Nosferatu: 100 Years of Horror
Register for the event HERE.
Organizers: Ervin Malakaj & Evan Torner
Date: Friday, March 18, 2022
Co-Sponsored by the CES Cinema Studies Network and the Weimar Film Network
“Nosferatu: Does not this word sound like the call of the death bird at midnight?” For a century, audiences have passed into a haunting world of corruption, pandemic, and death through the silent film classic Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (1922). This one-day symposium takes the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the film’s public release (March 15, 1922) to examine the contours of this still-unsettling text.
Speakers will addresses a range of formal and thematic features of Nosferatu, ranging from detailed scene analyses to studies of the broader social issues that still speak to contemporary audiences (e.g., marginalization, unrest, queerness, Jewishness, and more). In the symposium’s distilled academic form, we embrace the continued public interest in this film and hope to pique the interest of the audience to watch it yet another time (or, better still, for the first time).
The symposium is divided into five blocks, each of which follows one of these formats: focus takes or long(er) takes. The focus takes permit speakers to offer a deep-dive into one scene: description and analysis of a pertinent part of the film. The long(er) takes provide speakers the chance to advance extensive arguments about the film on the whole. Both formats are devised to generate a discussion and incentivize more engagement with the film.
All times below listed in Eastern Standard Time (GMT -4)
9 – 10:30 am Block 1 Focus Take
Moderator: Evan Torner (University of Cincinnati)
• “Unfathomable Animals”
Michael Wedel (Filmuniversität Babelsberg Konrad Wolf)
• “Cross-Cutting and Vampiric Correspondences”
Steve Choe (San Francisco State University)
• “No(w)sferatu: the Borrowed and Rejected Legacy of the Vampire in Modern Visual Media”
Brandy E. Wilcox (University of Wisconsin–Madison)
11 am – 12:30 pm Block 2 Long(er) Take
Moderator: Evan Torner (University of Cincinnati)
• “‘Jewish’ Vampirism in Nosferatu”
Molly Harrabin (University of Warwick)
• “The Viral Spread of Rumors”
Nicholas Baer (University of Groningen)
• “Embargoes, Socialist Jesus, and the Rights to Dracula: Exporting Nosferatu in the 1920s”
Sara Friedman (University of California Berkeley)
2 – 3:30 pm Block 3 Focus Take
• Moderator: Ervin Malakaj (University of British Columbia)
“The Tentacular Polyp: Animality, Tentacularity, and Dead Time”
• William Brown (University of British Columbia)
“In the Dark?”
• Wendy Timmons (Vanderbilt University)
“Nosferatu’s Knock Chase Sequence”
Evan Torner (University of Cincinnati)
• “Watching Knock Reading”
Ilinca Iurascu (University of British Columbia)
4 – 5:30 pm Block 4 Long(er) Take
Moderator: Ervin Malakaj (University of British Columbia)
• “Hypnosis as Cultural Phenomenon and Metaphor”
Anjeana Hans (Wellesley College)
• “Location Shooting, Nature, and Gender”
Adrian Daub (Stanford University)
7 – 8:30 pm Block 5 Long(er) Take
Moderator: Evan Torner (University of Cincinnati)
• “‘The Death Ship Has a New Captain’: Middle Passage Epistemologies, Colonial Fantasies, and the Monstrous Other”
Adrienne Merritt (University of Colorado Boulder)
• “On Asociality and Queer Loneliness in Nosferatu”
Ervin Malakaj (University of British Columbia)
• “Murnau’s Cinema of Contamination”
Paul Dobryden (University of Virginia)
Register for the event HERE.
On Thursday March 15th, the winner and honorable mentions of the 2018 SCMS Central/East/South European Media Essay Award were announced. The $500 award goes to an exemplary essay published in the field of Central/East/South European Cinema and Media Studies during the 2017 calendar year.
We had 19 submissions this year, which shows the robustness of scholarship in our field.
The Awards Committee consisted of: Ana Grgic, Larson Powell, Natascha Drubek, Lars Kristensen, and Evan Torner.
WINNER
“Soviet Estonian animated science fiction: Avo Paistik’s mischievous universes.”
Eva Näripea (Film Archives of the National Archives of Estonia, Tallinn, Estonia)
This theoretically ambitious essay focuses on the paradoxes of “developed socialism” through the example of the technophobic animated sci-fi works by Avo Paistik. Näripea demonstrates how to integrate film history, ideology, and genre studies with precision and intellectual heft.
Full citation: Eva Näripea (2017) “Soviet Estonian animated science fiction: Avo
Paistik’s mischievous universes.” Studies in Eastern European Cinema 8:2, 160-173.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
“Remembering Socialist Entertainment: Romanian Television, Gestures and Intimacy.”
Alice Bardan (University of Southern California)
An admirable overview of Romanian television with respect to post-1989 nostalgia and the afterlife of communist broadcast culture.
Published in: The European Journal of Cultural Studies. January 20, 2017. 1-18.
________________________
“Youth, Nomadism, and Claustrophobia in the Argentinian and Romanian New Waves: Stuff and Dough and Pizza, Beer, and Cigarettes”
Raluca Iacob (Astra Film Festival)
An innovative comparative analysis that seeks a broader generational dialogue regarding contemporary global cinema.
Published in: New Romanian Cinema 41.2. October 2017. http://dx.doi.org/10.3998/fc.13761232.0041.207
________________________
“War rape in the face of heroic narrative. The case of Polish cinema”
Magdalena Podsiadło-Kwiecień (Jagiellonian University)
Published in: TransMissions: The Journal of Film and Media Studies 2.1. 2017. 132-149.
A clear and moving description of the relationship between sexual violence, oral history, trauma, and the possibilities of cinema narrative.
________________________
Please join us in congratulating the authors of these articles, and consider submitting your work next year.
We will be holding elections for the new SIG co-chairs for SCMS 2019-2021 in June. Stay tuned for the announcement.
Best wishes,
-Evan Torner and Ana Grgic
Co-Chairs, SCMS Central/East/South European Cinemas Special Interest Group
More Game Quests You’ve Been Waiting For (2017)
March 28, 2017
Well, they’re finally here. Here are some more to choose from.
Attendance Poll Analysis
Quest: To clean up, analyze, and visualize the dataset of attendance poll data across 2 semesters.
[DIGITAL SCHOLARS]
Procedure: Procure a copy of the Excel file containing the Poll Responses from both semesters and read them with an eye on how the data might best be analyzed and represented. Then schedule an appointment with our Digital Humanities specialist James Lee (lee6jj@ucmail.uc.edu) who will show you how this data can be cleaned up and made ready for analysis, and then visually presented. Analyze the data and see if you can find 1-2 major points of interest. Present these 1-2 points using compelling graphics.
Points: Cleaned Up Datafile in Excel format (10), Research Question (10), Articulation of Findings (10), Data Visualization Quality = 40 points.
Board Game Adaptations
Quest: To play a board-game adaptation of a certain property and concept, and then think about what it means.
