Beats & Units: A story-game design framework

There are no recipes or rules to develop games, any more than there are to develop stories. When we try to define a game system that not only has to create a balanced experience, but also has to tell a story, which can engage players in creating empathy and meaning, everything gets complicated. We faced this problem when we had to develop a serious game with the goal of promoting discussion and awareness among children around nutrition: FlavourGame. In this regard, we needed not only to design game mechanics that would feel complete and progressive, but also to create a narrative that provided meaning to the game experience, in order to ensure an underlying layer to the context of nutrition. For that, we had to develop a framework that could help the team in guiding the telling of the story while designing the progression of the game. In this article, we present the full framework as a story-game design approach to be employed in the creation of serious narrative games

KEER2022

Avanttítol: KEER2022. DiversitiesDescripció del recurs: 25 juliol 202

Story Experience in a Virtual San Storytelling Environment: A Cultural Heritage Application for Children and Young Adults

This dissertation explores virtual storytelling for conveying cultural stories effectively. We set out to investigate: (1) the strengths and/or weaknesses of VR as a storytelling medium; (2) the use of a culturally familiar introductory VE to preface a VE presenting traditional storytelling; (3) the relationship between presence and story experience. We conducted two studies to pursue these aims. Our aims were stated in terms of effective story experience, in the realm of cultural heritage. This was conceptualised as a story experience where story comprehension, interest in the story’s cultural context and story enjoyment were achieved, and where boredom and confusion in the story were low. This conceptualisation was empirically validated by our studies. Three storytelling scenarios were created to tell a traditional San story: text (T); a storytelling VE with no introductory VE (VR+NI); a storytelling VE with a hip-hop themed introductory VE (VR+I). These scenarios comprised our experimental conditions. Questionnaires, measuring interest in hip-hop and the story experience aspects identified above, were developed and psychometrically validated. Study 1 was conducted with a sample of 44 high-school learners and Study 2 with 98 university students. Both studies used a between-subjects design. Study 2 was a refined version of Study 1, improving Study 1’s questionnaires for use in Study 2 and considering two additional variables: attention to the story and perceived strangeness of the story. For our first aim, story experience in the text and VR storytelling scenarios were compared. In Study 1 and 2, comprehension was significantly higher in the T condition than in the two VR conditions combined and attention was higher in Study 2’s T condition. Therefore, we conclude that text is better for achieving story comprehension. In Study 1, interest and enjoyment were significantly higher in the VR condition, while boredom was higher in the T condition. But, no significant differences between text and VR were noted for these variables in Study 2. Comparisons of the T and VR conditions across Study 1 and 2 showed a particularly poor story experience in Study 1’s T group; we speculate that this was due to differences in Study 1 and 2’s samples and procedures. Barring this, there were no interest, enjoyment or boredom differences between T and VR across Study 1 and 2. Thus, we conclude, conservatively, that text and VR are equally good in terms of interest enjoyment and boredom. Confusion was higher in Study 1’s T condition, but this result was counter-intuitive since this condition had also shown higher comprehension. In contrast, Study 2’s VR condition showed significantly higher confusion and lower strangeness. We conclude that Study 1’s participants had reported strangeness rather than confusion and, while virtual storytelling resulted in more confusion, it also resulted in less perceived strangeness of the story. Presence and story experience in the VR+NI and VR+I storytelling scenarios were compared for our second aim. The introductory VE only had an effect for participants who showed a pre-existing interest in hip-hop. In Study 1’s VR+I condition, hip-hop interest was a significant predictor of enjoyment. In Study 2’s VR+I condition, those who identified hip-hop as a favourite music genre showed significantly higher presence than those who identified other genres as a favourite. This suggests that strongly themed introductory VE’s do not benefit virtual storytelling, and that content familiarity and preference interact with VE content to influence virtual experiences. Regarding our third aim; we did not find strong evidence of a relationship between presence and story experience since presence only correlated significantly with interest in Study 1

