Tomb Raiders and Space Invaders: Videogame Forms and Contexts 1850438145, 9781850438144
310 92 2MB
English Pages 273 Year 2006
Recommend Papers
![Space Invaders: Race, Gender and Bodies Out of Place [1st ed.]
1859736548, 9781859736548, 9781423747307](https://ebin.pub/img/200x200/space-invaders-race-gender-and-bodies-out-of-place-1stnbsped-1859736548-9781859736548-9781423747307.jpg)
File loading please wait...
Citation preview
Tomb Raiders and Space Invaders
Tomb Raiders and Space Invaders Videogame Forms and Contexts Geoff King and Tanya Krzywinska
Completionoftheprojectwasmadepossiblebyagrantfromthe ArtsandHumanitiesResearchBoard
Publishedin2006byI.B.Tauris&CoLtd 6SalemRoad,LondonW24BU 175FifthAvenue,NewYorkNY10010 www.ibtauris.com IntheUnitedStatesofAmericaandinCanadadistributedby PalgraveMacmillan,adivisionofStMartin’sPress 175FifthAvenue,NewYorkNY10010 Copyright©GeoffKingandTanyaKrzywinska,2006 TherightofGeoffKingandTanyaKrzywinskatobeidentifiedastheauthorsofthis workhasbeenassertedbytheauthorsinaccordancewiththeCopyright,Designsand PatentsAct1988. Allrightsreserved.Exceptforbriefquotationsinareview,thisbook,oranypart thereof,maynotbereproduced,storedinorintroducedintoaretrievalsystem,or transmitted,inanyformorbyanymeans,electronic,mechanical,photocopying, recordingorotherwise,withoutthepriorwrittenpermissionofthepublisher. ISBN1845111087hardback EAN9781845111083hardback ISBN1850438145paperback EAN9781850438144paperback
AfullCIPrecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary AfullCIPrecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheLibraryofCongress LibraryofCongresscatalogcard:available TypesetinBembobySteveTribe,Andover PrintedandboundinGreatBritainbyMPGBooksLtd,Bodmin
Contents ListofIllustrations
vi
Acknowledgements
viii
Introduction:SpaceInvaders,TombRaiders
1
1.GameplayanditsContexts
8
2.Gamescapes:ExplorationandVirtualPresenceinGame-Worlds
76
3.Realism,Spectacle,Sensation
124
4.Social,CulturalandPoliticalDimensions
168
Afterword
229
Notes
230
SelectBibliography
250
Index
258
Illustrations 1. Freedomto‘playaround’:paidea,inastylizedthird-person view,inGrandTheftAuto:ViceCity(2002)
15
2. Multipledemandsontheattentionoftheplayerofafirst-person shooterinDeltaForce:BlackHawkDown(2003) 25 3. Genericterritory,instantlyrecognizable:scientistandfuturist/ laboratorysettinginHalf-Life(1998)
56
4. ScudmissileslaunchedinattackonaUSbaseinCommandand Conquer:Generals(2003) 63 5. Spatialrestrictionasbasisofgameplay:SuperMonkeyBall(2001) 79 6. Explorableandrecognizablegameterrain:crossingavirtual WestminsterBridge(illegally!)inTheGetaway(2003)
94
7. TheworldofTheElderScrollsIII:Morrowind(2002)as experiencedinthirdperson,behindandslightlyabovethe player-character
104
8. Attackedfromabove:fendingoffanaerialassaultinMorrowind infirst-person 105 9. Golfsimulationinbroadandblockyfieldsofcolour:WorldClass Leaderboard(1986)ontheCommodore64 132 10. Themuchmore‘photorealistic’simulationofgolfofferedby Links2004(2003)
133
11. Spectacularvista:thebridge-crossedvoidinPrinceofPersia: SandsofTime(2003)
155
ILLUSTRATIONS 12. Spectaculartransformation:cut-sceneinwhichtheprincipal player-characterofPrimal(2003)isabouttoshiftintonewand morepowerfuldemonicform 158 13. First-personfreedom-fighter:Palestinianresistancefiguredin-game intheprecinctsoftheDomeoftheRockinUnderAsh(2001) 170 14. Sexistimagery,combinedwithaction-stunts, inBMXXXX(2002)
180
15. Ordinarygirlwithextra-ordinarypowers:Buffyas‘kick-ass’ womanwarriorinBuffytheVampireSlayer(2002)
182
16. Gameplayascommunity:groupplayscreen-shot fromEverQuest
220
vii
Acknowledgements ThankstoBarryAtkins,SueMorrisandMarie-LaureRyanfortaking thetimetoreadthemanuscriptbeforepublicationandforanumberof helpfulsuggestions.WearealsogratefultoPhilippaBrewsteratI.B.Tauris for commissioning this book. Completion of the project was made possiblebyagrantfromtheArtsandHumanitiesResearchBoard.
Introduction Space Invaders, Tomb Raiders Ranksofsketchywhitealienformsshufflesidewaysacrossthescreen. You move a small green turret along the lower edge, shooting at the alien‘invaders’ and dodging for cover from their fire behind a row of protectiveblocks.Eachtimethealienscompleteamovementfromone sidetotheother,theranksdropdowncloser.Theystarttomovealittle faster.Aninsistentelectronicmarchingbeataccompaniestheirprogress, keepingtimewiththeirincreasedspeed,windingupthetension.Tryto takeoutverticalrowsfromtheside,slowingtheirprogress.Bewareofany thatgettoolow,givingyoulittletimetoavoidtheirshots.Hitaliensto clearthescreen,scoringpointsasyougo.Watchoutforhigher-scoring bonusaliensthatmove,periodically,acrosstheupperedgeofthescreen. Keephittingthebuttons,watching,hypnotically,asitgetsfasterandfaster. Yourdefencesgraduallygetshottonothing.Losealife,butyoumight haveanotherleft.Clearthescreen,gainanotherlife,andtheystartlower, closer.Keepgoingandthepacequickensfurther.Youstareatthescreen, youreyesstrainandyourfocusnarrows;surroundingdistractionsrecede fromattention.Howlongcanyousurvive?Eventually,always,youdie, soonerorlater.Youcannotbeatthemachine,butyoumighthangon longenoughtosetanewhighscore.
