Making it into the MOMA

For this final blog of ours, I kept thinking what would be the best game to be considered to be put into the MOMA. Of course I to go through the games I have played ever since I was a little kid. The game I finally came across was FromSoftware’s  “Dark Souls”. Those not familiar with the game may ultimately see the game as usual hack and slash which is pretty much a game that has your character kill enemies, while allowing more emphasis on the combat aspect. Those who have played the game know of how famous it is for its grueling difficulty as a game. The game itself though is more than a usual hack and slash as it creates in itself a genre of games that rely on skill rather than button mashing. The game itself is a spiritual successor to a previous game called Demon’s souls but has made itself a name that many gamers have come to know. My reason for choosing Dark Souls rather than its spiritual predecessor, successor, or even sequel is due to the game’s world. The game itself seems dependent on describing what makes your character human which in itself speaks volumes by how we choose to play the game. Though I could talk more about this I will leave it at that and continue to describe it within the behavior of the game. Its narrative alone would be able to give insight into the behavior of the game which John Maeda would agree on. I’ll explain the story in the next part.

What is Dark Souls?

To understand how this game belongs in the MOMA we must first know what the game is. The game has been found to have a sort of minimalistic plot which does drag the game down at all due to the hidden lore you find within playing the game. Basically, your character is part of a group of people who are undead but eventually try to follow a story in which every npc has been known to have heard. The story is that as the chosen undead you have to rekindle the first flame to continue the “Age of gods.” Along the way you will come across plenty of unique enemies along with npc’s who appear to be on some sort of quest similar to yours. As you progress through the game, you begin to learn more and more about the people you have met along with your goal. Eventually you will come to a final decision within the game which will be to sacrifice yourself to continue the age of gods which you have come to known as being grueling world that has people suffering or begin the dark age. The dark age which you come to know by the end of the game as the “age of humans.”

Co-op gameplay

The definition of a good game is therefore “one that teaches everything it has to offer before the player stops playing.”-Raph Koster

The Game’s Behavior

Unlike most hack and slash games, this game requires a more subtle approach when playing. If one were to run into an enemy in dark souls and just start mashing the attack buttons you learn to understand that you are wasting stamina for each hit. If you ever seen gameplays of the game you would note that the game requires specific timing to attack rather than wasting all of your stamina. Once your stamina is depleted your character suffers from penalties that allow movement and actions requiring stamina to really leave you wide open to incoming attacks. Basically it’s best to run the game being more cautious than ever as enemies have varieties of attacks that range from magic to poison. Also where games that utilize a more damage dealing approach, it is sometimes best to stick with weapons that are instead lighter and fast so that dodging or blocking can be used to shield yourself from damage. The way the play plays the game is b all means there own choice but tactics must be change on the fly when playing dark souls. A way they allow you to do this is through the use of switching your stance when fighting. You could hold a shield and weapon or two weapons in each hand, but with a simple press of one of the buttons you put your offhand weapon away in favor of using your primary hands weapon with 2 hands. Now you might ask yourself, how and why is this important? Allowing to be able to switch two hand would work similar to how it would seem in real life. Two hands means more force can be applied making damage stronger but losing the opportunity to use your off hand for any other purpose. What also is pretty unique about the game’s behavior is how they deal with multiplayer. Essentially, multiplayer in this game has pvp and cooperative elements. For those who are unaware of the term “pvp”, it refers to the mode of players competing with other players and in this case it is by invading their world. Invasions tend to happen anywhere but some place are more likely to have it happen do to the areas intended purpose. This is odd as invasions allow for the play to invade any person’s world in the similar area to battle them to obtain humanity as well as rewards. Humanity is needed to utilize any multiplayer elements within the game. This can happen at anytime though and may come up as an ambush of sorts. Cooperative play works in a similar manner but requires the player to set up a marker asking for help so that a play could join you. The person of course who joins you is random and most likely will not be a friend of yours. This is purposefully made just to resemble an aspect of life in some way. The game itself has ups and downs with the player succeeding eventually similar to how in life the only way to get through would be to play it smart or learn from our mistakes. Raph Koster himself would agree with these words on how it makes it a game and a great one at that. The random cooperative players that join you as well as ambush you show an aspect of life with the people you meet. Some might be knowledgeable about the area while others are as lost as you. Those who ambush you want something from and in their actions forsaken their humanity(which you actually need to have in-game) to bring you down a peg. One last important thing about behavior is how the game teaches you about your decisions. Of course how we play the game is what I am getting at. Besides the way we fight, there are decisions that we can choose to do when meeting up with npc’s. When we meet them we could attack them but that eventually lead to consequences making us think before we act. For example there is a character within the game who tempts you to free him and in doing so will help you in a boss fight. Of course this sounds great but you begin to learn that he wishes to harm innocents. He eventually kills a very helpful npc without you knowing. The game like many others has decisions and way to go about the game giving it more freedom than most but forces us to be cautious when making these decisions.      