[ANALOG GAME ENTHUSIASTS]
Procedure: Pick a board game –– any board game. I have quite a few in the UC Game Lab that might be of interest. Play it as close to the rules written as possible with a group of friends and/or fellow students. Make sure you take notes about your experience, especially given what play options you have at any given moment in time. Then research the topic the game is presumably about (Example: Monopoly is about real estate, Ticket to Ride is about the expansion and development of train travel across the USA), picking at least 1 or 2 high-quality scholarly sources in doing so (and consult a librarian if you have questions about that). Afterwards, write a 3-5 page response essay to your play experience with respect to the actual material on which it is based.
Points: Writing Style (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Quality of Secondary Literature Sources (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
The Cocktail Machine and Its Depths
Quest: To find several unsung “gems” among the various games available on the UC Game Lab cocktail cabinet.
[ARCADE GAME ENTHUSIAST]
Procedure: Arrange at least 2 meeting times with Dr. Torner to set up the cocktail machine and play several of the titles available. You will learn how to use the machine, as well as experiment with numerous games. Write notes about which games you choose to play and what your play experience on each is like. Then write a 3-5 page essay closely analyzing your experience, paying particular attention to how long you tended to play each game, and why a more obscure title you found is nevertheless worthy of our attention. You will likely have to do some background research to make your argument.
Points: Writing Style (10), Evidence of Reflective Play Sessions (10), Persuasiveness of Argument about Obscure Title (10), Precision of Description (10) = 40 points
Deck Building FTW
Quest: To teach me about deckbuilding games
[DECKBUILDING AFFICIONADOS]
Procedure: I’ll be honest –– I hate deckbuilding games, but I’ve got a whole collection of them in the UC Game Lab, and I’d like to be able to articulate their value to others. Describe at least 2 deckbuilding games in detail, using terminology from the course, and defend their aesthetic value. Bonus points if you actually convince me.
Points: Writing Style (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Uses Course Terminology (10) = 40 points
Everyone’s a Gamer
Quest: To give us a sense of everyday individuals’ interactions with games
[VIDEO JOURNALISTS]
Procedure: Interview on camera at least 3 different individuals about the games they play, how they play them, and those games that seem to be most “artistic” to them. Edit the footage into a 5-8 minute videoclip that also features video-captured recordings of the games discussed. Make sure that what you are producing is somehow in dialog with Adrienne Shaw’s work; that you do not assume certain individuals from certain demographics will appreciate certain games. Try to get at stories that run against the grain of established narratives. Upload the resultant video file on UC Box.
Points: Interviews of at least 3 people (10), Editing (10), Overall Polish (10), Subtle Underlying Argument (10) = 40 points
FATE and Afrofuture!
Quest: To play an RPG with respect to its socio-political content.
[D&D DUNGEON MASTERS]
Procedure: Get a copy of Afrofuture! the RPG from Dr. Torner, and run it for several friends or fellow students. Write up some notes about your experience afterward. Then do some research on afrofuturism as an aesthetic and socio-political movement, finding at least 1-2 high-quality scholarly sources. Write a 3-5 page essay relating your actual experience of playing Afrofuture! to the socio-political movement, paying particular attention to how the game mechanics themselves emphasize and/or undermine specific dynamics in that movement.
Points: Writing Style (10), Precision of Description (10), Persuasiveness of Argument, Drawing on a High-Quality Source (10), Grammar and Citations (10)
Game Lab Research
Quest: To look at the wide world of university game labs and talk about the future of our own.
[BUDDING ACADEMICS AND ADMINISTRATORS]
Procedure: Do some serious Internet searching, after consultation with Dr. Torner, on various game labs at universities around the world. Start with MIT, Tampere, UC Santa Cruz, Concordia University, but then branch out to find places and archives that maybe are under-represented. Call them or e-mail them and talk about their mission, how they fit into their university, and their main activities. Write up an annotated, comparative tour of at least 3 of these labs, assessing (in your language, not theirs) what they ostensibly do and how it fits into the larger picture of both their own institution and game studies in general.
Points: Writing Style & Organization (10), Evidence of Thorough Research (10), Informed Opinion about The Labs in Question (10), Presentation (10) = 40 points
Kill Screen
Quest: To evaluate quality games journalism.
[JOURNALIST AND GAME SCHOLAR]
Procedure: Purchase an issue of Kill Screen and read it from cover to cover. Then pick out 2 articles and evaluate everything about them: how they’re written, how they describe the games in question, and who their target audience appears to be. Consider the strengths and weaknesses of their presentation, and how you might cover this game yourself. Consider also how these essays might apply to course concepts. Write 4-5 pages with your evaluation and findings
Points: Writing Style (10), Precision of Description (10), Evaluation of Journalism (10), Incorporation of Course Concepts (10) = 40 points
Larping The Dream
Quest: To play the larp The Dream by Jason Morningstar & produce a final product on it
[LARPERS AND FILMMAKERS]
Procedure: Procure a copy of The Dream from me. Read it through and then gather 5-9 players to play it, as well as the materials. Run through the game, and write down your thoughts about it after the debrief. The game will have produced a recording, which you will edit and then compare to the game’s source material. Send me a 1-2 page essay reacting to your run of the game, paying particular attention to how your labor role in the game affected your play, and upload your video you produced to UC Box (or YouTube).
Points: Evidence of Actual Play (10), Writing Style for Reflection (10), Insights into the Game (10), Final Video Product – Whatever It May Look Like (10) = 40 points
Open Sorcery
Quest: To play Sorcery and have informed opinions about it
[INTERACTIVE FICTION FANS]
Procedure: Play the Inkle game Sorcery! and take notes while you do so. Examine in particular the impact of the player-character choices you make in the game. Then write a 3-5 page essay comparing the choice impact in this game with any other game you have played, especially BioWare, Bethesda, or other Inkle Games. In your comparison, advance an argument about what the game’s accomplishments are with respect to player impact. But don’t forget our course materials as well!
Points: Writing Style (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Relationship to Course Concepts (10)
Pokémon Go Panel Wrap-up
Quest: To edit and enhance some Pokémon Go panel footage
[MEDIA EDITORS]
Procedure: Procure the raw video of last fall’s Pokémon Go panel held by the UC Game Lab from Dr. Torner. Cut out the bits that, in your discerning opinion, are not as interesting as others. In fact, see if you can cut it into a 5-minute “highlights” reel of the most important points for you. Introduce actual gameplay footage captured wherever you think it fits. Upload the resultant video file on UC Box.
Points: Editing (10), Curation of Highlights (10), Overall Polish (10), Subtle Underlying Argument (10)
Text Analysis of RPGs
Quest: To take a digital-humanist look at RPG texts
[DIGITAL SCHOLARS]
Procedure: I have a large collection of role-playing game texts, and I’d like to see if there are any patterns across them you can discern. Procure the PDF collection from me, and see which parts you would like to analyze: the Character Creation sections, the Combat Sections, the Index of words, etc. Then make an appointment with our Digital Humanities specialist James Lee (lee6jj@ucmail.uc.edu) about using programs such as R to sort the text into data chunks that can be interpreted: most common words, most common words found next to each other, and so forth. Analyze the data and see if you can find 1-2 major points of interest. Present these 1-2 points using compelling graphics.