2
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS AftersometimeexploringtheParisghettoandtalkingtovariousnonplayercharacters,youeventuallyfindthebackstagedoortotheSerpent Rouge club where you must find a box to be traded for important information. Kill a guard lurking at the entrance, enter an office and spotabunchofitemsonadesk;press‘action’topromptLaratopickup ammunitionandachocolatebar.Onleaving,taketheguard’sgun–in caseyougetintoascraplateron.Followacorridorandemergeonto thedanceflooroftheclub.Dispatchapairofguardsandpullaswitch thatfillsthespacewithfast-pacedpumpingtechnomusic.Moreguards, promptingyoutotwistthein-gamecamerarapidlytogetagoodaim. Moreitemstobecollected.ClimbingLaraupagantry,youcollectyour thoughts; hit the save key just in case the jump you’re about to make ends in death, and mentally go through the button presses needed to ensuresuccess.Ready,steady–go!Lara’sponytailswishesasshejumps through the air and catches the edge of the gantry by her fingertips. Shepullsupandstandsstill,awaitingyournextcommand.Butthere’s no respite.Tension mounts as you are assailed by more bullets, Lara’s bloodhittingthedeck.Phew,yougotthrough!Thenmorejumping,but thistimethetimingiswrong:Laraflailsherarmsandhitstheground below with a nasty crunch. Reload from the previous save; try again. This time it works. But more jumping leads to more deaths, the flow ofthegameinterruptedasyou’rekickedouttothemainmenu.Back inside the game-world, you attempt frantically to find the‘sweet’ spot fromwhichtojump–andcursealoudattheprecisiondemandedbythe game.Severalmorejumps,someleverpullsinaparticularorderandthe boxisfound.ExitLarafromtheclub,hittingthesavekeyagainwitha palpablesenseofrelief. Videogames1 have certainly come a long way from the experience ofSpaceInvaders(1978),2oneofthebreakthrougharcadegamesofthe 1970s,tothatofferedbyepisodesoftheTombRaiderseriessuchasAngel ofDarkness(2003).SpaceInvadersrestrictstheplayertoalargelyabstract andrelativelyunchangingformofplayinwhichalimitedrangeoffixed and immediate responses are required.The Tomb Raider games (from 1996) offer something much more like a virtual world with which to engage–aricherandmoredetailedseriesofspacestoexploreandtasks toperform–throughthethird-personfigureofLaraCroft.SpaceInvaders andTombRaideralsohavemuchincommon,however.Eachhasacore
INTRODUCTION gameplaydynamiconwhichmuchofthepleasureitoffersisbased,a particularkindofactivityatwhichthesuccessfulplayerhastobecome proficient,largelythroughaprocessofextendedtemporalengagement: playing again and again – and again – until further progress is made, theplayercomingtoacloserunderstandingoftheunderlyinglogicof the game. Tomb Raider requires the performance of a wider range of activitiesthanSpaceInvaders,butthesearereducibletoarelativelylimited setofmoves.Theprincipaldifferencebetweenthetwolies,perhaps,in thedegreeofmaterialofferedinsupportof,andaround,theactivities ofcoregameplay.SpaceInvaders,likeothergamesofitsera,isstripped backtothebasics.TombRaiderhasmoredimensions.Itgivestheplayer greaterfreedom,withintheconstraintsofitsbasicmechanism,including freedom to explore the on-screen world to some extent beyond the immediaterequirementsofadvancementthroughthegame.Itcreatesa strongerimpressionofoccupyingthegame-world,evenifatoneremove. Itprovidesmoreinthewayofbackgroundcontext,inwhichtosituate gameplayactivities.Itisalsorealizedmorefullyandmore‘realistically’ atthelevelofaudio-visualqualities.Asaresultofthesedimensions,the TombRaidergamesappeartobemoresubstantialsocial-culturalproducts, susceptible to more sustained readings in terms of their place in the widerculturallandscapeinwhichtheyareplayed.Howimportantthese additional dimensions are to videogames more generally is one of the majorquestionsaddressedbythisbook. Gameshavebecomeasignificantpartoftherecentandcontemporary media/entertainmentlandscape.Fromrelativelysmallandoftenobscure beginnings, videogames have become very big business, the stuff of rivalries between major transnational corporations such as Sony and Microsoft.Theyhavealsobecomeasubstantialcomponentofpopular culture,comparabletomoreestablishedmediasuchasfilmandtelevision. Untilrecently,however,theyhavenotreceivedthekindanddegreeof analyticalattentiontheymerit.Academicstudiesofgamesdatebacktoat leastthe1980s,butinmanycaseshavefailedtoaddressthespecificnature andqualitiesofgamesconsideredasamediumorformintheirownright. Earlystudiesofgamesweredominatedbyquitedifferentagendas,often hostile,sometimesaspartofawider‘moralpanic’aboutvideogamesand theirallegedinfluencesor‘effects’,especiallyonchildren.Itisonlyin thelastfewyearsthat‘gamestudies’,asadiscretediscipline,hasbegunto
3
4
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS emerge,andevenhereithasstruggledtogainrecognition.3 Theaimofthisbookistocontributetotheacademicanalysisofgames, asmediaformsthatneedtobeconsideredintheirownrightandaspart of the broader environment of popular culture in which they appear. Ourmajorpointoffocusisonkeyformalaspectsofgames–theways gamesarestructuredandrealized–andthekindsofexperiencesoffered bytheactivitiestheyrequireorencourageoftheplayer.Wealsoconsider thecontextswithinwhichtheseexperiencesareshapedanddeployed, includingculturalandindustrialdimensions.Acentralissuethroughout isthenatureofthepleasureofferedbygameplay.Ourargumentisthat games offer a range of different pleasures and experiences. It is often necessarytoseparatetheseoutinordertoanalyzeeachinitsturn,aswe doaswemovefromonechaptertoanother.Westart,inthefirstpartof Chapter1,byconsideringthenatureofgameplayitself,thecorequality thatdefinesgamesasdifferentfromothermedia.Wethenconsiderhow the experience of gameplay might be shaped or influenced by – or relativelyindependentof–sourcesofbackgroundcontextualmaterial such as narrative/story, genre or political-ideological resonances.This partofthebooktoucheson,butalsoseekstogobeyond,whathasin recentyearsbeenoneofthemorecontroversialdebatesingamestudies: betweenthosewhoarguefororagainstthesignificanceofnarrativeasa dimensionimportanttogamesortowhichtheyoughttoaspire. AshiftoffocusoccursinChapter2,inwhichweconsidergamesas spaces that can be explored or virtually inhabited to greater or lesser degrees.The second part of this chapter focuses on degrees of virtual ‘presence’createdbygame-worlds,includinganalysisofthedifferences that result from shifts in in-game orientation such as those between games offered as virtual first or third person experiences. Chapter 3 examines qualities such as realism, spectacle and sensation in games. We consider the appeal not just of increased graphical‘photorealism’, in many games, but also a functional variety of realism, founded on theattempttomodelactionsandreactions(aswellasrepresentational surfaces)inamannerthatcorrespondstosomeextentwiththeirrealworld (or other media) equivalents. This chapter also considers the spectacular qualities of game-worlds, including spectacle founded on claimsmadetothestatusof‘realism’,beforemovingontoconsidera varietyofintenseandimpactfulsensationsthatlieclosetotheheartof