… “a narrative replaces the act of physically getting you from point A to point B. A narrative that you, the player, gets to drive and live through until it’s game over. This is where videogames become an art-like act of “personal imagination.”-John Maeda

The Game’s Aesthetic

The game’s looks and feel can both be described as eerie and unique in away for a fantasy genre placed in the dark ages. The areas that the character visit all have different themes that create different challenges. As you explore, many of the places are dimly lit to give a sense of caution and confusion that one slip can result to a sudden death to force you to restart . Places that you find in the game look old and decaying giving a notion that this place existed for possible hundreds of years while its survivors are slowly losing their insanity one by one. That these places were once ruled by great rulers who once settled within these lands but then left to dust. Little is known about the place you come across, no narration or sign to tell you anything about where you are in the game. Many of the enemies look like they’re straight out of a nightmare,like mimics in the game. In many fantasy genre games chest contains an assortment of loot and gear to progress, but sometimes a chest can be placed in the weirdest areas and players don’t think twice about opening them. Mimics are monsters disguised as chest but simply opening them can end to a quick death. Mimics in this game are unique compared to other games similar to this genre. Instead of the generic mimic that is just a chest that just hops around and has a giant mouth inside. Mimic in this game have long slender bodies that pop out of the chest and elongated tongues when provoked. Npc’s in the game also create the feel for the game through various dialogues. Many of the characters that your character interacts with have a sense of hopelessness. A npc named the

A mimic in Darksouls

“Crestfallen Warrior” is met when making to Lordran which if it hasn’t been said yet, is the setting of the world. Even in his name it is obvious to see that this npc is already in despair. In this world he is clearly one of many people who have an outlook into the world which adds to that feeling of despair. Though their is one outcast amongst the sorrowful undead his name is “Solaire of Astora”. This particular character is not affected by the state of the world he’s in and is the most iconic character in the game.

The Game’s Space

Within the world of Dark Souls, space is a big part of the game. As the game doesn’t throw the story on you, it allows for the player to go about the world in search of the story. Exploration within this game is key as it allows for better loot while also having an understanding of how the world in which your character is in. Along with this is how every dungeon is built. Most places are built in a way that causes it to be dangerous slowing the pace of the game. Sometimes purposely place items tricky into believing that without hesitation its simple to retrieve an item yet there is always another way. Besides the exploration there is also the combat aspect in which space is useful. When battling a monster space allows the player to be aware of his surroundings and without knowledge of that space one may find a trap or enemy hidden away in a corner. It also allows for battle to be fought more or less favorably. For example, a small alleyway would hinder you due to the lack of movement capable within the area allowing enemies to encircle you or keep you away from an enemy’s weak spot. While a big open area allows for more movement and more options for attack.

Conclusion

It is due to these aspects that I believe Dark souls has a chance of getting into the MOMA. The game itself has also led to many inspiration within the gaming world such as Bungie’s Destiny, Lords of the Fallen, as well as the game Shovel Knight. The MOMA might see violence as something they must clearly go against, but similar to how Paola Antonelli describes why a beretta could fit into the MOMA and Dark Souls in its own way is a critique about life and its struggles.

“>“So when you see a gun, it’s an instrument for killing in the design collection. If it’s in the art collection, it might be a critique of the killing instrument.”-Paola Antonelli

 

References

John Maeda. (2012). “Videogames Do Belong in the Museum of Modern Art.” Wired Online.December 4. [http://www.wired.com/2012/12/why-videogames-do-belong-in-the-museum-of-modern-art/]

Koster, Raph. Theory Of Fun for Game Design 2ed. New york: O’reilly, 2013. Print.

Paola Antonelli. (2013). “Why I Brought Pac-Man to MoMA.” TEDSalon NY2013. [https://http://www.ted.com/talks/paola_antonelli_why_i_brought_pacman_to_moma?language=en]

 

 

Final Blog Post – Osu!

Main Question/Thesis:

The game that I chose to analyze for the final blog post of the class is Osu. I am not only going to explain why this is both a game as well as art, but more importantly, why it matters. How does portraying Osu as art matter in the sense of “what about it brings something new to the table”.   

What is Osu?

Osu is a freeware rhythm game that was developed in September 16, 2007 by Dean Herbert. Although the game is not that well known it is comprised of a tight knit group of both “mappers”, those who create beatmaps for songs, as well as players who battle against one another for the top place on the high-scores.

Osu Main Menu

Gameplay:

As far as gameplay is concerned, Osu empompasses four unique styles that players can freely choose from which are Osu!standard, Taiko, Catch The Beat, and Osu!Mania. The most popular mode;however, is Osu!Standard and is the main one that I will be discussing in this blog.

The game levels are called “beatmaps”. In each map, a song will play with various rhythmic hit elements that appear on the game field. Players must use either a mouse or sometimes a drawing tablet to move the cursor along with tapping the “x/z” key on the keyboard while playing to earn points. Although the game supports the use of Touchscreen, very few players tend to use this option but it is worth noting as all these different ways of playing the game supports the idea of being given the option to play in a multitude of different ways.  

Objectives:

The object of the game is for players to hit, complete, and clear enough “hit circles”, sliders and spinners to keep their health bar from falling too low, which drains at a steady pace throughout the game, until the song is finished. Whereas some players focus more on just barely getting through a song other

Performance (PP) Example

s prefer to maximize their scores and combo’s for the highest possible points. Performance or “PP” is what is earned by completing maps, and more is given for the more challenging and higher star it is. This measures the overall performance of a player and gives a decent representation of one’s skill.

