From interactivity to playability

This paper discusses the similarities and differences between participatory, interactive, and playable art. It suggests that computer games can provide novel perspectives on interactivity in interactive art. The paper also proposes that the implications of computer games to interactive art extend beyond whatever purpose and value computer games are perceived as having as products of popular culture

Vastine Juha Lapin kommenttipuheenvuoroon

Puheenvuor

Dos Espaços de Jogo aos Mundos Jogáveis

In this paper I will critically examine the phenomenological underpinnings of what we might call the ‘spatiality paradigm’ in computer game studies – the project of using spatial metaphors and terminology to understand computer game play. Drawing on the (post-)phenomenological tradition, I argue that while this terminology is useful foranalytic projects seeking to shed light on the structure and form of the game artifact and the processes it facilitates, spatial notions do not necessarily resonate with the first-person experience of computer game play, especially in cases of playing games of genres which do not rely on simulated locomotion and proprioception in three-dimensionally modeled space. Furthermore, I argue that the differences between single-player and multi-player games – namely that single-player games can be described, using Ihde’s framework of intentionality relations, as situating in ‘alterity relations’ and multi-player games in ‘relations of mediation’ – further complicate the issue of spatiality in computer games. Given these observations, I suggest that whereas the spatial notions appear problematic for the purpose of first-person description of the experience of playing single-player computer games, the notion of ‘game world’ seems more accurate a description of that with which the players are engaged with.Este artigo examina criticamente os fundamentos fenomenológicos daquilo que podemos chamar de “paradigma da espacialidade” no estudo dos videogames – o projeto de se utilizar metáforas e terminologias espaciais para compreender a atividade de jogo. Apoiando-me na tradição (pós)fenomenológica, argumento que, embora essa terminologia seja útil para projetos analíticos que busquem elucidar a estrutura e forma do artefato de jogo, bem como os processos que facilitam, noções espaciais não necessariamente se adequam ao aspecto de primeira-pessoa que constitui a experiência de se jogar um videogame – especialmente nos casos de jogos que não se sustentam em locomoção e propriocepção simuladas em espaços tridimensionais. Além disso, debato que as diferenças entre jogos para um jogador e jogos multiplayer – ou seja, que jogos para um jogador podem ser descritos, usando o enquadramento de relações de intencionalidade de Ihde, como situados em “relações de alteridade”, e jogos multiplayer em “relações de mediação” – complicam ainda mais a questão da espacialidade nos videogames. Dadas essas observações, sugiro que, se noções espaciais parecem problemáticas para a descrição da experiência em primeira-pessoa de se jogar videogames para um jogador, a noção de ‘mundo de jogo’ parece mais precisa para designar aquilo com o que os jogadores se envolvem

Pętla śmierci jako komponent

Esej zawiera rozważania teoretyczne na temat możliwości interpretacji jednoosobowych gier komputerowych. Autor za punkt wyjścia głównego wywodu obrał specyficzna sytuacje, w której znalazł się podczas indywidualnej rozgrywki w Fallout: New Vegas, a którą nazywa „pętlą śmierci”. Proponowane w tekście rozwiązania metodologiczne zachęcają, by to, co nazywamy jednoosobowymi grami komputerowymi, postrzegać nieco inaczej, niż klasycznie pojmowane gry; w tym celu stworzona zostaje kategoria „grywalnego artefaktu”, pozwalająca zdaniem autora zwrócić uwagę na kwestie materialności i procesu, niedostatecznie naświetlone przez tzw. „ludologiczną doktrynę interpretacji”. Filozoficznym kontekstem dla rozważań autora jest m. in. myśl J.-P. Sartre’a, za pomocą której przybliżona została kluczowa dla niniejszego tekstu dynamika relacji między graczem a „grywalnym artefaktem”.Assuming its premise in the experience of being stuck in a death loop in Fallout: New Vegas (2010), this essay theorises the possibilities of interpretation in single-player computer game play. This amounts to a critical examination of the paradigmatic approach of interpreting computer games as games accessible for analysis and critique through ‘research-play’. Comparing the role of rules in the activity facilitated by ‘playable artefacts’ like single-player computer games or pinball machines to rules in traditional, or more accurately “transmedial” (Juul 2003) games, the essay questions the feasibility of considering computer games ‘games’ and suggests that a defining characteristic of ‘playable artefacts’ is to be found from the relationship between materiality and process. Situating playable artefacts in the context of post-phenomenological philosophy of technology, the essay differentiates between attitudes of player, designer, and a scholar. The essay argues that analysis of playable artefacts as ‘games’ is reductive and can be justified only from the perspectives of a player and a game design researcher. Based on analysis of how playable artefacts become meaningful through material resistance, the essay reconfirms the feasibility of the methodological programme of ‘research-play’ while calling for its re-contextualization in relation to authentic interpretation and empathy