Points: Cleaned Up Database of PDF data (10), Research Question (10), Articulation of Findings (10), Data Visualization Quality = 40 points
X-citing Art Projects
Quest: To contribute artwork to a forthcoming game project being developed on campus, and write a reflection on the process.
[ARTISTS AND DESIGNERS]
Procedure: Find a game designer (or talk to Dr. Torner about finding one) who needs art desperately. There are many! Speak with him/her/them about their needs and come up with a few design sketches that address them. Write 1-2 pages about the game, the art that you designed for the game, and why you made the choices you did. Make extra sure you tell us how the player is intended to interact with the art, and if that influenced your creation at all.
Points: Precision of Description in Written Essay (10), Writing Style (10), Discussion of Player Interaction (10), Scans of Completed Artwork Sketches (10) = 40 points
You’re On TV
Quest: To depict gaming in a positive-yet-analytical light on film
[JOURNALISTS AND VIDEO EDITORS]
Procedure: Attend a gaming event, be it a convention, bridge night, game day, or evening at the arcade, and shoot video there. Edit it into a coherent report of no more than 10 minutes in length. Note in your introductory sequence of the final product the circumstances of you attending this event, etc. Talk to people at the event, but also observe at least 1-2 instances of play closely, and then analyze those instances in retrospect in the final segment of the final product. The final product is, of course, an edited video. Upload it to Box.
Points: Editing (10), Curation of Highlights (10), Overall Polish (10), Subtle Underlying Argument (10)
26 Game Studies Quests (2017)
January 17, 2017
Here are the updated quests for my Film 2008 course at the University of Cincinnati this Spring 2017. Each student must complete 3 quests and a Final Boss Challenge.
A is for Affordances
Quest: To describe and theorize affordances in games, and their various functions
[ARTISTS AND DESIGNERS]
Procedure: Read the short text by Norman on affordances under Quest-Related.
Also, watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCSXEKHL6fc
Then pick a game you’d like to analyze, preferably one that has what you consider interesting affordances: Dance Dance Revolution, Jenga, and Doom would all be equally interesting on this point. Write 4-5 pages on your experience of the affordances of the game, beginning with your subjective experience thereof and moving out to general principles of game and material design. Cite at least 3 outside sources in your analysis, using proper MLA 7 formatting.
Points: Writing Style (10), Conception of Affordances (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
B is for Bungie and Blizzard
Quest: To detail how studios preserve a certain style or type of narrative over time, even between game universes.
[PROSPECTIVE GAME HISTORIANS]
Procedure: Play at least three games by a single game studio, attending to the span of time between the studio’s origins and the present. Good examples would be Bungie (Marathon → Halo → Destiny) or Blizzard (Warcraft → World of Warcraft → Diablo 3). One game must be from the origin era of the studio, the second game from somewhere in the middle of its history, and one must be recent. In a 3-5 page paper that includes a comparison chart, describe to the reader the salient aspects of the studio’s style that distinguish it from other studios, and what continuities seem to persist across distinct titles. Cite studio-related secondary literature if pertinent, using proper MLA formatting.
Points: Writing Style (10), Comparison Chart (10), Grammar and Usage (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
C is for Conventional Wisdom
Quest: To describe and theorize how conventional wisdom and reflex often define game patterns and decision-making, and what can be done to break its grasp.
[BUSINESSPEOPLE AND DESIGNERS]
Procedure: Watch this video of Greg Costikyan talking about “natural” game design.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGKPirk5wdQ
Then look up the word “isomorphism” with respect to sociology. Make sure to incorporate that word’s connotations into the project. Play a game Costikyan has not discussed, but in terms of his overarching points about game design patterns.Write 4-5 pages on what counts as “original” game design and what could be seen as “copying” or “re-skinning” other games, beginning with your subjective experience and moving out to general principles of game and material design. Cite at least 3 outside sources in your analysis, using proper MLA 7 formatting.
Points: Writing Style (10), Conception of Isomorphism (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
D is for Diplomacy
Quest: To describe how analog board and card games function with respect to ideology.
[GAMERS]
Procedure: Read Bruno Faidutti’s essay “Postcolonial Catan.” Then play either Settlers of Catan or one of the other eurogames discussed in the article. Write a 4-5 page response to both your own play experience, as well as to the issues that Faidutti raises in the article. Try to see the issue of representation from as many angles as possible; there is no right answer, but the critiques raised cannot be easily dismissed.
Points: Writing Style (10), Self-Reflection (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Incorporation of Course Concepts (10) = 40 points
E is for Exploration
Quest: To take a closer look at a video-game character and its form and functions.
[GAME DESIGNERS]
Procedure: Read the Isbister text in “Quest-Related Materials” on game characters. Now pick a character from a video game, preferably one with enough ambiguity to offer us something to discuss. Write a 4-5 page paper relating that video-game character to principles in Isbister’s text.
Points: Writing Style (10), Relationship to Isbister’s texts (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
F is for Failure
Quest: To describe how a game uses failure to drive play.
[PHILOSOPHERS]
Procedure: Read (or re-read) Jesper Juul’s Art of Failure and keep in mind his points about the rewards of negative affect. Pick a game that has a particularly interesting relationship to failure: Flappy Bird, Track & Field II, and Space Invaders would all be good examples. Write a 4-5 page paper relating Juul’s ideas to this particular game.
Points: Writing Style (10), Relationship to Juul’s text (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
G is for Good Filmmaking
Quest: To evaluate how filmmaking effects are used in contemporary game design.
[FILM AND MEDIA STUDIES]
Procedure: This quest involves some very specific media products. Watch Blade Runner (1982) and Ghost in the Shell (1996), and then play Deus Ex (2000) or Oni (2001) and Remember Me (2013). Using the first two cyberpunk films as a baseline, write 4-5 pages on how the video games appropriate and/or deviate from specific cinematographic techniques and film practices from the 2 films. Note also how Remember Me builds on or deviates from the films vs. Deus Ex and Oni.
Points: Writing Style (10), Precision of Description (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10)
H is for History of Game Studies
Quest: To understand certain fundamentals of the game design field through the narratology vs. ludology debate
[FUTURE GAME STUDIES SCHOLAR]
Procedure: You will have to read a lot for this assignment, namely Espen Aarseth’s Cybertext, Janet Murray’s Hamlet on the Holodeck, Gonzalo Frasca (http://web.cfa.arizona.edu/art435a/readings/frasca_ludology.pdf), and Edward Wesp (http://gamestudies.org/1402/articles/wesp). Using evidence from these texts and any others you find, take a position in the debate and supply a way we might use the resulting methodology in games analysis. 4-5 pages will be sufficient, but you may want to write more. Please cite as many sources as you need (probably 5+), using MLA 7 standards.
Points: Writing Style (10), Summary of Positions (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10)
I is for Interview
Quest: To conduct an interview with a game designer, professional or amateur, who has a playable game in public circulation.
[JOURNALISTS]
Procedure: Make contact with a game designer (ask me if you need some help there) and, if s/he is willing, interview them about their craft. The interview should be at least 5-7 questions long, and submitted in written form or decent-quality video or audio recording. Make sure the focus in the interview is on not only the design of the game, but its production and circulation in the real world.