Scoring:

Score in Osu revolves around three main multipliers. First is the combo which is increased for every successful hit of a circle, slider, etc. Second is the accuracy of the hit, which means the timing of when the user clicks the actual circle in relation to the “approach circle” closing in. Lastly, is the multiplier from modifications which can either increase or reduce the final score. Circles that are clicked too early or too late are given 100’s while hits that are very late or early are given 50’s which can be viewed at the end of the song as seen below.

Score Screen after Beatmap Completion

Difficulties:

Since named difficulties in Osu are slightly arbitrary because the beatmapper can name their own maps as they see fit. The easiest way to interpret different songs are based on their star values. The higher the stars the more difficult and complex the rhythms become. A general idea of how it would look is by the following;

Mods:

The game also incorporates difficulty “modifications” to songs in which one can either make them more difficult or easier to play. These changes also impact the scores, so in highly competitive maps users will use as many difficulty increasing mods to improve their chances of the highest score. Some examples of mods used are the following;

Multiplayer/Co Op modes:

Osu also has the ability to have up to 16 players in each match playing beatmaps either in teams or as a head to head score against one another with realtime updates. One unique gamemode is known as coop or “taag” in which players can take turns playing the same map in real time and it is up to both players to do well because they share the same combo, points, as well as hit points of the original map.

How is it a game:

With the general of the idea hopefully under grasps next is to tackle why Osu carrier with it all the various characteristics necessary to portray this as a game. The first theorist that comes to mind is Jesper Juul and his “Classic Game Model”. From my experience playing this game over the past few months, this game easily fits into his six governing characteristics which are as follows;

Each of these six unique distinctions that Juules makes play an important role in identifying whether the thing in question is actually a game or not. As for fixed rules, Osu easily meets this requirement being based off a highly structured online multiplayer game where all players are required to abide by certain things in order for scores to be counted etc. For variable outcomes, there isn’t just one thing that can happen to the player. They can have different scores, complete the map, not complete the map, play with different map modifications, anything is possible. Since one is given more Performance (PP) for better plays, it is essential that one sets a goal to achieve in maps to get the highest possible accuracy they can.

Just like every other game, Osu requires a great deal of player effort. Attention has to be payed to not only the circles appearing on the screen but also the rhythm at which they come in at. Of course after reaching that high score a player will be extremely happy with what they have been able to achieve. Lastly, since there is a health bar that slowly declines, failure to complete a beatmap is a possibility and with some “marathon” maps lasting more than ten minutes the importance on not failing is essential.  

Meeting all of Jesper Juul’s governing characteristics of what makes a game a “game” we move onto the next topic of why this game can be considered art.

What makes it art Hegel:

The first theorist that i’m going to argue art is Hegel. Hegel was a 19th century German philosopher whose works discuss idealism specifically with mind, nature and objects. In his work Philosophy of Fine
Art (1835) he mentions two demands for something to be considered “art”. Those are as follows;

1. “Content which is to come into artistic representation should be in itself qualified for such representation (80)”.
2. Content of art that if be not anything abstract in itself, but concrete… (80)”.

These quotes fit with Osu because of the unique qualities that it possesses. For the first quote, the game exerts this characteristic because the music has already been created. Everyone knows that music itself is art, from classical music all the way to rock. Each genre has its own rhythm and beat that defines and separates itself from the others. In Osu, the music has already been made and is being shaped and crafted in a way that doesn’t take away from what it was originally but made into something more.

The second quote argues how art is to be something concrete and not abstract. This also works with the game because there isn’t anything that is unknown within the game. All the tools are there for everyone to create and noone is left out. The ability for all users, no matter their background or talents, to be able to not only play but also map songs is truly what makes Osu so unique.  

What makes it art Becker:

The second theorist that I chose to relate this game to was Becker and his chapter on “Art Worlds and Collective Activity”. Becker’s argument was essentially about the complexity that goes into artistic work and how it is all intertwined. Everyone works as a team to complete objectives and goals set to make the game. It takes the effort of everyone to pull it all together. One quote from Becker that helps describe this idea is as follows;

“All artistic work, like all human activity, involves the joint activity of a number, often a large number of people” (Art Worlds and Collective Activity pg 1).”

Just like how creating music requires a vast number of people to produce, maps on Osu are also the same way. Most of the time the beatmaps are joint-created, meaning that more than one person was the creator usually for when there are multiple difficulties for a single song. Also, players are awarded “kudos” for helping the mapper modify their map during the qualifying stage to improve the timing, patterns, etc. All this cooperative work from different people combines, in the end, to the finished product and a “ranked” map.

Why does it matter in the end?
You may be asking, sure, Osu is both a game as well as Art, but why does this matter in the end? The argument that I will be making is how the player is the artist. Even though the song has already been made, both mappers as well as players have the ability to make their own map/unique way, as well as play it. Similar to have musicians can create covers of songs as well as player other people’s music and it is still considered to be an art form.  

Creating and Editing a Beatmap

Everyone in the game can be the artist. This is only possible due to the fact that all players have the distinct ability to make and play their own creations and that is why Osu is so unique for the player.

Below is an example of a typical 7* rated map in Osu. Notice how the beatmap is “mapped” to both the ryhthm as well as the melody of the song. Even using circle patterns which is part of the song’s name (Star Platinum). This is where the mapper as well as player can be creative. 

A second beatmap at the 7* level, considered to be the “holy grail” of maps. Taken from a live-stream of a current top player.

