ARCADES Com 427 October 6 2015 QUIZ 1

ARCADES Com 427 October 6 2015

QUIZ!

1. Which game do Lin and Sun discuss as “one of the most ‘radiating’ game types”, capable of “attracting onlookers, which transforms play into performance? ” a) Trump Revolution b) Dance Revolution c) Street Fighter IV d) Minecraft

2. According to Tobin, which activity in 1980 s arcades was the subject of intense surveillance, scrutiny and anxiety? a) playing violent games b) eating c) loitering d) sleeping

3. Swallwell: “In Tokyo, ‘Space Invaders’ famously resulted in a shortage of ______. ” a) 100 yen coins b) electrical outlets in public spaces c) lunch hours d) spaceships

4. Jonsson and Verhagen describe massive LAN parties as “total” sensory experiences; in that way, they say, attending a huge LAN is like…. a) clubbing b) online shopping c) LARPing d) going on a rollercoaster

BONUS: What country were the arcades in the “More than a Craze” photography exhibit located? a) USA b) Canada c) New Zealand d) Zimbabwe

1. Moral Panics & the Life of Arcades 2. Concepts for “Public displays of play”

GAMING AS SPECTATORIAL “The images are significant in that they show people played games and what they did in these spaces when they weren’t playing games. They remind us just how much of a spectator sport gaming was, in the 80 s. ” Media theorists & literature scholars: Concern with the ways games are like & unlike film, comics, novels, and other narrative “texts” We became aware of games largely through arcades – through spaces where video games were something we WATCHED as much if not more so than PLAYED

Arcades introduced the public to digital gaming – -- and to computation more generally “In an era of uncertainty about computerisation, early digital games allowed people to develop a familiarity with the information processing routines that would be in demand in the not too distant future” (Swallwell) Where in the course have we seen similar notions about the historical role of leisure machines?

MORAL PANICS http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=X 74 Pv. B 0 a. BNY Tobin: “Both arcade operators and government officials attempted to control the loitering body, either by disciplining it towards active play or shutting down sites of hanging out. ”

Moral panic – not about playing, but loitering? “I suggest that the core concern of these politicians was not the violent content of the games, or the fact that young people were wasting time and money. Rather the real source of anxiety was the unknowable potential of what coalesced and simmered around the games…. The good gamer is a docile figure; the loiterer, the kids hanging out, are less so. The game players seemed to be there for the right reasons; the loiterers for no good reason. ”

Concepts for “Public displays” • • • Who else is there? What are their postures / gestures / actions? What kinds of “frames” are being enacted? What are the written & unwritten rules? What can all your senses tell you about the event?

Concepts for “Public displays” • Who else is there? What are they doing? Tobin: “Studying players is important for game studies and game history; however, players were not alone in the arcades. Besides people actively playing games, arcades had workers, attendants, repair people, operators, and owners. ”

Concepts for “Public displays” • What are people’s postures / gestures / actions? • What kinds of “frames” are being enacted? Lin & Sun: “when individuals enter spaces filled with the physical presence of others, they immediately take on character roles and begin to perform. As game genres, machinery, and spaces develop, the presence of special props and costumes are used to identify onlooker characters and movement. ”

Concepts for “Public displays” • What are the written & unwritten rules? Tobin: “Vision and lines of sight, in combination with walking the beat, are crucial to Walford’s guide to arcade control. Attendants must show that they are focusing their attention on guests in order to signal to the guest that their attention in turn needs to be of the correct disposition, namely focused into the space of the game. ”

Concepts for “Public displays” • What kinds of “frames” are being enacted? “when individuals enter spaces filled with the physical presence of others, they immediately take on character roles and begin to perform”

Concepts for “Public displays” • What can all your senses tell you about the event? Jonsson & Verhagen: “The smell of a LAN party has a distinct odor. This odor emanates from thousands of people gathered together in a limited area, human sweat, burps, warm processors, stinking socks and shoes, the smoke from the air canons and people who have not taken a shower for several days. ”

Simulated Arcade Time! • • Space Invaders Pacman Frogger Contra Donkey Kong Burger Time Q*Bert • Group A & Group B • Take notes based on content from this week’s readings and Public Displays assignment – Who is there – Frames – Rules – Senses