rhetorical strategy for a game can be risky, but it allows a group of people to bond and laugh together as many games do. The obscenity of the game allows one to get a look into a completely different side of a person that may not be revealed in casual or professional conversation. Their type of humor or lack there of is revealed. The game causes the players to want to be their funniest so they can win and be picked as leader of the next round.

Rhetorical Analysis #4: Dance Dance Revolution

DDR (released for Playstation in 1999) was one of the first games that encouraged active exercise and rhythm within game play. It deviated from traditional games in that it made the feet and legs control the game, instead of the hands and fingers. DDR pioneered the dance genre of video games, necessitating the player to get off their couches in order to play. What DDR succeeded in doing was to encourage the gamer to actively exercise while gaming. This exercise/gaming experience then introduced a healthy/active aspect to game play, and forged the idea that a video game could potentially be a healthy activity for the body. DDR strategically persuaded its players that exercising while gaming could be active, engaging, and rewarding. Although it was not necessarily marketed as a way to exercise, a player could potentially burn hundreds of calories during prolonged periods of play. DDR encouraged these long periods of play through lightning graphics and enjoyable songs, all meant to pump up adrenaline and almost addict the player to the game. Thus, while the appeal of DDR might not necessarily be excerise, it succeeds in providing its players hours of gameplay which just so happens to be exercise as well.

Weekly Research: Donkey Kong Country

Donkey Kong Country is the very first Donkey Kong game in the series, outside of the original arcade game where Mario tries to rescue Princess Peach while having barrels thrown at him. Definitely a classic in all senses of early 90’s video games, Donkey Kong Country it is the fastest selling video game of all time, and the second best selling SNES game. The game is a platform side-scroller in which players must beat the 40 different levels and bosses in order to get Donkey Kong’s bananas back from King K. Rool. Donkey Kong Country has also spawned many different sequels, and sprung Donkey Kong into cultural legacy and elevated him to an important spot in Nintendo canon. It’s also one of the classic games that most millenials remember playing growing up and throwing their controllers in frustration.

http://donkeykong.wikia.com/wiki/Donkey_Kong_Country

The Enchiridion

http://classics.mit.edu/Epictetus/epicench.html

The Enchiridion is essentially the 52 commandments of Stoicism. With no introduction, the text begins listing rules that Epictetus believes lead to a good life. Many of these rules read more like anecdotes or analogies that the reader is supposed to extract the meaning from and apply to their own context.

Individual autonomy forms the basis for each rule. This is clearly established in the first few paragraphs, under the first number. This autonomy is found in our “opinion, pursuit, desire, aversion, and. . . our own actions”. Everything else is out of our control, and if we should want to live a happy life, we should be undisturbed by. Most passages follow and reinforce this idea, often stressing the importance of diligence and self restraint when it comes to maintaining your own agency.

I also couldn’t help but notice that many of the ideas Epictetus has about the impermanence of the material world, and how we should react to it, echo eastern philosophy. Not only does he think that we shouldn’t become attached to objects, but also our loved ones. Being an ancient Greek philosopher, this was surprising.

Topic Proposal Project 1

For my first project, I want to focus on literacy and gaming. There are a lot of resources that suggest that gaming promotes a variety of different literacies, which is an important component of gaming that is most often defended by those who encourage gaming as a tool for learning outside of the classroom. I want to look deeper into the types of literacies that games promote; not just reading and understanding texts but using them as tools/guidelines for understanding play and manipulating the landscape/storyline of the game itself. Games teach us visual, critical, technological, and digital literacies that further help us develop not only how we play games, but how we enjoy play. Furthermore, Jonathan Alexander makes a brief suggestion that people may not necessarily be addicted to the games, but to play itself (“Gaming, Student Literacies…” 36). The literacies learned from games help the player to enjoy play more because they are understanding both the technical and linguistic aspects of the game which gives them dominance within the game. But, also, these literacies can certainly carry over into the real-world, and give players an upper-hand in school, career, relationships, and life in general. If gamers are reading and understanding texts outside of their normal linguistic spaces while applying this understanding to the game, and, at the same time, developing critical thinking skills which help them to succeed and achieve goals, these literacies will undoubtedly fulfill a type of self-realization and power.