 

Works Cited:

Howard Becker. (1982). “Art Worlds and Collective Activity” in Art Worlds. Berkeley: University of California Press: pp. 1-39

Juul, Jesper. “Video Games and The Classic Video Game Mode”.pdf

Philosophy of Fine Art – G.W.F. Hegel 1835

https://osu.ppy.sh/wiki/Main_Page

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osu!

 

Best Fiends

Best Fiends is a puzzle/adventure game available for download from the app store on an android or apple device. The plot behind the game involves natives of the planet Minuta who are suddenly invaded by a swarm of slug monsters when a comet hits on the peak of a mountain named Mt. Boom. As the player, your objective is to reach Mt. Boom to stop the slugs with the help of other creatures from the planet.

The game play involves levels that eventually lead to Mt. Boom. Each level consists of new objectives to complete such as a obtaining a certain number of matching blocks, diamonds, bombs or boxes and defeating slugs. In order to achieve the objective, the player must match the alike blocks in a linear path. The block symbols are : purple mushroom, yellow flower, red strawberry, blue water droplet and green leaf. The more blocks a player can match in a linear path, the more damage it does to defeat the slugs. A player is not allowed to criss-cross between other non matching or matching blocks, it must be a straight path. Each block is controlled by a character that can be upgraded by beating levels to make them stronger as well as obtain a special move to assist in the journey to Mt. Boom.

This game was incredibly fun and addicting. My girlfriend has been recommending it for a blog post for many weeks and finally decided to try. The constant learning and  makes this game a true game .

 

Best Fiends has many different aspects to it. It has different objectives in every level as well new obstacles to make it challenging. It also adds extra journey’s to keep the player from becoming bored. It is important that a game consistently keeps teaching the player as they continue to play.

” The definition of a good game is therefore one that teaches everything it has to offer before the player stops playing it.” (Koster 46)

The game does not start off with all characters being available, it gradually implements each character as the player reaches more levels. While it the game does maintain a good range of difficulty it also helps the player achieve the objective for the level. For each time a player fails to complete the level, extra moves are added to give the player an advantage. Koster writes, “the player might fail to see any patterns whatsoever, and nothing is more boring than noise. (p. 45)” The game doesn’t only challenge the player but also assists the player to keep them interested and enjoying it. This game definitely meets the criteria to not only be a game but also a good game.

The idea of many games downloaded in the app store is that there can be new updates often for the game. Whether there are some to change the theme or to increase the quality of the game. Some users may have problems with the game and therefore the creators release new updates to improve the original release. 25 years ago, most people would have never thought about a game being available on a mobile device. GameBoy revolutionized the way games and those games being are were displayed. Best Fiends is just a reconciliation of all the problems many mobile gaming platforms beforehand have experienced.

“Unity can enter the art-consciousness only through the unfolding and then the reconciliation of the particularizations of the idea, and, throught this development, artistic beauty acquires a totality of particular stages and forms. (Hegel, 1826)”

Therefore, the artistry of this game will continue to enhance its beauty through updates as well as advancing to different platforms as they continue to evolve.

This game is great and makes for a great game as well as art. Games as a whole will continue to progress as well as continue to push the boundaries for art not only for the artist but also for the recognition.

Walking Dead and Art

The game that I decided to play for this blog is Telltale’s “The Walking Dead”. The game only consisted of the first season so the second season will not be explained at all. The game itself is a interactive drama where choices within the game are made but essentially lead to a point in the story that by all means is inevitable. The game is put into episodes where it is grouped even further by seasons. The game so far is up to Season 2 and each season consists of 5 episodes. The game also includes a side story called “400 days“ which explains side characters within the universe. The first season consists of the main character named Lee Everett who is a professor that has been arrested for murder. He then is thrust into the world full of zombies where he meets a young girl by the name of Clementine. Lee decides of take care of her as he comes to the conclusion that her parents are dead. They then meet up with several people who join or hamper there progress with choices made along the way leading to either a characters death or survival. The game also includes elements that require input suggest shooting zombies and puzzles which are reminiscent of a point and click game.

“The form Games take when conceptualized, created, and experienced within the art world differs from what most game players and game developers realize.(Sharp, 4)”.

As a Game

For this blog, we look at the game from two view points which are as art and as a game. First, let try looking at the art as a game. From the viewpoint of a gamer, we see that the game itself might not be normal of many games as it has less freedom than most games played. This may be different but it is still a game as it has rules, outcomes, and especially and emotional attachment to the choices made. This is similar in the way Jesper Juul considers a game to be considered a game. Juul states that “A game is a rule-based system with a variable and quantifiable outcome, where different outcomes are assigned different values, the player exerts effort in order to influence the outcome, the player feels emotionally attached to the outcome, and the consequences of the activity are negotiable”(Juul,36).

As Art

From another point of view, this game can be considered art. John Sharp explains his version of what game art as “the appropriation of tools of the game industry for artistic purpose.” (Sharp,23) The game itself may not be directly what game art is meant to be, but considering that the game is more of a involvement of a story rather than being big on game play it allows for a more close connection to art. The game itself is primarily story driven and is not totally at all reliant on the users input, making it somewhat an outcast in the video games of today but more like a movie or show that gets you enthralled into watching rather than playing it. Along with this is the aesthetics of the game which in itself is unique as it creates characters and stories that are pleasing and entertaining.

