Category: Game studies (Page 5 of 7)

ABSTRACT: Although the most established model of digital game development is through funding from publishers, there has been a major boost to independent game development, especially after the 2000s. This production context has specific challenges, particularly for lone developers. Some indie developers share their experiences and tips with the community using videos, and these videos illustrate the challenges and mindset around indie development of their time. This article presents a survey of good practices for lone (solo) indie developers compiled from twenty-nine YouTube videos. There are thirteen content creators who shared various tips about tools to use; ways to improve the game design of a product; ways to improve production process management and how to avoid pipeline failures during the development; recommendations on how to handle and how to manage marketing, focusing on fanbase management; advice on how to stay healthy during the process and mindset changes that are required for the development of games. The tips are compiled and a discussion is made on how they outline a dimension of the indie context and mentality of their time, and how they illustrate what are considered good practices among community members.

KEY WORDS: game development, good practices, indie community, indie game, solo developers.

ABSTRACT: We present a report from our preliminary research, which focused on the possibilities of implementing game elements into e-learning at university. We were interested in the attitudes and preferences of the students on the introductory course for the study of culture, where a questionnaire survey was conducted. We asked students what potential they see in the application of digital technologies in e-learning, what motivates them to study online and what advantages and limits of the educational principles of games they see in e-learning. Here we offer a description of the preliminary results that led to our next research steps. The questionnaire was distributed among students of two runs of the Introduction to the Study of Culture course at the Faculty of Social Studies of Masaryk University, who completed it after the final test. A total of 188 students submitted a completed form. These were bachelor students, usually in the first year of study, mostly women. We chose a freely available online tool for the analysis, our approach to data processing was non-mathematical at this stage. Nevertheless, we believe that it has enabled us to gain a direct and unmediated insight into the subject of our research. Mixed methods pragmatic rationalization of the research process traditionally refers to the complementarity of datasets and greater validity. Based on the findings, we recommend to educators and developers of the online learning environment how they could improve the design of e-learning in accordance with the needs and different learning styles of students.

KEY WORDS: digital games, e-learning, flow, game-based educational principles, gamification, learning objectives, motivation and self-determination theory, online learning systems, teaching model.

ABSTRACT: So-called dark patterns are widely discussed in game design. This phenomenon raises
concerns for gaming education because numerous dark patterns trick players into real money transactions or gambling. A major obstacle to the practical assessment of the severity of a ‘dark’ pattern is the very definition of ‘game patterns’, basing solely on action-oriented structures. In order to take into account not only abstract expressions of the game system, but also the experience of the player, as well as the diverse contexts in which games are played, this article proposes to use the semiotic model of the ‘ludeme’. A ludeme is a minimal element in game design consisting of a grapheme, an acousteme, and a motifeme. We begin by explaining and situating the conceptual framework of the ludeme theory, with a specific interest in its application to repetitions of the same game element over time and through different digital games. Then, the theoretical framework is applied to SimCity BuildIt and particularly to the ‘dark patterns’ in it. In the last part, paths for further developments of the model of ludemic analysis are discussed, with regard to its
relevance for media education and digital game literacy.

KEY WORDS: dark patterns, digital game literacy, game analysis, ludeme, ludoliteracy, SimCity.

ABSTRACT: Even at the apex of its hype cycle in the 2010s, game studies scholars and designers derided gamification. This article first explores why gamification inspired such vitriol. It finds the incursion of non-game corporations and entities into the field was a threat to those who fought so ardently to legitimize the profession and promote a more playful or ludic 21^st century. The article then delves deeper into the literature of play to redefine what occurs when a player engages with a gamified app, such as the social media application Foursquare. It rescripts their activity as ‘punctuated play’, or when the competition, conflict, glory, and other aspects of traditional play pierce a moment but do not necessarily define it.

KEY WORDS: Foursquare, game design, game studies, gamification, ludology.

ABSTRACT: In the context of games for learning, rich multimodal conversations online can contribute to extending the educational potential of digital games. In this study, we analyzed the multimodal features of user interactions in an online affinity space dedicated to the Rocksmith digital game. This game allows users to connect a traditional electric guitar to a Sony PlayStation 4 console and interact with the game while improving their guitar playing skills. Findings show that users include several multimodal elements in their online conversations in order to support guitar learning beyond the digital walls of the game. Emoticons, emoji, pictures, YouTube videos, and user-generated videos are all part of a constellation of audiovisual modes that support social learning practices in an interest-driven online space. By understanding how users incorporate these modes in their interactions, game designers, game developers, and educators can make informed decisions on how to design and improve these features within the games themselves and in online communities of learning dedicated to such games. The findings of this study can also help these stakeholders and decision-makers create more engaging and more effective connections between games and online platforms

KEY WORDS: affinity spaces, games and learning, multimodality, online learning, Rocksmith.

