This article demonstrates how one can distinguish a digital game auteur based on works conceived by Martinican designer Muriel Tramis. Eight games (M.wilo, Freedom, Emmanuelle, Geisha, Fascination, Gobliiins, Lost in Time and Woodruff and the Schnibble of Azimuth) have been selected to extract the characteristic features of Tramis’s contributions. The research results identify four leading features: sophisticated puzzles, subversion of pornography, critique of racism and colonialism and the extensive use of authorial signatures. By engaging with the work of Tramis, the author of this article hopes to spark further academic interest in rediscovering the output of non-canonical (female) designers outside the trans-Pacific circle.
本文将展示如何根据Martinican设计师Muriel Tramis构思的作品来区分数字游戏导演。选取《M.wilo》、《Freedom》、《Emmanuelle》、《Geisha》、《charm》、《Gobliiins》、《Lost in Time》和《Woodruff and the Schnibble of Azimuth》这8款游戏来提取Tramis贡献的特征。研究结果确定了四个主要特征:复杂的谜题，对色情的颠覆，对种族主义和殖民主义的批评以及作者签名的广泛使用。通过参与Tramis的工作，本文的作者希望激发进一步的学术兴趣，重新发现跨太平洋圈以外的非规范(女性)设计师的作品。
{"title":"Digital games and the category of auteur: The case of Muriel Tramis","authors":"Filip Jankowski","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00070_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00070_1","url":null,"abstract":"This article demonstrates how one can distinguish a digital game auteur based on works conceived by Martinican designer Muriel Tramis. Eight games (M.wilo, Freedom, Emmanuelle, Geisha, Fascination, Gobliiins, Lost in Time and Woodruff and the Schnibble of Azimuth) have been selected to extract the characteristic features of Tramis’s contributions. The research results identify four leading features: sophisticated puzzles, subversion of pornography, critique of racism and colonialism and the extensive use of authorial signatures. By engaging with the work of Tramis, the author of this article hopes to spark further academic interest in rediscovering the output of non-canonical (female) designers outside the trans-Pacific circle.","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2023-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85792489","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Eric Barone’s 2016 indie ‘country life simulator’ video game Stardew Valley has yet to be evaluated through the dual lenses of neo-liberal capitalism and ecocriticism. Given his intention for the game to have real-world messages, including the importance of community organization against corporate domination and of environmental conservation, there is a need to evaluate the intent and execution of his vision to determine if the resulting gameplay truly conveys those messages to his audience. This article draws on neo-liberal capitalist video game theory, or the simulation of capitalist circuits in video games as theorized by Kline and Golumbia, and ecocritical video game theory, or environmental modelling strategies in video games as discussed by Chang and Condis, to argue that video games are political texts, that the game mechanics within demonstrate the process-oriented ‘work as play’ mentality that simulates capitalist circuits and that the misrepresentation of environmentality through selective reproduction of real-world processes detrimentally impacts the agency and responsibility of consumers of video games. After engaging in an analysis of Barone’s representations of the in-game economy and environment via the player character’s origin story, methods of production, community organization and environmental interactions, this article concludes with a final discussion about the limitations of video game design, defence of Barone’s intent and execution and submission of suggestions for improvement and reflections on future study.
