Defining the indie game as process: aesthetic, production and community

The video game industry is now considered one of the largest entertainment industries in the world. This growth coincided with larger teams, budgets, and expectations to provide the latest technological advanced video games. However, in the mid to late 2000s there was a different type of game emerging – the indie game. Despite there being preconceptions about the qualifying factors of their classification - such as publishing independence - it has since become clear that indie games are not simply an abbreviation of independent. They represent and reflect different ways of working, ideas, values, and beliefs. In turn, there have been attempts to define “indie”, with some claiming that the term cannot be defined and therefore no longer makes sense. This research seeks to provide an intervention. Asserting that the term “indie” can be – and has been – understood in a variety of ways by a wide range of audiences over a period of several decades. This research draws on textual analysis, original practice-based research involving the production of an indie game, original interviews, and original audience research (drawing on a survey of 966 respondents) to arrive at a definition: Indie as process. Within this notion of indie as process, it is possible to identify three predominant themes. Indie as Aesthetic Process, Indie as Production Process, and Indie as Community Process. These processes, when considered in isolation or together, begin to inform our shared understanding of the indie game, allowing us to move beyond rigid ideas of what makes an indie game “indie”

The Effects of Narrative and Achievements on Learning in a 2D Platformer Video Game

Game design is a rigorous practice rife with complexity. The design of learning games is similarly complex to the design of their entertainment-based relatives. This complexity is partially due to the many interacting components that comprise games. The impacts of these individual components are not well understood. Advancing the understanding of how such component parts contribute to the formed game will inform decisions related to their inclusion and subsequent design within games. Achievements and narrative are two such components. They have been examined within gamified systems, but little research has studied them within the context of a serious game. The interactions between such elements and other game elements could produce results that diverge from the results of their use in isolation of a complete gaming framework. This dissertation selectively incorporates or excludes narrative and achievements within a two-dimensional platformer serious game to understand their impact on learning, flow, engagement, narrative transportation, and intrinsic motivation. Conditions are examined individually as well as in a combined condition. A control condition is maintained for comparison. Results indicate that narrative and achievements were not effective in improving the effectiveness of the game. Potential causes are discussed in tandem with the implications for the design and integration within a gaming framework. While the manipulations did not improve effectiveness, the game was responsible for substantially increased knowledge acquisition, as determined by pre and posttest results

Now You\u27re Playing with Power: Nintendo and the Commodification of Nostalgia

This thesis explores Nintendo’s past and present games and marketing, linking them to the broader trend of the commodification of nostalgia. The use of nostalgia by Nintendo is a key component of the company’s brand, fueling fandom and a compulsive drive to recapture the past. By making a significant investment in cultivating a generation of loyal fans, Nintendo positioned themselves to later capitalize on consumer nostalgia. The commodification of fan nostalgia is evident across multiple platforms, from the development of the Virtual Console digital game storefront to the use of pastiche and remediation in multi-generation, Nintendo developed franchises. Additionally, Nintendo frequently places their heritage front and center and creates tightly controlled spaces to guide fan discourse and continue to shape the Nintendo legacy on their terms

From Scapegoat to Working Mule : Views on the Beneficial Aspects of Video Games in Everyday Life, Education and Business

While this thesis explores both the negative and beneficial aspects of video games, it was mainly written to highlight the positive effects they have on us, whether we consciously realize it or not. The reader is first taken through definitions for various video gamer types. After this the thesis moves on to all the most common negative effects we often hear about in the media, following by an elaborate look into what we can actually learn and gain from video games. Since they have a broad range of advantages in different areas, everyday life, education, business and marketing have been taken into account as well as gamification and serious games. The hope is that this thesis provides the reader, despite only scratching the surface, with new information regarding video games and succeeds in showcasing them in a better light

