Making players care: The ambivalent cultural politics of care and video games

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 655-672
Author(s):  
Bonnie Ruberg ◽  
Rainforest Scully-Blaker
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Cultural Politics ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Cultural Rhetorics ◽  
Game Development ◽  
The Walking Dead ◽  
Tend And Befriend ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
The Relationship

The relationship between care and video games is fraught. While the medium has the potential to allow players to meaningfully express and receive care, the cultural rhetorics that connect video games to care are often problematic. Even among game designers and scholars committed to social justice, some view care with hope and others with concern. Here, we identify and unpack these tensions, which we refer to as the ambivalent cultural politics of care, and illustrate them through three case studies. First, we discuss “tend-and-befriend games,” coined by Brie Code, which we read through feminist theorists Sarah Sharma and Sara Ahmed. Second, we address “empathy games” and the worrisome implication that games by marginalized people must make privileged players care. Lastly, we turn to issues of care in video game development. We discuss Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead series (2012–18) and strikingly care-less fan responses to recent employee layoffs.

EXPLORATION VS. EXPLOITATION AND HOW VIDEO GAME DEVELOPERS ARE ABLE TO COMBINE THE TWO

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (06) ◽  
pp. 1650045
Author(s):  
BJÖRN REMNELAND WIKHAMN ◽  
ALEXANDER STYHRE ◽  
JAN LJUNGBERG ◽  
ANNA MARIA SZCZEPANSKA
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Creative Work ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Video Game Industry ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
Game Industry ◽  
Game Developers ◽  
Suitable Case

This paper reports an in-depth qualitative study about innovation work in the Swedish video game industry. More specifically, it focuses on how video game developers are building ambidextrous capabilities to simultaneously addressing explorative and exploitative activities. The Swedish video game industry is a particularly suitable case to analyze ambidexterity, due to it’s extreme market success and continuous ability to adapt to shifts in technologies and demands. Based on the empirical data, three ambidextrous capabilities are pointed out as particularly valuable for video game developers; (1) the ability to separate between a creative work climate and the effectiveness in project organizing; (2) the balancing of inward and outward ideation influences, and (3) the diversity in operational means and knowledge paired with shared goals and motivations, derived from the love of video games and video game development.

scholarly journals Towards a “Filipino” Video Game: Teaching Filipino Culture and Identity for Video Game Development

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christoffer Mitch C. Cerda
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
Game Industry ◽  
Filipino Culture ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Game Developers

This paper uses the author’s experiences of teaching the Filipino module of a multidisciplinary video game development class as a case study in teaching Filipino culture and identity as an element of video game development. A preliminary definition of “Filipino video game” as having Filipino narratives and subject matter, made by Filipino video game developers, and catering to a Filipino audience, is proposed. The realities and limitations of video game development and the video game market in the Philippines is also discussed to show how the dominance of Western video game industry, in terms of the dominance of outsource work for Filipino video game developers and the dominance of non-Filipino video games played by Filipino players, has hindered the development of original Filipino video games. Using four Filipino video games as primary texts discussed in class, students were exposed to Filipinomade video games, and shown how these games use Filipino history, culture, and politics as source material for their narrative and design. Issues of how video games can be used to selfexoticization, and the use of propaganda is discussed, and also how video games can be used to confront and reimagine Filipinoness. The paper ends with a discussion of a student-made game titled Alibatas, a game that aims to teach baybayin, a neglected native writing system in the Philippines as a demonstration of how students can make a Filipino video game. The paper then shows the importance of student-made games, and the role that the academe plays in the critical understanding of Filipino video games, and in defining Filipino culture and identity.

Introduction: Why Game Production Matters?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olli Sotamaa ◽  
Jan Švelch
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Public Awareness ◽  
Game Studies ◽  
Game Development ◽  
The Public ◽  
Production Studies ◽  
Rigorous Research ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
Game Industry

In the introduction, the editors of this collection argue for the importance of game production studies at a point when the public awareness about the production context of video games has, arguably, never been higher. With so many accounts of video game development permeating player and developer communities, the task of game production studies is to uncover the economic, cultural, and political structures that influence the final form of games by applying rigorous research methods. While the field of game studies has developed quickly in the past two decades, the study of the video game industry and different modes of video game production have been mostly dismissed by game studies scholars and requires more attention.

The Creative Process of Composing for Video Games: From Pitching to Gold Master and Beyond

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Baysted ◽  
Tim Summers
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Creative Process ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Creative Processes ◽  
Video Game Development

This chapter explores the composer’s experience of writing music for video games. It does so by following the musical creative process through the cycle of video game development. It begins with the pitching process, examines the factors at play in establishing the musical approach to the game, considers the compositional challenges of the video game medium, outlines approaches to recording the music, and finishes by explaining the role of music in the game’s marketing. While characterizing the creative processes of game music in general, the chapter uses two contrasting racing games as case studies. At each stage, the chapter emphasizes the variety of factors and agents involved in the musical decisions. Ultimately, the chapter suggests that the creative process of game music sits in tension between the financial realities of the marketplace, the practicalities of technology, and the creative ambitions of the producers.