Points: Thoughtful Questions (10), Interview Structure (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Overall Interest (10)
J is for Just Choose Already
Quest: To explore what interactive literature has to offer and write about it persuasively
[LITERARY SCHOLARS]
Procedure: Sit down and actually play through Andrew Plotkin’s Spider and Web (http://eblong.com/zarf/zweb/tangle/) and Crowther and Woods’ Colossal Cave Adventure (http://www.amc.com/shows/halt-and-catch-fire/exclusives/colossal-cave-adventure). If you’d like, play through a contemporary piece of Interactive Fiction such as 80 Days (2015) or something from Choice of Games LLC. Use FAQs or walkthroughs if you get stuck. Consulting sources such as Anastasia Salter’s What is Your Quest? or Nick Montfort’s Twisty Little Passages, analyze your experience in playing these games in literary terms. What make these games “literature” to you, and how do their actual game elements intensify or complicate this relationship? Use MLA 7 for your citations.
Points: Writing Style (10), Evidence of Play (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Overall Argument (10)
K is for Kriegsspiel
Quest: To understand the basis for modern military board games through Reiswitz’s Kriegsspiel
[GERMAN STUDENT]
Procedure: Read the overview article from Philipp von Hilgers (https://www-alt.gsi.de/documents/DOC-2009-Jun-114-1.pdf), Vego’s overview (https://www.usnwc.edu/getattachment/900b6d3c-bcc8-4ff0-8c17-9ad22c448799/German-War-Gaming.aspx) as well as relevant passages from Jon Peterson’s Playing at the World and Kriegsspiel News (http://www.kriegsspiel.org.uk/index.php/articles/origins-history-of-kriegsspiel/3-origins-of-the-kriegsspiel). Now play through a modern descendent of the Kriegsspiel: either an Avalon Hill game (of which I have a few), an HPS Simulation, etc. Now write 3-5 pages in English or 2 pages in German about your play experience with respect to what you have read. Be certain to include how specific game mechanics constrained your options or permitted you to engage in specific play behavior. Use MLA 7 citations.
Points: Writing Style (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Precision of Description (10), Relationship to History and Course Materials (10)
L is for Libraries
Quest: To go through recent game studies scholarship of interest.
[LIBRARIANS AND READERS]
Procedure: Find 5 game studies publications published within the past three years: articles, books or otherwise. Choose publications that work on one topic: role-playing games, platform studies, first-person shooters, etc. Write a 4-5 page paper with an argument detailing what is preoccupying these publications. What are the main issues at stake in these articles? Who are they in conversation with? What games seem to be cited frequently? Use MLA 7 citations, and have at least 5 of them!
Points: Writing Style (10), Insightful Reading (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Precision of Argument (10)
M is for Making Games
Quest: To create freeform games based on literature to use in the classroom.
[LITERATURE STUDENT / GERMAN STUDENT]
Procedure: You will first need to do some background research on what freeform games are. Look to Lizzie Stark’s Pocket Guide to American Freeform, the Golden Cobra Challenge (http://www.goldencobra.org/), or Gizmet Game Poems (http://gamepoems.gizmet.com/about/) for clues. Then pick a canonical German text below (if a German student) OR one from the English-language canon. Come up with a short freeform game (20 min. – 1 hour) that could be played in a classroom to convey specific material related to the work in question. Be creative! Resultant works may be adapted or used later in the classroom.
• EXCERPTS: Das fliessende Licht der Gottheit (Mechthild von Magdeburg)
• POEM: “Es ist alles eitel” (Gryphius)
• NOVELLA: Die Leiden des jungen Werthers (Goethe)
• DRAMA: Maria Stuart (Schiller)
• POEMS: Various poems (Eichendorff)
• DRAMA: Einen Jux will er sich machen (Nestroy)
• POEM: “Des Biedermanns Abendgemütlichkeit” (Scheffel)
• NOVELLA: Krambambuli (Ebner-Eschenbach)
• EXCERPTS: In Stahlgewittern (Jünger), Im Westen nichts Neues (Remarque)
• DRAMA: Die Dreigroschenoper (Brecht)
• NOVELLA: Schachnovelle (Zweig)
• ERZÄHLUNG: Nachts schlafen die Ratten doch (Borchert)
• NOVELLA: Die neuen Leiden des jungen W. (Plenzdorf)
• DRAMA: Der Tod und das Mädchen (Jelinek)
• ERZÄHLUNG: Mutterzunge (Özdamar)
Points: Clarity of Instructions (10), Understanding of the Original Text (10), Presentation (10), Overall Game Design (10)
N is for New Games for YOUR Major
Quest: To create (or at least start) a game related to your major
[GAME DESIGNER]
Procedure: If you’re looking to get into game design, then one of the best places to start is to create a game. Find a topic or complex related to one of your majors and come up with an idea for a game related to it. Run the idea by the instructor before you get too far into it. Then plot out the game rules and, if possible, make a playable prototype or proof of concept in Sploder, Twine, InDesign, Gamemaker or some other relevant game software.
Points: Presentation of Final Product (10), Overall Game Design (10), Clarity (10), Relationship to Source Material (10)
O is for Other Language
Quest: To play a board / card / role-playing game in German and reflect on the experience.
[GERMAN STUDENT]
Procedure: Come talk to your instructor about getting a copy of a German-language board / card / role-playing game, and then play it for at least 1 session auf Deutsch. Then you will write a 3-page reflection paper on the experience, and playing games in a foreign language.
Points: Successful Playthrough (20), Quality of Self-Reflection (10), Grammar (10)
P is for Platform
Quest: To assess the field of “platform studies” from a scholarly and play perspective
[GAME DEVELOPER AND SCHOLAR]
Procedure: Platform studies involves the examination of a specific piece of hardware and its impact on the games it produces. Read at least 2 of the books in the Platform Studies series at MIT (http://platformstudies.com/). If you can, track down a working version of the platform in question and play a few games on it. Write a 4-5 page reflection paper answering the question: how is platform studies useful in assessing games? How might we understand a particular game thanks to its platform? Use MLA 7 citations.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Writing Style (10)
Q is for Quarters
Quest: To visit an actual arcade environment and reflect on it anthropologically
[COLLEGE STUDENT]
Procedure: Gather together a group of 2+ students from this course and go to a local arcade or board game café: Tabletop Game Cafe in Columbus, The Rook, 16-Bit, The Place, Gameworks, etc. Spend at least $5 on games, paying close attention to each game you play: how the game is presented, what it promises you, how much it costs, what you actually get when you play it, and how long it takes for you to go before you have to feed the machine more quarters. Also observe your classmates as they play, if possible. Write a 4-5 page reflection paper on the experience, specifically attending to both the social context (i.e., being in an arcade) and the games themselves. Bring in concepts from the course useful for your description, such as affordances, constraints, representation, and others.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Relationship to Course Materials (10), Description Details (10), Writing Style (10)
R is for Role-Playing Theory
Quest: To look at contemporary role-playing game theory and take a position within it
[ROLE-PLAYING SCHOLAR]
Procedure: Read through Sarah Lynne Bowman’s The Functions of Role-Playing Games, Markus Montola’s “On the Edge of the Magic Circle” (https://tampub.uta.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/66937/978-951-44-8864-1.pdf?sequence=1), The Foundation Stone of Nordic Larp (http://nordiclarp.org/w/images/8/80/2014_The_Foundation_Stone_of_Nordic_Larp.pdf), and the most recent issue of the International Journal of Role-Playing (http://ijrp.subcultures.nl/). Find a topic that interests you. Then write a 4-5 page paper with MLA 7 citations that responds directly to recent arguments in RPG studies. Draw on your own experiences with RPGs if you can.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to Source Material (10), Writing Style (10)
S is for Sexuality and Gender
Quest: To examine broader implications of gender and sexuality to be found in games
[CRITICAL THEORIST]
Procedure: Drawing on Adrienne Shaw’s Gaming at the Edge, find at least 2 other articles – academic or otherwise – that deal critically with the issue of gender and/or sexuality and gaming. Be specific as possible, and try to play the games that are mentioned. Now write a 4-5 page paper responding to the issues raised, being attentive to critical theories of representation and game mechanics. Use MLA 7 citations.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to the Secondary Literature (10), Writing Style (10)
T is for Travia GmbH & Co.