Activist-Casual Game Design: Iterating Serious Games Through Research-Creation

How can activists and scholars design serious game projects that attract and engage people, that are inviting for many types of players, and that empower players to create positive change? My hypothesis was that the Activist-Casual Game Design Framework I published in 2021 could facilitate this work. I took a design-based research approach to answer my research question by way of demonstration and self-reflection through a creative case study of the production of an activist-casual game called Climate Somnia. Chapter 1 explains the literature review and synthesis behind the creation of the original framework, and Chapter 2 reviews the first four major iterations of my prototype and the lessons I learned from the experience of making them. Chapter 3 details additional theoretical research that went deeper than my original review and synthesis, providing me with nuanced understandings of the meaning and importance of player agency, inclusivity, and optimism in the context of activist game design. That chapter then proceeds to describe the design and development of the core game loop prototype for my game, and the learnings from that experience informed the subsequent design of Climate Somnia version 0.6, the creative case study at the heart of my design-based research method and the subject of Chapter 4. Chapter 5 begins by revisiting the framework I published in 2021 to critique the text of its ten hybrid design principles in light of the experience I gained in the years since. After that critique, I present my revision — the Activist-Casual Framework for Game Design, Planning, and Development — and explain its reorganized design principles as well as the descent-ascent planning model that goes with it. I also propose a direction for future research, in light of the revolutionary advances in publicly available artificial intelligence tools that have happened during my dissertation work

Methods of design, an overview of game design techniques

Key Summary Points The design of games for learning requires knowledge of game design and of instructional design. One cannot merely be layer on top of the other. A learning game must be designed to meet pre-specified learning objectives. Games have specific characteristics that require specific design skills: they are entertaining as well as instructional, interactive, visually appealing, and often replayable

Cultural literacy acquisition through video game environments of a digitally born generation