Therefore, I want to argue that it is the literacy-aspects learned through game play that yield addiction to play, because these literacies allow the player to expand understanding, gain knowledge, and ultimately succeed not only in the game but in the real world as well. This gives the play meaning and fulfills the player’s desire for dominance (psychological aspect of play), while also giving them real-world skills which may enhance their lives.

Primary Sources

Murray, Janet H. Hamlet on the holodeck: The future of narrative in cyberspace. MIT press, 2017.

Gee, James Paul. What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy. Macmillan, 2014.

Secondary Source

Alexander, Jonathan. “Gaming, Student Literacies, and the Composition Classroom: Some Possibilities for Transformation.” College Composition and Communication, vol. 61, no. 1, 2009, pp. 35–63. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40593514.

Potential Games

DDR

Nancy Drew (PC game)

Project 1 Proposal

For Project 1, I plan to explore how games provide a significant space for the self’s interaction with itself. Specifically I want to explore the role of ignorance and knowledge in the area of play, and how knowing more or less about how to play a game influences the enjoyability of the player. The philosophical question thus posed by this is when is ignorance bliss, and when is it not? This question can be answered not only by gamers, but also by politicians and films, which will be used as reference points and analogies. I also want to find/conduct surveys in order to provide statistical analysis for the hypothesis as well.

Thesis: It may seem that one’s ability to enjoy an interaction with a game is based on how a game relates to one’s preferences in game style and design. However, it is actually related to one’s level of ignorance in regards to the game, as well as their personality type and emotional desires.

Primary text:

Myers, Steve. “Myers‐Briggs Typology and Jungian Individuation.” Journal of Analytical Psychology, vol. 61, no. 3, 2016, pp. 289–308. Print.

Secondary text:

Sitzmann, Traci, and Stefanie K. Johnson. “When Is Ignorance Bliss? The Effects of Inaccurate Self-Assessments of Knowledge on Learning and Attrition.”Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 2011, pp. 192-207. Digital.

Project 1 proposal

I propose that the advent of ubiquitous (pervasive) play goes hand in hand with transmedial discourses, as both have real world distinctions. Though ubiquitous gaming is still continuously being defined, it harbors a blurred line between created reality and actuality, often incorporating a mix of both to sufficiently and mimetically create the most interactive game possible. However, this hybrid play has fueled modern escapism, and the potentially undefined boundaries this genre could parallel the likes of recent sci-fi horror (I, Robot, The Terminator series, Ex Machina, etc). Though real world consequences might not currently be so exaggerated, the lack of cemented lines has already influenced contemporary society, and therein a game becomes reality. The network that this dual united front creates eradicates the tacit understanding of play being a gateway leading to an anti-ordinary life, and therefore creates a paradox between the codes of play, and the necessity of reality. Using examples of well known transmedial and ubiquitous games, I will investigate this ongoing complexity and its potential consequences.

Primary resource:

Pokemon Go http://www.pokemongo.com/

Secondary resource:

McGonigal, Jane. “This Might Be a Game: Ubiquitous Play and Performance at the Turn of the Twenty-First Century.” AvantGame, Univesity of California, Berkeley, Jane McGonigal, 2006, Accessed 23 Sept. 2017.

Rhetorical Analysis 4: The Enchiridion

Evan Cowgill

ENG 400

Dr. Cream

25 September 2017

Rhetorical Analysis 4: Epictetus’ “The Enchiridion”

Link for Reference: http://classics.mit.edu/Epictetus/epicench.html

“The Enchiridion”, written by Epictetus and translated by Elizabeth Carter, attempts to assert a series of rules, principles, and values belonging to the author as the proper way to live a relatively happy and undisturbed life. And, while I may not agree with everything that Epictetus puts forth, I find it to be a very interesting text to rhetorically analyze.

This is mostly due to how obviously intended for persuasion the text is, as it reads like a speech or argumentative presentation. Epictetus holds up his claims – all of which completely based in opinion and theory – as if they are fact. He does not introduce any of his points with “I believe”, and he even structures his points as numerical tenets or proverbs of passed-down wisdom. And, since the text’s topic of life and how to properly live doesn’t really have a window of opportunity that would ever close (since most of humanity wonders about living life to its fullest and most ethical extent), its rhetorical situation is timeless. This allows for “The Enchiridion” to reappear repeatedly over the timeline of human existence and possibly increase its credibility for some audiences as it becomes more and more ancient.