Quest: To look at the German video games industry from a critical perspective
[GERMAN STUDENT]
Procedure: Read this document positively appraising the German games industry (http://www.gtai.de/GTAI/Content/EN/Invest/_SharedDocs/Downloads/GTAI/Fact-sheets/Business-services-ict/fact-sheet-gaming-industry-en.pdf) and consult the Wikipedia page on the German video games industry (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_gaming_in_Germany). Track down and play one of the games on the list. Now write a 4-5 page paper in English (or a 2-page paper in German) explaining the game as a product of German industry forces. What company made it? What are their sales like? What could be considered “German” about this particular game? Pay attention to transnational and European-level markets, and come see your instructor if you need more details. Any citations shoudl be in MLA 7.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Writing Style (10)
U is for Uncertainty
Quest: To apply Costikyan’s theories of uncertainty in games to a specific game object
[GAME DESIGNER]
Procedure: Now that you’ve read Uncertainty in Games, it’s helpful to apply it to a game object. Pick a game that you think has a particularly interesting balance of uncertainty factors. Imagine telling some game designer how the game uses uncertainty to work. Write a 4-5 page paper articulating precisely what aspects of the game’s design contribute to this uncertainty, particularly looking at affordances, incentives, and constraints. Use Costikyan’s terminology and cite (MLA 7) as you write.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to Source Text (10), Writing Style (10)
V is for Valor
Quest: To enlighten the rest of the class with respect to some specific game topic
[FUTURE POLITICIAN OR PROFESSOR]
Procedure: Are you a public speaker extraordinaire? Would you like to work on those skills? First, sign up for a 10-minute spot to present on a topic of your choice related to games and the course material. Then come up with an engaging 10-minute presentation on your particular topic to give in front of the gathered students. Please make it engaging!
Points: Clarity (10), Structure (10), Delivery (10), Persuasiveness (10)
W is for What is a Role-Playing Game?
Quest: To play through a game that serves as a theoretical intervention, and assess it
[GERMAN STUDENTS AND OTHERS]
Procedure: Find 2-3 fellow players and play Epidiah Ravachol’s What Is a Role-playing Game? in English (https://dig1000holes.wordpress.com/what-is-a-roleplaying-game/) OR in German (http://pihalbe.org/sites/default/files/Was-ist-ein-Rollenspiel–Raumraeuber.pdf) if you are a German student. Then discuss the play experience afterward. Take notes on both the play and the discussion. Then write a 4-5 page paper describing the experience, what happened in the game, and how the game made an impact on what you thought a role-playing game was. Speculate about what you would do if you had to make a similar intervention.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Writing Style (10)
X is for Xenophobia
Quest: To look at racial and/or race-related dynamics in a game with a critical lens
[CRITICAL THEORISTS]
Procedure: Minorities are vastly underrepresented in video games. This structural racism is largely attributed to lean market demographics, when in fact people of color play games just as much as white people. To do this assignment, read the Mou & Peng article (https://www.msu.edu/~pengwei/Mou%20Peng.pdf), A.A. George’s Tor.com article (http://www.tor.com/2014/08/13/gamings-race-problem-gen-con-and-beyond/) and related materials to be found in the library or online databases. Pick and play a game which offers us clear insights into this particular dynamic. In a 4-5 page argumentative paper with at least 3 sources (MLA 7 citations), tell your reader about the constructions of whiteness and racialized figures in the game.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to Theory (10), Writing Style (10)
Y is for Your Ideas Are Not Your Own
Quest: To understand how ideology works through game mechanics
[CRITICAL THEORISTS]
Procedure: Game mechanics are persuasive and rhetorical instruments that one can use to further specific political and economic arguments. Almost every game implies how humans ought to behave and how systems ought to work: Monopoly justifies the bootstrapping entrepreneurial mentality as well as (paradoxically) demonstrates how having wealth and property just gives one more wealth and property, Pong implies that a game of pure physical skill is possible, Undertale rejects normative gender and sexuality perspectives while also reassuring us that kindness will save the world. In this assignment, you will play a game of your choice and discern the general ideological implications of its aesthetic and mechanics. After playing the game for a significant period of time, write a 4-5 page paper answering the following questions: What are the players incentivized to do in the game? How could these incentives be read in terms of political and economic profit motive? What mentalities are considered “optimal” in the story universe of the game. Citing (using MLA 7) Ian Bogost or cultural theorists from the Frankfurt or Birmingham School couldn’t hurt.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to Theory (10), Writing Style (10)
Z is for Zelda
Quest: To do an in-depth analysis of a specific level of a specific game
[GAME DESIGNERS]
Procedure: Pick a level of a video game, and play through it at least 3 times. It could be a controversial level like “No Russian” in Modern Warfare 2, or the opening dungeon of The Legend of Zelda. Pay close attention to the following aspects, among others: how the level begins/continues/ends, what emotional high points and low points it offers to you as a player, what characters you meet and how you are expected to deal with them, the potential outcomes of the players’ actions within the level, the layout of the landscape, its soundscape and artistic inspirations. Now write 4-5 pages advancing a specific argument about the level. Be as precise in your description as possible, and relate its various points to concepts you learned in the course.
Points: Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Writing Style (10), Relationship to Course Concepts (10)
FINAL BOSS FIGHT
During the final two weeks of the semester, students get to try out their game analysis skills against a worthy opponent. They will select a game and play it, taking notes. Then they will locate no less than 3 reviews of or academic articles on the game. Citing these reviews and/or articles, they will then write their own review that somehow affirms, refutes and/or responds to the 3 reviews, while also arguing their own position on the game. Assignment length is somewhere between 2000-4000 words (the length of a decent game review) and should be written with popular game criticism standards (i.e., those of Fernández-Vara) in mind.
In Defense of Public Education
November 27, 2016
All of the public schools in the United States of America, from kindergarten through doctoral programs in higher education, should be free of charge and open to anyone with sufficient intellectual curiosity and merit.