[ES] Los videojuegos modernos son complejos, diversos, inmersivos y muy extendidos, y su influencia en la sociedad y en las personas es muy profunda. Al principio, los videojuegos y sus impactos fueron demonizados, pero con el tiempo los estudios empezaron a evaluar sus efectos positivos en las competencias y habilidades relacionadas con las destrezas del siglo XXI, entre las que se encuentra la alfabetización cultural. Esta tesis sigue esta tendencia y examina el modo en que los juegos de entretenimiento comerciales, los juegos serios, los juegos educativos y las simulaciones pueden ayudar a los jugadores en su aprendizaje y en la adquisición de destrezas que mejoran su alfabetización cultural. Un análisis de las tendencias comunes en las destrezas y competencias necesarias para tener éxito en el siglo XXI (estudiadas por la UNESCO, el British Council, IBM, Google, LinkedIn y el Foro Económico Mundial) reveló que para vivir en un mundo VUCA (volátil, incierto, complejo y ambiguo) hace falta un modelo nuevo y actualizado de la alfabetización cultural. Esta tesis propone tal modelo. Se hizo una revisión de la literatura reciente sobre el impacto y los resultados de los videojuegos. Dicha revisión mostró que los videojuegos pueden reforzar o debilitar los estereotipos, que ayudan a adquirir conocimientos culturales y a desarrollar la alfabetización intercultural, la alfabetización sociocultural, la conciencia cultural, la autoconciencia y el entendimiento cultural de diferentes espacios geopolíticos, y que hasta cierto punto facilitan el desarrollo de las habilidades interculturales. El corazón de la tesis es una investigación sobre la efectividad de los videojuegos en el abordaje de problemas sociales difíciles como son los movimientos migratorios y la crisis de refugiados. Se realizaron dos estudios, uno cuantitativo y otro cualitativo, que obtuvieron resultados alentadores para los creadores de videojuegos de empatía. Muchos participantes informaron que sintieron más empatía y menos rechazo hacia los migrantes y refugiados, así como una mayor motivación para ayudar de forma activa a gente necesitada. Se hizo, además, una encuesta amplia que dio a conocer los géneros de entretenimiento AAA, los personajes, los elementos de juego y las características que los nativos digitales encuentran atractivos, así como los que echan en falta y que les gustaría ver en el futuro. Los hallazgos también confirmaron que los juegos no son solamente una fuente de diversión, sino también de mucho aprendizaje. El inglés, las bases de la informática, el pensamiento estratégico, la geografía y la historia, el trabajo en equipo, conocimientos culturales, el cambio de perspectiva y la creatividad... todo esto se aprende y refuerza con los videojuegos. Las evidencias presentadas en esta tesis sugieren que hay una demanda para herramientas que faciliten la educación intercultural. El punto culminante de esta tesis es el diseño de Chuzme, un juego educativo digital que pretende elevar la autoconciencia (cultural) y el reconocimiento del sesgo cultural con el fin de generar actitudes positivas hacia los migrantes, refugiados y expatriados. En resumen, esta tesis apoya la idea de que los videojuegos facilitan la adquisición de la alfabetización cultural y aporta pruebas de que los videojuegos proporcionan beneficios culturales, sociales y comunicativos que espere animen a los profesores a integrar activamente los videojuegos en su práctica docente. Descriptores: investigación sobre videojuegos, impacto de los videojuegos, comunicación intercultural, aprendizaje basado en juegos, alfabetización cultural[CA] Els videojocs moderns són complexos, diversos, immersius i molt estesos, i la seva influència en la societat i en les persones és molt profunda. Al principi, els videojocs i els seus impactes van ser demonitzats però amb el temps els estudis van començar a avaluar els seus efectes positius en les competències i habilitats relacionades amb les destreses del segle XXI, entre les quals es troba l'alfabetització cultural. Aquesta tesi segueix aquesta tendència i examina la manera en què els jocs d'entreteniment comercials, els jocs seriosos, els jocs educatius i les simulacions poden ajudar els jugadors en el seu aprenentatge i en l'adquisició de destreses que milloren la seva alfabetització cultural. Una anàlisi de les tendències comunes en les destreses i competències necessàries per tenir èxit en el segle XXI (estudiades per la UNESCO, el British Council, IBM, Google, LinkedIn i el Fòrum Econòmic Mundial) va revelar que per viure en un món VUCA (volàtil , incert, complex i ambigu) cal un model nou i actualitzat de l'alfabetització cultural. Aquesta tesi proposa aquest model. Es va fer una revisió de la literatura recent sobre l'impacte i els resultats dels videojocs. La dita revisió va mostrar que els videojocs poden reforçar o debilitar els estereotips, que ajuden a adquirir coneixements culturals i a desenvolupar l'alfabetització intercultural, l'alfabetització sociocultural, la consciència cultural, l'autoconsciència i l'enteniment cultural de diferents espais geopolítics, i que fins a cert punt faciliten el desenvolupament de les habilitats interculturals. El cor de la tesi és una investigació sobre l'efectivitat dels videojocs en l'abordatge de problemes socials difícils com són els moviments migratoris i la crisi de refugiats. Es van realitzar dos estudis, un quantitatiu i un altre qualitatiu, que van obtenir resultats encoratjadors per als creadors de videojocs d'empatia. Molts participants van informar que van sentir més empatia i menys rebuig cap als immigrants i refugiats, així com una major motivació per ajudar de forma activa a gent necessitada. Es va fer, a més, una enquesta àmplia que va donar a conèixer els gèneres d'entreteniment AAA, els personatges, els elements de joc i les característiques que els nadius digitals troben atractius així com els que troben a faltar i que els agradaria veure en el futur. Les troballes també van confirmar que els jocs no són només una font de diversió, sinó també de molt aprenentatge. L'anglès, les bases de la informàtica, el pensament estratègic, la geografia i la història, el treball en equip, coneixements culturals, el canvi de perspectiva i la creativitat ... tot això s'aprèn i reforça amb els videojocs. Les evidències presentades en aquesta tesi suggereixen que hi ha una demanda per a eines que facilitin l'educació intercultural. El punt culminant d'aquesta tesi és el disseny de Chuzme, un joc educatiu digital que pretén elevar l'autoconsciència (cultural) i el reconeixement del biaix cultural amb la finalitat de generar actituds positives cap als migrants, refugiats i expatriats. En resum, aquesta tesi dóna suport a la idea que els videojocs faciliten l'adquisició de l'alfabetització cultural i aporta proves que els videojocs proporcionen beneficis culturals, socials i comunicatius que esperi animin els professors a integrar activament els videojocs en la seva pràctica docent. Descriptors: investigació sobre videojocs, impacte dels videojocs, comunicació intercultural, aprenentatge basat en jocs, l'alfabetització cultural[EN] Modern video games are complex, diverse, immersive and pervasive, and their influence on society and people is far-reaching. Video games and their impacts were initially demonised, but over time research started assessing the positive effects of games on competencies and abilities connected to twenty-first-century skills that include cultural literacy. In line with this trend, this thesis examines how entertaining commercial titles, serious games, educational games and simulations can support players in learning and in acquiring skills that enhance cultural literacy. An analysis of the common trends for the skills and competencies needed for success in the twenty-first century ¿studied by UNESCO, the British Council, IBM, Google, LinkedIn, and the World Economic Forum, among other,¿ revealed that living in a VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity) world requires a new, updated model of cultural literacy. This thesis proposes such a model. A review was made of the recent literature on the impact and outcomes of video games, showing that video games can reinforce or weaken stereotypes; help to acquire cultural knowledge and develop intercultural literacy, socio-cultural literacy, cultural awareness, self-awareness, and the cultural understanding of different geopolitical spaces; and to some extent also facilitate the development of intercultural skills. The heart of the thesis is an investigation into the effectiveness of video games for tackling difficult social issues such as migratory movements and the refugee crisis. Two studies were conducted one quantitative and the other qualitative that obtained heartening results for producers of empathy video games. Many participants reported feeling more empathy and less rejection towards migrants and refugees, as well as being more motivated to actively help people in need. Additionally, a broad survey revealed the AAA entertainment game genres, characters, and in-game elements and features that digital natives find attractive and those they miss and would like in the future. The findings also confirmed that games produce not only fun but also a great deal of learning. The English language, the basics of informatics, strategic thinking, geography and history, teamwork, cultural knowledge, perspective change, and creativity are all learnt and reinforced during video game play. The evidence presented in this thesis suggests there is a demand for tools facilitating intercultural education. The high point of the thesis is the design of Chuzme, an educational digital game that focuses on raising cultural self-awareness and the acknowledgement of cultural bias in order to generate positive attitudes towards migrants, refugees and expatriates. In summary, this thesis supports the idea that video games facilitate the acquisition of cultural literacy and provides evidence on the cultural, social and communication bene¿ts of gaming that hopefully encourages scholars to actively integrate video games in their teaching practice. Keywords: games studies; intercultural communication, impact of video games, games-based learning, cultural literacyShliakhovchuk, O. (2019). Cultural literacy acquisition through video game environments of a digitally born generation [Tesis doctoral no publicada]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/13084

