scholarly journals Ludic displacement of a biblical myth: 'the Binding of Isaac'

Kultura ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 303-320
Author(s):  
Jovana Vujanov
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Original Narrative ◽  
Radical Intervention

The Binding of Isaac, a 2011 video game by Edmund McMillan, is a postmodern take on the biblical episode of the same name which can be characterized as a displacement, in terms of Lubomh Doležel's Heterocosmica. It presents a radical intervention on the original narrative, one that creates a polemical anti world transmitted through the perspective of Isaac, a boy suffering abuse from his televangelism-obsessed mother. The main fabric of the game is his grotesque, gamified fantasy about encountering the delusional parent, which is filled with anxiety about his own sinfulness, with a counterweight that can be found in entities imported from popular culture, especially video games. The game's roguelike genre enables a procedural expression of the experience of abuse through an iterative storytelling technique, with the interplay of difference and repetition forming a cyclical narrative about the (im)possibilities of contemporary ludism to amend trauma.

Non-religious Players Asking Big Questions: Video Game Worlds Affording Affinities of Meaningful Encounters

2021 ◽  
pp. e20200012
Author(s):  
Heidi Rautalahti
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Qualitative Interview ◽  
Personal Lives ◽  
Interview Method ◽  
Search For Self ◽  
Game Players

The article examines player narratives on meaningful encounters with video games by using an argumentative qualitative interview method. Data gathered among Finnish adult video game players represents narratives of important connections in personal lives, affinities that the article analyzes as further producing three distinctive themes on meaningful encounters. Utilizing a study-of-religion framework, the article discusses meaning making and emerging ways of meaningfulness connected to the larger discussion on the “big questions” that are asked, explored, and answered in popular culture today. Non-religious players talk about intricate and profound contemplations in relation to game memories, highlighting how accidental self-reflections in mundane game worlds frame a continuing search for self.

The Games Men Play

2017 ◽  
pp. 71-87
Author(s):  
Eric Niemi
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Male Students ◽  
Discourse Communities ◽  
Critical Part ◽  
Insight Into

This chapter conveys the results of a study examining how male students use video games to construct their masculinity. Applying a critical discourse methodology, the study provides insight into how men construct their masculinity within video game discourse communities and how the construction applies to other discourses. It examines how men enter the discourse, what they learn in the discourse, and then how they apply that learning to other discourse communities. It concludes with recommendations and suggestions regarding how video games are a critical part of popular culture that facilitates construction of an identity through the multitude of encounters and relationships within the discourse.

scholarly journals Video Games and Tourism – Tourism Motivations of Chinese Video Game Players

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanzhou Xu
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Pull Factors ◽  
Push And Pull Factors ◽  
Tourism Motivation ◽  
Game Players ◽  
Push And Pull ◽  
The Relationship

<p><b>This thesis discusses the impact of video games on the tourism motivation of Chinese video game players, focusing on the Assassin’s Creed series of games. Four research questions are considered: What is the difference between the travelers’ tourism motivations and non-travelers’ tourism motivations in Chinese Assassin’s Creed players in terms of push and pull factors? What is the relationship between demographic characteristics and tourism motivations? Do gamer typologies have impact on Chinese Assassin’s Creed players’ tourism motivations? What impact does time and frequencies of playing Assassin’s Creed have on players’ tourism motivations in terms of push and pull factors?</b></p> <p>The review of literature focuses on video game players, video games and tourism, popular culture tourism and tourism motivation. The thesis identifies gaps in knowledge about the tourism motivations of Chinese video game players, and the relationship between tourism motivations and player typologies and participation in the game (time and frequency). As non-travelers are included in the data collection, it is found that the tourism motivation of non-travelers is also a knowledge gap through reviewing literature.</p> <p>Motivational push and pull factors as the theoretical basis of this research and the study focuses on the Assassin’s Creed games series. The study uses a quantitative method and collects data through an online survey of Chinese gamers recruited through three Assassin’s Creed online communities. The first stage of data collection focused on those who had travelled to France, Italy or the UK, the locations appearing in four of the Assassin’s Creed games. 29 useable responses were collected. The second stage broadened the sample to include those gamers who had not travelled to these places (termed non-travelers). This generated 131 useable responses, making 160 respondents in total.</p> <p>For Chinese video game players, novelty was the most important push factor motivating travel to the Western European countries appearing in the Assassin’s Creed games. The location attribute was the most important pull factor. There is no difference in the reported tourism motivation of travelers and non-travelers. Comparing tourism motivations by age, sociality and location attributes were not different, however, respondents aged 18 to 25 had higher importance in novelty and game-related push and pull tourism motivation factors than older gamers. There was no significant difference between male and female players' tourism push and pull motivations. Based on gaming motivation, the respondents are divided into two types: hardcore players (having multiple gaming motivations) and casual players (play games for passing time). Hardcore players give higher importance to tourism motivations than casual players. More-involved players give higher importance to tourism push motivations relating to video game than less-involved players. In popular culture tourism research, there are few explorations related to video games. The research on video games and tourism has mainly focused on the gamification of tourism marketing and travel experience. This thesis is one of a few studies of gamers and tourism. Thesis derived the new knowledge for understanding video gamers’ tourism motivations.</p>

scholarly journals Video Games and Tourism – Tourism Motivations of Chinese Video Game Players