INTRODUCTION theappealofsomegames.Thefinalchaptershiftsattentiontothesocial, culturalandpolitical-ideologicaldimensionsofgames,examininggames aspartsofthemeaning-creatingcultureinwhichtheyaresituated.Issues addressedhereincludeideologicalmeaningscodedimplicitlyintoboth backgroundcontextualmaterialandcoregameplayactivities. Ifdimensionsofgamesandgameplaysuchasthesecanbeseparated out for analysis, our argument is that they also need to be put back togetheragain.Noneoperateinisolation.Exactlyhowtheyinteractis subjecttodebate.Whethercoregameplayactivitiesshouldbeprivileged, above dimensions such as narrative context or standards of graphical representation, for example, is an issue to which we return on several occasions.Ourargument,though,isthatgamesoffermultidimensional experiences.Whichoftheseareforegroundedmightvaryfromonegame orgamegenretoanother.Preciselywhichkindsofpleasuresaretaken also depends to a significant extent on the orientations of individual players.Evenifsomedimensionsareseenaslessessentialtogamesthan others,however,theycanallcontributetotheoverallexperience.Ifcore gameplayactivityisprivileged,assomeargueitshouldbe,asthefeature thatmarksgamesoutfromotherpopularentertainmentmedia,itnever occursina‘pure’form,unadulteratedbysomeotherdimension.Much the same can be said here as for other media. Film, for example, has beendescribedasanessentiallyvisualmedium(especiallybeforethefull integrationofsoundintothebasisofthemedium).Film(orvideo)might stillbeconsideredtobeamediuminwhichthevisualispredominant, qualities such as camera movement and temporally sequenced editing beingspecifictotheform.Evenifconsideredsecondary(againstwhich somemightargue),soundstillplaysahighlysignificantpartinthefilmviewing experience, however, often performing a central role in areas such as shaping the emotional coding of individual sequences. The samecouldbesaidofgamedimensionssuchastheroleofbackground contextualmaterialorthelevelofgraphicaldetailinwhichthegameworld is rendered (although the latter can also have significance for gameplayitself,asweargueinChapter3):theymaynotbeessentialto whatmakesagameagame,ratherthananythingelse,buttheycontribute totheoverallexperienceofferedtotheplayer. To consider these different dimensions, and their interrelationships, wedrawonarangeofcriticalperspectivesandmethodologies.Wider
5
6
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS theoriesofplayandgamesprovideimportantinsightsonthenatureof play,asadistinctrealmofexperience.Fieldssuchassemiotics,narrative studyandfilmtheoryhelptoinformtheanalysisofsomeformalfeatures ofgames.Conceptsdrawnfromsociologyandfrommediaandcultural studies aid in the analysis of the cultural and industrial contexts in whichgamesareproducedandconsumed.Theviewsofgamedesigners offer another important point of reference. We use these critical perspectives in a heterogeneous manner, as analytical tools chosen to helpunderstandingofparticularaspectsofgamesandgameplay,rather thanfromanallegiancetoanysingleover-archingtheoreticalperspective. Thisemphasisonapluralityofapproachesunderpinsthecoreclaimof thisbook:thatafullanalysisofgamesrequiresnotaprivilegingofone aspectofgamesoverothers,butconsiderationoftheinterplaybetween oneandanother.Wedonotclaimtocoverallpossibleaspectsofgames and gaming, however. In our predominant focus on games as part of popularculture,wedonotdwellonissuessuchasthetechnicalbasisof games, or developments in gaming technology, other than briefly and in connection with other matters (such as improvements in graphics technologiesinChapter3).Thisbookdoesnotincludeanyempirical studyofgamersthemselves,either,whichisclearlyadimensionofmore centralimportancetoourperspective.Ouremphasisisonwhatisoffered togameplayersratherthanonexactlywhataspectsoftheexperienceare takenuporenjoyedbyparticulargamers.Thelatterrequiresempirical studyofgameplayers,eitheringeneralorinparticularsectionsorsubsectionsofthegameplayingpopulation,anenterprisethatcancontribute significantly to our understanding of games but that lies beyond the scopeofthisbook.4Wehavenotattemptedataxonomyofgametypes, anissuethathasconcernedsomeinterventionsinthisnewlycrystallizing field.5Neitherhavewepaidasmuchattentiontotheindustrialcontexts withinwhichgameshavebeenshapedaswewouldhaveliked,asaresult ofrestrictionsonspace. Awordisalsorequiredonthegamesthatfeatureinthisstudy.Wehave soughttouseawiderangeofexamplesdrawnfromdifferentgamegenres and platforms, but there are limits to how far this is possible. Playing gamesisaverytime-consumingbusiness,asanygamerwillconfirm.It cantakedozensorinsomecaseshundredsofhourstocompleteasingle game,whichhasforcedustobesomewhatselectiveinthenumberof
INTRODUCTION examplesanalyzed.Inthemajorityofcases,wehaverestrictedouranalysis togameswehaveplayedourselves,eitherinfullorinpart.Anumber ofgamesappearregularlythroughoutthebook,anoutcomeofpractical necessitythatalsohelpstounderlinetheextenttowhichindividualtitles canbeanalyzedinanumberofdifferentdimensions.Oneproblemwith games,asobjectsofstudy,istheirtransience,especiallygiventherapid coming and going of successive platforms, which makes many older games less easily available for play.We have tried, therefore, to ensure abalancebetweengamesandgamefranchisesthathavegained‘classic’ or canonical status and others that illustrate wider trends while being, potentially,moreshort-lived.Insomecases,anindividualtitleisusedina mannerdesignedtoberepresentativeofawidergame-type,theprincipal example being the use of EverQuest in more general consideration of massively multi-player online role-playing games (even more timeconsumingthanothers!).Wehavefocusedprimarilyongamesplayedon homeconsolesandpersonalcomputers,ratherthanarcadegamesorthe growingsectorofgamesdesignedforanarrayofmobileplatforms.There isalsoatendencytoleantowardsgamesthatfallbroadlyintotheactionadventurecategory(including,initswidestsense,somerole-playingand strategygames),towhichwehavetendedtogravitateinourownplay. Otherkindsofgamesarealsoconsidered,however,atboththemassand nichemarketendsofthescale.