A Design Exploration of Affective Gaming

Physiological sensing has been a prominent fixture in games user research (GUR) since the late 1990s, when researchers began to explore its potential to enhance and understand experience within digital game play. Since these early days, it has been widely argued that “affective gaming”—in which gameplay is influenced by a player’s emotional state—can enhance player experience by integrating physiological sensors into play. In this thesis, I conduct a design exploration of the field of affective gaming by first, systematically exploring the field and creating a framework (the affective game loop) to classify existing literature; and second by presenting two design probes, to probe and explore the design space of affective games contextualized within the affective game loop: In the Same Boat and Commons Sense. The systematic review explored this unique design space of affective gaming, opening up future avenues for exploration. The affective game loop was created as a way to classify the physiological signals and sensors most commonly used in prior literature within the context of how they are mapped into the gameplay itself. Findings suggest that the physiological input mappings can be more action-based (e.g., affecting mechanics in the game such as the movement of the character) or more context-based (e.g., affecting things like environmental or difficulty variables in the game). Findings also suggested that while the field has been around for decades, there is still yet to be any commercial successes, so does physiological interaction really heighten player experience? This question instigated the design of the two probes, exploring ways to implement these mappings and effectively heighten player experience. In the Same Boat (Design Probe One) is an embodied mirroring game designed to promote an intimate interaction, using players’ breathing rate and facial expressions to control movement of a canoe down a river. Findings suggest that playing In the Same Boat fostered the development of affiliation between the players, and that while embodied controls were less intuitive, people enjoyed them more, indicating the potential of embodied controls to foster social closeness in synchronized play over a distance. Commons Sense (Design Probe Two) is a communication modality intended to heighten audience engagement and effectively capture and communicate the audience experience, using a webcam-based heart rate detection software that takes an average of each spectator’s heart rate as input to affect in-game variables such as lighting and sound design, and game difficulty. Findings suggest that Commons Sense successfully facilitated the communication of audience response in an online entertainment context—where these social cues and signals are inherently diminished. In addition, Commons Sense is a communication modality that can both enhance a play experience while offering a novel way to communicate. Overall, findings from this design exploration shows that affective games offer a novel way to deliver a rich gameplay experience for the player