Annotated Bib: Metroid Fusion

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metroid_Fusion

Metroid Fusion for the Gameboy Advanced, the fourth installment of the series, was a return to the side-scrolling action adventure style that fans had been clamoring for since the release of Super Metroid nearly a decade earlier. Many of the same gameplay elements and tropes return. Fusion follows Samus Aran, a intergalactically renowned bounty hunter recruited by the Galactic Federation to investigate a possible outbreak in one of their research labs. As the player, you explore the abandoned vessel, find weapons upgrades, and eliminate the alien foes that stand in your way.

Fusion makes a purposeful deviation from previous games though. There she encounters a parasite know as X that has the ability to replicate the DNA of its host, mimicing and enhancing their capabilities. After making contact with the parasite she is stripped of all her suit abilities, making her extremely weak. By contrast, the parasite gains her power and uses it to hunt her down. Samus has no other choice but to hide or run from the X parasite until she discover a way off the ship. The player feels helpless. This gives Fusion a horror tone which is much stronger than any other in the series.

James Smith Weekly Research

Victoria II. Paradox Interactive. 2010. Video Game.

Victoria II is a grand-strategy game created by Paradox interactive. In the game, the player takes control of a country in the year 1836 and then leads that country until the game’s end date in 1936. Every country that existed or could have existed in that time frame, from major nations like the United Kingdom to small nations like Ulm, is both portrayed and playable. The game’s main draw is the complex political and economic system; different political parties (liberals, conservatives, communists, fascists, etc.) can come into power, and the party in power determines what the player can do (liberals will force lower taxes and more laissez faire style economy, conservatives do the opposite, etc.). Likewise, the nation’s economy will grow and develop with or without the player’s intervention, and is affected by what kind of factories are built, how many workers are available, tax rates, and numerous other factors. Like all Paradox games, Victoria II is highly moddable and has a very large modding community that surrounds it.

http://www.victoria2wiki.com/Victoria_2_Wiki

Annotated Bibliography 3

Eberle, Scott American Journal of Play, Rochester 6.2, 2014. (214-233)

A lot of what Scott Eberle says in this article are similar to what we heard from Huizinga and various other authors on the discussion of play. However, Eberle offers a few very distinct differences in his definition, namely the idea that play can simply exist without pure purpose. I feel.that conflicting ideas of this nature lend to a more thorough understanding of play as a whole, and for that reason his article resonates well with me, and is a good addition to our collection.

http://www.journalofplay.org/issues/6/2/article/2-elements-play-toward-philosophy-and-definition-play

Weekly Research – Week 4

https://telltale.com/series/guardiansofthegalaxy/

Telltale is a company that produces a multitude of games with the same mechanics in common. Telltale has tackled the universe of Batman, Borderlands, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, and most recently Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. In the Guardians series, the player follows the narrative surrounding Peter Quill (Star-Lord) while dipping into the past memories of the other Guardians such as Rocket Racoon and Gamora. Telltale is known for their immersive and intricate stories accompanied by their quick-time events. This puts the player directly in the first person state of mind with various universes to play within. Quick-time events are short situations, normally within a cut-scene of a game, in which the player presses a button on the controller within a small gap of time in correspondence to whatever is happening in the cut-scene. Telltale takes this up a notch by adding in dialogue options for the main character, thumb-stick movements also in correspondence with the events within the game usually associated with movement, and free-roam aspects of the story. When the entire story is centered around these mechanics, a simple story is more immersive with the player feeling like they are creating the story.

Weekly Research 3

Granic, Isabel, et al. “The Benefits of Playing Video Games”. American Psychologist, vol.69, no. 1. Jan. 2014, pp 66-78. EBSCOhost

This article discusses positive mental health effects of gaming focusing on motivation, attention, emotional and social benefits and argues that games do in fact have “real-world” benefits. Granic talks about the function of play and how it can allow children, or anyone, to have simulated experiences allowing them to advance their mental and emotional state. It also includes a section of distinction between videogames and other forms of media.

http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy-wcupa.klnpa.org/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=2&sid=f9326763-3b91-4da2-87b5-f938fd471021%40sessionmgr4009

Annotated Bib

Ostenson, Jonathan, and Lisa Fink. “Exploring the Boundaries of Narrative: Video Games in the English Classroom.” English Journal, vol. 102, no. 6, 2013, pp. 71–78.

