Pub Date : 2024-08-16DOI: 10.1177/15554120241273333
William Dunkel
Material conditions under global neoliberalism have increased youth precarity, and live-streaming has emerged as a form of “gig work” for young people as they broadcast their lives and social activities onto digital platforms. Studies have demonstrated that live-streaming often acts as a site of exploitation by corporate interests and self-commodification via platform capitalism where streamers adjust their behavior to serve the interests of capital accumulation. This article examines a subgroup of game streamers, “challenge runners,” who impose rules to increase gameplay difficulty thereby pursuing excellence in “unproductive” actions that relieve neoliberal isolation—categorized by the Korean youth cultural practice of yingyeo. By examining two popular British and Korean Twitch.tv challenge runners, The Hob and Lynn respectively, their streams and fan interactions, I identify how—in response to conditions under global neoliberalism—youth create meaningful relief through pursuing “valueless” behavior and affective support.
{"title":"“Take the Keys to the Happy Hob Hotel”: Live-Streaming, Yingyeo Culture, and Affective Support","authors":"William Dunkel","doi":"10.1177/15554120241273333","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241273333","url":null,"abstract":"Material conditions under global neoliberalism have increased youth precarity, and live-streaming has emerged as a form of “gig work” for young people as they broadcast their lives and social activities onto digital platforms. Studies have demonstrated that live-streaming often acts as a site of exploitation by corporate interests and self-commodification via platform capitalism where streamers adjust their behavior to serve the interests of capital accumulation. This article examines a subgroup of game streamers, “challenge runners,” who impose rules to increase gameplay difficulty thereby pursuing excellence in “unproductive” actions that relieve neoliberal isolation—categorized by the Korean youth cultural practice of yingyeo. By examining two popular British and Korean Twitch.tv challenge runners, The Hob and Lynn respectively, their streams and fan interactions, I identify how—in response to conditions under global neoliberalism—youth create meaningful relief through pursuing “valueless” behavior and affective support.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"32 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142184704","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-08-16DOI: 10.1177/15554120241273405
Kandukuri Kumaraswamy
The article detailed how stochastic process models are used to analyze game progression and included examples to illustrate the process. The issue was examined using the idea of a game; stochastic models were built, and transition matrix probabilities were estimated using the results obtained. As a result, win and loss can be used to indicate the states. The models that have been provided make it possible to identify and examine the interactions among the collection of system states. For the purpose of modeling events and computing transition probabilities between states, Markov chains and Hidden Markov Models are employed. The suggested frameworks enable the prediction of future states and allow for the differentiation of game phases of flow.
{"title":"Stochastic Process Approaches for Modeling of Games","authors":"Kandukuri Kumaraswamy","doi":"10.1177/15554120241273405","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241273405","url":null,"abstract":"The article detailed how stochastic process models are used to analyze game progression and included examples to illustrate the process. The issue was examined using the idea of a game; stochastic models were built, and transition matrix probabilities were estimated using the results obtained. As a result, win and loss can be used to indicate the states. The models that have been provided make it possible to identify and examine the interactions among the collection of system states. For the purpose of modeling events and computing transition probabilities between states, Markov chains and Hidden Markov Models are employed. The suggested frameworks enable the prediction of future states and allow for the differentiation of game phases of flow.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"53 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142184698","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-08-16DOI: 10.1177/15554120241273392
Esteban Crespo-Martinez, Salvador Bueno, M. Dolores Gallego
In the last decades, serious games, as a category of video games, have become a valuable tool in learning, demonstrating that it is possible to learn while playing. This work aims to identify a taxonomy of research in this domain, exploring serious games’ interactive and immersive aspects with educational and practical situations, which make them a powerful tool for entrepreneurship learning. For this purpose, the PRISMA method was used to complete a systematic literature review. In this regard, 1458 research studies were initially identified, from which 171 were considered eligible for a quantitative synthesis and only 65 for a meta-analysis. Consequently, the textometric analysis was performed with the IRAMUTEQ software. The analysis allowed the location of six clusters, summarizing the characteristics of a serious game that engages and motivates players in entrepreneurial education.