Instead, the Republican establishment has doubled down on school privatization efforts, and our president-elect looks as if he will continue this form of despotism.
I admit it: as faculty at a public research university, I have a vested financial interest in preserving public education. Last year’s salary was $58,790, about the same as a fully certified high school teacher in the state of Ohio. Nevertheless, my conflict of interest cannot remotely compare with those of the “reformers” who want to bring profitability into a sphere that cannot function well under for-profit conditions. For-profit operations drive up costs for the consumer, while driving down quality and breaking yet another source of income for our dwindling middle class.
As Diane Ravitch argues:
“There is no evidence for the superiority of privatization in education. Privatization divides communities and diminishes commitment to that which we call the common good. When there is a public school system, citizens are obligated to pay taxes to support the education of all children in the community, even if they have no children in the schools themselves. We invest in public education, because it is an investment in the future of our society.”
We are hardly “cartels,” as Paul Ryan has described us. Google “cartel” and you see the violence of Mexican drug lords. There can be a comparable analogy drawn from when our schools are weak –– students drop out, join questionable organizations, crime increases, and the teachers burn out one way or another. It is, indeed, a crime against American-style democracy to underfund and thereby slowly snuff out the public schools that make democratic thinking and voting possible.
The 21st Century offers too many complex challenges to then have schools and universities abandon their fundamental mandates in favor of religious-tinged “science” or sub-standard services while corporations make profits.
We as a country have foolishly put too many wolves in charge of our hen houses. It is time for us to intervene. Indeed, the future of critical thought and action, of class mobility and non-violent pursuits, in this country depends on it.
26 Game Studies Quests
January 27, 2016
For my Film 2008 course at the University of Cincinnati this Spring 2016, each student must complete 3 quests and a Final Boss Challenge. Here are 26 distinct quests for them to choose from. (Can you tell I’m a German and RPG scholar?)
A is for Affordances
Quest: To describe and theorize affordances in games, and their various functions
[ARTISTS AND DESIGNERS]
Procedure: Read the short text by Norman on affordances under Quest-Related
Materials: Then pick a game you’d like to analyze, preferably one that has what you consider interesting affordances: Dance Dance Revolution, Jenga, and Doom would all be equally interesting on this point. Write 4-5 pages on your experience of the affordances of the game, beginning with your subjective experience thereof and moving out to general principles of game and material design. Cite at least 3 outside sources in your analysis, using proper MLA 7 formatting.
Points: Writing Style (10), Conception of Affordances (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
B is for Bungie and Blizzard
Quest: To detail how studios preserve a certain style or type of narrative over time, even between game universes.
[PROSPECTIVE GAME HISTORIANS]
Procedure: Play at least three games by a single game studio, attending to the span of time between the studio’s origins and the present. Good examples would be Bungie
(Marathon → Halo → Destiny) or Blizzard (Warcraft → World of Warcraft → Diablo 3). In a 3-5 page paper that includes a comparison chart, describe to the reader the salient aspects of the studio’s style that distinguish it from other studios, and what continuities seem to persist across distinct titles. Cite studio-related secondary literature if pertinent, using proper MLA formatting.
Points: Writing Style (10), Comparison Chart (10), Grammar and Usage (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
C is for Constraints
Quest: To describe and theorize how constraints work to narrow and control player options and movement – both in the positive and negative sense.
[ARTISTS AND DESIGNERS]
Procedure: Constraints limit user interaction with any given game to delineate their options and available maneuvers. Pick and play a game that you think has interesting constraints: Mysterium, Waco Resurrection, and Desert Bus all have interesting ones to consider. Write 4-5 pages on your experience of the affordances of the game, beginning with your subjective experience thereof and moving out to general principles of game and material design. Cite at least 3 outside sources in your analysis, using proper MLA 7 formatting.
Points: Writing Style (10), Conception of Constraints (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
D is for Diplomacy
Quest: To describe how player unpredictability and the removal of randomness as an alibi affect a board game’s aesthetic.
[GAMERS]
Procedure: Borrow or buy a copy of Diplomacy (board game) and play it with 6 other people, including other players from the class doing this assignment. Be attentive to the rules, especially regarding secrecy and troop movement. After the game is over, debrief with your fellow players for about 15 minutes, talking about the various strategies that worked and – most importantly – how everyone felt during gameplay. Now write a 4-5 page paper describing your experience, focusing on your available decisions and moments of drama, and apply Greg Costikyan’s “player uncertainty” concept from his Uncertainty in Games book.
Points: Writing Style (10), Self-Reflection (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Incorporation of Costikyan’s Concepts (10) = 40 points
E is for Exploration
Quest: To take a closer look at a video-game character and its form and functions.
[GAME DESIGNERS]
Procedure: Read the Isbister text in “Quest-Related Materials” on game characters. Now pick a character from a video game, preferably one that offers us much to discuss. Write a 4-5 page paper relating that video-game character to principles in Isbister’s text.
Points: Writing Style (10), Relationship to Isbister’s texts (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
F is for Failure
Quest: To describe how a game uses failure to drive play.
[PHILOSOPHERS]
Procedure: Re-read Jesper Juul’s Art of Failure and keep in mind his points about the rewards of negative affect. Pick a game that has a particularly interesting relationship to failure: Flappy Bird, Track & Field II, and Space Invaders would all be good examples. Write a 4-5 page paper relating Juul’s ideas to this particular game.
Points: Writing Style (10), Relationship to Juul’s text (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10) = 40 points
G is for Good Filmmaking
Quest: To evaluate how filmmaking effects are used in contemporary game design.
[FILM AND MEDIA STUDIES]
Procedure: This quest involves some very specific media products. Watch Blade Runner (1982) and Ghost in the Shell (1996), and then play Deus Ex (2000) or Oni (2001) and Remember Me (2013). Using the first two cyberpunk films as a baseline, write 4-5 pages on how the video games appropriate and/or deviate from specific cinematographic techniques and film practices from the 2 films. Note also how Remember Me builds on or deviates from the films vs. Deus Ex and Oni.
Points: Writing Style (10), Precision of Description (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10)
H is for History of Game Studies
Quest: To understand certain fundamentals of the game design field through the narratology vs. ludology debate
[FUTURE GAME STUDIES SCHOLAR]
Procedure: You will have to read a lot for this assignment, namely Espen Aarseth’s Cybertext, Janet Murray’s Hamlet on the Holodeck, Gonzalo Frasca (http://web.cfa.arizona.edu/art435a/readings/frasca_ludology.pdf), and re-read Edward Wesp (http://gamestudies.org/1402/articles/wesp). Using evidence from these texts and any others you find, take a position in the debate and supply a way we might use the resulting methodology in games analysis. 4-5 pages will be sufficient, but you may want to write more. Please cite as many sources as you need (probably 5+), using MLA 7 standards.
Points: Writing Style (10), Summary of Positions (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10)
I is for Interview
Quest: To conduct an interview with a game designer, professional or amateur, who has a playable game in public circulation.
[JOURNALISTS]
Procedure: Make contact with a game designer (ask me if you need some help there) and, if s/he is willing, interview them about their craft. The interview should be at least 5-7 questions long, and submitted in written form or decent-quality video or audio recording. Make sure the focus in the interview is on not only the design of the game, but its production and circulation in the real world.
