Culture Robin Burke GAM 224 Outline Culture Cultural

Culture Robin Burke GAM 224

Outline Culture ¢ Cultural Rhetoric ¢

Play paper ¢ Due today

Culture paper ¢ Due 3/16

Design project Katamari Damacy level ¢ Theme ¢ l ¢ "Election" Tasks Map design l Item inventory l Item placement / trajectory planning l ¢ Very interrelated

Teams Team A Adreani, Ray Echo, John Garcia, Cesar (L) Pellman, Scott Team B Di. Maso, Michael Baldwin, Michael Bare, Travis Hodgson, Brady (L) Team C Martin, Bryce Meyer, Grant Carlsen, Alec (L) Team D Pina, Albert Mulvey, Kalli Avalos, Llecenia (L) Team E Pawlak, Joseph Wit, Sam Gitchell, Mathew (L)

Culture undefineable term ¢ Geertz ¢ l "Man is an animal suspended in webs of significance he himself has spun. . . I take culture to be those webs, and the analysis of it to be therefore not an experimental science in search of law but an interpretative one in search of meaning"

Social vs Cultural ¢ A given group might play a game regularly l l Friday night poker game we would probably call this a “social” phenomenon • limited in impact and scope • small well-defined group of participants ¢ A cultural phenomenon is one with broader impact l l all of a city’s regular poker players all of the people who watch World Series of Poker

Culture ¢ for our purposes everything outside the magic circle l what comes l • before the game • after the game • surrounds the game ¢ the context of the game

Games and Culture! ¢ Shani Davis l 2006 Olympics Race ¢ Class ¢ Nationality ¢ History ¢ Global Business ¢

Games and Culture! Business ¢ Medicine ¢ Law ¢ History ¢ Race ¢

Games and Culture! ¢ September 12 th l http: //www. newsgaming. com/games/in dex 12. htm

Many Relevant Contexts ¢ popular culture l l ¢ business l l ¢ l the ways that devotees invest energy and creativity into particular games the communities that rise up around games technology l ¢ the ways in which games are made and marketed the ancillary businesses around games (magazines, retailers, etc. ) fan-dom l ¢ the images in games the ties between games and movies, manga, etc. the technical requirements of games and their effect on the evolution of computer systems gender l the way that masculine and feminine identities are rendered in games

Culture-before I ¢ Designer borrows from the wider culture l signifiers • the red cross l themes • the hero tale l images • the witch l sounds • fanfare ¢ This background is (ideally) shared with the player l players from other cultures may need to learn some things

Culture-before II ¢ Designer borrows from specific movies, books and/or games l licenses / sequels • Knights of the Old Republic II l adaptation • Sly Cooper = Splinter Cell for kids ¢ Player's expectations are shaped by references to other cultural artifacts

Culture-after I ¢ Designers may license game characters to other media l movies • Lara Croft ¢ Designers may let users build onto their games l new levels • Unreal. Ed and tools l new content • Sims tools • Counter Strike ¢ Users may do unexpected things with games l machinima

Culture-after II ¢ Players may organize communities around games trading tips, hacks, cheat codes, FAQ files l trading mods, player-created content l group play l organized competitions l

Culture-surrounding I ¢ Players interpret the game l ¢ using their individual knowledge and cultural background Players play the game using techniques and expectations derived from other games l using expectations derived from realworld experiences l

Culture-surrounding II ¢ Players may play in a variety of environments arcade or Internet cafe l solitary l group setting l public competitive setting l

Game Culture ¢ ¢ Any of these aspects are fair game for a cultural understanding of games Designers can choose to ignore culture l l ¢ but that doesn't mean they are free of it it just means they will be ignorant about it Observers l l can use culture as an avenue to interpret a game's meaning, its "web of significance" can use the game as an avenue to interpret the culture that gives rise to it • the "web of significance" is always tied to the larger culture in some way

Cultural Rhetoric ¢ rhetoric l ¢ The art or study of using language effectively and persuasively. We mean l the way that a game contains an implicit argument for a set of cultural presuppositions