Jonathan Ostenson wrote an article called “Exploring the Boundaries of Narrative: Video Games in the English Classroom.” In this article Ostenson writes about video games as interactives narratives. He describes how video games can leave the same feeling and thought often brought on by books and novels. Ostenson states, “The games of today have come to rely more and more on the elements of fiction in their design, and they represent unexplored territory in studying the nature and impact of narrative.” Ostenson reviews various reasons that people have suggested video games be implemented into the English classroom before introducing his own reason. Ostenson believes that video games represent some of the most inventive and important storytelling in the 21^st century. More and more English teachers have been teaching diverse media and Ostenson believes video games is a new forma storytelling media. He identifies different games and explains their narrative purpose. He even believes that the simplest games have a narrative, for example, Angry Birds. He spend the rest of his paper explaining different purposes and methods that teachers can use to teach video games to their students. He lists different techniques teachers can use and different types of video games that they can teach.

Weekly Research 9/24/17

Staff, Games Radar. “The Top 7 Ways Grand Theft Auto III changed the face of gaming.” Gamesradar, Future PLC, 18 Oct. 2011. Accessed 24 Sept. 2017.

www.gamesradar.com/top-7-ways-grand-theft-auto-iii-changed-face-gaming/2/

As discussed within this online article, the game Grand Theft Auto III is hailed as one of the most important games of the 21st century’s first decade. It recalls the milestones of gaming that this one work created and incited. Far from being just a gritty but realistic gameplay, GTA III can be broken down to arenas of different social discourses, as is listed within the article. From catalyzing the genre of real-world games to incorporating allusory Mods, this game jump started and reinforced many of the tropes that games hold today. Along with trans-worldly allusions, the appearance of celebrities within the game also added to its foul but realistically capitalistic empathy. Though the celebrities featured were lower tiered, that game of being able to recognize a somewhat familiar face only added to the interactive levels this game featured. The music featured therein played a large part too, as the required in-world aspect of how its tunes originated once more added to its authentic atmosphere. Overall, this text illuminates the well known reasons that GTA III was a seminal work of visual interaction, but also recalls the minutiae of the game that truly made it great. It was a generational magnum opus, and continues today as a generational dialogue as well.

Weekly Research Week 4

This article explores the type of literacy that can be learned through games. The author claims that gamers must think critically, and must use coordination and collaboration with other players in order to perform specific tasks (especially in multi player games). The article suggests a study that explains that games have become a more popular source of not only entertainment, but also community building and socializing. Because games are often full of text, they can also promote literacy as well. There are three types of literacies involved in gaming: visual, technological, and textual (36). Thus, gaming involves both literacy and rhetoric “in action” (37). The author brings up a good point too, that sometimes people are not necessarily addicted to the game, but play itself (36).

http://www.jstor.org.proxy-wcupa.klnpa.org/stable/pdf/40593514.pdf?refreqid=excelsior%3A450c02228346a112552189534951c626

RuneScape 2 (Old School RuneScape)

http://oldschoolrunescape.wikia.com/wiki/Old_School_RuneScape_Wiki

RuneScape 2 is a medieval-fantasy MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game) that allows each player to create their own avatar and navigate the huge world of Gielinor. In this world, players can choose to train their combat (including options of melee, ranged/archery, and magic), explore dangerous and beautiful environments, set out on adventures and complete quests, train a whole host of resource skills (such as fishing, woodcutting, mining, smithing, fletching, farming, hunting, herblore, runecrafting, and more), socialize with other players, fight intimidating bosses, kill other players, trade, and so much more. It’s really up to the player what they do with their time. But, with the final goal of the game arguably being to max out all stats/skills to level 99 and complete all of the quests, players are going to need a lot of time on their hands if they want to master the game’s exponential leveling system.

Project 1 Topic Proposal

Primary Source: Runescape 2 (Old School Runescape)

Secondary Source: Matheson, Calum. “Procedural Rhetoric Beyond Persuasion: First Strike and the Compulsion to Repeat”. SAGE, 2014. Web.

Rhetorical Analysis

In the most recent NBA 2k game that was just released, their is a particular game mode titled myCareer that lets you create a character and step into the story of “DJ” and play through his career from the streets to the NBA. In the game mode, you are able to customize your own player that may or may not look like your actual self, with the option to even scan your face with a cell phone application and scanned into the game and onto your player. Throughout the game, you can customize your players attributes to the playing style of your choice and focus on bringing up your skills in selected areas of your game.

