Valeur narrative des mécaniques ludiques et corporéité du joueur

Faisant écho aux recherches contemporaines sur la narrativité du jeu vidéo et s’inscrivant au cœur des problématiques du Narrative Design, cet article s’appuie sur un travail de recherche-création pour défendre l’idée d’une valeur narrative de l’expérience corporelle des mécaniques ludiques. Il met plus précisément en lumière les potentiels expressifs de la dissonance et de l’harmonie ludo-narrative, la portée narrative des mécaniques ludiques et l’importance de la corporéité dans la construction du sens de l’expérience.Anchored in contemporary scientific research about video games narrativity and tackling current considerations in the field of Narrative Design, his paper presents a research-creation project that explores the idea of a narrative value of the game mechanics experienced through the body. More precisely, three concepts are discussed: the ludo-narrative dissonance and harmony, the narrative game mechanics and the narrative body experience of the game

Collaborative game development with indigenous communities; A theoretical model for ethnocultural empathy

This thesis studies how collaboratively designed games can be used as a means to empathically share cultural perspectives and emotions between unrelated communities. The paper also discusses some of the diversity issues present within the video game industry, especially those dealing with Indigenous cultural content, and to promote the “world games” movement of inclusive game production. The project began with an examination of various concepts that make up the current psychological theory of empathy. Academic findings on cultural empathy were specifically explored, and Wang et. al’s (2003) theory of ethnocultural empathy was examined. A literature review continued with further examination of the methods for empathic game design and production. The literature also considered how specific game elements and practices of intercultural sensitivity function within collaborative game design and development, leading to a more in-depth study of co-development with Indigenous communities. From this, two theoretical models were developed and proposed. The Ethnocultural Empathy Analysis model looked specifically at methods for e-empathic game design, and the Intercultural Sensitivity model presented reflective questions for Indigenous co-development. These models were then applied to three game project case studies. Two of the studies examined the commercial games, Never Alone and Mulaka. The third study, the Sámi Game Jam, included a personal reflection of my first-hand experience in an Indigenous co-development setting. Finally, the results of this thesis proposed ways that games, as a unique, interactive medium, can be successfully used to both address, and even eliminate, much of the cultural disconnection and ignorance present in today’s world

ABOVE WATER: An Educational Game for Anxiety

© Lennart Nacke, 2016. This is the author’s version of the work. It is posted here for your personal use. Not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in CHI PLAY Companion '16 Proceedings of the 2016 Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play Companion Extended Abstracts, https://doi.org/10.1145/2968120.2971804We present Above Water - a digital/physical hybrid game to inform people about the available strategies to cope with two types of Anxiety Disorders - Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Panic Disorder. The game teaches players about existing treatments. This hybrid game is designed to inspire players to share their experiences and develop their own personal narrative. The document also outlines an assessment strategy to study the game and determine its effectiveness as a game for health. The game is designed to educate non-institutionalized individuals with clinical anxiety and panic disorder. Potential players may be diagnosed, seeking intervention information, or a supportive friend.Peer-reviewe

Dark Play in Dishonored

acceptedVersio

An evaluation of undergraduate student nurses' gameful experience whilst playing a digital escape room as part of a FIRST year module: a cross-sectional study

The circumstances arising from the COVID-19 pandemic have accelerated the use of digital teaching and learning in health professions education. Digital gamification-based teaching and learning activities are innovative and versatile tools for the acquisition of professional competencies in higher education, which can be used on a range of topics and can be supplemental to other teaching methods

After the Spread of COVID-19: A Study of Board Game Design Factor for Game-Based Learning

This research had the objective to study the design factors of board games for game-based learning by being classified into two parts: 1) Studying the design factors for board games for learning through a systematic review. 2) Studying the design factors for board games of the customers’ needs from the quality function deployment technique based on the data gathered from structured questionnaires. The population group comprised 100 board game customers, and the results found that there were two significant factors in designing the board game for promoting learning with the customers’ needs that were related to the playing patterns or the mechanisms. Thus, both factors enabled the players to gain the motivation for participation in learning through the board games, including the design factors of the board games for promoting learning until they could respond to customer satisfaction at the same level as existing board games that are appropriately sold in the markets