The game itself can be considered art or a game, though it primarily involves information we already know on the matter thus it is subjective. Games essentially are similar to art in a sense as they are extravagant and force emotions that we must feel such as art. Now not all games can be considered art just like how not every drawing is considered art. It’s important though that we go in blind when understanding games and art. In my opinion, the Walking Dead is both a game and art.

John Sharp. (2015). “Game Art.” In Works of Game.pg 23

Jesper Juul. (2005). “Video Games and the Classic Game Model” in Half-Real: Video Gamesbetween Real Rules and Fictional Worlds. Cambridge: MIT Press: pp. 36

Three, Two, One…Time to Race!

Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition is a racing game that was released in 2005 for the PlayStation 2, the PSP, and the Xbox. In this game, the player can select from one of three locations to play at: Atlanta, Detroit, and San Diego. Additionally, the player can choose from two modes: career and arcade. In the career mode, the player is able to pick what city race they want to join by driving to the location of one of the dots shown in the map. In the arcade mode, the player can pick which race they want to join like track races, ordered races, etc. The objective is to participate in races and to try to get first place. Some races have prize money for the winners and that money can then be used to purchase more cars/motorcycles such as luxury sedans, tuners, muscle cars, sports bikes, SUV/trucks, etc. or to customize them. Also, there are a variety of cars and motorcycles that players can choose from such as the Mercedes-Benz, Kawasaki, Cadillac, Mitsubishi motors, Volkswagen, etc.

Why is this a Game?

Jesper Juul defines a game as being:

“a rule-based system with a variable and quantifiable outcome, where different outcomes are assigned different values, the player exerts effort in order to influence the outcome, the player feels emotionally attached to the outcome, and the consequences of the activity are negotiable.” (Juul, 36).

In Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition, the player is able to choose which mode they want to play, what car they want to drive, and there is no rule that says the player has to do a certain race first, however, each type of race has its own rules. For example, in an ordered race, you have to drive through checkpoints in order for a number of laps before getting to the finish line, versus the unordered race, where the player can drive through any checkpoint as long as you get to the checkpoint first. The outcome of each race varies as well because the player will not always get first place, however, they can keep trying until they get it. For some races, the player is rewarded with prize money if they obtain first through third place. Sometimes the player will try for first place instead of third place because it is better and because they will get more money. This illustrates that some outcomes are better than other ones. Additionally, for a player to reach the outcome that they desire, they must put in a lot of effort because a racing game like this one can be challenging. Once the player obtains the outcome that they want, they will become attached to it because their hard work paid off. When I was playing a city race, I would get frustrated when I could not get first place, but I would keep trying and trying and once I got first place, I would get really happy because putting in more effort paid off. Lastly, there are negotiable consequences in terms of money. The money won in a race can either be used to buy more cars that can be used to race or the money can be used to customize cars already owned.

 How is This Art?

There are many definitions for the term art, but one definition that stands out to me is “the expression or application of human creative skills and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.” This definition of art relates to Simon Niedenthal’s perception of game aesthetics. He states that “an aesthetic approach to games as sites for “make believe” allows us to focus on the qualities of fictional worlds in games, the roles we can take on, as well as the mechanisms through which games involve our participation” (Niedenthal, 4). In Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition, the player is able to choose what city they want to race in, what race they want to participate in, and the type of car or motorcycle they want to drive. The player can get creative by designing the car to their liking and tuning their car so that they are able to win the races. Even pedestrians in the game are able to appreciate the beauty of the player’s car. If the car is idle, pedestrians will stand there and they come closer to look at the car and will call others to look at the car as well. A game can also be considered art by the emotions it elicits in the player. Does Midnight Club 3 elicit emotions? Yes! In this racing game, the number one thought going through someone’s mind is “I have to get first place!” There is a feeling of frustration when one does not pass, but there is also a feeling of elation when the player is able to achieve their goal.

To conclude, Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition is a game because it follows Jesper Juul’s six features of what a game consists of. This game can also be considered as art because it can stir emotions within the player and because the player is able to create or alter something like a car that can be appreciated by the player and even the pedestrians in the game.

Juul, Jesper. “Video Games and the Classic Game Model” in Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2005.

Niedenthal, Simon. “What We Talk About When We Talk About Game Aesthetics.” In DiGRA 2009: Breaking New Ground: Innovation in Games, Play, Practice and Theory.

All-out on Fallout

Given my great amount of excitement for the release of Fallout 4 November 9th at 9pm (Pre-order release at Gamestop), I decided to go with Fallout: New Vegas. Fallout: New Vegas is a single player, action role-playing game in the Fallout video game series. The game was developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Bethesda Softworks. The game is based in a post-apocalyptic, open world environment around the area of Nevada, California, and Arizona ish. The player controls the character known as the Courier, who is hired by a delivery service to take an unknown package across the Mojave desert to the New Vegas Strip. During the delivery, the courier is shot in the head and left for dead. At the beginning of the game, you wake up in the home of a doctor, and are able to choose the way your character looks, what your attributes will be, your characteristics, etc. You go back into the desert to seek revenge and find the package that was stolen from you. As the courier, you choose one of 4 different paths; fight for caesar (a group of Romanesque slavers), the NCR or New California Republic (an expansionist militia government), Mr. House (the enigmatic de facto ruler of new vegas), or you can do your own thing with the help of a friendly robot named ‘Yes Man’.

