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First blog entry for EL 250, MWG: Video Game Culture and Theory!
First blog entry for EL 250, MWG: Video Game Culture and Theory!
Quote: “The brain is hardwired for facial recognition, just as it is hardwired for language, because faces are incredibly important to how human society works” (Koster 16).
Ralph Koster’s, “A Theory of Fun” is a very educational textbook when studying and learning about the theories of video games. The first five chapters contain a lot of useful information that talks about the educational value, having fun, and playing games. One particular chapter I thought was very interesting was chapter two because it describes how the brain works. I always enjoy reading the psychology side of any issue because it allows you to think in a specific manner. The quote that I chose was very interesting to me because it describes how the brain and facial features correlate with human society. This can be referred to with video games also because most of the characters have a face and we can relate the faces with authority or enemy figure status. After reading the NGJ and Gamespot review about Metal Gear Solid 2 I was able to make the connection that the brain uses human features to distinguish what and who the person is. I also enjoyed the illustrations on every other page because after you read you were able to study the pictures and connect them with the reading. I think that this book is very good to study because it allows you to not only learn information about theory, fun and games, but also to think about illustrations and how they connect with the literature. I am excited to finish this book and learn more about games and fun.Pictures:
Quote: "I know. It's going to be tough. That's why we need a plan. Here's the plan: no one attacks anyone but Donny. He'll get frustrated and give up." "Attack him even if he's on your team?" "Especially if he's on your team, because he won't be expecting it. Shoot him and blame fog of war. Faulty communications gear. Poor command and control. Stuff like that. But make sure you shoot him before he gets to any of the fun parts. Got it?" (Shoot Club: Saving Private Donny website)
"Ready or not, computers are coming to the people" (Spacewar website)
Isn't this quote very true...It is amazing how advanced technology is compared to many years ago. After reading Dr. Jerz's article on, "History of Games" and then watching the first video entitled, "Maze War" I was shocked! I am amazed at how huge the networked computers and game discs were. I have never seen a game disc that large. It is important to consider the time period (1973) but look how computers and game discs are today. Now, about the game...It was very interesting to me to see that the player had to actually type Maze Run for the game to play. Overall, this game is shows how technology was developing.
Moving onto the next game entitled, "Spacewar." This game would not have attracted my attention compared to "Maze War" or especially "Tennis for Two." Spacewar is approximately 11 years older than "Maze War," but this game reminded me of an early Star Wars game were the spaceship had to maneuver through space and not hit the asteroids. This next game was my favorite of the three because it kept my attention as the game continued. This was surprising to me because it is the oldest of the three coming in at 1958. This game was called "Tennis for Two" and was not played on a computer, but on a oscilloscope. I never have seen one of these before until now. The most shocking part to me was when I seen the control pad for lauching the tennis ball across the playing field. I agree completely with Dr. Jerz's statement that there was, "No score-keeping, and no way of forcing the players to follow the rules of tennis." Even though this game was so basic without rules or anything, I still found it interesting to watch and I would even play it. I assume it would become uninteresting after a while, but would be fun for the time being. When I first read the article entitled, "The First Video Game" I thought WOW! When the people picked up and read the Brookhaven Bulletin I imagine that a majority of them were shocked to hear that William Higinbotham may have created the first video game. I know I would have been happy if I had seen this. Overall, these three earlier games are very different among themselves but similar in the respect that they are games. Many questions were going through my mind while I was reading because of how different the computers were, how large the discs were, and how basic the games were."Games have the capability to sit on the shelf next to all other communications media. They are capable of art. They are capable of portraying the human condition. They are teching tools. They carry socially redeeming content. They elicit emotion" (Koster 184).