{"title":"Playing farmer: At the intersections of neo-liberal capitalism and ecocriticism in Stardew Valley","authors":"Sydney Crowley","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00069_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00069_1","url":null,"abstract":"Eric Barone’s 2016 indie ‘country life simulator’ video game Stardew Valley has yet to be evaluated through the dual lenses of neo-liberal capitalism and ecocriticism. Given his intention for the game to have real-world messages, including the importance of community organization against corporate domination and of environmental conservation, there is a need to evaluate the intent and execution of his vision to determine if the resulting gameplay truly conveys those messages to his audience. This article draws on neo-liberal capitalist video game theory, or the simulation of capitalist circuits in video games as theorized by Kline and Golumbia, and ecocritical video game theory, or environmental modelling strategies in video games as discussed by Chang and Condis, to argue that video games are political texts, that the game mechanics within demonstrate the process-oriented ‘work as play’ mentality that simulates capitalist circuits and that the misrepresentation of environmentality through selective reproduction of real-world processes detrimentally impacts the agency and responsibility of consumers of video games. After engaging in an analysis of Barone’s representations of the in-game economy and environment via the player character’s origin story, methods of production, community organization and environmental interactions, this article concludes with a final discussion about the limitations of video game design, defence of Barone’s intent and execution and submission of suggestions for improvement and reflections on future study.","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2023-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80341252","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Review of: Cyberpunk Culture and Psychology: Seeing through the Mirrorshades , Anna Mcfarlane (2022) New York: Routledge, 180 pp., ISBN 978-0-36753-568-1, h/bk, USD 136.00
{"title":"Cyberpunk Culture and Psychology: Seeing through the Mirrorshades, Anna Mcfarlane (2022)","authors":"James Shelton","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00072_5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00072_5","url":null,"abstract":"Review of: Cyberpunk Culture and Psychology: Seeing through the Mirrorshades , Anna Mcfarlane (2022) New York: Routledge, 180 pp., ISBN 978-0-36753-568-1, h/bk, USD 136.00","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134992299","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Board Games as Media, Paul Booth (2021)","authors":"M. Johnson","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00071_5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00071_5","url":null,"abstract":"Review of: Board Games as Media, Paul Booth (2021)\u0000 New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 282 pp.,\u0000 ISBN 978-1-50135-717-6, p/bk, USD 29.95","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2023-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72399506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This article looks at how games created with the ChoiceScript authoring tool create a situation in which players construct a sense of self using the developer’s assumptions hidden within the code. Some interactive narratives use statistics (also called ‘alignment systems’) to keep track of player choices, saving them in the form of character descriptions such as ‘Good’, ‘Humanity’ or ‘Booksmarts’. ChoiceScript is an authoring tool designed to encourage the creation of text-based interactive narratives that heavily revolve around such stats and the prominent display of a ‘Show Stats’ page. This article explores how many ChoiceScript games use the procedural enthymeme to embed the developer’s assumptions into their stats. Many ChoiceScript games also have a structure that is evocative of pop culture personality tests. These two elements – the procedural enthymeme and a pop culture personality test structure – combine to generate an experience of developer-mediated self-curation.
{"title":"ChoiceScript and developer-mediated self-curation","authors":"Antranig Sarian","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00068_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00068_1","url":null,"abstract":"This article looks at how games created with the ChoiceScript authoring tool create a situation in which players construct a sense of self using the developer’s assumptions hidden within the code. Some interactive narratives use statistics (also called ‘alignment systems’) to keep track of player choices, saving them in the form of character descriptions such as ‘Good’, ‘Humanity’ or ‘Booksmarts’. ChoiceScript is an authoring tool designed to encourage the creation of text-based interactive narratives that heavily revolve around such stats and the prominent display of a ‘Show Stats’ page. This article explores how many ChoiceScript games use the procedural enthymeme to embed the developer’s assumptions into their stats. Many ChoiceScript games also have a structure that is evocative of pop culture personality tests. These two elements – the procedural enthymeme and a pop culture personality test structure – combine to generate an experience of developer-mediated self-curation.","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135703456","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In this examination of spatio-temporality’s representation in two- and three-dimensional video games, diegetic time and how a game’s overriding metaphors may be reflected in both gameplay and a storyworld’s virtual environment are considered at length through the idealist philosophy of George Berkeley, with an important adaptation of what Ludwig Wittgenstein referred to as ‘information-time’ experienced by conscious players operating in ‘memory-time’. After considering a number of examples from Outer Wilds and the Legend of Zelda franchise, the question as to whether video games are ontically presentist is resolved by way of a synthesis between the expression of time in spatial terms and every video game’s minimum of interactivity, a distinction I adapt from Henri Bergson and Maurice Merleau-Ponty. The continual creation of a digital world, while materially a fact of hardware limitations, is shown to lend itself metaphorically to an eidetic reading, bound to our intuitive association of time and space with inhabitation.