Is it a Game?

Well, as I mentioned in one of my previous articles, I agree with Juul 110% on what a game is;

1. Rules: Games are rule-based.
2. Variable, quantifiable outcome: Games have variable, quantifiable outcomes.
3. Valorization of outcome: The different potential outcomes of the game are assigned different values, some positive and some negative
4. Player effort: The player exerts effort in order to influence the outcome.
5. Player attributed outcome: The player is emotionally attached to the outcome of the game in the sense that the player will be a winner and ‘happy’ in case of a positive outcome, but a loser ‘unhappy’ in case of a negative outcome.
6. Negotiable consequences: The same game can be played with or without real-life consequences.

Fallout Karma Levels from bad (left), to good (right)

There are rules, although not very many because you make every single choice for your character, there are things that the game limits you to, such as the map, for example. There is a variable outcome, having control over New Vegas, is an example of that. And there is a quantifiable outcome, whether that be completely fulfilling all of the characters attributes or having a large amount of money to purchase any weapon you desire. There is a valorization of outcome in the sense that you control your karma level (you can have good karma or bad karma based on the things you do throughout the game), and you control who you decide to work with at the end of the game. That could be Mr. house (bad guy), the NCR (good guys), the legion (more bad guys), or yourself (good or bad guy). There is A LOT of player effort that has a large part to do with your outcome. The player is emotionally connected to the outcome because as the player, you could literally kill just about everyone in the entire game if you wanted to. You would be considered a bad guy, but it depends on you as a person. This would roll over into the player attributed outcome. And there are negotiable consequences.

Is it Art? 

Fallout: Titanic (Ha!)

“At first glance, we can identify a number of similarities (between games and art), both are presenting spatiotemporal zones, which are perceived as different from everyday life. Furthermore, art, as well as games, are said to be on the one hand governed by rules and on the other hand related to notions of freedom”

• Clarke and Mitchell, “Videogames and Art” p. 26

Hmm, governed by rules? That sounds familiar (cough, Juul, cough). Oh, notions of freedom? As in using games as an escape from the real world because the real world is fu***d up? Maybe. Do I consider this game as art? Of course I do. Because according to the Oxford English Dictionary, art is “Skill; it’s display, application, or expression.” And with Fallout: New Vegas, it took a major amount of skill to be able to create a game or space where the player is truly engulfed to the point where when the player plays, he/she is taken to a world that separates them from real life. A world that is esthetically pleasing and entertaining, and also gives you the freedom to do as you please.

I honestly can’t say what art is, but if there was a way to truly connect art and game or express art through game, I would without a doubt add Fallout 3, New Vegas, and even Fallout 4 (even though I haven’t played it yet) to that conversation.

Attack of the Ducks!

The game I chose for this blog is Duck Game by Adult Swim. I decided to choose this game because my boyfriend’s friend brought it over one day and I couldn’t stop laughing while playing it. I definitely used it to escape from reality the last two weeks!

This is a fairly simple game to learn. It starts off by letting the player choose a hat for their duck and then they have to pick up the gun and shoot the ice in order to jump into the middle tube to start playing. This game has several rounds and the object is to be the last one standing. The player can do this in a number of ways. They can wait for the other players to kill each other, they pick up a gun and shoot the opponents, or they can throw their opponents off the edge are to name a few. The person who wins the most rounds eventually wins! Click here to see the trailer and get a feel of what the game is all about!

How is it a Game?

“A game is a rule-based system with a variable and quantifiable outcome, where different outcomes are assigned different values, the player exerts effort in order to influence the outcome, the player feels emotionally attached to the outcome, and the consequences of the activity are negotiable.”[1]

The Duck Game has all six features of Jesper Juul’s Classic Game Model [2].

1. Rules: The only rules for this game are to stay in the designated area on the map.
2. Variable, quantifiable outcome: The outcome that can be measured is the amount of rounds the player wins against their opponents.
3. Valorization of outcome: The valorization of outcome is either winning or losing a round, and each round the odds of winning are eqaul.
4. Player effort: There is definitely player effort in this game because trying to defeat the other players becomes very competitive.
5. Player attached to outcome: The player also becomes emotionally attached to the outcome of winning or losing because of the competition.
6. Negotiable consequences: The game has negotiable consequences because when someone gets shot or thrown off a cliff in real life, they die, and when these things happen in the game, the player’s character dies as well.

Since the Duck Game follows all six features of Jesper Juul’s classic game model this proves that it is a game. What still must be proved is why it is art.

Why is it Art?

Well first off, Raymond Williams has stated that art is related directly to aesthetics. With that being said, according to SImon Niedenthal, there are three main clusters of meaning around the term “game aesthetics.”

These include:

1. sensory phenomena that the player encounters in the game
2. those aspects of digital games that are shared with other art forms
3. an expression of the game experiences as pleasure, emotion, sociability, form-giving, etc

Since aesthetics is used to describe art these meanings of the term “game aesthetics” is very important. In the Duck Game there is constantly sensory phenomena that the player is encountering. The way everything looks, the sounds that are being made when jumping and shooting, these are all part of what makes the game art. It is also important to note that the type of emotion that the player feels while playing the game contributes to the “art.” As I was playing this game I felt very happy and silly. I couldn’t stop laughing because of all the different things I could choose to do to try to kill the other player was funny. Since the Duck Game has all of these things, I believe it to be considered art and a game!

