An analysis of persistent non-player characters in the first-person gaming genre 1998-2007: a case for the fusion of mechanics and diegetics

This paper describes the results of an analysis of persistent non-player characters (PNPCs) in the first-person gaming genre 1998-2007. Assessing the role, function, gameplay significance and representational characteristics of these critical important gameplay objects from over 34 major releases provides an important set of baseline data within which to situate further research. This kind of extensive, genre-wide analysis is under-represented in game studies, yet it represents a hugely important process in forming clear and robust illustrations of the medium to support understanding. Thus, I offer a fragment of this illustration, demonstrating that many of the cultural and diegetic qualities of PNPCs are a product of a self-assembling set of archetypes formed from gameplay requirements

Case report: the impact of a resubmission intervention on level 1 distance learning students

Student retention and success are key performance indicators within higher education. One of the key opportunities to address both of these lies with the support offered to students who fail a module but are entitled to resubmit. This study investigates the value of implementing a resubmission intervention to improve the quantity and quality of student resubmissions on a level 1 distance learning module. The intervention consisted of an online synchronous tutorial session and a supporting asynchronous forum. The effectiveness of the intervention was measured by comparing the resubmission and pass rates to a previous presentation with no intervention. It was found that resubmission and pass rates were higher where the intervention was used suggesting that a resubmission intervention can increase the quality and quantity of submissions. Whilst, these findings are useful, it is important to acknowledge that there are additional factors that can impact the quantity and quality of resubmissions

The end [programme]

Inspired by the stage direction from The Winter’s Tale, ‘Exit pursued by a bear’, The End explores endings and exits and asks why we perform and how we will know when to stop. Developed at The Junction (Cambridge), Brighton Dome and Festival, New Art Exchange and Lakeside Arts Centre (Nottingham). Commissioned by Chester Performs. Supported by the National Lottery through Arts Council England. Selected for the British Council’s Edinburgh Showcase 2011

The middle

Inspired by Hamlet, The Middle (2013) is a one-man show devised for a theatre foyer – a liminal space between outside and inside, the real world and the theatre. Hamlet is a character caught in a limbo between ‘To be or not to be’ and by casting his father, Tony Pinchbeck, to play the title role, Michael Pinchbeck explores time passing, ageing and the relationship between father and son. Supported by Curve (Leicester), hÅb (Manchester) and LPAC (Lincoln), The Middle is the final part of a Shakespeare trilogy - The Trilogy (2014) and took place in the interval between The Beginning (2012) and The End (2011)

The beginning [programme]

Inspired by A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Beginning is the second in a trilogy of works deconstructing Shakespearean stage directions. The Beginning was developed at Lakeside Arts Centre (Nottingham), Leeds Met Studio Theatre, Loughborough University and The Junction (Cambridge). Supported by the National Lottery through Arts Council England and commissioned by the World Event Young Artists 2012. Selected for the British Council's Edinburgh Showcase 2013

How do Households Value the Future? Evidence from Property Taxes

Despite the near ubiquity of inter-temporal choice, there is little consensus on the rate at which individuals trade present and future costs and benefits. We contribute to this debate by estimating discount rates from extensive data on housing transactions and spatio-temporal variation in property taxes in England. Our findings imply longterm average discount rates that are between 3 and 4%. The close correspondence to prevailing market interest rates gives little reason to suggest that households misoptimise by materially undervaluing very long term financial flows in this high stakes context

The Energy Costs of Historic Preservation

We explore the impact of historical preservation policies on domestic energy consumption. Using panel data for England from 2006 to 2013 and employing a fixed effects strategy, we document that (i) rising national energy prices induce an increase in home energy efficiency installations and a corresponding reduction in energy consumption and (ii) this energy saving effect is significantly less pronounced in Conservation Areas and in places with high concentrations of Listed Buildings, where the adoption of energy efficiency instal lations is typically more costly and sometimes legally prevented altogether. The energy costs of preservation are substantial

The trilogy

From 2010-2014, Michael Pinchbeck created three devised performances inspired by the work of William Shakespeare. The Beginning, an interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Middle, a reconstruction of Hamlet, and The End triggered by a stage direction from The Winter’s Tale, are shown together as The Trilogy. Fusing an experimental approach to Shakespeare’s text with the company’s personal stories about their first or last times onstage, The Trilogy asks the audience to enter a world where a performance can be a rehearsal, text can be both script and set and they are always aware of where the fire exits are. Supported by Arts Council England through the National Lottery, Nottingham Playhouse, Brighton Dome, Lakeside Arts Centre (Nottingham), Leeds Met Studio Theatre, The Junction (Cambridge), Lincoln Performing Arts Centre and Loughborough University

Bolero

Bolero is a multi-lingual devised performance that involves six performers from three different countries (UK, Germany and Bosnia & Herzegovina) and a community cast of performing arts students and graduates from Nottingham Trent University, De Montfort University and University of Lincoln. Bolero continues research into the role of the dramaturg in contemporary performance and asks how we write texr, how we perform text and how text performs. The performance is a biography of the music of Ravel’s ‘Bolero’ and explores the materiality of music by having manuscripts onstage that are read from and then discarded to create a visible dramaturgy. I am interested in how the performance has a musicality and speaks about music to the rhythm of that music. Its dramaturgy follows the score of the Ravel original. Bolero premiered at Nottingham Playhouse as part of NEAT 14 Festival on 31 May and 1 June 2014. It was then restaged at Sarajevo War Theatre on the 100th anniversary of the assassination of Franz Ferdinand. This activity enabled me to cement a reputation as an internationally touring theatre maker on a high profile Arts Council and British Council supported project. It consolidates and builds on my existing relationships with the British Council, Nottingham Playhouse and Sarajevo War Theatre. The community cast choreographer and senior lecturer in drama and linguistics at Loughborough University, Arianna Mairorani, has already spoken about Bolero at conferences and is writing research papers about the choreographic process. I have been in contact with Routledge about writing a monograph about the role of the dramaturg in contemporary performance. In both Sarajevo and Pristina, the project kickstarted a Youth Theatre group who made their own performances inspired by our production of Bolero. This has had a tangible legacy that outlives our visit. In August 2015, Bolero was selected for the British Council Edinburgh Showcase. In October 2014, Bolero toured venues in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Sarajevo, Zenica, Mostar and Tuzla) to coincide with 2014 Culture and Conflict programme. In March 2016, Bolero toured Kosovo (Pristina and Prizren). In 2016, I delivered a provocation about Bolero at TaPRA