Though overall your goal is to be the best and win as much as many championships as possible, there is no exact end goal, rather specific goals one might set for them selves outside the realm of the video game. This begs the interesting conversation then, comparing the type of play that can be compared to a Sims type environment where you are creating a player and setting goals outside the realm of the video game, would Juul consider this a none game, even though you are still competing and winning the basketball games that are being played inside the game.

Rhetorical Analysis 3

This article starts off with a typical attention grabber, a question, and then attempts to answer that question throughout the article. The first paragraph uses typical, relatable things parents fear as their child is growing up. An example of this strategy appears in the second line of the article, “Some researchers even claim that these games are comparable to illegal drugs”. By saying this early on in the article, it gains the trust of the reader by adding a credible source in such as a scientific researcher. However, in the second paragraph is where the main idea really appears, is that games are not addictive at all and that they are normal behavior. The author of this article placed the main idea after listing all of the bad things that are typically said about video games. This can be seen as a strategy to gain parents attention who do not like their children playing video games to continue reading on if they relate to the information present in the first paragraph.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/01/opinion/sunday/video-games-arent-addictive.html?mcubz=0

Rhetorical Analysis #3: The Gaming Chair

There are chairs specifically designed for gamers. Through the way they are designed and marketed, they encourage the gamer to play for longer periods of time by increasing comfort levels. They are usually marketed as ergonomic and relaxing, and are designed to provide support for the lower back, neck, and head. Sometimes they even recline or have wheels (my cousin even had one with built-in fans). This is one aspect of gaming/play that is interesting. The gamer’s experience/comfortability while engaging in play enhances the gaming experience as whole by providing appropriate back, head, and neck support. If the player is constantly hunched over or uncomfortable while gaming, they may not notice or even realize how much this strains the neck and back, and affects healthy posture. Thus, the chairs are also designed with health goals in mind. Keeping the player in an appropriate position allows not only for healthy posture but proper blood flow to all parts of the body. It is important to understand the health implications that can occur from poor gaming posture/position. These chairs succeed at addressing and correcting these issues while providing comfort for the player at the same time.

https://www.houzz.com/photos/94221954/BTEXPERT-Ergonomic-Leather-Gaming-Chair-Napping-Pillow-Headrest-Lumbar-Support-contemporary-gaming-chairs

Rhetorical Analysis 9/21/17

Life Is Strange (and its recent partner Life Is Strange: Before the Storm), an interactive graphic media game, treads the finest of lines between reality and construct. Devised so that the player chooses between given options within ‘real life’ scenarios, this gameplay is at certain times overly mimetic. This urgent tone and informal distance that the work creates with its players is very possibly an attribute to god complexes. When one can virtually be God, what are the ramifications thereof? Or do (video) games not influence their players? I would say they do, as movies and shows, two other highly consumed visual medias, have immensely dedicated and loving fans, and if (video) games are anything, they’re immersive films. So, do works especially like Life Is Strange act as cathartic outlets, or is there another option available? Featuring high levels of artistic design, Life Is Strange could potentially be seen as a gallery, perhaps. Or maybe it serves as a template for how to confront the monotony of life? More likely, its a mix of all these and more, which makes Life Is Strange a prevalent example of how multimedia games especially offer unending potential meanings and purposes. Games are games are games.

Rhetorical Analysis

Assassin’s Creed is a video game series that combines action and history. The main storylines and characters a fictional. However, each game contains real life historical figures and historical events. For example, Assassin’s Creed Syndicate is set in Victorian Era London. Famous historical figures that you interact with are Charles Dickens, Charles Darwin, Alexander Graham Bell, and Queen Victoria. A game like this is an example of the way a player can learn from a video game. Players get to enjoy the action and adventure of the main storyline and topic. The side missions focus on true historical events with true historical figures. Games like this allow its players to play through while also learning about history. For example, in one side mission, the player has to track the victims of Jack the Reaper. In another, the player has to collect pieces for Alexander Graham Bell, and Bell uses the pieces to build the telegraph. The story also has an accurate map of London and includes all the major landmarks which allows the players to learn the geography of a location they may have never been in. For example, the player needs to climb Big Ben and gets to go inside Westminster Abbey.