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Yanzhou Xu
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Pull Factors ◽  
Push And Pull Factors ◽  
Tourism Motivation ◽  
Game Players ◽  
Push And Pull ◽  
The Relationship

<p><b>This thesis discusses the impact of video games on the tourism motivation of Chinese video game players, focusing on the Assassin’s Creed series of games. Four research questions are considered: What is the difference between the travelers’ tourism motivations and non-travelers’ tourism motivations in Chinese Assassin’s Creed players in terms of push and pull factors? What is the relationship between demographic characteristics and tourism motivations? Do gamer typologies have impact on Chinese Assassin’s Creed players’ tourism motivations? What impact does time and frequencies of playing Assassin’s Creed have on players’ tourism motivations in terms of push and pull factors?</b></p> <p>The review of literature focuses on video game players, video games and tourism, popular culture tourism and tourism motivation. The thesis identifies gaps in knowledge about the tourism motivations of Chinese video game players, and the relationship between tourism motivations and player typologies and participation in the game (time and frequency). As non-travelers are included in the data collection, it is found that the tourism motivation of non-travelers is also a knowledge gap through reviewing literature.</p> <p>Motivational push and pull factors as the theoretical basis of this research and the study focuses on the Assassin’s Creed games series. The study uses a quantitative method and collects data through an online survey of Chinese gamers recruited through three Assassin’s Creed online communities. The first stage of data collection focused on those who had travelled to France, Italy or the UK, the locations appearing in four of the Assassin’s Creed games. 29 useable responses were collected. The second stage broadened the sample to include those gamers who had not travelled to these places (termed non-travelers). This generated 131 useable responses, making 160 respondents in total.</p> <p>For Chinese video game players, novelty was the most important push factor motivating travel to the Western European countries appearing in the Assassin’s Creed games. The location attribute was the most important pull factor. There is no difference in the reported tourism motivation of travelers and non-travelers. Comparing tourism motivations by age, sociality and location attributes were not different, however, respondents aged 18 to 25 had higher importance in novelty and game-related push and pull tourism motivation factors than older gamers. There was no significant difference between male and female players' tourism push and pull motivations. Based on gaming motivation, the respondents are divided into two types: hardcore players (having multiple gaming motivations) and casual players (play games for passing time). Hardcore players give higher importance to tourism motivations than casual players. More-involved players give higher importance to tourism push motivations relating to video game than less-involved players. In popular culture tourism research, there are few explorations related to video games. The research on video games and tourism has mainly focused on the gamification of tourism marketing and travel experience. This thesis is one of a few studies of gamers and tourism. Thesis derived the new knowledge for understanding video gamers’ tourism motivations.</p>

Repetition and Ritual Logic in Video Games

2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 499-512 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison Gazzard ◽  
Alan Peacock
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Real World ◽  
Game Play ◽  
The Real ◽  
Third Person

By moving away from a model of ritual that focuses on magic and fantasy worlds, this article seeks to broaden the discussion of ritual actions, performances, and objects in first- and third-person video games. Ritual will be understood through the idea of a “ritual logic” that enables the wider associations of ritual in the virtual as opposed to the real world to be analyzed, and through the key element of repetition in game play. In part derived from the intertextuality of video game genres and associated popular culture artifacts such as films and novels, ritual logic contributes to the players’ knowledge and understanding of what ritual is and what ritual does in the game, and how ritual can be used to progress its narrative and play trajectories.

Frustration and Violence in Mobile Video Games

2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (2) ◽  
pp. 63-70
Author(s):  
Petr Květon ◽  
Martin Jelínek
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Implicit Association Test ◽  
Self Determination Theory ◽  
Psychological Needs ◽  
Basic Psychological Needs ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Mobile Video ◽  
Violent Content ◽  
Before And After

Abstract. This study tests two competing hypotheses, one based on the general aggression model (GAM), the other on the self-determination theory (SDT). GAM suggests that the crucial factor in video games leading to increased aggressiveness is their violent content; SDT contends that gaming is associated with aggression because of the frustration of basic psychological needs. We used a 2×2 between-subject experimental design with a sample of 128 undergraduates. We assigned each participant randomly to one experimental condition defined by a particular video game, using four mobile video games differing in the degree of violence and in the level of their frustration-invoking gameplay. Aggressiveness was measured using the implicit association test (IAT), administered before and after the playing of a video game. We found no evidence of an association between implicit aggressiveness and violent content or frustrating gameplay.