How is a game an argument? ¢ Rules l the rules reward certain actions and not others • implicitly valuing one choice over another • Example: KOTOR, Fable l the rules require the player to prevail in certain types of conflict • implying what types of conflict are important and how they can be resolved • Example: Civilization III ¢ Play l the play of the game demands certain activities be performed • implicitly valuing one type of activity • Example: Civilization III vs Warcraft III l the game makes certain activities and events pleasurable • implying that certain things are or should be enjoyable • Example: Katamari Damacy

Transmission / Reception ¢ The presence of a particular cultural rhetoric l may indicate an explicit design choice by the designer • but not always ¢ The impact of a game on its players l may indicate acceptance of its rhetoric by those players • but not always

What are games for? A review will be predicated on a notion of the purpose of games ¢ Are they ¢ for the instruction of the young? l a frivolous waste of time? l an arena for displaying mastery? l a theater of the imagination? l

"Rhetorics of Play" ¢ ¢ Sutton-Smith's list of different conceptions of play Play as Progress l Stance • l Enabled by • • ¢ Play is how we (especially children) learn core mechanic emphasizing desirable skills moralistic narrative Play as Identity l Stance • l To play is to cement group bonds and ground identity Enabled by • • emphasis on social play rules reward collaborative effort • ¢ Play as Power l Stance • l To play is to display prowess and defeat lesser players Enabled by • ¢ non-zero sum play involving skill or strategic reasoning or both Also: Fate, Imaginary, Self, Frivolity

Controversy about Games ¢ Many arguments about video games l reduce to a fundamental disagreement about what games are for ¢ Play as Progress is very dominant l The premise • "games are for kids" • although most consumers are adults l Visible in controversies over mature themes in games • "games educate kids" • "Grand Theft Auto teaches what? " ¢ Play as Identity is problematic l because the site of identity is invisible to outsiders l Visible in discussions of game "addiction" • the claim is that this identity is somehow "empty" because the game is a virtual experience

Game Criticism ¢ We ask the question l ¢ The same as we might ask l ¢ "What does Hamlet say? " For literature l ¢ "What does Katamari Damacy say? " we call this literary criticism For games l l we might call it game criticism not really a recognized activity yet

Not Reviewing ¢ A review tells us l l ¢ how a game works whether it is "fun" whether it is "good" an response relative to some criteria for success A critical response l l tells us how the game may be understood how it resonates with the culture beyond the game

The critical stance ¢ ¢ ¢ To do criticism l we will start with certain aspects of the culture l relate aspects of the game to those features l and see what we find Could be seen as a "game" l some literary theorists think so But it is a serious game l because literary texts are given serious cultural weight in our society l for example • post-colonial interpretations of The Tempest ¢ Many possible approaches

Biographical / Historical ¢ ¢ Traditional interpretive approach l A work is the product on an individual l What does the work tell us about the creator? l What aspects of the creator's style are exemplified? l How does this object fit in with others? Game Example l Sim. City l Talk about • designer Will Wright • his other games • how we can understand Sim. City as part of his evolution as a game designer

New Criticism / Structuralism ¢ ¢ Emerged in 1920 s l an alternative to traditional author/artist-centered criticism Formalist approach l Who cares about the author? l What are the properties of the object itself? • formal structure • qualities of parts and whole ¢ Game Example l Asteroids l Talk about • what we've talking about all quarter • rules, play experiences deriving from them • our book basically takes a structuralist perspective

Marxist ¢ ¢ ¢ Takes social phenomena as its starting point l especially social class Questions l How does a work reflect the society that gave rise to it? l How does a work make visible the power relationships that govern a given society? Game Example l Missile Command l Talk about • The Cold War • how does the game reflect a particular social milieu? • who is the player and what is his role?

Psychoanalytic ¢ ¢ ¢ Derives from the works of Freud Questions l How does the work reflect subconscious experience? l How do typical psychological themes manifest themselves? Game Example l Windwaker l Talk about • "The Hero's Journey" • typical fairy-tale motif and archetypes • template for psychological maturation • more later

Feminist ¢ ¢ ¢ Takes questions of gender to be paramount Questions l What gendered relationships appear in the work? l What cultural assumptions about gender are inherent in it? Game Example l Katamari Damacy l Talk about • gendered characterizations • • l King Prince boy and girl mother and father More on Wednesday

