- Janet Murray, Hamlet on the Holodeck (1997)
Being an avid gamer (and game reviewer as well) it is interesting to spend some time reading about the games and the industry from both an academic and a more “tutorial” or “insider” perspective. Especially now that my gaming has gone on an extended hiatus during the spring – just a few short sessions of Dragon Quest, and a quick play through of Another Code on the DS.
Time to get a proper gaming rig and really explore NWN2, and perhaps a 360 in time for Mass Effect as well) Update: picked up another PS2 instead, a small and quiet one - along with Final Fantasy XII to feed the addiction. Clocked some 80 hrs so far, loving almost every minute - the tweaks to the formula are right on for my play-style.
Recent fun finds include the webzine The Escapist – which first came to my attention because of an article by Mur (RIP GeekFu - my first fave podcast, now faded), on the “next pirates”. The content is game related, featuring interviews with people in the industry as well as covering themes such as piracy and next-gen development. They offer a newsletter highlighting the topics of the week, with both direct links to read online and a link to download the full issue as a pdf for later reading. Which is really nice for spending some hours on the train as I am right now.
The other is an extract from a book on First Person cyberdrama. And that is where I came across the three pegs for this post; agency, immersion and transformation.
Agency – I have an impact therefore I am
In most games you are the “hero” in the sense that most events you see or take part of change because of you or happen to you. Like in Final Fantasy – the world will surely end unless you happen to make the right choices and connections along the path. It is about mastery, somehow managing to do more than we can in everyday life. Rather than just watching events on television or envisioning them when reading a book – we “make” them and perhaps “change” them. This ties in closely with replay value; are there major branches of the story – such as going jedi or sith in KOTOR – that makes it worth the time to explore familiar territory again?Immersion – I forget therefore I might be
The “best” games are the ones where the hours pass without a trace. Be it because you have to have just one more go at Bejeweled or Solitaire, or because you just want to have a look around the next area in an rpg like NWN. Just like a good book moves us into a separate realm, leaving all thoughts of the present (or the future for that matter) behind – so the game worlds draws us in. Escapism is mainly a good thing. But just like there is a difference between having a glass of wine and downing a bottle or three, so there is a difference between being immersed in a game – and being “lost” in the fake reality. People have died from exhaustion due to playing for too long. And have committed real-world crimes to avenge in-game transgressions.Transformation - …? Who am I?
That was as far as I got on the train. So, playing games to play and explore your own boundaries, to test how you might react in certain situations, or to do things not normally possible / allowable / acceptable. There is some discussion in this paper, "Neo-Aristotelian Theory of Interactive Drama" [available as pdf, google html version linked]Even to ask this question is to recognize the extent to which Janet Murray has engaged us in an exploration of the multivariant world of the networked computer and the holodeck -- or world beyond -- that we have glimpsed so far, just over the threshold in a new environment.
- review for HoH
And isn't that the "proof of the pudding" in terms of games being a viable outlet, source of insight and most of all entertainment? That we can have serious discussions about the hows and whys, while at the same time just enjoying the time spent playing? Like a Shakespeare scholar has a great time at the Globe. Games work on several levels, just like drama, literature and other creative arts can.
On a final note, a nice experience in terms of useability and flexibility is the latest iteration of the online support system for taxes here in Norway, this year they sent you (if oyu had opted in) an sms with a code for logging on and instantly seeing your "end result" rather than waiting for the letter to arrive in the mail. It has taken a few years, but every year it gets just a little bit better.