{"title":"Continual creation: Idealism, metaphor and the representation of spatio-temporality","authors":"Erick Verran","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00073_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00073_1","url":null,"abstract":"In this examination of spatio-temporality’s representation in two- and three-dimensional video games, diegetic time and how a game’s overriding metaphors may be reflected in both gameplay and a storyworld’s virtual environment are considered at length through the idealist philosophy of George Berkeley, with an important adaptation of what Ludwig Wittgenstein referred to as ‘information-time’ experienced by conscious players operating in ‘memory-time’. After considering a number of examples from Outer Wilds and the Legend of Zelda franchise, the question as to whether video games are ontically presentist is resolved by way of a synthesis between the expression of time in spatial terms and every video game’s minimum of interactivity, a distinction I adapt from Henri Bergson and Maurice Merleau-Ponty. The continual creation of a digital world, while materially a fact of hardware limitations, is shown to lend itself metaphorically to an eidetic reading, bound to our intuitive association of time and space with inhabitation.","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2023-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76619713","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Interdisciplinary game studies have long been fascinated by video games and their potential to improve mental health. Despite this interest, there is not yet a cohesive rhetorical framework to connect conversations about mental health with specific types of games. Following call to adopt the term ‘cosy’ for games which inspire feelings of safety in players, encourage self-actualization and utilize soft aesthetics helps clarify discussions of the games suited to help improve mental health and allow players to process complex emotions. This article uses a close reading of the Nomada Studios game Gris to argue that considering cosiness when studying the connection between games, emotion and mental health will help researchers find a connection between game aesthetics and the types of psychological issues that a game can address effectively.
{"title":"The visual and narrative rhetoric of mental health in Gris","authors":"Marissa M. Baker","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00061_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00061_1","url":null,"abstract":"Interdisciplinary game studies have long been fascinated by video games and their potential to improve mental health. Despite this interest, there is not yet a cohesive rhetorical framework to connect conversations about mental health with specific types of games. Following call to adopt the term ‘cosy’ for games which inspire feelings of safety in players, encourage self-actualization and utilize soft aesthetics helps clarify discussions of the games suited to help improve mental health and allow players to process complex emotions. This article uses a close reading of the Nomada Studios game Gris to argue that considering cosiness when studying the connection between games, emotion and mental health will help researchers find a connection between game aesthetics and the types of psychological issues that a game can address effectively.","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2022-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90524636","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The emergence of the genre of ‘walking simulators’ problematized the way by which a ‘game’ is defined. As walking simulators were relegated to the realm of being a non-game or an anti-game in a post-GamerGate world, it became increasingly important to evaluate the relationship that they had with masculinity and femininity. Moreover, it became crucial to articulate the interventions that the genre was offering and to review the definition of a ‘game’ in order to account for greater inclusivity. This essay examines walking simulators through a multidisciplinary lens, bringing in fields such as sociology, queer theory and communication to name a few. By tying together multidisciplinary perspectives on walking simulators, I reveal the genre’s engagements with care-oriented labour and an ‘ethics of care’. The essay concludes with a discussion on the games Firewatch and Death Stranding, where the implications of their respective entanglements with an ethics of care are foregrounded.