7
1 Gameplay and its Contexts A much discussed issue in game studies in recent years has been the relationship between the performance and enjoyment of the specific tasks associated with any particular game, or type of game, and the meaning-creatingcontextsinwhichthesearesetinthegame-world.The relationshipbetweengameplayandnarrativehasbeentheprincipalfocus of this debate.To what extent are games a medium with a significant narrative,orstory-telling,component?Howfararegame-specifictasks – such as running around in the on-screen world shooting, killing andtryingtoavoidbeingshotinafirst-personshooterormarshalling anddeployingresourcesinareal-timestrategygame–affectedbythe narrativeframeworkswithinwhichsuchactivitiesaresituated?Debate onthisissuehas,insomecases,beenheatedandpolemical,thepotential role of narrative being subject to both exaggeration and out-of-hand dismissal.Theaimofthischapteristoopenthequestionupmorewidely, to give detailed consideration to the nature and qualities of gameplay itself and its relationship with a broader range of contextual material. The latter includes associations brought to gameplay from narrative frameworks,butalsofromgenericsourcesandwiderresonanceswithin itscross-media,social-culturalandpoliticalorideologicalcontext.How,
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS and how far, these are likely to‘play-into’, or be‘in-play’, during the performanceofkeygameplaytaskswillbethesubjectofthelatterpart ofthischapter.First,though,acloselookisneededatthedistinguishing characteristicsofgameplayitself,includingdefinitionsofkeytermssuch as‘game’and‘play’.
Gameplay Gameplay, as experienced in videogames, might be defined along the following lines: the particular set of non-real-world tasks, goals or potentials set for the player’s enjoyment within an on-screen arena, performed according to a set of pre-established rules and as a result of which a number of different outcomes are possible. Many such definitions have been offered by games developers and theorists.1The twomostinfluentialsourcesfordefinitionsofgameplay,highlightinga number of issues central to our understanding of videogames, are the moregeneraldefinitionsofplayofferedbytheculturaltheoristsJohan Huizinga (Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play Element in Culture, first publishedinGermanin1944)andRogerCaillois(Man,PlayandGames, firstpublishedinFrenchin1958).ForHuizinga,themaincharacteristics ofplayare:thatitisavoluntaryactivity,freelyenteredintoasasourceof pleasureand‘neverimposedbyphysicalnecessityormoralduty’;2thatit involvesasteppingoutof‘ordinary’or‘real’lifeinto‘atemporarysphere ofactivitywithadispositionallofitsown’;3thatthisoccursinitsown distincttimeandplace,orderedandrule-bound;4andthatplaytendsto createitsowncommunities,onthebasisofparticularsharedactivities.5 Caillois’definitionisbroadlysimilar,buildingonHuizingaandadding someextraingredients.ForCaillois,asforHuizinga,playisessentially free, the activity of playing not obligatory for the player; otherwise‘it wouldatonceloseitsattractiveandjoyousqualitiesasadiversion.’6Itis also,asinHuizinga,separate,anactivity‘circumscribedwithinlimitsof timeandspace,definedandfixedinadvance’,7governedbyrules,and make-believe,‘accompaniedbyaspecialawarenessofasecondrealityor ofafreeunreality,asagainstreallife.’8TothesedimensionsCailloisadds thesuggestionthatplayisuncertain,theprecisecourseandresultnot beingdeterminedinadvance‘andsomelatitudeforinnovationsbeing lefttotheplayer’sinitiative’,9andunproductive,‘creatingneithergoods norwealth’.10
9
10
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS In addition to more general definitions of play and games, specific featurescanbeattributedtovideogamesonthebasisoftheiruseofdigital technologies.ForJanetMurray,therepresentationalpowerofcomputers ‘enhances,intensifiesandextends’variousfacetsofplayfoundinmore traditional games.11 Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman suggest four characteristictraitsofdigitalmediathat,workingincombination,bring uniquequalitiestocomputerandvideogames:aformofinteractivitythat isimmediate,althoughnarrowincomparisonwiththeactivitiesinvolved innon-digitalgames(theuseofmouseandkeyboardorconsolejoysticks andbuttons,incomparisonwithawiderrangeofphysicalengagement in real-world gaming activities); manipulation of large quantities of information; the automation of complex procedural systems; and a capabilityfornetworkedcommunicationbetweenplayers.12 PLAY VS. GAME; FREEDOM VS. RULES
Itiswidelyagreedthatvideogamesrequirerules.AsEspenAarsethputs it:‘Without rules to structure actions … we would have free play or otherformsofinteraction,butnotgameplay.’13Thebalancebetweenthe establishmentofrulesandthecreationoffreedomfortheplayerishighly variable, however, an issue that can be explored with the aid of two furtherconceptsusedbyCailloistodistinguishbetweenthemeanings associated in English with the terms‘play’ and‘game’. Caillois adopts theLatintermspaideaandludus.Paideaisequivalentto‘play’initsmost spontaneousandunstructuredforms,‘aprimarypowerofimprovisation andjoy’.14Ludus,closerto‘game’,suggeststheruleswithinwhichpaidea isoftencontained.Ludusistheoutcome,Cailloissuggests,ofa‘tastefor gratuitousdifficulty’,15atermthatmightresonatewiththeplayersofthe morefiendishelementsofsomevideogames.Gamerulesaredefinedin similartermsbyBernardSuitsas‘unnecessaryobstacles’createdpurely to make possible the activity of play, forbidding more efficient means infavouroflessefficientmeans(inafoot-race,forexample,requiring runnerstogothelongwayaroundatrackratherthantakingashort-cut acrossthemiddle).16Ascaleisofferedthatcanusefullybeappliedtoa widerangeofgames.Atoneendisfreeimprovisation;attheother,the impositionofseeminglyarbitraryrules.Inbetween,manygradationsand combinationsarepossible. Anattempttotakethemeaningsofthesetermsastagefurtherinthe