This quote explains what games can offer a human. Its true because just think about when your playing a video game. Usually you get invovled within the game to the point that you don't want to put it down. I can definitely agree to that! Koster offers a wide variety of information within his book, "A Theory of Fun for Game Design." The illustration that is shown on page 185 really puts this quote into perspective. The joystick is on the left followed by the movie reel, Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, and then a guitar. If you were to see these items on someone's shelf you would probably think this person likes to play video games, watch movies, read, and play the guitar. I think that this quote pin-points how important video games are compared with all other media. I'm interested in what the other classmates have to say about this. Would you agree with me? Disagree? Or even offer another intrepretation of this quote? Overall, this book had a lot to offer about the gaming world."If you're under 38, you're now saying, "Huh?" Text games (or, as some called them, "interactive fiction") were once the most popular electronic games" (Read Game website)
When first reading the article I thought the exact words the quote states. I had never heard about these text or IF games prior to reading and playing one now. I never knew there were so many different kinds of games. After reading the introduction to, "IF: What is it?" I thought this game would be very interesting to play. I was shocked because I never even heard the word "Interactive Fiction" before. The last step was to play the annotated verison of Colossal Cave Adventure. What a new experience it was! I had never played or even seen a game like this before. The first thing I thought about when typing in the game was the movie "LOST." The reason being is because when they are on the island one of the characters finds an underground so called "house" which has supplies, shelter, and a computer. The only thing that they can do on this computer is type in sentences or questions and then after so long they have to type a code in before the alarm goes off. This reminded me of the text adventure game, but I never knew it was called this (until now). Has anyone seen episodes of LOST? or even this particular one when they first find this underground capsule? I think that movies try to incorporate a lot of older technological discoveries such as this text-based computer game. Now I will talk about how I played the game. First I thought it was somewhat confusing because you have to type what to do and the game responds (I'm glad for the hints). After making it through the forest, the building, and the gate I thought this is a little challenging because what if you didn't know any tips or hints? I can agree with Dr. Jerz when he stated, "I've learned that some people get addicted to this kind of game" because it is true. Once your on your own without any hints it becomes a one-on-one game. I played for about 30 minutes and then decided to stop and write my blog, but I could have stayed on this for a long time.I really liked reading the information handout along with the slide show. Listed below are key points that I found very interesting while reading and watching the slideshow.
1. Slide 16 compares, "The Rise of the Novel" from 1719 with 2003. It was amazing to think that both books look alike and consist of pretty much the same information. 2. From slides 19-34 the pictures from the different movies and TV shows show how similar productions can be. For example, "The Blue Lagoon" can be referred to "LOST" because both shows use islands where the people are lost on. "Cast Away" can also be used as a reference too! 3. Another great comaparison was "Batman" from 1986 and 2005. It's true that fighting and moving around is the same, but the computer graphics are greatly improved. I thought what a difference technology can make.The topics that we are studying can all be seen within the slideshow. They include all art is constrained, realism is a choice, and art presupposes a critical tradition.
I thought it was important to consider Nancy Fry's blog entry (Bullet point #1) because it is true that cell phones are becoming small portable computers. It is amazing that cell phones allow you to browse the internet, text message, talk to people, check email and much more. On the other hand, GPS devices are just as amazing. They have the ability to talk to you and tell you how to get from point A to point B. I never thought of these devices having the option to play video games on until Nancy presented the idea. It is very true that video games will be able to be played on almost anything in the future (as long as it has a screen). I thought this was a great observation.After listening to the Brief History of Interactive Fiction I learned a lot of information not only about video games, but about their history.
I never knew that Scott Adams invented the first computer game commerical. I found it amazing that computers only used 16k compared to 1000k today. He had stated that the game only allowed for two word sentences. I really liked this part of the conference because it showed how everyone was having fun with a very basic computer game. Everyone was laughing and having fun and I think this shows how computer games can be a whole family activity (I was even laughing). I really liked learning the history of video games because of how much effort and thought it took to produce each new step. The example of the massive online role-playing game is very funny, but also educational.Quote: “Adventure” involves reading prose descriptions of the setting, and typing brief commands (i.e. “light lamp”) in order to solve puzzles and collect treasure."
