Spartan Daily, November 15, 2006

Volume 127, Issue 46https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/10304/thumbnail.jp

Mustang Daily, November 29, 2006

Student newspaper of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA.https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/studentnewspaper/7520/thumbnail.jp

Spartan Daily, November 20, 2006

Volume 127, Issue 48https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/10306/thumbnail.jp

The First But Hopefully Not the Last: How The Last Of Us Redefines the Survival Horror Video Game Genre

For this study, I applied generic criticism, which looks at how a text subverts and adheres to patterns and formats in its respective genre, to analyze how The Last of Us redefined the survival horror video game genre through its narrative. Although some tropes are present in the game and are necessary to stay tonally consistent to the genre, I argued that much of the focus of the game is shifted from the typical situational horror of the monsters and violence to the overall narrative, effective dialogue, strategic use of cinematic elements, and character development throughout the course of the game. I also found that the game challenges notions of masculinity and femininity and takes inspiration from Bildungsroman, which are coming-of-age novels. I proposed a new genre called “Zombie Drama” which refers to texts that focus on character development in a zombie world backdrop. Next, I deconstructed the visual and auditory aspects of the game and how they contribute to the overall construction of the narrative. Lastly, I covered the filmic influences of The Last of Us and drew connections between the texts and the game

A Content Analysis of Advertising in Popular Video Games

There have been a plethora of analyses on the effects of and brand image of advertising in video games, but a dearth of analyses simply examining the role advertising has played in video games over the years. This study seeks to add to the available research on this topic. This study has yielded a great amount of information which should have pre-dated any analysis of the effects of advertising in video games, or brand placement and recall, and certainly any analysis on purchase intent as a result of interacting or observing brand or product placement in video games. Not only do the results of this analysis have a great deal of potential real world implications, but should help advance the literature on the subject. It was shown that the amount of advertising in video games has significantly increased over the past thirteen years. Sports games are the most likely to include advertising, and shooters are the least likely, but until a more concise classification system is established, we can only use the current one to the best of its ability. This study also illustrated that in-game advertisements were significantly higher for real products than fictitious product

A Content Analysis of Advertising in Popular Video Games

There have been a plethora of analyses on the effects of and brand image of advertising in video games, but a dearth of analyses simply examining the role advertising has played in video games over the years. This study seeks to add to the available research on this topic. This study has yielded a great amount of information which should have pre-dated any analysis of the effects of advertising in video games, or brand placement and recall, and certainly any analysis on purchase intent as a result of interacting or observing brand or product placement in video games. Not only do the results of this analysis have a great deal of potential real world implications, but should help advance the literature on the subject. It was shown that the amount of advertising in video games has significantly increased over the past thirteen years. Sports games are the most likely to include advertising, and shooters are the least likely, but until a more concise classification system is established, we can only use the current one to the best of its ability. This study also illustrated that in-game advertisements were significantly higher for real products than fictitious product

Spartan Daily, April 11, 2001

Volume 116, Issue 47https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/9683/thumbnail.jp

CREATING A COHERENT SCORE: THE MUSIC OF SINGLE-PLAYER FANTASY COMPUTER ROLE-PLAYING GAMES

This thesis provides a comprehensive exploration into the music of the ludic genre (Hourigan, 2005) known as a Computer Role-Playing Game (CRPG) and its two main sub-divisions: Japanese and Western Role-Playing Games (JRPGs & WRPGs). It focuses on the narrative category known as genre fiction, concentrating on fantasy fiction (Turco, 1999) and seeks to address one overall question: How do fantasy CRPG composers incorporate the variety of musical material needed to create a coherent score across the JRPG and WRPG divide? Seven main chapters form the thesis text. Chapter One provides an introduction to the thesis, detailing the research contributions in addition to outlining a variety of key terms that must be understood to continue with the rest of the text. A database accompanying this thesis showcases the vast range of CRPGs available; a literature review tackles relevant existing materials. Chapters Two and Three seek to provide the first canonical history of soundtracks used in CRPGs by dissecting typical narrative structures for games so as to provide context to their musical scores. Through analysis of existing game composer interviews, cultural influences are revealed. Chapters Four and Five mirror one another with detailed discussion respectively regarding JRPG and WRPG music including the influence that anime and Hollywood cinema have had upon them. In Chapter Six, the use of CRPG music outside of video games is explored, particularly the popularity of JRPG soundtracks in the concert hall. Chapter Seven concludes the thesis, summarising research contributions achieved and areas for future work. Throughout these chapters, the core task is to explain how the two primary sub-genres of CRPGs parted ways and why the music used to accompany these games differs so drastically