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS contextofvideogamesismadebyGonzaloFrasca,whoseekstointegrate Caillois’ terms with the theory of play offered by the developmental psychologist Jean Piaget.17 Piaget identifies three types of play, each relatedtodifferentstagesofgrowthinchildhood:fromexercisegames (playinvolvingsensory-motoractivities)tosymbolicgames(involving make-believe and implying the representation of absent objects) and gameswithrules.18Exercisegamesandsymbolicgames,inthisaccount, can entail ‘regularities’ – that is to say, repeated parameters such as throwingamarblefromthesameplaceorthrowingitthesamedistance oneachoccasion–butnotrules.Rules,inPiaget’susage,entailsocialor inter-individualrelationships.19Frascasuggestssomethingofasynthesis betweenCailloisandPiaget,inwhichludusistakentomeangamesthat defineawinneroraloserandpaideasuggestsgameswith‘regularities’ ratherthanentirelyunstructuredplay.20 Thevalueofanyofthesedefinitions–thoseofCailloisorFrasca’s synthesis of Caillois and Piaget – lies in their flexibility: the fact that theycanbeusedtoarticulatetherelativebalanceofqualitiesfoundin any individual game or game-genre. Some games fall in between the polessuggestedbyFrasca’sdefinitions,forexample:gamesthatdonot have a single winning or losing state, but in which the player might misssignificantdimensionsoftheexperienceifparticulartasksarenot achieved.AsAkiJärvinen,SatuHeliöandFransMäyräputit:‘Inagame therearedefinitionsofwinningorlosing,oratleastofgainandloss.’21A clearsenseofgainorlossisestablishedinmassivelymulti-playeronline role-playinggames(MMORPGs)suchasEverQuest,forexample,without reachinganydefinedpointofoverallvictoryorirredeemableloss.The playerisencouragedtoperformactivitiessuchaskillingmonstersand participatinginqueststogainexperiencepointsandtoincreasethelevel oftheircharacter,gatheringandsellingresourcesinordertogainaccess toimprovedweapons,spellsandarmour.Whatcanbegainedcanalsobe lost,oncetheearlylevelshavebeenpassed.Thedeathofthecharacter resultsinalossofexperiencepointsandthepossibleforfeitofequipment ifthecorpseisnotrecoveredwithinagiventime-frame.Largerandmore epic quests, adventures or raids can be achieved by more experienced players,increasingthesatisfactionlikelytobegainedfromgameplay.But, while adventures might depend on a mission being completed in an allocatedtime-frame,thereisnooveralldefinitiveendpointtothegame
11
12
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS itself (hence the EverQuest).At any one particular time, a limit is set onthemaximumlevelcharacterscanreach,butthishasincreasedover time,thecommercialimperativeofasubscription-basedgamerequiring continued expansion of such parameters rather than the possibility of achievingastateoffinalclosure. Evenwithinitsownopenstate,maximizationoftheachievementof theplayer’scharacterisonlyoneofanumberoforientationsavailableto playersofMMORPGs.Otherformsofgainandlosscanbeexperienced, dependingontheinclinationoftheindividual.RichardBartlesuggests fourdominanttypesofplayerinsuchgames:achievers,forwhompoints gathering and level increasing are the main aim; explorers, who enjoy exploringthegamescape,boththevirtualworldandexploitablefeatures ofitsconstruction;socializers,forwhomthegameisabackdroptothe pursuit of interaction with other players; and killers, whose pleasure comesfromimposingthemselvesonorattackingotherplayers.22 ‘Winning’inthesenseofcompletingagamedoesnotalwaysexhaust itspotentialforpleasure,includingplaythatentailsaclearsenseofgain. Themorelinearaction-adventuregameTheLordoftheRings:TheTwo Towers(2002),forexample,canbecompletedquitequickly.Thegame isdesignedtoencourageplayerstoreturntoplayagain,however,with anotherofthethreeavailablecharacters,eachofwhichhasadifferent fightingstyle.Likemanygames,TheTwoTowersincludesanemphasison buildingthefightingskillsoftheplayer-characters,andtheskill-ceiling ofeachcannotbereachedinoneplayingalone.Newweaponsbecome availablewhenskillsarebuiltoverseveralcompletionsofthegame.Other titlesencouragetheplayertoreturntocompletedgamesorlevels,either toimproveonthenumberofenemieskilledortogainaccesstohidden secrets.TheplayerofPrimal(2002),forexample,canaccesspreviously playedlevelsinsearchofhiddentarotcards.Concealedbonusfeatures suchasthese,notnecessarytocompletionofthegamebutasourceof additionalpleasure,areknownas‘Eastereggs’,specialtreatsforthemore dedicated player, especially in cases where their existence or possible locationisnotmentionedinthegamemanual.Playerscanalsochooseto broadenthechallengeofagamethattheyhavefoundpleasurable,suchas settingouttowinallthepossiblecardlayoutpermutationsinSolitaire. Somegameswithclear-cutwin/losestructuresgivetheplayerasay inhowtheyareimplemented.InCivilizationIII(2001),forexample,the
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS playercansettheparametersaccordingtowhichvictoryagainstnon-player civilizationsismeasured.Victorycanbegainedbyall,oracombination of,thefollowing:bydomination(conqueringandcontrollingtwo-thirds oftheworld’sterritory),throughdiplomacy(bybeingelectedSecretaryGeneral of the United Nations), through overwhelming cultural dominance,bybeingthefirsttolaunchaspaceshiporthroughmilitary victory(eliminatingallrivalnations).Itisalsopossibleinmanygamesto switchbetweenpaideaandludus,betweenmoreimmediateenjoymentof gameplayactivitiesandplaythatisorientedtowardsthewinningofthe gameinitslargerpartsorasawhole.Manysimulation-basedgamesare designedasenvironmentsforbothpaideaandludus,Frascasuggests: Forexample,manyflightsimulatorsincludedifferentmissions(particular goal-orientedactivitieswheretheplayerhastoaccomplishacertain task,suchasbombingacityorlandingunderbadweatherconditions). Theseludusarehardcodedwithintheprogram:theprogramincludesa ludusruleanditwilltelltheplayerifshesucceededornotattheendof asession.However,thissamemission-basedsimulatorcouldalsobeused forpaidea:theplayercouldsimplynotfollowtheruleandwouldjust playaroundwiththeairplane.23