Points: Thoughtful Questions (10), Interview Structure (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Overall Interest (10)
J is for Just Choose Already
[LITERARY SCHOLARS]
Quest: To explore what interactive literature has to offer and write about it persuasively.
Procedure: Sit down and actually play through Andrew Plotkin’s Spider and Web (http://eblong.com/zarf/zweb/tangle/) and Crowther and Woods’ Colossal Cave Adventure (http://www.amc.com/shows/halt-and-catch-fire/exclusives/colossal-cave-adventure). If you’d like, play through a contemporary piece of Interactive Fiction such as 80 Days (2015) or something from Choice of Games LLC. Use FAQs or walkthroughs if you get stuck. Consulting sources such as Anastasia Salter’s What is Your Quest? or Nick Montfort’s Twisty Little Passages, analyze your experience in playing these games in literary terms. What make these games “literature” to you, and how do their actual game elements intensify or complicate this relationship? Use MLA 7 for your citations.
Points: Writing Style (10), Evidence of Play (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Overall Argument (10)
K is for Kriegsspiel
[GERMAN STUDENT]
Quest: To understand the basis for modern military board games through Reiswitz’s Kriegsspiel
Procedure: Read the overview article from Philipp von Hilgers (https://www-alt.gsi.de/documents/DOC-2009-Jun-114-1.pdf), Vego’s overview (https://www.usnwc.edu/getattachment/900b6d3c-bcc8-4ff0-8c17-9ad22c448799/German-War-Gaming.aspx) as well as relevant passages from Jon Peterson’s Playing at the World and Kriegsspiel News (http://www.kriegsspiel.org.uk/index.php/articles/origins-history-of-kriegsspiel/3-origins-of-the-kriegsspiel). Now play through a modern descendent of the Kriegsspiel: either an Avalon Hill game (of which I have a few), an HPS Simulation, etc. Now write 3-5 pages in English or 2 pages in German about your play experience with respect to what you have read. Be certain to include how specific game mechanics constrained your options or permitted you to engage in specific play behavior. Use MLA 7 citations.
Points: Writing Style (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Precision of Description (10), Relationship to History and Course Materials (10)
L is for Libraries
[LIBRARIANS AND READERS]
Quest: To go through recent game studies scholarship of interest.
Procedure: Find 5 game studies publications published within the past three years: articles, books or otherwise. Choose publications that work on one topic: role-playing games, platform studies, first-person shooters, etc. Write a 4-5 page paper with an argument detailing what is preoccupying these publications. What are the main issues at stake in these articles? Who are they in conversation with? What games seem to be cited frequently? Use MLA 7 citations, and have at least 5 of them!
Points: Writing Style (10), Insightful Reading (10), Grammar and Citations (10), Precision of Argument (10)
M is for Making Games
[GERMAN STUDENT]
Quest: To create freeform games based on German literature to use in the classroom.
Procedure: You will first need to do some background research on what freeform games are. Look to Lizzie Stark’s Pocket Guide to American Freeform, the Golden Cobra Challenge (http://www.goldencobra.org/), or Gizmet Game Poems (http://gamepoems.gizmet.com/about/) for clues. Then read one of the books in the list below. Come up with a short freeform game (20 min. – 1 hour) that could be played in a classroom to convey specific material auf Deutsch related to the work in question. Be creative! Resultant works may be adapted or used verbatim in Fall 2016.
• EXCERPTS: Das fliessende Licht der Gottheit (Mechthild von Magdeburg)
• POEM: “Es ist alles eitel” (Gryphius)
• NOVELLA: Die Leiden des jungen Werthers (Goethe)
• DRAMA: Maria Stuart (Schiller)
• POEMS: Various poems (Eichendorff)
• DRAMA: Einen Jux will er sich machen (Nestroy)
• POEM: “Des Biedermanns Abendgemütlichkeit” (Scheffel)
• NOVELLA: Krambambuli (Ebner-Eschenbach)
• EXCERPTS: In Stahlgewittern (Jünger), Im Westen nichts Neues (Remarque)
• DRAMA: Die Dreigroschenoper (Brecht)
• NOVELLA: Schachnovelle (Zweig)
• ERZÄHLUNG: Nachts schlafen die Ratten doch (Borchert)
• NOVELLA: Die neuen Leiden des jungen W. (Plenzdorf)
• DRAMA: Der Tod und das Mädchen (Jelinek)
• ERZÄHLUNG: Mutterzunge (Özdamar)
Points: Clarity of Instructions (10), Understanding of the Original Text (10), Grammar (10), Overall Game Design (10)
N is for New Games for YOUR Major
[GAME DESIGNER]
Quest: To create (or at least start) a game related to your major
Procedure: If you’re looking to get into game design, then one of the best places to start is to create a game. Find a topic or complex related to one of your majors and come up with an idea for a game related to it. Run the idea by the instructor before you get too far into it. Then plot out the game rules and, if possible, make a playable prototype or proof of concept in Sploder, Twine, InDesign, Gamemaker or some other relevant game software.
Points: Presentation of Final Product (10), Overall Game Design (10), Clarity (10), Relationship to Source Material (10)
O is for Outer Space
[GERMAN STUDENT]
Quest: To play an intensive starship game in German
Procedure: If there are at least 4 German students interested, a German-language game of Artemis can be arranged. Artemis is a multi-player tactical ship simulation game that’s a lot like crewing a starship. Once we get through the logistical hurdles, you will meet for a 2-hour session of the game, and play it only in German. Then you will write a 1-page reflection paper on the experience, and playing games in a foreign language.
Points: Successful Playthrough (20), Quality of Self-Reflection (10), Grammar (10)
P is for Platform
[GAME DEVELOPER AND SCHOLAR]
Quest: To assess the field of “platform studies” from a scholarly and play perspective
Procedure: Platform studies involves the examination of a specific piece of hardware and its impact on the games it produces. Read at least 2 of the books in the Platform Studies series at MIT (http://platformstudies.com/). If you can, track down a working version of the platform in question and play a few games on it. Write a 4-5 page reflection paper answering the question: how is platform studies useful in assessing games? How might we understand a particular game thanks to its platform? Use MLA 7 citations.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Writing Style (10)
Q is for Quarters
[COLLEGE STUDENT]
Quest: To visit an actual arcade environment and reflect on it anthropologically
Procedure: Gather together a group of 2+ students from this course and go to a local arcade: 16-Bit, The Place, Gameworks, etc. Spend at least $5 on games, paying close attention to each game you play: how the game is presented, what it promises you, how much it costs, what you actually get when you play it, and how long it takes for you to go before you have to feed the machine more quarters. Also observe your classmates as they play, if possible. Write a 4-5 page reflection paper on the experience, specifically attending to both the social context (i.e., being in an arcade) and the games themselves. Bring in concepts from the course useful for your description, such as affordances, constraints, representation, and others.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Relationship to Course Materials (10), Description Details (10), Writing Style (10)
R is for Role-Playing Theory
[ROLE-PLAYING SCHOLAR]
Quest: To look at contemporary role-playing game theory and take a position within it
Procedure: Read through Sarah Lynne Bowman’s The Functions of Role-Playing Games, Markus Montola’s “On the Edge of the Magic Circle” (https://tampub.uta.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/66937/978-951-44-8864-1.pdf?sequence=1), The Foundation Stone of Nordic Larp (http://nordiclarp.org/w/images/8/80/2014_The_Foundation_Stone_of_Nordic_Larp.pdf), and the most recent issue of the International Journal of Role-Playing (http://ijrp.subcultures.nl/). Find a topic that interests you. Then write a 4-5 page paper with MLA 7 citations that responds directly to recent arguments in RPG studies. Draw on your own experiences with RPGs if you can.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to Source Material (10), Writing Style (10)
S is for Sexuality and Gender
[CRITICAL THEORIST]
Quest: To examine broader implications of gender and sexuality to be found in games
Procedure: Drawing on Adrienne Shaw’s Gaming at the Edge, find at least 2 other articles – academic or otherwise – that deal critically with the issue of gender and/or sexuality and gaming. Be specific as possible, and try to play the games that are mentioned. Now write a 4-5 page paper responding to the issues raised, being attentive to critical theories of representation and game mechanics. Use MLA 7 citations.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to the Secondary Literature (10), Writing Style (10)
T is for Travia GmbH & Co.