After reading Dr. Jerz's, "Somewhere Nearby Is Colossal Cave" I learned a lot of information not only about the game, but about the real cave. It is very interesting to learn how the video game got the information and details. The source code is very interesting also because it follows the annotated game that we played. I really liked the pictures because it showed how the game evovled. From the forest, to the key, to the gate, to the river and etc. *One particular picture that I found to be amazing were the frozen walls of Orange Stone. I have a couple questions: Were the other people in the pictures family of your's Dr. Jerz? Was it difficult to compare the parts of the game with the actual cave? Under the section entitled, Cultural and Commerical Impact I found this sentence fimiliar. "Other entrepreneurs inspired by “Adventure” included Scott Adams (founder of Adventure International), who published the lean but accessible “Adventureland” in 1978." After listening to the Storytelling in Video Games Conference I recongnized Scott Adams name. It is very interesting that he invented the first commerical computer game sold and the game was based on the real cave. I found the pictures to be very intruging because of how they matched up with what you would type in the game. For example, in the game you would type "take keys" and then in one of the pictures Dr. Jerz is holding the keys. I really enjoyed reading the article and thought the pictures were great. It was so interesting that this cave was part of the game. It looks like it would have been a wonderful trip!Text: "Clean"
Response:" The vaccum cleaner won't work usefully in the closet. Come to think of it, as with a hangover, dehydration is probably the problem. Your mouth is dry wool."
This text-based game was very interactive and the responses were very interesting. The example that I listed above explains what happens when you type "clean." I actually started to laugh because it incorporated a hangover within the text (That was funny). This game was created with excellence because I had a hard time finding things to say. Has anyone found any good words to use? Were you able to leave the apartment? These are some questions that I would be interested if anyone has any ideas. I had a difficult time finding the specific words to use. For example, when I typed drink water the computer responsed by saying, "Which do you mean, the water from the bathroom sink, the water from the shower, or the water from the kitchen sink." This was very interesting because you can't say the wrong thing because the computer will say, "You can't say any such thing."Quote: "Shade is a work of light, as a narrative and as a game. As a narrative, it tells a story of enlightenment - in this case, realizing the traveler’s own death and understanding the traveler’s complicity in causing it. As a game, it is a simulation defined by vision and perception" (Douglass 132).
I found this quote very mind-boggling because of the argument between light and dark. I never thought of the game as a world between light and dark or life and death. This is understandable within the apartment because you must stay in the light in order to keep alive. In order to go to the bathroom and bedroom you must first type "hallway" because it is lighted. Just as Douglass notes, the apartment is one entire room. This article was very interesting to read because on page 139 Douglass talks about frustration and how it's hard to find the tickets. This is just like in real-life because when you can't find something you search everywhere until you do. The best part of this game is that we don't know where the tickets are nor can we recall our last events. Its a search from the beginning. A quick note about art and video games is important to have because the apartment is art in itself. The art of light and dark and also being able to find the tickets is a goal. The only reason why things seem natural to us is because we have had experience with that thing. Just like in "Shade" trying to find the tickets can be a natural event where we could misplace them or lose them. Overall, the art of the game can be in any genre that we enjoy.After playing the games entitled, "September 12" and "Madrid" I thought isn't it terrible that terrorism is even in games. But then I realized that it is being used to teach us about joining together and stopping these deadly acts. When playing "September 12" I tried to only target the bombs on the terroists, but a larger area would blow up and destroy more. This is similar to the reality of the War on Terror because the men and women of the army have to encounter these types of things everyday. The second game gave me a sense of comfort because it showed how people from all over the world have united and joined together in a candle light ceremony. When lighting the candles I noticed that they would burn out before you could light them all. This shows how people in real life don't stay united when we should.
