Tag: Vol. 9 No. 1 (2026)

Playing Through Seeing: The Case Study of the Painting Quests in Elden Ring

June 27, 2026 / Samuel Draxler

Daniel Bösenberg

ABSTRACT:
This study interprets the active/passive binary of spectating in digital games through the seemingly oppositional relationship between representation and operation. While visuality in games is often treated as an aesthetic surface that conveys meaning hidden beneath at the level of code, Fizek argues that images are inseparable from the computational processes generating them – representations arise from operations, and operations become legible through representations. This study conceptualises this situation as Playing through Seeing. This perspective draws on Walker Rettberg’s interpretation of representational and operational images to suggest that what is seen can itself function operationally, as perception triggers and completes game processes. Visuality thus becomes an operational practice, with human perception acting as part of the cybernetic circuit. This theoretical problem is examined through the painting side quests in Elden Ring, where images scattered around the world initiate a specific type of quest that can only be resolved by aligning the player’s vision with the game’s own vantage points. What appears marginal within a combat-focused RPG instead reveals how digital aesthetics render computation visible and actionable. By reframing visuality as operational, the study challenges assumptions about active players and passive spectators and extends these debates beyond art-games to high-budget AAA titles.

KEY WORDS:
digital games, Elden Ring, operation, posthumanism, representation, visuality.

DOI:
10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.118-131

HOW TO CITE:
Bösenberg, D. (2026). Playing through seeing: The case study of the painting quests in Elden Ring. Acta Ludologica, 9(1), 118-131. http://doi.org/10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.118-131

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Transcending the Limits of Mankind: The Alchemical Opus and the Jungian Individuation in Bloodborne

June 27, 2026 / Samuel Draxler

Giuseppe Ficano

ABSTRACT:
Jung draws a parallel between the process of individuation, which is the cornerstone of his theory, and the alchemical Opus: to each phase corresponds a pivotal moment in the journey towards becoming oneself. In Bloodborne, the main character undergoes a journey of self-discovery shaped by the player’s choices, both in terms of the narrative (especially with the true ending) and gameplay. The plot and the world of Bloodborne can be understood through the alchemical phases of nigredo, albedo, and rubedo: firstly, the night of Yharnam, then the defeat of Rom and the ensuing blood moon. These stages, which coincide with the encounter with the archetypes of the Shadow, the Animus/Anima, and the true Self, are traversed by the protagonist, who faces both the plague of beasts (Shadow) and a profound understanding of that which is different (Animus/Anima and the Great Old Ones), which ultimately reveal the invisible to them with the blood moon and leads them to the end. The hunter’s final steps towards individuation are conditioned by the consumption of the One Third Umbilical Cords, and can consequentially guide them to substantially different paths, based on the player’s choice.

KEY WORDS:
alchemy, Bloodborne, choices, individuation, Jung, philosophy, psychology.

DOI:
10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.104-117

HOW TO CITE:
Ficano, G. (2026). Transcending the limits of mankind: The alchemical Opus and the Jungian individuation in Bloodborne. Acta Ludologica, 9(1), 104-117. http://doi.org/10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.104-117

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From Spectator to Storyteller: FMV Interactive Narratives in Media Production Classrooms

June 27, 2026 / Samuel Draxler

Petro Katerynych

ABSTRACT:
This study examines the pedagogical value of interactive full-motion video (FMV) narratives in media production education, where cinematic storytelling and interactive game mechanics converge to develop students’ creative, technical, and collaborative competencies. Five exemplary titles – Late Shift, Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, Her Story, Telling Lies, and The Complex – were integrated into a semester-long interdisciplinary course at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv (n = 55). A mixed-methods design combined Likert-scale questionnaires (α = 0.81) with open-ended reflections to assess engagement, learning outcomes, and collaborative dynamics. Mean item scores ranged from 4.3 to 4.6 on a 5-point scale, indicating strong positive reception across all dimensions. Perceived enjoyment of FMV-based learning correlated positively with students’ willingness to undertake future interactive projects (r = .72, p < .01). Drawing on these findings, the study articulates the Collaborative Agency in Narrative Design (CAND) framework – a heuristic lens conceptualising learning effectiveness as emerging from the interplay of disciplinary integration, creative autonomy, and narrative ownership. The results extend scholarship on game-based learning and position FMV narratives as a pedagogical bridge between cinematic storytelling and computational thinking in higher education.