The Nintendo Entertainment System and the 10NES Chip: Carving the Video Game Industry in Silicon

2010 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Casey O'Donnell
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Historical Data ◽  
Securities And Exchange Commission ◽  
Court Cases ◽  
Local Effects ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Video Game Industry ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
Game Industry

This essay makes the argument that the numerous ‘‘networks’’ or ‘‘inter/intranetworks’’ that structure the video game industry have lived local effects for those involved in the production of video games. In particular, this is most visible in the realm of console video game development but is visible in many other contexts as well. It uses the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) as an index into this complex and highly structured world that frequently disappears from developers perception. The essay uses largely historical data drawn from patent filings, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings, and court cases to analyze these networks. The essay argues that these inter/intranetworks, as constructed, have been instrumental in the way that the game industry now finds itself structured and that as the industry has ‘‘matured,’’ the networks have become less accessible and less interoperable.

scholarly journals Game Production Studies

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Production Studies ◽  
International Group ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
Cultural Intermediaries ◽  
Everyday Realities

Video games have entered the cultural mainstream and in terms of economic profits they now rival established entertainment industries such as film or television. As careers in video game development become more common, so do the stories about precarious working conditions and structural inequalities within the industry. Yet, scholars have largely overlooked video game production cultures in favor of studying games themselves and player audiences. In Game Production Studies, an international group of established and emerging researchers takes a closer look at the everyday realities of video game production, ranging from commercial industries to independent creators and cultural intermediaries. Across sixteen chapters, the authors deal with issues related to labour, game development, monetization and publishing, as well as local specificities. As the first edited collection dedicated solely to video game production, this volume provides a timely resource for anyone interested in how games are made and at what costs.

Design, Development, and Marketing Process of Video Games

2017 ◽  
pp. 306-320
Author(s):  
Devkan Kaleci ◽  
Tansel Tepe
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Incomplete Information ◽  
Video Game ◽  
General Information ◽  
Design Development ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Marketing Process ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
Game Type

In this study, general information about video game and video game sector, process of steps when designing, developing, and marketing a video game are presented in detail. Since game designers attempt to create their own type and develop new game type, there is no certain acceptance about suitable categorization for video games and certain number of video games types. For this reason, it is firstly mentioned about video game concept as well as systematically categorizing all game types in this study. Afterwards, each of these game categories and game types are described in details. Furthermore, it is aimed to raise awareness of researchers interested in this area, and to help in removing false or incomplete information about video games in the process of video game development.

scholarly journals Video game consumer profiles

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (5) ◽  
pp. 51-66
Author(s):  
Ivan Tolić ◽  
Vanja Šimunec ◽  
Dijana Vuković
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Normal Activity ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Development Path ◽  
Technology Sector ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
Human Need ◽  
Game Industry ◽  
Reducing Stress

The video game development path is full of drastic changes. The growth and strengthening of technology and the growth of innovation in the technology sector have inevitably led to the growth of this industry, which is nowadays achieving unexpected, enviable results. The basic human need for entertainment and socializing contributes to the popularity of video games. Today, video games are played by people of all ages and genders, and the most common reasons for playing video games are fun, socializing, learning, and reducing stress, but video games also provide interactive entertainment, unlike books, movies or theatre performances. The popularity of video games is witnessed by numerous communities on social networks through which professional gamers share their experiences, tips and video game reviews, and there are statistics that support this popularity and growth. The features offered by the video game industry do not need to be particularly emphasized because the results, statistics and enthusiastic players speak for themselves. This paper deals with the demographics and behaviour of consumers playing video games. The aim is to identify the main features of the user, video game players, and to identify and determine user habits and trends affecting the users. The consumer is a social and cultural being. At the same time, he is an individual for himself, a member of a family, a member of a group or a certain class or class in society, a representative of a particular nation, race, religion, nationality of a particular country, etc. The consumer is a person who has the money (assets) and a will to buy the goods or a service. In this paper, the above consumer definitions will be brought in correlation with the video game market, with an industry that encompasses various forms of modern entertainment. It is shown that technology and new modes of entertainment are present among all, and that we need to adjust the time we live in. Playing some kind of video games has become a normal activity of any normal, modern individual.

scholarly journals The perils of project-based work: Attempting resistance to extreme work practices in video game development

Organization ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 570-587 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Peticca-Harris ◽  
Johanna Weststar ◽  
Steve McKenna
Keyword(s):  
Working Conditions ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Work Conditions ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Work Practices ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
Dominant Ideologies ◽  
Reader Comments ◽  
Game Developers

This article examines two blogs written by the spouses of game developers about extreme and exploitative working conditions in the video game industry and the associated reader comments. The wives of these video game developers and members of the game community decry these working conditions and challenge dominant ideologies about making games. This article contributes to the work intensification literature by challenging the belief that long hours are necessary and inevitable to make successful games, discussing the negative toll of extreme work on workers and their families, and by highlighting that the project-based structure of game development both creates extreme work conditions and inhibits resistance. It considers how extreme work practices are legitimized through neo-normative control mechanisms made possible through project-based work structures and the perceived imperative of a race or ‘crunch’ to meet project deadlines. The findings show that neo-normative control mechanisms create an insularity within project teams and can make it difficult for workers to resist their own extreme working conditions, and at times to even understand them as extreme.

“All bets are off”: Flexible engagement with music-listening technologies by autistic adults

2020 ◽  
pp. 030573562097103
Author(s):  
Michael Matsuno ◽  
Deon Auzenne ◽  
Leanne Chukoskie
Keyword(s):  
Video Game ◽  
New Music ◽  
Music Listening ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Personal Taste ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Video Game Development ◽  
Autistic Adults

This qualitative study used semi-structured interviews to explore daily experiences with music among a convenience sample of 12 autistic adults interning at a video game development lab. Our analysis indicates that music technologies enabled autistic individuals to explore new music and to engage reflexively with personal taste and self-curation. We also show that participants used music to accompany a range of cognitive and emotional tasks. These findings are consistent with broader sociological literature on music-listening habits of typically developing adults and indicate that autistic adults use music to meet their personal needs. Our cohort also described expressly creative and proactive engagement with music, suggesting that habits with music may differ among unique sub-populations of autistic individuals.

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