Thesamecanbesaidofgamesinothergenres.EachmissionintherealtimestrategygameCommandandConquer:Generals(2003),forexample, isframedbyaclearwin/loseequation.Explicitinstructionisgivenon theconditionsformilitaryvictory:destroyingaparticularenemybase, gathering a certain quantity of supplies, using air support to protect a setquotaoffriendlyforcesfromattack,andsoon.Itisquitepossibleto ignoreordepartfromtheprimarygoalsofthemission,however.The playermightdecidesimplytoplayaroundinsidethegame,onewayor another.Thismighthappenwhenamissionisgoingparticularlywell. Spacecanbecreatedforlessdirectedplaywhentheplayerisconfident thatthemissionobjectiveissafelywithinreachofachievement.Inone of the missions played as the United States, for example, the player is requiredtousetheUSforcestorescuethreepilotsshotdownbythe enemy.Thelastofthepilots,oncerescued,hastobereturnedsafelyto theUSbaseforthemissiontobeachieved.Atthispointthemissionis closetocompletion,providedthattheplayerhassufficientresourcesto
13
14
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS beabletokeepthepilotfromdanger.Butitcanbeprolonged.Theplayer canchoosetofinishofftheremainingenemyunits,creatingadditional troops and equipment if necessary or if funds permit. None of this is requiredforvictory,butmightbedoneforitsownintrinsicsatisfaction. Somethingsimilarmighthappeninamoredifficultmission,orwhen playing on a harder setting, when achievement of the victory object appearsimpossible.Aplayerseekingoptimalmovementthroughgame missionsmightchoosetoabandonandrestart,whileothersmightenjoy seeing how long they can hang on, or might take the opportunity to experiment with previously untried strategy or tactics. Both of these scenarios–assuranceofimminentvictoryorhopelessness–cancreatea situationinwhichpaideaisencouragedtotakeover:playforitsownsake, withinthesamelocalizedrulesastherestofthegameplaybutextracted fromthebroadercontextofludus.Ineachcase,atrade-offisinvolved. Paideawhenvictoryhasalreadybeenachievedineverythingbutname orwhenitisimpossibleissomethingofanindulgence,withnothingat stake.Butwhatitlosesinonedimension(beingpartofabroadermore meaningfulchallenge)itgainsinanother(thepleasureofplay-for-itsown-sake).Freerormoreexperimentalstylesofplaymightalsobeused inthemiddleofamission,dependingontheorientationoftheplayer. Playersmightchoosetoexploreagame-world,forexample,ratherthan to follow mission-critical objectives, an aspect of gameplay considered indetailinChapter2.Ortheplayerofafirst-personshooteroractionadventuremightchoosetogoonavirtualshootingspree,killingmore adversariesthannecessarytothepursuitofamissiongoalorshootingup partsoftheon-screenenvironment,enjoyingtheexperienceforitsown sakeratherthanaspartofagoal-directedactivity. Some games are more responsive to this kind of free-form action than others, Half-Life (1998) being an example of a shooter in which widespread collateral damage can be caused for its own pleasure, as a mark of the player-character’s agency in the on-screen environment (drinksmachinescanbeshotup,forexample,althoughnodrinkscan beobtained;drinksmachinescanalsobeshotupinMaxPayne(2001), inwhichcasedrinksareobtained,althoughthisremainsintherealmas paideaastheyareofnopracticaluseinthegame–theydonotfunctionas power-ups,whichwouldhavebeenpossible).Inthemulti-playercontext of EverQuest it is quite common for groups of players to punctuate
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS ‘serious’goal-directedplay,whichisoftenquitehighlyorganized,with undirected playful activities such as having races, stringing together animatedemotes,flirting,duellingbutstoppingbeforedeathensues,or tauntingeachotherwithmildandamusinginsults. Playersinanytypeofgamemightfindwaystoexperimentortopush the boundaries of what can be achieved: steering deliberately off the tracktoseewhathappensifacarcrashesintoariverinatitlesuchas ColinMcRaeRally3(2003),forexample(inthiscase,thescreenwhitesoutandtheplayerisreturnedtothetrackifthewaterlevelreachesthe topofthewindscreen,butthecarcanbedriventhroughthewater,just for the hell of it, if it is kept below that point). Some games provide morescopeforthiskindoffree-formplaythanothers,oneofthemost celebratedexamplesbeingGrandTheftAutoIII(2001),inwhichtheplayer canchoosetoperformarangeofrandomactsofexplorationorviolence insteadofseekingtoprogressthroughthecompletionofmissions.Inthe sequel,ViceCity(2002),forexample,itispossibletotakeavehicleonto alongbeachinwhichalmostentirelyfree-formdrivingcanbeindulged, especiallypleasurableatspeedinabeachbuggyoronamotorcycle(a voluntarilyaddedludus-goalcanbetoseehowmanysunbathersorother beach-userscanbehit!).Theplayerseekingalittlemoreframeworkfor
1.Freedomto‘playaround’:paidea,inastylizedthird-personview,inGrand TheftAuto:ViceCity(2002)
15
16
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS suchactivitycanmakeuseofasandyracetrackprovidedatoneendof thebeach. Many games offer quickly accessible modes designed to meet a demandforplaythatfallsrelativelyclosertothepaideathantheludus end of the scale. First-person shooters often include‘quick’ battle or skirmishmodesaswellasthosewhichintegrateindividualbattlesinto largercampaigns.Drivinggamesusuallyhavea‘singlerace’option,asdo manyothersports-basedgames,inadditionto‘career’modes,inwhich eachracecountsintheplayer’sprogressioninaleagueorrankingorder. In State of Emergency (2002), in which player-characters are involved in anarchic rebellion against a corporate state, the player can choose ‘Revolution’mode,pursuingsequencesofmissionslinkedtogetherby storylines,orthequicker-fix‘Chaos’mode,whichoffersrapidburstsof frenziedagainst-the-clockactionincludingfightingandactsofvandalism suchasthrowinglitterbinsthroughshopwindows.Manybeat-’em-up gamesarebuiltaroundstand-aloneindividualfights,althoughthesecan insomecasesbecombinedinto‘story’modesinwhichastrongerdegree ofludusisentailed.Side-gamesalsofeatureinsometitles.Anumberare foundinDeadorAlive:XtremeBeachVolleyball(2003),includingversions of casino games and a game that involves platform-hopping across a swimmingpool.Theseoptionsarenotentirelyfreefromthedemandsof ludus.One-offracesorgamesoftennisclearlyhavetheirownwin/lose