[GERMAN STUDENT]
Quest: To look at the German video games industry from a critical perspective
Procedure: Read this document positively appraising the German games industry (http://www.gtai.de/GTAI/Content/EN/Invest/_SharedDocs/Downloads/GTAI/Fact-sheets/Business-services-ict/fact-sheet-gaming-industry-en.pdf) and consult the Wikipedia page on the German video games industry (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_gaming_in_Germany). Track down and play one of the games on the list. Now write a 4-5 page paper in English (or a 2-page paper in German) explaining the game as a product of German industry forces. What company made it? What are their sales like? What could be considered “German” about this particular game? Pay attention to transnational and European-level markets, and come see your instructor if you need more details. Any citations shoudl be in MLA 7.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Writing Style (10)
U is for Uncertainty
[GAME DESIGNER]
Quest: To apply Costikyan’s theories of uncertainty in games to a specific game object
Procedure: Now that you’ve read Uncertainty in Games, it’s helpful to apply it to a game object. Pick a game that you think has a particularly interesting balance of uncertainty factors. Imagine telling some game designer how the game uses uncertainty to work. Write a 4-5 page paper articulating precisely what aspects of the game’s design contribute to this uncertainty, particularly looking at affordances, incentives, and constraints. Use Costikyan’s terminology and cite (MLA 7) as you write.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to Source Text (10), Writing Style (10)
V is for Valor
[FUTURE POLITICIAN OR PROFESSOR]
Quest: To enlighten the rest of the class with respect to some specific game topic
Procedure: Are you a public speaker extraordinaire? Would you like to work on those skills? First, sign up for a 10-minute spot to present on a topic of your choice related to games and the course material. Then come up with an engaging 10-minute presentation on your particular topic to give in front of the gathered students. Please make it engaging!
Points: Clarity (10), Structure (10), Delivery (10), Persuasiveness (10)
W is for What is a Role-Playing Game?
[GERMAN STUDENTS AND OTHERS]
Quest: To play through a game that serves as a theoretical intervention, and assess it
Procedure: Find 2-3 fellow players and play Epidiah Ravachol’s What Is a Role-playing Game? in English (https://dig1000holes.wordpress.com/what-is-a-roleplaying-game/) OR in German (http://pihalbe.org/sites/default/files/Was-ist-ein-Rollenspiel–Raumraeuber.pdf) if you are a German student. Then discuss the play experience afterward. Take notes on both the play and the discussion. Then write a 4-5 page paper describing the experience, what happened in the game, and how the game made an impact on what you thought a role-playing game was. Speculate about what you would do if you had to make a similar intervention.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Writing Style (10)
X is for Xenophobia
[CRITICAL THEORISTS]
Quest: To look at racial and/or race-related dynamics in a game with a critical lens
Procedure: Minorities are vastly underrepresented in video games. This structural racism is largely attributed to lean market demographics, when in fact people of color play games just as much as white people. To do this assignment, read the Mou & Peng article (https://www.msu.edu/~pengwei/Mou%20Peng.pdf), A.A. George’s Tor.com article (http://www.tor.com/2014/08/13/gamings-race-problem-gen-con-and-beyond/) and related materials to be found in the library or online databases. Pick and play a game which offers us clear insights into this particular dynamic. In a 4-5 page argumentative paper with at least 3 sources (MLA 7 citations), tell your reader about the constructions of whiteness and racialized figures in the game.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to Theory (10), Writing Style (10)
Y is for Your Ideas Are Not Your Own
[CRITICAL THEORISTS]
Quest: To understand how ideology works through game mechanics
Procedure: Game mechanics are persuasive and rhetorical instruments that one can use to further specific political and economic arguments. Almost every game implies how humans ought to behave and how systems ought to work: Monopoly justifies the bootstrapping entrepreneurial mentality as well as (paradoxically) demonstrates how having wealth and property just gives one more wealth and property, Pong implies that a game of pure physical skill is possible, Undertale rejects normative gender and sexuality perspectives while also reassuring us that kindness will save the world. In this assignment, you will play a game of your choice and discern the general ideological implications of its aesthetic and mechanics. After playing the game for a significant period of time, write a 4-5 page paper answering the following questions: What are the players incentivized to do in the game? How could these incentives be read in terms of political and economic profit motive? What mentalities are considered “optimal” in the story universe of the game. Citing (using MLA 7) Ian Bogost or cultural theorists from the Frankfurt or Birmingham School couldn’t hurt.
Points: Grammar and Citations (10), Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Relationship to Theory (10), Writing Style (10)
Z is for Zelda
[GAME DESIGNERS]
Quest: To do an in-depth analysis of a specific level of a specific game
Procedure: Pick a level of a video game, and play through it at least 3 times. It could be a controversial level like “No Russian” in Modern Warfare 2, or the opening dungeon of The Legend of Zelda. Pay close attention to the following aspects, among others: how the level begins/continues/ends, what emotional high points and low points it offers to you as a player, what characters you meet and how you are expected to deal with them, the potential outcomes of the players’ actions within the level, the layout of the landscape, its soundscape and artistic inspirations. Now write 4-5 pages advancing a specific argument about the level. Be as precise in your description as possible, and relate its various points to concepts you learned in the course.
Points: Persuasiveness of Argument (10), Precision of Description (10), Writing Style (10), Relationship to Course Concepts (10)
FINAL BOSS FIGHT
During the final two weeks of the semester, students get to try out their game analysis skills against a worthy opponent. They will select a game and play it, taking notes. Then they will locate no less than 3 reviews of or academic articles on the game. Citing these reviews and/or articles, they will then write their own review that somehow affirms, refutes and/or responds to the 3 reviews, while also arguing their own position on the game. Assignment length is somewhere between 2000-4000 words (the length of a decent game review) and should be written with popular game criticism standards (i.e., those of Fernández-Vara) in mind.