{"title":"Walking simulators and an ethics of care: An essay","authors":"Shiv Issar","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00064_3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00064_3","url":null,"abstract":"The emergence of the genre of ‘walking simulators’ problematized the way by which a ‘game’ is defined. As walking simulators were relegated to the realm of being a non-game or an anti-game in a post-GamerGate world, it became increasingly important to evaluate the relationship that they had with masculinity and femininity. Moreover, it became crucial to articulate the interventions that the genre was offering and to review the definition of a ‘game’ in order to account for greater inclusivity. This essay examines walking simulators through a multidisciplinary lens, bringing in fields such as sociology, queer theory and communication to name a few. By tying together multidisciplinary perspectives on walking simulators, I reveal the genre’s engagements with care-oriented labour and an ‘ethics of care’. The essay concludes with a discussion on the games Firewatch and Death Stranding, where the implications of their respective entanglements with an ethics of care are foregrounded.","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2022-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83758245","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The textured ancient inscriptions that can be found in the video game Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time are central to this study. There are currently no publications that analyse the ancient cuneiform inscriptions in detail. Most sources of information briefly discuss general ‘game studies’ aspects and do not comment on or criticize historical accuracy. There are limited sources that discuss video games using an Assyriological perspective. This article is, therefore, an interdisciplinary study between archaeogaming and Assyriology, which falls within the broader game studies field. The intent is also to address the ongoing downward trend currently experienced in the field of Ancient Studies by bringing more attention to the study of Assyriology, cuneiform studies and philology in gaming (Assyriogaming) using Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time as a reference. The main focus is to decipher, translate and consider how accurate and immersive the in-game cuneiform textures are in relation to the diegetic time period the game is theoretically set in. The analysis will include a storyline synopsis which will briefly discuss the architectural settings and characters. The purpose of this is to expand upon the already existing game studies literature associated with the game to show how additional background information can be used to frame and construct an implied historical context. This historical context can then be used to translate the in-game cuneiform inscriptions demonstrating why the game can be used as an effective Assyriology teaching tool.
{"title":"Analysing ancient cuneiform inscriptions in the video game Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time1","authors":"D. Gibson","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00063_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00063_1","url":null,"abstract":"The textured ancient inscriptions that can be found in the video game Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time are central to this study. There are currently no publications that analyse the ancient cuneiform inscriptions in detail. Most sources of information briefly discuss general ‘game studies’ aspects and do not comment on or criticize historical accuracy. There are limited sources that discuss video games using an Assyriological perspective. This article is, therefore, an interdisciplinary study between archaeogaming and Assyriology, which falls within the broader game studies field. The intent is also to address the ongoing downward trend currently experienced in the field of Ancient Studies by bringing more attention to the study of Assyriology, cuneiform studies and philology in gaming (Assyriogaming) using Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time as a reference. The main focus is to decipher, translate and consider how accurate and immersive the in-game cuneiform textures are in relation to the diegetic time period the game is theoretically set in. The analysis will include a storyline synopsis which will briefly discuss the architectural settings and characters. The purpose of this is to expand upon the already existing game studies literature associated with the game to show how additional background information can be used to frame and construct an implied historical context. This historical context can then be used to translate the in-game cuneiform inscriptions demonstrating why the game can be used as an effective Assyriology teaching tool.","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2022-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88258475","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Review of: Adventure Games: Playing the Outsider, Aaron A. Reed, John T. Murray and Anastasia Salter (2020) New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 230 pp., ISBN 978-1-50138-582-7, p/bk, USD 52.50
《Adventure Games: Playing the Outsider》，Aaron A. Reed, John T. Murray和Anastasia Salter(2020)，纽约:Bloomsbury Academic出版社，230页，ISBN 978-1-50138-582-7, p/bk, 52.50美元
{"title":"Adventure Games: Playing the Outsider, Aaron A. Reed, John T. Murray and Anastasia Salter (2020)","authors":"Samuel Poirier-Poulin","doi":"10.1386/jgvw_00067_5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00067_5","url":null,"abstract":"Review of: Adventure Games: Playing the Outsider, Aaron A. Reed, John T. Murray and Anastasia Salter (2020)\u0000 New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 230 pp.,\u0000 ISBN 978-1-50138-582-7, p/bk, USD 52.50","PeriodicalId":43635,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2022-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80260341","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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