dynamicsonasmallerscale,asdoes‘Chaos’modeinStateofEmergency, inwhichtheaimistobeatprevioushighestscores.Platformhopping orplayingpokerinXtremeBeachVolleyballarewaysofearningmoney that can be used in pursuit of the longer-term goals of a game based ontheestablishmentofrelationshipswithnon-playercharacters.These activitiesarestructured,confinedandrule-boundinthemselves,butcan beplayedinamorecasual,drop-inmannerthanisinvolvedinthelarger campaign-oriented components of the games, in which performance mightbemorestronglymotivatedbutalsorestrictedbyconsiderationof itslonger-termimplicationswithinthegame. Rules and freedom usually exist in a dialectical relationship, in videogamesasinmanyothercontexts.Rulesrestrictfreedom,necessarily, but they also create it: that which is experienced as freedom in any meaningful sense in structured forms such as games is freedom within someparticularstructureofconstraint.Simplerule-setscan,insomecases,
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS generatecomplexpossibilitiesofplay,oneofthedefiningcharacteristics ofwhatJesperJuulterms‘gamesofemergence’,aconcepttowhichwe returnbelow.24Videogameplaycanalsobeconsideredintermsofthe potentialforplaywithandbeyondtherules.Thisrangesfrompractices defined unambiguously as‘cheating’ to others that might be seen as a morecreativebendingorexploitationoftherules.Examplesofcheating includetheinputofcodesthatrendertheplayer’scharacterimpervious toharm(playingin‘god’mode),thatprovideaccesstoextraweapons orammunition,ortheuseof‘noclip’codesthatrenderthearchitecture of the game-world in a format in which player-characters can move throughwhatwouldotherwisebeexperiencedassolidstructures.More ambiguously situated are sources of help officially sanctioned by the gamesindustry,includingpublishedwalk-throughs,strategyguidesand telephonehelp-lines.Walk-throughsandcheatscompiledbyenthusiasts arealsopublishedthroughunofficialchannels,principallyontheinternet. Exactly what constitutes a cheat is often a matter of interpretation.A playerwhoobtainsobjectsormoneywellbeyondtheircharacter’smeans inaMMORPG,intheformofagiftorhelpfromamoreexperienced player,mightbeconsideredtobegainingunearnedandunfairadvantage; alternatively,thismightbeseenasperfectlyinkeepingwiththesocial dimensionofthegame.Somemightconsidertakingadvantageofagame flaw(suchastrappingmonstersinthecorneroframpsinEverQuest)to beanunacceptable‘exploit’;toothersitmightbedefensibleintermsof thelogicofthegame-world(inthiscase,usinglandscapefeatures,justas areal-worldhuntermight,tominimizedanger). Creatively bending the rules often involves taking advantage of unforeseenpotentialwithintheparametersofagame.Oneofthebestknownexamplesisthephenomenonof‘rocketjumping’inQuake(1996), inwhicharocketlauncherfireddownwardsimmediatelyafterpressing the‘jump’ command enables the player-character to reach otherwise unattainable heights.The discovery of such tricks can be a significant sourceofpleasureforplayerswhoreachanadvancedlevelofcompetence. Theycanaddanextradimensiontogameplaywithintherules,although theycanalso‘break’thegame,havingthesameimpactascheatcodes,if theyunderminerulesorconstraintsofafundamentalnature.Anexample ofthelatteristheunintendedusefoundformagneticproximitymines inthethird-personstealthgameDeusEx(2000).Someplayerslearned
17
18
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS to use them as stepping stones that could be placed up walls to gain accesstoareasthatshouldremainoff-limits,anunforeseenresultofthe determinationofthedesignerstocreateagameinwhichplayerswere givenagreaterdegreeoffreedomthanusual.Theuseofcheats,ordevices thatremainwithintheletterifnotthespiritoftherules,isacontentious businessamonggameplayers.Itcanbeseen,atbest,asasecondorderof play,andfairgame,especiallywhenitinvolvestheskillandinitiativeof theplayerwhodiscoversanewmanoeuvre.Somevarietiesofcheating are most frowned upon in multi-player games, where the gain of one player–ahack,forexample,thatenablesaplayertogaininstantaccessto ahighlevelweapon–islikelytobeattheexpenseofothers.Playerswho usecheatcodes,walk-throughsorstrategyguidesareoftenlookeddown uponbythosewhoresistsuchtemptations.Forothers,though,theseare importantenablingdevicesincircumstancesinwhichparticularpuzzles ortasksprovetoodifficultortime-consuming. Playinginnovativelywiththegamerulesalsoextendstoincludegame modifications,or‘mods’,createdbyplayers,aprocessoftenencouraged, asinthecaseofthefirst-personshooterDoom(1993),thecodeforwhich was made freely available by the developer.The inclusion of modding toolshassincebecomecommonplace,althoughtensionsometimesexists betweenfreedomtoplay‘with’thegameandlimitsthegameindustry seekstoimposeontheprocess.AsAndrewMactavishsuggests,officially sanctionedmoddingtoolsactasgatekeepers,restrictingaccesstodeeper levels of the game code. Players are free to innovate, but this level of meta-playalsooccurswithinpre-establishedparametersandaccording toEndUserLicensingAgreementsthatdefinelegitimateandillegitimate usesofmoddingtools.25 Thedesirabilityofpotentialforplayingwiththegamerulesdepends largelyonthekindofexperienceintendedbythedesignerorsoughtby theplayer.Exploitationofunforeseenpotentialintherulescanreduce theimmersivequalitiesofagame,asSimDietrichsuggests.26Itfocuses attentiononthesurfacelevelofthegameasagame,withitsownlimited parametersandfunctionalitytoexploit,ratherthanencouragingadegree ofsuspensionofdisbeliefthatleansclosertoanimaginaryinhabitation oftheroleoftheplayer-character.Dietrich’sexampleisthefeaturein Half-Life:Counter-Strike(2000)thatenablesaplayerdeliberatelytobuya weakweaponinoneroundtosavemoneytobuyastrongeroneinthe
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS next,thecashbeingretainedeveniftheplayerdies.Theproceduremakes nosensewithinthelogicofthefictionalworldoftheplayer-character asterroristorcounter-terrorist.Itslogiccomes,instead,fromthatofthe game-specifictacticalandstrategicdemandsofthetitle. MODALITY: IT’S ONLY A GAME