KEY WORDS:
audience agency, digital games, full-motion video, game-based learning, interactive film, interactive storytelling, interdisciplinary collaboration, media production education, narrative design.

DOI:
10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.86-103

HOW TO CITE:
Katerynych, P. (2026). From spectator to storyteller: FMV interactive narratives in media production classrooms. Acta Ludologica, 9(1), 86-103. http://doi.org/10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.86-103

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How to Design a Game Laboratory to Study Games: Theory and Case Study of a Playful Third Space

June 27, 2026 / Samuel Draxler

Leland Masek, Daphne Bachmann, Arttu Lakkala

ABSTRACT:
Multidisciplinary game studies is a uniquely challenging type of academia to implement, for a variety of ideological and practical reasons. Diverse forms of research are widely seen as desirable with clear benefits but also challenges for the research community. Contemporary work has called for more techniques to overcome these challenges and reap the benefits. This paper proposes a promising technique that is understudied – playful third spaces in universities where multidisciplinary education and research may be conducted. This text proposes this tool, through the lens of pluralist game studies, and discusses a case study for a multidisciplinary playful third space that encourages games research and pedagogy. Three components of this space and how it influences research projects hosted will be explained for their interdisciplinary benefits: playful infrastructure, comfort-design, public-private availability. In summary, playful third spaces are a promising multidisciplinary intersectional tool for future pluralistic game studies laboratories and research groups.

KEY WORDS:
game laboratories, playful third spaces, pluralist game studies, third space.

DOI:
10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.66-84

HOW TO CITE:
Masek, L., Bachmann, D., & Lakkala, A. (2026). How to design a game laboratory to study games: Theory and case study of a playful third space. Acta Ludologica, 9(1), 66-84. http://doi.org/10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.66-84

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Between Empowerment and Objectification: Female Character Sensuality in Garena Free Fire

June 27, 2026 / Samuel Draxler

Achmad Budiman Sudarsono, Fitri Sarasati, Iqbal Rocki Ulhaq

ABSTRACT:
The rapid growth of digital gaming has transformed games into interactive environments shaping meaning, identity, and social interaction. This study examined the representation of female character sensuality in Garena Free Fire, and how such representations were interpreted by players. Using a qualitative approach, this research combined Fiske’s semiotic analysis to identify how visual elements such as body proportion, costume, and character design construct meanings of femininity and sensuality, alongside Hall’s encoding/decoding model through semi-structured interviews with five active players. Findings revealed that female characters were consistently represented through standardised visual patterns emphasising slim bodies, aesthetic attractiveness, and sensual elements, even when narratively positioned as strong and competent. This reflects the persistence of the male gaze in game design, where female bodies function as objects of visual consumption. Audience responses were not uniform, as male players interpreted these representations as neutral aesthetic elements, while female players were more critical, associating them with broader social implications. These results affirm that meaning in digital games is not fixed but negotiated through interaction between media texts and audiences. This study contributes to communication research by bridging visual representation and audience reception, demonstrating that digital games operate as dynamic spaces where ideology, aesthetics, and user experience intersect.

KEY WORDS:
audience reception, digital games, female representation, male gaze, semiotics, sensuality.

DOI:
10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.52-65

HOW TO CITE:
Budiman Sudarsono, A., Sarasati, F., & Rocki Ulhaq, I. (2026). Between empowerment and objectification: Female character sensuality in Garena Free Fire. Acta Ludologica, 9(1), 52-65. http://doi.org/10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.52-65

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Narrative Trust in Choice-Based Games: Rethinking Emotional Immersion Through Twine and AAA Dialogue Trees

