A Spectrum of Audience Interactivity for entertainment domains

The concept of audience interactivity has been rediscovered across many domains of storytelling and entertainment—e.g. digital games, in-person role-playing, film, theater performance, music, and theme parks—that enrich the form with new idioms, language, and practices. In this paper, we introduce a Spectrum of Audience Interactivity that establishes a common vocabulary for the design space across entertainment domains. Our spectrum expands on an early vocabulary conceptualized through co-design sessions for interactive musical performances. We conduct a cross-disciplinary literature review to evaluate and iterate upon this vocabulary, using our findings to develop our validated spectrum

We Give Them the Most Important Thing Possible. We Give Their Dreary Lives Excitement”: Toward a Theoretical Model of Narrative Parasocial Engagement

Video game narratives and characters are some of the most enjoyable and persuasive components of the video game industry. While narratives and character relationships within video games have been examined separately, there is no working model and little research attempting to bridge the connection between narratives and character relationships. This research combines Narrative Paradigm Theory and Parasocial Relationships to understand how narratives and character relationships influence each other in video game environments. This was done through rhetorical field methods, utilizing a focus group and narrative rhetorical analysis on the transcript of the focus group. Results provide a working model coined the Pyramid of Narrative Parasocial Engagement. This model explains how video game players can be rhetorically satisfied and thus persuaded through achieving different levels of video game engagement. The levels of the pyramid include Avatar Identification, Narrative Involvement, Parasocial Relationships, Community Engagement, and Rhetorical Satisfaction. A player must achieve the base level and work their way up the pyramid similar to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Results further indicate that the level a player achieves on the pyramid influences the level of narrative blending between their video game micro-narrative and their real-life grand narrative, and thus a higher influence to be persuaded in value, belief, or action to the video game’s persuasive goal. This research implies that the Uses and Gratifications model of using media to satisfy needs may not be fully realized as the working model argues players use video games to reach a real community to engage with rather than being content with the narrative and parasocial relationships the game provides. Future research should test the Pyramid of Narrative Parasocial Engagement using other methodologies

Studying Games in School: a Framework for Media Education

This paper explores how media education principles can be extended to digital games, and whether the notion of ‘game literacy’ is an appropriate metaphor for thinking about the study of digital games in schools. Rationales for studying the media are presented, focusing on the importance of setting up social situations that encourage more systematic and critical understanding of games. The value of practical production, or game making, is emphasized, as a way of developing both conceptual understanding and creative abilities. Definitions of games are reviewed to explore whether the study of games is best described as a form of literacy. I conclude that games raise difficulties for existing literacy frameworks, but that it remains important to study the multiple aspects of games in an integrated way. A model for conceptualizing the study of games is presented which focuses on the relationship between design, play and culture

Character-driven Narrative Engine. Storytelling System for building interactive narrative experiences

This paper discusses a design methodology for developing interactive storytelling projects based on character-driven stories. Shaped as a three-year research through design, it was applied in the educational context of Politecnico di Milano, School of Design, from 2015 to 2017. To open up the issue of the degree of interactiveness and agency that different media allow toward the story, we merged knowledge from cultural, media and game studies. Aiming at building brave, fresh interactive narratives for contemporary media (analogue, digital or hybrid), each year we experimented the implications of initiating the design activity from a different starting point: 1) archetypal characters, 2) thick and compelling storyworlds, and 3) real testimonies shaped as short stories and fragments of memories. We discuss the different tools and methods employed, and the reasons why behind their evolution through time. Then, we conclude with a critical analysis of the results obtained, looking at the consequences and potentialities of how this narrative process has been applied to the game design field

A Proposed Model of Character Progression Taxonomy in Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG’s)

A novel taxonomy for character progression in Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG’s) was developed into three main functions: the identification, classification, and nomenclature of character progression types. A conceptual framework was established assessing two existing character progression types, linear character progression and nonstatistic character progression, using the grounded theory research method approach. The framework was then used as a form of reference in order to develop the classification and nomenclature of character progression types. These results are a foundation to determine whether a novel, hybrid approach to character progression could increase the level of player investment in gameplay based on the taxonomy of character progression types. Ultimately, this taxonomy can serve designers’ critical thinking process, enabling them to better accommodate their specific audience of players, potentially reducing player churn rate

Narrative patterns in FarCry3

Thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of Master of Arts (Digital Arts) to the Faculty of Humanities, School of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2016.This paper aims to go down into the rabbit-hole, by analysing the narrative experience derived from games and investigate how it functions in conjunction with the gameplay. This analysis will focus in detail on a case study of Ubisoft's 2012 title Far Cry 3 (FC3). FC3 is a sequel to Far Cry (2004), the original title was developed by Crytek, and produced by Ubisoft. The sequels have been Ubisoft Montreal creations. I have selected FarCry3 as it is commercially successful, as of February 2013 it sold over 4, 5 million copies (Phillips, T. "Far Cry sales hit 4.5 million" 2013). It also received various nominations, including an award for its story, during the 9th British Video Game Awards (Reynolds “Bafta Game Awards 2013” 2012). FC3 can, therefore, be viewed as being indicative of what the populist gaming community desires in a game, an indicator of present trends in narrative development in games. For this paper, I intend to use Hendry Jenkins’ narrative model to analyse how FC3 structured. As a result, illuminating how FC3, manages to engage with a cogent narrative, while operating in conjunction with an engaging game mechanic. I intend to present the structures as they exist within the case study's fictional world. In this research report I will argue that FC3 incorporates multiple narrative structures which promote gameplay. I will play the FC3 critically to gain an overall perspective and through the use of in play videos to select key scenes for analysis within my case study. With the knowledge invested, I intend to apply Jenkins’ narrative architecture in my analysis. [No abstract provided. Information taken from introduction].MT201

Persuasive Gaming in Context

The rapid developments in new communication technologies have facilitated the popularization of digital games, which has translated into an exponential growth of the game industry in recent decades. The ubiquitous presence of digital games has resulted in an expansion of the applications of these games from mere entertainment purposes to a great variety of serious purposes. In this edited volume, we narrow the scope of attention by focusing on what game theorist Ian Bogost has called 'persuasive games', that is, gaming practices that combine the dissemination of information with attempts to engage players in particular attitudes and behaviors.This volume offers a multifaceted reflection on persuasive gaming, that is, on the process of these particular games being played by players. The purpose is to better understand when and how digital games can be used for persuasion by further exploring persuasive games and some other kinds of persuasive playful interaction as well. The book critically integrates what has been accomplished in separate research traditions to offer a multidisciplinary approach to understanding persuasive gaming that is closely linked to developments in the industry by including the exploration of relevant case studies

Videogames in the museum:participation, possibility and play in curating meaningful visitor experiences

In 2014 Videogames in the Museum [1] engaged with creative practitioners, games designers, curators and museums professionals to debate and explore the challenges of collecting and exhibiting videogames and games design. Discussions around authorship in games and games development, the transformative effect of the gallery on the cultural reception and significance of videogames led to the exploration of participatory modes and playful experiences that might more effectively expose the designer’s intent and enhance the nature of our experience as visitors and players. In proposing a participatory mode for the exhibition of videogames this article suggests an approach to exhibition and event design that attempts to resolve tensions between traditions of passive consumption of curated collections and active participation in meaning making using theoretical models from games analysis and criticism and the conceit of game and museum spaces as analogous rules based environments