Lects in Helsinki Finnish - a probabilistic component modeling approach

This article examines Finnish lects spoken in Helsinki from the 1970s to the 2010s with a probabilistic model called Latent Dirichlet Allocation. The model searches for underlying components based on the linguistic features used in the interviews. Several coherent lects were discovered as components in the data, which counters the results of previous studies that report only weak co-variation between features that are assumed to present the same lect. The speakers, however, are not categorical in their linguistic behavior and tend to use more than one lect in their speech. This implies that the lects should not be considered in parallel with seemingly uniform linguistic systems such as languages, but as partial systems that constitute a network.Peer reviewe

Trajectories of multisite musculoskeletal pain in midlife : Associations with common mental disorders

Objectives We examined developmental trajectories of multisite musculoskeletal pain in midlife, and their associations with mental well-being. Methods Midlife municipal employees at baseline aged 40, 45, 50, 55 or 60 years (80% women) from the City of Helsinki, Finland, responded to a baseline questionnaire in 2000-02 (N = 8,960; response rate 67%) and follow-ups in 2007 (N = 7,332; 83%) and 2012 (N = 6,809; 78%). Trajectories of the number of pain sites (0-4) were modelled using latent class growth analysis (n = 6,527). Common mental disorders were assessed by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) 12-item version (trichotomized to low, intermediate or high). Information on health-related behaviour, comorbidity and socioeconomic position was obtained from the questionnaire. Associations of baseline factors with pain trajectories were assessed by multinomial logistic regression. Results We identified four distinct pain trajectories: high (15%), increasing (24%), decreasing (20%) and low (41%). After an initial increase, the high and increasing trajectories stabilized at around 2.5 and 1.5 pain sites respectively. In a multivariable model, high, increasing and decreasing trajectories of pain sites were associated with higher baseline GHQ scores. The association was strongest for the high trajectory (low GHQ: OR 3.7, 95% CI 2.8-4.9; high GHQ: OR 5.4, 95% 4.4-6.6). Trajectory membership also associated with unhealthy behaviours, musculoskeletal comorbidities and a low socioeconomic position at baseline. Average GHQ was consistently highest for the high pain trajectory and decreased in the decreasing trajectory over the follow-up. Conclusions Multisite musculoskeletal pain shows variable developmental patterns among midlife employees. The trajectories are associated with the level of common mental disorders. Significance Four developmental trajectories of multisite pain in midlife were described over 10-12 years of follow-up: low (41% of the sample), increasing (24%), high (15%) and decreasing (20%). Common mental disorders strongly associated with these. Belonging to the highest tertile of mental disorders at baseline increased the risk of membership in the high trajectory more than fivefold. On the other hand, together with a decrease in mental disorders, the number of pain sites decreased to zero.Peer reviewe

Tutkimuksen monitieteisyys ja laatu

http://www.minedu.fi/OPM/Julkaisut/2016/tutkimuksen_monitieteisyys.html?lang=f