The Adventures of Ms. Meta: Developing a Historical Superhero Video Game

The Adventures of Ms. Meta (forthc.) uses a combination of brawler and puzzle game mechanics along with the narrative device of time travel to provide players with the means to become active participants in the cultural narrative of the American superhero. Although these larger than life characters are irrefutably fixtures in contemporary popular culture, they exist in constant change; reinvented time after time in accordance with each era s definition of heroism, adapted as media forms evolve. As a game designer with a background in comic book illustration and superhero art history, this article explores my process of developing an experience that engages with the ever-changing relationship between superheroes and American culture. Players assume the role of Ms. Meta, a modern female superhero, in an adventure where every level represents a different age of superhero comics, and the world that produced them. Grounded in academic research, and featuring game mechanics including puzzle-solving and collaboration, I hope to empower players to create their own definition of heroism

Playing with World War II: A Small-Scale Study of Learning in Video Games

Out of all the K-12 disciplines, History is positioned to benefit the most from integrating games into the classroom because while school-based history is considered to be the most boring subject amongst today’s young people (Loewen, 1995), history-themed video games continue to be best-sellers. This article explores how mediated action theory, in particular Wertsch’s (1998) ideas regarding mastery and appropriation, can yield particular insights around the different kinds of learning that can happen by playing history-themed video games. The data used here was collected as part of a small-scale case study that asked four self-proclaimed “history gamers” to talk about this perceived connection between their play of WWII games and learning history. I provide an overview of mediated action and make a case for its suitability as an analytical framework to examine game-based learning, with a special focus on mastery and appropriation as defined by Wertsch (1998). This will be followed by case-specific findings on how players of WWII FPS games can appropriate these games to learn about WWII history. Suggestions on future research trajectories on history-themed games and game-based learning, as well as other uses of mediated action theory, will be discussed at the end

“It\u27s so normal, and … meaningful.” Playing with Narrative, Artifacts, and Cultural Difference in Florence

This article considers how player interactions with religious and ethnic markers, create a globalized game space in the mobile game Florence (2018). Florence is a multiaward- winning interactive novella game with story-integrated minigames that weave play experiences into the narrative. The game, in part, explores love, loss, and rejuvenation as relatable experiences. Simultaneously, the game produces a unique experience for each player, as they can refract the game narrative through their own cultural, identitarian lens. The game assumes the shared cultural space of the player, the player-character (PC), and the non-player-character (NPC) while blurring the boundaries between each of these categories. Through textual analysis, semiotics, and globalization theory, we show how Florence’s designers use game mechanics and narrative artifacts to produce a dynamic, cosmopolitan game space that beckons the player to engage personally with the game’s narrative. The result is that narrative objects function as nonspecific cultural signifiers, inviting players to see the game space as global, a place in which traditionally underrepresented groups (non-white ethnicities and non-male genders) can be posited as normative and ordinary. Specifically, the religious and cultural artifacts signify a game space in which an interracial, interfaith love story is the default narrative – a pathway into the ordinary, rather than these artifacts functioning merely as markers of difference. Thus, these artifacts signify a globalized community that welcomes the player into the game space of Florence. As such, Florence is a novel and important entry into video games’ representation of culture and religion

Assassins, Gods, and Androids: How Narratives and Game Mechanics Shape Eudaimonic Game Experiences

Emerging research has suggested that digital games can generate entertainment experiences beyond hedonic enjoyment towards eudaimonic experiences: Being emotionally moved, stimulated to reflect on one’s self or a sense of elevation. Studies in this area have mainly focused on individual game characteristics that elicit singular and static eudaimonic game moments. However, such a focus neglects the interplay of multiple game aspects as well as the dynamic nature of eudaimonic experiences. The current study takes a novel approach to eudaimonic game research by conducting a qualitative game analysis of three games (Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Detroit: Become Human, and God of War) and taking systematic notes on game experiences shortly after playing. Results reveal that emotionally moving, reflective, and elevating eudaimonic experiences were elicited when gameplay notes suggested a strong involvement with the game’s narrative and characters (i.e., narrative engagement) and, in some cases, narrative-impacting choices. These key aspects, in turn, are enhanced by clean player interfaces, graphically realistic characters, close camera perspectives, tone-appropriate soundtrack scores, and both narrative-enhancing (e.g., God of War’s health mechanic) and choice-enhancing mechanics (e.g., Detroit: Become Human’s flowchart). Eudaimonic experiences were also found to evolve throughout the game, with more powerful experiences occurring near the end of the game and some narrative themes fueling the eudaimonic flow of experiences throughout the overall game narrative. This study adds to academic research studying digital games by suggesting an innovative methodological approach that provides a detailed, integrative, and dynamic perspective on eudaimonic game experiences