{"title":"Taxonomy of Studies on the Use of Video Games in Entrepreneurship Education: A Systematic Literature Review with a Textometric Analysis","authors":"Esteban Crespo-Martinez, Salvador Bueno, M. Dolores Gallego","doi":"10.1177/15554120241273392","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241273392","url":null,"abstract":"In the last decades, serious games, as a category of video games, have become a valuable tool in learning, demonstrating that it is possible to learn while playing. This work aims to identify a taxonomy of research in this domain, exploring serious games’ interactive and immersive aspects with educational and practical situations, which make them a powerful tool for entrepreneurship learning. For this purpose, the PRISMA method was used to complete a systematic literature review. In this regard, 1458 research studies were initially identified, from which 171 were considered eligible for a quantitative synthesis and only 65 for a meta-analysis. Consequently, the textometric analysis was performed with the IRAMUTEQ software. The analysis allowed the location of six clusters, summarizing the characteristics of a serious game that engages and motivates players in entrepreneurial education.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"143 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142184699","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-08-07DOI: 10.1177/15554120241270058
Jingwen Zhang, Tong Zhu, Xinyi Chang
On the basis of theoretical verification and case support of gamified learning effects, educational games have been widely valued by museum education providers for their advantages in enhancing users’ intrinsic motivation, building interactive experiences, and creating social situations. This paper attempts to analyze the learning theories, game elements, and positive effects of specific educational games by conducting an integrated review of the current museum educational game literature in academia and selecting 24 thematic papers from the period 2017–2022. Based on the literature review, it is hoped that the advantages and limitations of current museum educational games can be illustrated to a certain extent, and the value of the games for education and enjoyment can be explored and utilized to provide reference for the design and development and continuous optimization of future museum educational games and promote the further deepening of museum educational functions.
{"title":"Educational Games of Museums: A Literature Review","authors":"Jingwen Zhang, Tong Zhu, Xinyi Chang","doi":"10.1177/15554120241270058","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241270058","url":null,"abstract":"On the basis of theoretical verification and case support of gamified learning effects, educational games have been widely valued by museum education providers for their advantages in enhancing users’ intrinsic motivation, building interactive experiences, and creating social situations. This paper attempts to analyze the learning theories, game elements, and positive effects of specific educational games by conducting an integrated review of the current museum educational game literature in academia and selecting 24 thematic papers from the period 2017–2022. Based on the literature review, it is hoped that the advantages and limitations of current museum educational games can be illustrated to a certain extent, and the value of the games for education and enjoyment can be explored and utilized to provide reference for the design and development and continuous optimization of future museum educational games and promote the further deepening of museum educational functions.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"10 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141946750","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-21DOI: 10.1177/15554120241265775
Atėnė Mendelytė
Regarding video games as loci of philosophical thinking, not simply illustrations of preexisting philosophical concepts and positions, is far too rare in gamic thought studies. Yet due to the conceptually complex nature of the critically acclaimed Alan Wake 2 (Remedy Entertainment, 2023) such a perspective becomes necessary in order to fully understand the philosophical, gamic, and aesthetic complexity of the game. Subsequently, this article argues that the game performs what is termed “procedural philosophy” as it involves adapting a position of radical skepticism and questioning the essential ontological categories of both the gamic and the nongamic reality. As the analysis shows, Alan Wake 2 develops a philosophical conceptualization of reality which results in the formation of “obscure ideas,” related to a gamic flattening of ontology.
{"title":"I Play, Therefore I Think: Procedural Philosophy in Remedy Entertainment's Alan Wake 2 (2023)","authors":"Atėnė Mendelytė","doi":"10.1177/15554120241265775","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241265775","url":null,"abstract":"Regarding video games as loci of philosophical thinking, not simply illustrations of preexisting philosophical concepts and positions, is far too rare in gamic thought studies. Yet due to the conceptually complex nature of the critically acclaimed Alan Wake 2 (Remedy Entertainment, 2023) such a perspective becomes necessary in order to fully understand the philosophical, gamic, and aesthetic complexity of the game. Subsequently, this article argues that the game performs what is termed “procedural philosophy” as it involves adapting a position of radical skepticism and questioning the essential ontological categories of both the gamic and the nongamic reality. As the analysis shows, Alan Wake 2 develops a philosophical conceptualization of reality which results in the formation of “obscure ideas,” related to a gamic flattening of ontology.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"63 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141742955","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-21DOI: 10.1177/15554120241263652
Agata Waszkiewicz
The recent decade brought increasing interest in metareferentiality in video games. The article builds upon the body of research regarding metaleptic transgression in games by discussing examples of specific occurrences in which a text or a character seemingly escapes from within the boundaries of their primary, fictional world in a way that resembles ontological metalepsis. Acknowledging that such transgression is impossible, the article proposes that discussed examples might not be examples of metalepsis but rather ontological reframing, a cognitive shift in perception. The case studies come from games by Daniel Mullins and Sam Lake.