 

References:

Jesper Juul. (2005). “Video Games and the Classic Game Model” in Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds. Cambridge: MIT Press: pp. 23-54.

The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim: Game & Art

For this blog post I decided on the popular RPG The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. With over 20 million copies sold across the three major platforms (PC, XBOX, Playstation), Skyrim, at the time, was one of the most highly anticipated games. Developed and published by Bethesda Softworks it is the fifth installment of the Elder Scroll series, following in the same footsteps of the others.

The game continues in the same fashion as its predecessors in an open world sandbox style adventure. This allows the player to either continue on the main quest of the skill or take a break and decide to explore on their own, postponing the main storyline until they return. Over the course of the game, the player can fight monsters, fashion weapons, trade, level up skills, and also quest among many other things.

As A Game:

What is considered a game can vary greatly depending on who you ask. More specifically for this class a game was considered something that follows some basic characteristics..Juules considered a game as being something that followed a set of guidelines which he called the classic video game model which is as follows;
I am the anchor.

“A game is a rule-based system with a variable and quantifiable outcome, where different outcomes are assigned different values, the player exerts effort in order to influence the outcome, the player feels emotionally attached to the outcome, and the consequences of the activity are negotiable (Juules, 36).”

According to these essential points outlined by Juules is Skyrim then considered a game? Well most certainly! It easily meets all of the criteria required. Of course this game has been well known to be highly customizeable with hacks/mods etc but to me, all  that really doesn’t take away from the game but more adds onto it. As far as outcomes are concerned the game is an open sandbox with no “right” way of doing things so in essence the sky’s the limit for the player. All that isn’t free though, the player is still required to put in effort into the game in order to progress just like any other adventure game. Lastly, a feeling of attachment and the outcomes that are faced within that world are also felt in Skyrim.  

As Art:

The question then become, is this game Art. We spent a great deal of time in class discussing various ways that games might and might not be considered art. Some examples of how something can be considered art is if it is aesthetically pleasing or unique. Sharp defines “game art” as follows;

“The appropriation of the tools of the game industry for artistic purpose (Sharp).”

He sees video games as being a medium for art to be expressed in a way. How does art and game art relate to The Elder Scrolls Skyrim? Skyrim being an open sandbox adventure game can be considered art for a couple of reasons. The world in which the adventure takes place is surreal and beautiful and that in itself can be considered aesthetically pleasing to some. Also, the way in which the game follows the path of the player in what they want to do, which can differ from the way of the actual story, gives it a unique sense.  

Some games like Skyrim are able to situate themselves as being considered both a game as well as art as long as they are able to fit the various characteristics that each entail. It has many strong points for fitting into the game model but also those consisting of art and “game art” in which the aesthetics of the game is what is being determined. Overall, Skyrim was a great experience and is highly recommended to anyone wishing to try out a game with a different pace in which the player is in control.   

Sources:

Jesper Juul. (2005). “Video Games and the Classic Game Model” in Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds. Cambridge: MIT Press: pp. 23-54. [PDF]

John Sharp. (2015). “Introduction.” In Works of Game.

Starbound as Art and Game

Starbound is a rpg/exploration game made by the indie developer Chucklefish. In the game, you are stranded on a planet and have to mine ore, collect other supplies, and build things to repair your spaceship to explore other planets. You can do quests like defeating certain monsters to upgrade your technology which allows you to build higher tier armor and weapons and go to more dangerous planets in different galaxies. Starbound is similar to another game called Terraria, but takes the game to a space setting where traveling to different worlds allows the player to explore a lot more than Terraria, where you can only explore one planet per save file. Starbound does a lot of things well as a game and as art, but as an overall work, Starbound is truly neither. Starbound is a borderline game, and is not art due to the status of the game’s completion and lack of certain art/aesthetic elements.

Starbound contains a lot of mechanics that make it addictive to play. Players create a character of their choice to play and explore The tier system makes a player want to grind as fast as possible and beat quests to unlock new smelting methods to make stronger metals. The game allows you to mine ore to the core of the planet you are on, and on the way you can find ancient civilization’s remnants that could contain weapons, armor, supplies, or ore. There is also inhabited planets with small communities of different races that will greet you, but the whole town will turn against you if you steal or kill someone. Starbound contains many creative aspects that allow you to do many things. However, Starbound is an open ended game, so once you master all of these mechanics and start progressing faster, you realize that once you have top tier armor/weapons there is nothing left to do. There is no outcome to the game, and players just continue to explore different planets after they reach the highest level. Some simulation type games have a certain goal that qualifies as the “end game”, and allows the player to continue, but Starbound does not try to do that and leaves the player hanging once they reach top tier.

.”Open-ended simulations like SimCity are not classic games since they have no explicit goals–that is, no explicit values are assigned to the possible outcomes of the game, but what happens in the game is still attached to the player and the player invests effort in playing the game” (Juul, J. (2005), p.43).

Starbound is a simulation in some sense, but focuses mainly on the exploration aspect of games. Still, after beating the last quest, there is nothing left to do. Even some text saying you have completed the mission of progressing to an advanced being in the universe could be considered an outcome. Chucklefish did not implement any valorization of outcome to the game, so it is considered a borderline game. This only becomes obvious once you reach the end of the game and get bored of having nothing else to do. If the grinding that was required earlier proves no purpose, players will get bored and stop playing.