Only problem gamblers spend less money when loot boxes are removed from a game: A before and after study of Heroes of the Storm

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Zendle
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Problem Gambling ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Real World ◽  
Complex Pattern ◽  
Problem Gamblers ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Gambling Severity ◽  
Reliable Correlation ◽  
Before And After Study

Loot boxes are items in video games that may be paid for with real-world money, but which contain randomised contents. There is a reliable correlation between loot box spending and problem gambling severity: The more money gamers spend on loot boxes, the more severe their problem gambling tends to be. However, it is unclear whether this link represents a case in which loot box spending causes problem gambling; a case in which the gambling-like nature of loot boxes cause problem gamblers to spend more money; or whether it simply represents a case in which there is a general dysregulation in in-game spending amongst problem gamblers, nonspecific to loot boxes.The multiplayer video game Heroes of the Storm recently removed loot boxes. In order to better understand links between loot boxes and problem gambling, we conducted an analysis of players of Heroes of the Storm (n=112) both before and after the removal of loot boxes.There were a complex pattern of results. In general, when loot boxes were removed from Heroes of the Storm, problem gamblers appeared to spend significantly less money in-game in contrast to other groups. These results suggest that the presence of loot boxes in a game may lead to problem gamblers spending more money in-game. It therefore seems possible that links between loot box spending and problem gambling are not due to a general dysregulation in in-game spending amongst problem gamblers, but rather are to do with specific features of loot boxes themselves.

Gambling-like video game practices: A cross-sectional study of links with problem gambling and disordered gaming

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Zendle
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Problem Gambling ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Significant Degree ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Video Gaming ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Streaming Services ◽  
Clinically Significant

A variety of practices have recently emerged which are related to both video games and gambling. Most prominent of these are loot boxes. However, a broad range of other activities have recently emerged which are also related to both gambling and video games: esports betting, real-money video gaming, token wagering, social casino play, and watching videos of both loot box opening and gambling on game streaming services like Twitch.Whilst a nascent body of research has established the robust existence of a relationship between loot box spending and both problem gambling and disordered gaming, little research exists which examines whether similar links may exist for the diverse practices outlined above. Furthermore, no research has thus far attempted to estimate the prevalence of these activities.A large-scale survey of a representative sample of UK adults (n=1081) was therefore conducted in order to investigate these issues. Engagement in all measured forms of gambling-like video game practices were significantly associated with both problem gambling and disordered gaming. An aggregate measure of engagement was associated with both these outcomes to a clinically significant degree (r=0.23 and r=0.43). Engagement in gambling-like video game practices appeared widespread, with a 95% confidence interval estimating that 16.3% – 20.9% of the population engaged in these activities at least once in the last year. Engagement in these practices was highly inter-correlated: Individuals who engaged in one practice were likely to engage in several more.Overall, these results suggest that the potential effects of the blurring of lines between video games and gambling should not primarily be understood to be due to the presence of loot boxes in video games. They suggest the existence of a convergent ecosystem of gambling-like video game practices, whose causal relationships with problem gambling and disordered gaming are currently unclear but must urgently be investigated.

Moses and Popular Culture

2020 ◽  
pp. 30-45
Author(s):  
Linda S. Schearing
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
American Culture ◽  
Cultural Artifact ◽  
Religious Meaning

The story of Moses occurs in a plethora of popular culture mediums (fiction, songs, films, television, video games, comics, digital internet sources, etc.). This essay examines three themes in which Moses as a cultural artifact plays a crucial role in contemporary popular culture: visualizing Moses (Moses in film), learning from Moses (Moses as metaphor or analogy), and laughing at or with Moses (Moses in humor). Such a survey shows graphically the elasticity of Moses as a multivalent cultural artifact that has both influenced and continues to influence American culture. Indeed, while some extract religious meaning from the Moses story, others see parallels between Moses’ struggles and their own.

“If anyone’s going to ruin your night, it should be you”: Responsibility and affective materiality in Undertale and Night in the Woods

2021 ◽  
pp. 135485652110144
Author(s):  
Kevin Veale
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Affective Experience ◽  
Modes Of Engagement

Affective materiality is a tool for exploring how engaging with textual structures shapes the affective experience of a story. The experience of video games is distinctive because their modes of engagement can lead to players feeling responsible for the decisions they make within the diegetic space of the game and its contextual storyworld. Night in the Woods and Undertale both use the perception of responsibility found in video game modes of engagement as an active storytelling tool, but apply it in different ways. Despite the differences in their contextual application, both games use affective materiality to encourage players to reflect on the consequences of their decisions in multiple arenas: within the context of the game, their engagement with other games and their engagement with the wider world. In doing so, both games apply storytelling techniques that distinguish playing video games from the experience of other media forms and encourage an empathetic engagement with fictional storyworlds.

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