Do you believe that these games are teaching tools and developed to bring people together? Or is it just a video game that shows the realities of the 21st century?Website entitled, Effort: Work and Fun with ''Adventure"
After learning two new words associated with effort (ergodic and fluidity) I thought how important it was to consider the concepts of work and fun while playing video games. The term fluidity connected with me, especially, because I always get so invovled with a game that I don't want to stop. Just as Leslie stated, "Get your IF juices flowing," is very true because once you started playing the text-based game you wanted to see what was next. I never knew that, "programs were written to run on terminals which would print out reams of folded paper." This is very interesting to me because imagine if you had to wait for your response...it could be overwhelming! With more modern technology, being able to use your keyboard to enter commands is very important for instant satisfaction. Just as the blog is called, "Effort" it is true that in order to get the juices flowing you must put effort forth. Just as the article states, "you must put effort into the game in order to receive the full effect," is true on all levels. If you don't put any work, effort, or fun into a game (or anything actually)then it's not a good experience. >Produce fluidity >You can, if you put effort into the game! I thought this text game example would be interesting to think of. I have some questions about putting effort into the game though. Can fun be anything that you put effort into? My opinion is that anything can be fun as long as it keeps your attention and your working towards a goal. Another question...Because text based adventure games require you to type what to do next, do you think it requires intellectual effort or just being able to type the right words? These are just a few questions that I think will be good to start talking about Effort in video games. It would be great to get a large discussion going about this topic!"Galatea offers a conversation" (Galatea)
Before playing the game I thought, "Wow, we can use more than two words when talking to the game." I thought this was important because it allows the player to learn more information. For example, when I types "A life" I got a detailed response back. It talked about growing up and the the different stages including childhood and adolescence. I then typed "A birth" and I got a response that I became invovled in. It was very interesting how her birth was described based on a carving. The answers seem to have a psychological twist to them. For example, when I type "A birth" the last paragraph states, "But one night he slept in the corner of the stuidio-- I heard him screaming in his sleep. More loudly than usual. And I forgot that I couldn't move, and I just stepped down and woke him." I thought that this response was very interesting. I think of the last sentence as she stepped down and woke him mentally (as in a dream), but not physically. It is very amazing how these text based games, especially Galatea, allow the player to create a one-on-one experience because she has a response to almost anything. It reminds me of the character being more human because she has moods, background, and memory.Quote: "...video games represent a loss of those precious hours we have available to make ourselves more cultured, civilized and empathetic" (Discussion Topic: Video Games as Art? Roger Ebert says ''No'')
Some people say that video games are not art, but then some say video games offer everything. It is very important to consider different opinions of other people because of how much information we can learn. Take Roger Ebert's website of Questions and Answers for example. The first set of Q and A is about Chicken little. The questions that people propose are very unqiue because no everyone would think of them. Now getting back to the actual question of are video games art? Roger presents a great answer about this. He states, "Video games by their nature require player choices, which is the opposite of the strategy of serious film and literature, which requires authorial control." I can agree with him because I think that movies are followed strictly by what the director has to say and video games allow you, the player, to choose what to do next. It is understandable that his sentence can be debated, but it is important to consider it before making a statement. Many of the famous works of poets such as Shakespeare's, "Hamlet" and Robert Frost's poem entitled, "The Road Not Taken" are so intellectual that it is very difficult to compare them to video games. Some may consider video games more powering than literature or the opposite? On an ending note, the quote listed at the top of this blog entry offers an opinion that is important to analyze. When playing video games the player does not encounter other humans or become a productive member of society. Many would disagree because when playing video games you enter a world that intrigues the mind and makes you think with great depth. It seems that Roger Ebert's lenses are presented as being separate because he feels video games are one genre and literature and everything else is another. My personal lense is one that is combined because it allows the player to encounter new literature and movie skills while playing video games. Some questions that I thought would be good to start the discussion could include, Are video games not equal to movies and literature? Or are they? Also, Since Roger Ebert was a film critic is his profession deciding his personal lense about video games? These are some questions that I would be interested in knowing your personal opinions.Quote: "In the competitive world of business, entrepreneurship produces winnners and losers; utopianism strives for a world where everyone succeeds and harmony abounds" (Laurel 7).
I thought that this quote was very important to consider because it shows that utopianism is striving to have a world where no one fails, but only succeeds. This may not be life-like because everybody wins and loses sometimes, but it is important to focus on the wining aspect instead of losing. With this being said, culture work comes into play because it shows how research leads to understanding and the values in society. I really enjoyed reading the first half of Utopian Entrepreneur by Brenda Laurel mostly because of how she talks about topics that are talked about today. The use of violence in video games and how there is more computer games for boys than girls. All of these factors are important to consider because it shows the issues of today. Oh! and how about the Barbie story...everybody seems to think that Barbie is perfect, but is that true? Just as Laurel noted about the story of the lady who had anorexia it is important to understand that everyone is different. Just as Laurel ended on page 65, "Change the stories and you change how people live."The first forum was about Culture and Theory questions and Dr. Jerz stated: As a white male professor, with a stay-at-home wife who homeschools our two kids, what lenses might affect my attitude towards video games (and towards education in general)?