Post-structuralist ¢ ¢ ¢ Seeks to "turn the work against itself" l to demonstrate that interpretation is in some sense "undecidable" Questions l What "instabilities" appear in the object? l Where can we find ambiguity where the work would try to imply certainty? Game Example l Guitar Hero l Talk about • the simulation of rock guitar performance • yet third-person perspective • the avatar is the idol • the player is too focused on the note stream to be really "immersed" • experience "mediated" by MTV video conventions

Post-colonial ¢ ¢ From the 1970 s (Edward Said) Questions l How does a work reflect the experience of colonialism? • Either from the point of view of colonized peoples or from the colonizers ¢ Game Example l Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow l Talk about • the player's role – disrupt a third-world terrorist's plot • the infiltration of a camp in Indonesia • reminiscent of Vietnam war movies • Lone high-tech hero vs hordes of poorly-equipped local partisans

Which one of these is right? Wrong question ¢ These are different lenses through which to view a work ¢ l ¢ they show us different things We could apply all of them to the same game

Psychology and narrative One idea to explore in greater depth ¢ Key narrative concepts in games ¢ Relationship to psychological theories ¢

Plot ¢ Game plots are almost always very simple l l ¢ rescue the princess battle the monsters save the universe from the evil mastermind rule the world Common plot elements l l betrayal approval of older mentor magical aid acquisition of magic and strength

Hero tales ¢ Hero tales are often l l l ¢ tales of heroism simple in structure involve magical aid involve betrayal lack detailed characterization can be retold Examples l l Theseus and the Minotaur Aladdin and the Lamp The Goose-Girl Jack and Beanstalk

Psychology of the hero tale ¢ Coming of age l ¢ Recognition of evil l ¢ The hero needs the help and (sometimes) the approval of others. Archetypal characters l ¢ Mature engagement with the world requires the recognition of evil and the resolve to confront it. Interdependence l ¢ The hero tale represents the transition from a youthful inward-focused perspective to a mature engagement with the world. The characters are drawn from a standard set of archetypes. "The Misfit" l The transition from being different/outcast to being part of society.

Psychology, cont'd ¢ What is the psychological function of the hero myth? Template for the issues of maturation l A way to externalize difficult emotional issues l • tension between comfort/safety of home and excitement/danger of the world • tension between growing physical and intellectual capacities and practical powerlessness.

Consequences ¢ ¢ Hero tale plots l have most intense appeal to adolescents and children l also, good fit with technological limitations Adults l (theoretically) have tolerance for more complex plots l but complex plots difficult to create Also l plot is only one component of the game l game needs to be engaging for other reasons We can "read" hero-oriented games l by looking at how they "construct" heroism

Example I ¢ Asteroids l "Space: The Final Frontier" l To be a hero is • to be alone against hostile and unfeeling nature, • to use speed and intelligence to battle mounting and eventually insurmountable odds. ¢ Why l detailed examination of the game • • • the avatar the space of play the nature of the conflicts the core mechanic the dramatic structure

Example II ¢ Civilization “Great Man" l to be a hero is l • to be the major decision-maker • to lead a nation to dominate the world, • to balance the forces of economics, politics, and military power

Example III ¢ Wind Waker l l "Jack and the Beanstalk" to be a hero is • to engage in a solitary quest • to start from humble and unpromising beginnings and vanquish significant enemies • to accept magical aid • to learn from the consequences of one's mistakes • to triumph over evil on the basis of inner strength and goodness

Example IV ¢ Half-Life 2 l ¢ George Washington to be a hero is to confront an occupying alien force l to survive dangers l to lead like-minded patriots l to destroy traitors l

Interpreting games ¢ Interpretation = the application of an interpretive framework l to an artifact l to generate meaning l ¢ Many possible frameworks l choice of framework depends on what you want to show / argue

Homework #3 ¢ 4 examples of character art 2 male l 2 female l

Wednesday ¢ Culture / l ¢ Gender Reading l Issue 17 of "The Escapist"

Rest of the quarter ¢ 2/26 Monday l ¢ 2/28 l l ¢ Guest lecturer Scot Bayless Vice-President of Product Development, Midway Games 3/7 l l ¢ Quiz #3 Case study: GTA III 3/5 l ¢ In-class activity No class Group work on Design Project #2 3/12 l Design Project #2 presentations