Relační marketing na trhu videoher

Import 02/11/2016The main topic of this diploma thesis was relationship marketing in a video game industry. The goal was to demonstrate the usage of relationship marketing aspects on this market and to assess relationship potential of a selected video game brand. Focus was put on internet socialization about video games and on the associated social media, as a platform of support for the newly created communitas. Symptoms of relationship presence were identified inside these brand communities, consumer tribes and subcultures of consumption. Love for video games took shape of individual or collective gatekeeping, technical and emotional support among gamers, voluntary maintenance and extension of products’ functionality and marketing communication, and in a shape of visible projection of affinity towards selected game developers, games, or gaming characters, due to the presence of shared values. These aspects were inspected in detail on TombRaiderForums.com, a gaming community that was later identified as a brand community centred around Lara Croft, the main character of the Tomb Raider video game series. Netnography was selected as the main research method for primary, qualitative data collection. Its insights were broadened with quantitative data collected through an online questionnaire. Author’s own self-reflection and experience with the community and the Tomb Raider series also served as a foundation for the methodology. Besides artefacts that proved the relationship potential of the group, values of the Lara Croft brand were investigated as well. Data gathered from official audio-visual material analysis of individual Tomb Raider titles were confronted with community’s ideal and revealed key, relationally potent brand values of Lara Croft. Results of the research also served as an overview and a critical evaluation of each Lara Croft iteration, including her latest incarnation. It was found that the brand had preserved its relationship potential, but its consecutive alterations led to erosion of key values and to a split in the community, TombRaiderForums.com being an example. It was concluded that the Tomb Raider series has a big potential due to its long history, good production value, strong key values of the Lara Croft brand, and positive specifics of the target group. Game’s developer and publisher stand before a dilemma whether to remove the conflicting values from the current depiction of the main heroine and to move her towards the community’s ideal, or to place their bids on current Lara’s relationship potential and to create a new community. Concurrently, there is still space for extension of relationship marketing activities, thus a space for deepening the support of the active, mature, intelligent and creative community that surrounds the brand and that co-creates brand value for free. The video game market is then an ideal space for relationship marketing practices in general, since the consumption of video game products derives directly from relationship aspects.Tématem této diplomové práce byl vztahový marketing na trhu videoher. Cílem práce bylo demonstrovat užití prvků vztahového marketingu na tomto trhu a určit vztahový potenciál zkoumané herní značky. Bylo pojednáno o problematice internetové socializace týkající se videoher a sociálních médií, jako platforem podpory pro takto vzniklé herní komunity. V rámci těchto značkových komunit, spotřebních kmenů a subkultur spotřeby byly identifikovány příznaky přítomnosti vztahu. Láska k videohrám se projevovala ve formě individuálního, či kolektivního hlídání informačních bran, technické i emocionální podpoře mezi hráči, dobrovolnému udržování a rozšiřování funkcionality produktu a marketingové komunikace značky, a v neposlední řadě taky ve formě viditelné projekce afinity k vybraným herním vývojářům, hrám, nebo herním postavám, díky přítomnosti sdílených hodnot. Tyto projevy vztahu byly detailně zkoumány na herní komunitě TombRaiderForums.com, která byla identifikována jako značková komunita centrována kolem Lary Croft, hlavní postavy herní série Tomb Raider. Netnografie byla zvolena jako výzkumná metoda pro shromáždění primárních, kvalitativních dat, které byly poté pomocí online dotazování rozšířeny o data kvantitativní. Metoda rovněž stavěla na sebereflexi autora a na jeho osobním prožitku s komunitou a herní sérií Tomb Raider. Mimo artefakty dokazující vztahový potenciál skupiny, byly podrobeny výzkumu i hodnoty značky Lary Croft. Data získaná pomocí analýzy oficiálního audiovizuálního materiálu jednotlivých dílů série Tomb Raider byla konfrontována s komunitním ideálem a byly tak odhaleny klíčové, vztahově potentní hodnoty Lary Croft. Výsledky výzkumu rovněž posloužily jako přehled a kritické zhodnocení jednotlivých iterací Lary Croft, včetně její současné podoby. Bylo zjištěno, že si značka zachovala svůj vztahový potenciál, ovšem její průběžné úpravy vedly k narušení klíčových hodnot a k rozpolcení komunity, jakou byla právě TombRaiderForums.com. Závěrem bylo konstatováno, že série Tomb Raider má díky své dlouhé historii, kvalitní produkci, silným klíčovým hodnotám značky Lary Croft, a pozitivním specifikům cílové skupiny velký potenciál. Vývojář a vydavatel hry však stojí před dilematem, zdali odstranit konfliktní hodnoty ze současného vyobrazení hlavní hrdinky a přiblížit se tak komunitnímu ideálu, či vsadit na vztahový potenciál její nové podoby a vytvořit komunitu novou. Zároveň je zde stále prostor pro rozšíření aktivit vztahového marketingu a tím k prohloubení podpory oné aktivní, dospělé, inteligentní a kreativní komunity, která značku obklopuje, a to v činnostech, které bezplatně spoluvytvářejí její hodnotu. Videoherní trh je pak obecně ideálním místem pro praktiky vztahového marketingu, jelikož samotná spotřeba videoherních produktů se od aspektů vztahu odvíjí.116 - Katedra marketingu a obchoduvýborn