My answer was: A response to Dr. Jerz's lense could be that him and his wife are both education professors. This could affect there attitudes towards video games compared to someone who isn't a teacher. My own lense would be that I am a white male college student who is earning his undergraduate degree in English-Literature with certification in elementary and special education. My environment around me is country land and I live on a farm.
My first comment was by Dr. Jerz which stated: Okay, Derek, your rural environment and your special education focus are part of your world veiw that I don't share, even though we have other things in common. Education is a big theme in the readings we'll be looking at, so I'm hoping that you'll be able to draw on your education training to help provide some insight that your classmates and I woudn't ordinarily get.
My response back was: I am looking forward to gaining information about the education field. I always like when I can relate my education classes with my English classes.
Darrell also stated a comment: Do you feel that because you live on a farm that you would view video games as a less important aspect of life because there is so much physical work that needs to be done on a daily basis on the farm? Or do you look at video games as an escape from the work at the end of the day?
My response back was: Hi Darrell! It's nice to talk to you and thank you for writing on my forum! I think that is one reason because there is always so much work to be done. Especially in the summer time because the fields have to be tended too and maintaining a nice looking farm requires a lot of dedication. On the other hand, I think it's a little bit of both though because I like to play video games at the end of the day when I have finished everything and I don't have a lot on my mind.
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The second forum topic was: One of the J-Web exercises asks you to write a few brief essays about your attitude towards video games, such as listing a few things that are more important to you than video games, and things that are less important to you than video games.
My response was: I enjoy playing video games, but there are more important things to me. This would include listening to music, reading sports car magazines, or browsing the internet. These things are fun for me to do when I'm not at college or doing homework. There are things that are less important to me than video games and one of them is watching television because most of the information and media is on the internet. I enjoy watching current DVD's as much as playing video games. On the other hand, computer games fit into my life a little. I play a few games here and there such as "The Sims" or even "Who wants to be a Millionaire." My family and I sometimes all play a video game together depending if its a multi-player or not. One example I used in my essay was Guitar Hero for Playstation 2. Everyone seems to enjoy this game. My grandparents don't seem to enjoy kids or adults playing video games, but I believe that is because they grew up in a different generation and never had the experience of playing a video game. Most of the people close to me have a positive attitude towards video games.
Dr. Jerz commented and stated: What games do you and your family play together? Do you also watch TV together, or enjoy interests such as racing?
Yes, Guitar Hero is quite a phenomenon. Makes you wonder why they didn't do that sort of thing years ago.... what with sports games and now rock concert games, these recent titles aren't so much simulating what it's like to be in a sport or be in a band, they're simulating what it's like to be in a televised event (that includes Millionaire, too).
So it's interesting to me that you've included TV in this analysis.
My response back was: My family and I usually play guitar hero or racing games together. My nephew loves to play guitar hero with me. (He is only 9 years old). My family and I usually watch TV together when we get a chance, but since our lives are so busy we usually watch whatever we want in different rooms. When we have family dinner together we will watch a movie or program on TV after dinner. We enjoy going to the races, derby's, and sporting events too. Overall, we don't watch a lot of TV programs, but usually movies or something like that. I agree that rock concerts and sports games are much more fun to be at, but I never thought of it as simulating what it's like to be in a televised event. I agree though!
These are the introduction forums to the class.
The Blog Portfolio incorporates all of the blogs that I have posted for EL 250, MWG: Video Game Culture and Theory. This brief essay explains everything that I have done up until now in the course and also lists links to the works that “sparked new ideas.”