June 27, 2026 / Samuel Draxler

Harshit Singh

ABSTRACT:
This paper investigates narrative trust in choice-based interactive digital narratives (IDNs). Not to be confused with literary notions of the narrator’s reliability, narrative trust is a form of emotional engagement where players believe not just in characters, plot, or outcomes but in the systems that shape them. Drawing from player surveys and close readings of four games – The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Detroit: Become Human, Depression Quest, and With Those We Love Alive – the study explores how emotional reliability is constructed, felt, and sometimes broken. Trust, we argue, emerges not from the number of endings or the complexity of branching but from the system’s ability to register intention with coherence and weight. Through structural analysis of design mechanisms like responsive hesitation, we show how narrative systems earn or lose credibility. When players feel misrecognised as the system responds with silence, flattening, or didactic funnelling, trust collapses. But when a system hesitates, absorbs, or simply listens, even refusal can feel like recognition. This paper calls for design that values resonance over spectacle, showing that emotional mechanics are not soft features but central engines of narrative play.

KEY WORDS:
digital games, game studies, interactive digital narratives, narrative choice-based games, narrative studies, narrative trust, player agency, structural design.

DOI:
10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.38-50

HOW TO CITE:
Singh, H. (2026). Narrative trust in choice-based games: Rethinking emotional immersion through Twine and AAA dialogue trees. Acta Ludologica, 9(1), 38-50. http://doi.org/10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.22-37

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Pay-to-Win Power: Chinese Gold Farming and the Trend of Game Monetisation

June 27, 2026 / Samuel Draxler

Pengze Zheng

ABSTRACT:
This paper examines the structure of Chinese gold farming studios, the detailed process of gold farming, and the industry’s impact. The popularity of online games has driven the rise of global gold farming, and China has produced mature industrial gold farming that influences the global game industry. While much of this influence is viewed negatively, the industry has also created substantial profits and employment opportunities, contributing to the Chinese economy and becoming a vital foundation of its gaming sector. Understanding this industry is therefore essential, particularly in terms of how it might be regulated to mitigate its potential impact on the global gaming ecosystem. Drawing on interviews with multiple gold farming participants and integrating existing research, this paper outlines the industrial mechanics of gold farming in China. It adopts both a macro-level perspective on the industry’s structure and a grounded, participant-centred view of gold farming experience to interpret the broader, irreversible trend of game monetisation in China. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive picture of this industry, offer a close look into its operation model and inspire future studies.

KEY WORDS:
Chinese game industry, digital games, game companies, gold farming, government, grinding, monetisation, real-money trading.

DOI:
10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.22-37

HOW TO CITE:
Zheng, P. (2026). Pay-to-win power: Chinese gold farming and the trend of game monetisation. Acta Ludologica, 9(1), 22-37. http://doi.org/10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.22-37

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Design, Agency, and In-Game Self: Understanding the Constraints of Age in Digital Games

June 27, 2026 / Samuel Draxler

DB Bauer, Christine Tomlinson

ABSTRACT:
Age is a fundamental element of identity, yet its impact and role in play experiences remain understudied in digital games. While age is influential in shaping our social experiences and the expectations others have of us – from perceived competence to authority and relational dynamics – it remains largely undefined or only implicitly conveyed in role-playing games (RPGs). To address this gap, this article examines how age is constructed, perceived, experienced, and constrained through game design and play. Furthermore, we explore how these constructions shape player agency, immersion, and identity expression in-game. This qualitative analysis of two recent RPGs analyses data from both game content and online forum discussions, allowing for the conceptual development of age layering and playerage to represent the emergent, situated experiences of age within digital games. We find that age-related cues communicated through game design can contribute to flexible role-playing experiences and, if imposed after being loosely defined, can also disrupt immersion and constrain player agency. These impacts are especially salient in the contexts of character creation and in-game romance. Ultimately, we argue that age can be a powerful design affordance, yet remains underdeveloped in game studies and design. We also outline implications for improving RPG design.

KEY WORDS:
age, Baldur’s Gate 3, digital games, Dragon Age, game design, identity, role-playing games.

DOI:
10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.4-20

HOW TO CITE:
Bauer, DB, & Tomlinson, Ch. (2026). Design, agency, and in-game self: Understanding the constraints of age in digital games. Acta Ludologica, 9(1), 4-20. http://doi.org/10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.4-20

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