Even though Starbound is animated in 16bit, it is still one of the most visually appealing games I have ever played. There are many types of planets, with different ecosystems and weather. The lighting is a very strong element to the game, where you feel that you are visiting other planets once you touch down and that there is a difference between night and day. The visual aspect of Starbound is very artful, but the overall product of the game and its lack of some key facets make it not art. Strong art has a narrative or objective purpose created by the artist. The use of different mediums of art allows viewers to see what the overall purpose of the work is. Starbound lacks any type of narrative or even guidance on what the purpose is. You land on your home planet, ship broken, and you must repair it. Besides that, there is no flow to the game that makes it obvious what one is to do. Many people ask on forums and online about how to progress to the next tier, because it is not apparent in the game itself. The confusion shown among players discussing the game make it seem this game is not well organized, and that is true. Starbound has been in beta for two years. The team at Chucklefish started other projects, and have yet to complete Starbound. This makes it hard to consider the game art when it is still a work in progress. Without knowing the final product, we do not know what changes will be made and implemented, thus we do not know Starbound as a complete work. These combine to take away from the playing experience of Starbound. While progressing in the game, a player will begin to ask “What is the point?”. When the audience does not pick up on any meaning from the work, and the artist(s) do not offer any, then it is taken as having no meaning, which is strong component of what makes art. These two faults of Starbound make it not art. Our experience is drastically altered by Chucklefish’s lack of narrative input, and their inability to finish the game. They keep trying to add new mechanics such as making booby traps, teleporters, and mods, but do not focus on the structural components such as narrative and outcome, making the game very weak when being viewed as an overall product of art. Regardless of how visually appealing something may be, the core segments of what it stands for, and the completion of an idea structures art.

 Starbound is one of my favorite games. My friend and I used to spend hours playing Terraria, and when its “successor” was announced, we both pre-ordered, and were playing it the day it was released. However, even though I have a lot of love for this game, it is hard to defend it from backlash it has gotten. Since it has been in development so long, and leaves the player to fend for themselves, the work is weak when considering as a game or art. If they added a stronger quest system that adds flow and knowledge on what is supposed to be done, and an outcome once you finish, it would be a true game. If they publish the game, even though I think it is not true art, they have a complete work which can be judged more thoroughly knowing there might not be huge changes in the next patch. When something is finished and has more experience based mechanics, it becomes better as a game and as art.

Juul, J. (2005). video games and the classic game model.

MW 3 or WW 3?

The game I chose to play for this blog was Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. The genre of this specific video game is first-person shooter. I would also personally classify it as a war game. There are multiple platforms that this game can be played on including Microsoft Windows, Playstation 3, and Xbox 360. Later on, it also came out on the Wii. I played Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 on the Xbox 360 because I already have the console and the game therefore it was easy to access. I picked this specific game because I really enjoy playing it when I am stressed and need to get some anger or frustration out. This is especially important because my first semester at the University of California Merced has been SOOOO STRESSFUL!!

This game has many different game options. There’s a story mode called Campaign where the player completes missions in order to advance. Another mode is called Special Operations (Special Ops). In this mode there are three different types of games called survival, mission, and chaos. They each have their own instructions. I played the mission one and that one gives the player special missions that must be completed in a certain amount of time. The final game option is Multiplayer. This is probably the most popular option because you can go on Xbox live and play with other people around the world. There are many different types of games in this mode including capture the flag, team death match, free for all, and infected to name a few. This is honestly where I spend most of my time in the game because it is fun to play with real people instead of a computer.

The objective of any of these game modes is to kill the enemies while trying to achieve a goal. That goal may be a high score, a completed mission, or even just doing better than the player did on the last game. With that being said, the developers of this video game are Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games, and also Raven Software. I believe that these developers played a strong role in being an artist for this game. The publisher of the game was the company Activision, and this company too contributed to the role of being the artist. There were many other contributors including the director, Steve Ackrich, the producers, Mark Rubin and Jason Ades, and the designers, Calvin Smith, Michael Condrey, and Jon Porter. When I first started thinking about “authorship” and “artistry” I thought of Howard Becker’s theory.

“Imagine, as one extreme case, a situation in which one person did everything:made everything, invented everything, had all the ideas, performed or executed the work, experienced and appreciated it, all without the assistance or help of anyone else. We can hardly imagine such a thing, because all the arts we know, like all the human activities we know, involve the cooperation of others.”

-Howard Becker

According to Becker, the “author” or “artist” all has to do with the group making the art. In this case, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3’s artist would be everyone who contributed to it. Unfortunately, the problem with this theory is that the designers, Calvin Smith, Michael Condrey, and Jon Porter are being under recognized for their contribution to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. These are the three who made it all happen. Without them designing the game, there wouldn’t be this game. They are the ones who created this game, in turn they must be the very important persons’ (V.I.P.’s) of this specific game. That being said, I don’t disagree with Becker’s argument that the group is responsible for contributing to art, I just believe that the designers deserve a little more credit than all the others who helped make the game. In other words, each person who contributed to making the game is an “artist,” but the “V.I.P. artists” are definitely the designers.