Before the class started I read the previous syllabus and thought that we would be watching movies. The two movies that I watched were “The Matrix” and “It’s a wonderful life.” After comparing the two movies I never thought about, “Simulations and Movies”, as movies being alternate reality and simulations. After reading the first two assignments I compared “Video Games” with culture, theory, and concepts within this class. My blog entry entitled, “NGJ: There very unique” examines one of the Ten Unmissable Examples of New Games Journalism. In this entry, I learned how important NGJ reviews were and how they are composed. On the second day of class, I began to read and write “traditional game reviews”, play video games, and also read, “A Theory of Fun for Game Designers” by Raph Koster. After reading “Always black” and “Bow, N*gger” they made me realize that internet conversation, emotion, and games can all be expressed in “An Intellectual Review,” Now, I was able to play Strong Bad’s video games my blog entry entitled, “Computer Animation” talks about how older video games can produce as much fun as modern games. After reading the first half of Koster, “A Theory of Fun” I learned that “Video Games and Fun” is something that is “hardwired in our brains.” After reading the “History on Video Games” my blog entry entitled, “It's amazing how far technology has come or not...” talks about how the computer and video games are a pair. My blog entry and reflection entitled, “A Conference on Games” connects the conference with Nancy Fry’s blog entry about storytelling and the video game experince. After finishing Koster’s book I noticed how there are “Personality, Emotion, and Character in Games?” My reflection shows “Games, Art, and Fun” are in video games.“IF is one of a kind” because I had never experienced a video game like this before. When playing IF games “Choosing the right words” was very important in learning information. Kevin McGinnis’ blog entry called, "If/if/id = harmony" shows how psychology can be a factor. After watching “Historical Perspective on video games” my blog called, “Culture and Video Games” shows how books, movies, and games are all similar within the past 100 years. The discussion question about “Effort: Work and Fun in Adventure” allowed me to post a blog entry entitled, “New Words for Effort” that taught me how ergodic and fluidity are part of video games.
My “An amazing Conversation” blog describes how a conversation is seen with a text-based game. After reading the Colossal Cave article I thought, “WOW!! Colossal Cave and Games!” which taught me how a game can be “mapped out” in real life. I knew after reading Brandon Gnesda’s blog entry that “We found the cave” because of how different your lense can be after reading the article. My blog called “What an Apartment” lists my experience with the game “Shade,” and shows how it is similar to everyday life and “The Final Death…” is important to consider. Ashley Farmer posted an interesting blog entry about concept and that made me think, "How do I get out?" My reflection called “The Author’s Life” shows how I learned that light and dark are a part of Shade’s game. It was "A True reality” after playing “September 12” and “Madrid” because these games lead me to think “Games and the World” have a lot in common. Th next discussion question was about “Video Games as Art? Roger Ebert says '”No”"> and I immediately posted my blog entry entitled, “Video Games as Art? Some say No?” describing how games can be art.
The next book in the course was “The Utopian Entrepreneur by Laurel” which describes “Becoming Part of the Culture” where everyone succeeds. Kevin McGinnis posted a blog entry called "Laurel Part 1" that made me connect the concepts of the book with everyday life. After finishing the book I realized "What a video game should contain" and Dr. Jerz then posted the daily discussion question about "Narratology and Ludology." These concepts taught me about "New Terminology with Video Games" and why interactivity and rules are in games. The course has been very educational, interesting, and fun to this point and I suspect it will continue to be. All of my previous entries have been posted on time and have covered all of the assigned readings. I have posted comments and reflections for all of the assigned RRRR sequences as long as there was a blog entry. Some of the classmates refer to my blogs and continue with in-depth discussions. For example, Nancy Fry's blog entry entitled, "History of Video Games" exhibits this. If anyone has any questions about the Mid-Point Blog Portfolio I will be happy to answer them!Are video games interactive stories or a system of rules?
Jesper Juul thinks that they are not stories, but I do agree with his claim about games being unique and having a specific vocabulary. I was happy to hear that Game Scholarships began in the literature department.(My major is English Literature). When talking about interactive fiction games I believe that they are computer-assisted storytelling. After reading Koster and Laurel I feel a concentration about what is the purpose of video games? This is a good q