{"title":"The Show, the Game, and the Old Gods: On the Ontological Reframing and the Fiction/Real Boundary","authors":"Agata Waszkiewicz","doi":"10.1177/15554120241263652","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241263652","url":null,"abstract":"The recent decade brought increasing interest in metareferentiality in video games. The article builds upon the body of research regarding metaleptic transgression in games by discussing examples of specific occurrences in which a text or a character seemingly escapes from within the boundaries of their primary, fictional world in a way that resembles ontological metalepsis. Acknowledging that such transgression is impossible, the article proposes that discussed examples might not be examples of metalepsis but rather ontological reframing, a cognitive shift in perception. The case studies come from games by Daniel Mullins and Sam Lake.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"96 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141742803","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-21DOI: 10.1177/15554120241265139
Elizabeth D. Kilmer, Zeynep Aslan, Rachel Kowert
There has been an increased focus on reducing hate, harassment, and extremist exploitation in digital games through solutions from community management, trust and safety, and design perspectives. Despite this attention, the industry lacks basic standards around these issues and efforts in this area are stymied by the ubiquity of “toxic gamer culture” and fears in the industry about discussing extremism and hate within games. Today, a patchwork of strategies and tools exist. In this study, focus groups with industry professionals were conducted to increase understanding of industry professional's perceptions of these problems and solutions. Several primary themes regarding solutions emerged: game and social system design strategies, moderation and player report strategies, and wish list solutions.
{"title":"Addressing Toxicity and Extremism in Games: Conversations with the Video Game Industry","authors":"Elizabeth D. Kilmer, Zeynep Aslan, Rachel Kowert","doi":"10.1177/15554120241265139","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241265139","url":null,"abstract":"There has been an increased focus on reducing hate, harassment, and extremist exploitation in digital games through solutions from community management, trust and safety, and design perspectives. Despite this attention, the industry lacks basic standards around these issues and efforts in this area are stymied by the ubiquity of “toxic gamer culture” and fears in the industry about discussing extremism and hate within games. Today, a patchwork of strategies and tools exist. In this study, focus groups with industry professionals were conducted to increase understanding of industry professional's perceptions of these problems and solutions. Several primary themes regarding solutions emerged: game and social system design strategies, moderation and player report strategies, and wish list solutions.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"2010 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141742956","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-21DOI: 10.1177/15554120241263630
Enzo D’Armenio
In this paper, we intend to construct an original integration between the ontology and hermeneutics of video games proposed in the field of game studies and the post-structuralist approach of contemporary semiotics. The aim is to propose a new epistemology of video game and virtual reality experiences grounded in the concept of movement. These media will be reconceptualized as image-movements: expressive systems that rely on the interrelation of two sets of qualities, visual qualities and kinetic qualities. First, we will perform an integration between the concept of ergodic literature developed in the field of game studies and recent developments as regards a semiotics of practices. Starting from this general convergence, we will rely on the meta-ontology of video games proposed by Espen Aarseth and Paweł Grabarczyk to build a theory capable of integrating as many dimensions as possible around a kinetic explanatory core.