ABSTRACT: The paper presents, discusses and analyses the role of building brand image in digital games. The purpose of this paper is to analyse and discuss in-game marketing in cultural spheres from the aspect of brand image. The aim is to explore, identify and present the relationship between brand image, consumer self-image and digital games as a brand. The contribution of this study is manifested in an interdisciplinary approach to work through marketing, psychology, sociology, and media theory. Consumers project their desires through digital games, and the brand’s entry into the digital game itself enhances the gaming experience and reality of the digital game. It was concluded that consumers want a realistic experience while playing digital games and they want to see famous brands within the game as this enhances their experience and projects the reality of the digital world. The core of brand image is consumers’ perception. In recent years, the digital game industry dominates this segment of the global entertainment economy. The paper analyses in-game marketing from the aspect of branding and sociology of culture. It is based on J. N. Kapferer’s theory of brand building and Huzinga’s theory of game. The article explores the meaning of the phenomenon of brand image and identity in virtual reality. The emphasis in this paper is put on the influence of brand image and digital game as a model of popular culture. This article adopts an integrated knowledge inquiry approach through thematic analysis to explain the concept of brand image. From the consumer’s point of view, the brand represents a symbol built on impressions, associations, metaphors and archetypes in the digital gaming industry. Brand loyalty is a key factor in building brand equity. The problem of brand loyalty appears as a reflection of brand symbol and its image. However, the oxymoron of in-game marketing starts from the hypothesis that consumers want to see brands in virtual realit

KEY WORDS: brand, culture, digital game, image, in-game marketing.

ABSTRACT: A study from the OECD published that Cancer is one of the main causes of mortality in developed societies, with remarkably high prevalence, incidence and mortality rates for both sexes. This study closely examines nine digital games to elucidate how they conceptualize a disease like cancer around a narrative concerning the sickness, patients, treatments and outcomes. Discourse and content analysis techniques were applied to the message contained in the games looking to illuminate the connection between the narrative core, the audio-visual representation and the interactive aspects of the game, within the parameters of values-conscious design applied to digital games. This provides some evidence about the cultural and visual aspects of how game designers conceptualize the disease as a part of society. This research uncovers culturally embedded themes and reveals the prevalence of metaphor use in cancer discourse which relied on science, social support and spiritual convictions for social empowerment, building empathy and identification.

KEY WORDS: cancer, cultural industries, digital games, serious games.

ABSTRACT: The paper discusses the criteria about how one can establish if a group is a new genre. It distinguishes between two main lines of thinking about genre in general – content and discourse. Both lines have two things to discuss. For content it is similarities and differences in mechanics, and for discourse it is commercial and social purpose of the use of new categories. The case studies then show how this can be applied to the rising auto battler class. There are 7 core mechanics in games that are similar, but every game differs in small details from others. The discourse in the social and commercial sphere has appeared over a short time period, and the adoption of the new genre by the gaming community was therefore fast. The bottom line of the text is that using rigid categories for discussions about digital games cannot focus only on rigid criteria, but also on context.

KEY WORDS: auto battler, core mechanics, digital games, game typologies, genres studies, modding.

ABSTRACT: The demands of educational practice are changing alongside our dynamically changing society. It is, therefore, necessary to purposefully and systematically seek ways to motivate, teach, and develop independent thinking among learners. This theoretical study aims to identify and characterize the essential assumptions and reasons for the implementation of digital games into ethical education classes. The fundamental premise is the thematic variability of game narratives, and a fulfillment of the experience attributes through the interactivity both in terms of the direct interactivity of the learner and the medium and in the subsequent discussion as a part of value reflection. Attention is focused on the process of ethical decision-making, ethical dilemmas, and problems that can be identified in many digital games containing at least a basic narrative structure. Interactive narration includes, besides the story itself, the influence of the participant on the further direction of the storyline, allowing players to see the consequences of their individual decisions within simulated situations. The study explores a game principle – the butterfly effect – in the context of ethical decision-making in particular through the game Detroit: Become Human, as well as demonstrates its usability within ethical education classes.

KEY WORDS: butterfly effect, decision-making, Detroit: Become Human, digital games, dilemmas, ethical education, game-based learning, storytelling.

ABSTRACT: Games that utilize satire have largely been unexplored despite their potential to be used as learning supplements or tools to foster conversations around difficult large-scale topics. To what game genre do these games belong, and what are the uses and benefits for learning from such games? In this exploration study, we examine six popular and culturally relevant digital games (5 directly, 1 indirectly) utilizing satire as part of their narrative and gameplay. The range of games covers topics such as global overpopulation, the use of artificial intelligence for surveillance, and the process of mass capitalist production and the manner of its consumption. Satirical digital games serve both the purposes of serious games and entertainment games, pointing to the problematic connotations of the term serious games. It is suggested that the name satirical games is used to describe digital games created for entertainment with underlying political messages and to make a statement and/or commentary on society. Satirical games have potential as powerful learning tools to help facilitate discussion around difficult topics about society’s functions and practices. Future studies should examine additional digital game titles that rely on satire in their narrative and gameplay and investigate the relationship between satire and its role in the learning goals of the games.

KEY WORDS: digital games, game-based learning, informal learning, satire, serious games.