Amnesia: apontamentos sobre o género survival horror

Dissertação de Mestrado, Comunicação, Cultura e Artes, Faculdade de Ciências Humanas e Sociais, Universidade do Algarve, 2014Com o passar dos anos, os videojogos têm vindo a intensificar a sua importância enquanto conteúdo, arte e experiência sendo o foco desta dissertação a procura de medos específicos que o género survival horror é capaz de desencadear. Através do cinema de horror, da literatura gótica e da pintura romântica, uma reflexão sobre o universo dos videojogos Amnesia poderá ser criada. Caracterizam-se não só pela complexidade de cenários, criaturas, sons e narrativa mas também pela procura de uma intensa experiência emocional ao impedir toda e qualquer forma de combate e a trabalhar, de forma constante, a insanidade no ser humano. Assim, o género survival horror e o videojogo como meio digital interativo parecem encaixar-se na perfeição, resultando numa convincente simulação de uma realidade ficcional

PRELIMINARY FINDINGS OF A POTENZIATED PIEZOSURGERGICAL DEVICE AT THE RABBIT SKULL

The number of available ultrasonic osteotomes has remarkably increased. In vitro and in vivo studies have revealed differences between conventional osteotomes, such as rotating or sawing devices, and ultrasound-supported osteotomes (Piezosurgery®) regarding the micromorphology and roughness values of osteotomized bone surfaces. Objective: the present study compares the micro-morphologies and roughness values of osteotomized bone surfaces after the application of rotating and sawing devices, Piezosurgery Medical® and Piezosurgery Medical New Generation Powerful Handpiece. Methods: Fresh, standard-sized bony samples were taken from a rabbit skull using the following osteotomes: rotating and sawing devices, Piezosurgery Medical® and a Piezosurgery Medical New Generation Powerful Handpiece. The required duration of time for each osteotomy was recorded. Micromorphologies and roughness values to characterize the bone surfaces following the different osteotomy methods were described. The prepared surfaces were examined via light microscopy, environmental surface electron microscopy (ESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and atomic force microscopy. The selective cutting of mineralized tissues while preserving adjacent soft tissue (dura mater and nervous tissue) was studied. Bone necrosis of the osteotomy sites and the vitality of the osteocytes near the sectional plane were investigated, as well as the proportion of apoptosis or cell degeneration. Results and Conclusions: The potential positive effects on bone healing and reossification associated with different devices were evaluated and the comparative analysis among the different devices used was performed, in order to determine the best osteotomes to be employed during cranio-facial surgery

The Irish of Iorras Aithneach, County Galway; Volumes I-IV

This grammar is based on extensive fieldwork, published and unpublished lore, and recent as well as older recordings, particularly those held in the archives of Roinn Bhéaloideas Éireann and Raidió na Gaeltachta. These sources provide a picture of extensive variation and change across the six generations born between 1850 and 2000. The grammar draws on several branches of linguistics: descriptive and historical linguistics, dialectology and sociolinguistics. It is the most comprehensive treatment of any variety of Irish. Volume I provides an introduction and chapters on historical phonology, sandhi and nominal morphology. Volume II describes plural noun morphology, the verb and pronominals. Volume III contains chapters on prepositions, functors, initial mutations, higher register, borrowings and language contact, and onomastics. Volume IV presents transcriptions and a CD containing recordings of a slection of speakers across the generations. The final volume also contains a vocabulary, bibliography and four indexes

The Irish of Iorras Aithneach, County Galway; Volumes I-IV

This grammar is based on extensive fieldwork, published and unpublished lore, and recent as well as older recordings, particularly those held in the archives of Roinn Bhéaloideas Éireann and Raidió na Gaeltachta. These sources provide a picture of extensive variation and change across the six generations born between 1850 and 2000. The grammar draws on several branches of linguistics: descriptive and historical linguistics, dialectology and sociolinguistics. It is the most comprehensive treatment of any variety of Irish. Volume I provides an introduction and chapters on historical phonology, sandhi and nominal morphology. Volume II describes plural noun morphology, the verb and pronominals. Volume III contains chapters on prepositions, functors, initial mutations, higher register, borrowings and language contact, and onomastics. Volume IV presents transcriptions and a CD containing recordings of a slection of speakers across the generations. The final volume also contains a vocabulary, bibliography and four indexes

Bowdoin Orient v.106, no.1-25 (1976-1977)

https://digitalcommons.bowdoin.edu/bowdoinorient-1970s/1007/thumbnail.jp