{"title":"From the Ontology of Video Games to the Epistemology of Digital Movements. Towards a Semiotics of Virtual Practices","authors":"Enzo D’Armenio","doi":"10.1177/15554120241263630","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241263630","url":null,"abstract":"In this paper, we intend to construct an original integration between the ontology and hermeneutics of video games proposed in the field of game studies and the post-structuralist approach of contemporary semiotics. The aim is to propose a new epistemology of video game and virtual reality experiences grounded in the concept of movement. These media will be reconceptualized as image-movements: expressive systems that rely on the interrelation of two sets of qualities, visual qualities and kinetic qualities. First, we will perform an integration between the concept of ergodic literature developed in the field of game studies and recent developments as regards a semiotics of practices. Starting from this general convergence, we will rely on the meta-ontology of video games proposed by Espen Aarseth and Paweł Grabarczyk to build a theory capable of integrating as many dimensions as possible around a kinetic explanatory core.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"20 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141742957","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-01DOI: 10.1177/15554120241248487
Marcello Passarelli, Michele Masini, Tommaso Francesco Piccinno, Alessandro Rizzi
Board games provide immersive and enjoyable experiences for players, but they can also pose usability challenges. This article presents a comprehensive framework for analyzing board game design, focusing on identifying the elements that make play inadvertently difficult or fatiguing. The proposed framework analyses board games as a user interface between the players and the board game mechanics, thereby focusing on the presentation aspects without altering the underlying rules. The intent is to preserve the deliberate design challenges that enhance gameplay while pinpointing the elements that affect the game experience negatively. We employ a methodology that begins with the observation of players’ behavioral cues to infer internal states such as cognitive or visual fatigue. These inferred states serve as a basis to identify problematic features in the game components or presentation. We illustrate the framework through a series of case studies, providing practical examples of the analysis process through an idiographic approach.
{"title":"Don't Flip the Table Yet: A Framework for the Analysis of Visual and Cognitive Ergonomics in Board Games","authors":"Marcello Passarelli, Michele Masini, Tommaso Francesco Piccinno, Alessandro Rizzi","doi":"10.1177/15554120241248487","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241248487","url":null,"abstract":"Board games provide immersive and enjoyable experiences for players, but they can also pose usability challenges. This article presents a comprehensive framework for analyzing board game design, focusing on identifying the elements that make play inadvertently difficult or fatiguing. The proposed framework analyses board games as a user interface between the players and the board game mechanics, thereby focusing on the presentation aspects without altering the underlying rules. The intent is to preserve the deliberate design challenges that enhance gameplay while pinpointing the elements that affect the game experience negatively. We employ a methodology that begins with the observation of players’ behavioral cues to infer internal states such as cognitive or visual fatigue. These inferred states serve as a basis to identify problematic features in the game components or presentation. We illustrate the framework through a series of case studies, providing practical examples of the analysis process through an idiographic approach.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"45 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140837408","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-01DOI: 10.1177/15554120241251523
William Helmke
With increasing focus on global markets for media, video game localization continues to be an essential process for the industry. However, video game localization only sometimes effectively handles the unique cultural elements of video games. In some cases, these localizations intentionally erase such elements to make the game more marketable or remove controversial content in an American cultural context. This article explores the localization of Megami Ibunroku Persona (retitled Revelations: Persona for its U.S. release) and considers how its localization changed various elements to convert the setting from a Japanese city to a U.S. one. Using a Neoformalism-inspired approach to game studies, I analyze playthroughs of both the original Japanese version and the U.S. localization, noting how changes erased cultural uniqueness in the original. Then, from the standpoint of cultural imperialism, I discuss how localization can function as a defense mechanism for limiting the cultural impact of imported media.
{"title":"Cultural Imperialism and Video Game Localization: A Case Study of Revelations: Persona","authors":"William Helmke","doi":"10.1177/15554120241251523","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120241251523","url":null,"abstract":"With increasing focus on global markets for media, video game localization continues to be an essential process for the industry. However, video game localization only sometimes effectively handles the unique cultural elements of video games. In some cases, these localizations intentionally erase such elements to make the game more marketable or remove controversial content in an American cultural context. This article explores the localization of Megami Ibunroku Persona (retitled Revelations: Persona for its U.S. release) and considers how its localization changed various elements to convert the setting from a Japanese city to a U.S. one. Using a Neoformalism-inspired approach to game studies, I analyze playthroughs of both the original Japanese version and the U.S. localization, noting how changes erased cultural uniqueness in the original. Then, from the standpoint of cultural imperialism, I discuss how localization can function as a defense mechanism for limiting the cultural impact of imported media.","PeriodicalId":12634,"journal":{"name":"Games and Culture","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140837061","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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