One of the most obvious qualities of gameplay, as the above example suggests,isthatitis,precisely,play–andplayisaveryparticularrealm ofexperience.FourofCaillois’sixpointsofdefinitionrelatetothis:that itisfreelyenteredintoandoccupiesaseparatetimeandspace;thatitis unproductive;and,essentially,thatitoccupiesazoneknowntobeoneof make-believeandunreality.Playingeneralisbestunderstoodasamode ratherthanadistinctcategoryofbehaviour,suggestingaparticularattitude towardsanactivityandhowitissituatedinrelationtowhatistakento betherealworld.Evenintheanimalworld,GregoryBatesonsuggests, the existence of play requires some degree of meta-communication – communicationaboutcommunicativeactivity–asignalthatsays‘thisis play’ratherthansomethingtobetakenmoreseriously.27Toplayagame is to move into a special experiential arena, marked off (if not always entirely) from other activities; to enter a demarcated‘play-ground’, as Huizinga terms it, which may or may not take physical form.28 One ofHuizinga’sexamplesoftheplay-groundisthe‘magiccircle’,aterm adoptedmorewidelybySalenandZimmermantosuggestthedomainin whichgameplayofanykindoccurs.29Withinthemagiccircleofgamesa particularattitudetowardsexperienceexists,whatSuitstermsthe‘lusory attitude’,inwhicharbitraryrulesareacceptedsimplybecausetheymake possibletheformsofplaythatresult.30 Markersofmodalitysuchasthesearefoundinallformsofcultural communication,fromeverydayspeechtocommerciallyproducedmedia products.31 Distinctive framing routines and formal devices establish, forexample,theclaimstothestatusofrealitymadebytelevisionnews anddocumentaryorthefantasticqualitiesofspeculativesciencefiction. Theprocessofbecomingmedia-literateisoneinwhichweinternalize theseroutines,attributingadifferentstatusandsignificancetodifferent kindsoftexts,andtosocialactivitiessuchasplayitself.Themodalityof videogames is established at a number of levels, starting with the very application of the label ‘game’, with its existing cultural resonances;
19
20
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS the fact that they are found in‘games’ stores or the‘games’ section of non-specialistshopsandboughtassourcesofplay.Intheirdesignand marketing,videogamesareclearlylocatedascommercialentertainment products.Theirstatus,likethatofmostgamesproducedandplayedinthe industrializedworld,isverydifferentfromthatofmoretraditionalgames integratedintothecentralculturalritualofsocieties,examplessuchas RomangladiatorialgamesandtheballgameplayedbytheancientMaya thatwere,literally,amatteroflifeanddeathforthoseinvolved.Froman anthropological perspective, as Brian Sutton-Smith suggest, games can beunderstoodinsomecontextsasadaptivemechanismsthatcanserve toexpressandcontainculturaltensions.32Thedemarcationofgamesas partofaseparatesphereof‘leisure’isusuallyassociatedwiththesocial ordersresultingfromtheadventofindustrialization,inwhichplayand gamestendtobeseparatedoutforthemostpartfromtherealmsofritual and/orovertsocialfunction. Unlikeculturalcommentatorswhoworryaboutthesupposed‘effects’ of games, players do not usually confuse the playing of videogames with activity outside the game, or even with the use of more serious simulators. Points of overlap can occur, even in games located clearly in the realm of fantasy.Two-way exchanges exist between games and simulationsusedinmilitarytraining,forexample,thebestknownbeing the licensing of a Doom variant by the US Marine Corps. Fears have been expressed that exchanges such as these have implications for the culturalsignificanceofsuchpopulartitles.IfamodificationofDoomis usedtotrainthemilitary,doesthatimplythatthecommercialversion also‘trains’,ineffect,certainkindsofbehaviouralresponsesthatmight notbeconsideredpositiveincivilsociety(anissuetowhichwereturn inChapter4)?Doomwasoneofanumberofpopularculturalproducts associatedwithblamefortheColumbineschoolmassacreinLittleton, Coloradoin1999.Whatismissedoutinsuchequationsispreciselythe effectofmodality,thecontext-definingframewithinwhichactivitysuch asgameplayisperformed. Beyonditsgeneralsituationasagame,morespecificformalmodality markers underline Doom’s playful status. Cover and interface artwork immediately establishes a fantasy framework twice distanced from the material of external reality, a blend of neo-gothic and science fiction imagery.Thebackstoryoutlinedinthemanualisclearlythestuffofpulp
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS sciencefiction,theplayer-characterlocatedasamarinesentintolone combat with an array of increasingly fanciful monsters drawn from a rangeoffantasticsources.Graphicalrepresentationofthein-game-world iscrudeandblocky,farmoresothanthatoffictionsproducedinother screen-based audio-visual media such as film and television. Actions required by the player-character to survive are arbitrary and limited. Somemapreasonablywellontowhatmightberequiredinareal-world equivalent–movingandlookingaroundtheenvironment,aimingand shooting–butthemovestobeperformed,andthemannerinwhich thisisachievedthroughtheinterface,arelimitedandcoarse-grained.All ofthesefactorscombinetocommunicateveryclearlythestatusofthe experienceasoneofplay,bracketedofffromtheconcernsofreallife. Thebalanceofmodalitymarkersspecifictoindividualgamesvaries quiteconsiderablyfromonetoanother.Similarbasicdynamicsofplay can be garbed very differently at the local level, one of the ways the gamesindustryoffersproductdifferentiationwithinthesameunderlying formats.IfDoomgivesthefirst-personshooteradistinctlyfantasticneogothicSFimpression,otherentriesinthegenrehavemadeclaimstoa muchmore‘realistic’levelofrepresentation.Thisisfoundintermsofboth graphicalrealismandindetailsofsetting,equipmentandfunctionality, issues to which we return in detail in Chapter 3. Games such as the SecondWorldWarshooterMedalofHonor:AlliedAssault(2002),located withinveryrecognizablyreal-world-historicalframes,makeasignificant investmentinthe‘authenticity’ofdetailssuchasweaponsanduniforms. The weaponry available in Doom starts with recognizable real-world referentssuchaspistolandshotgunbeforeofferingthedestructivepower of fantasy items such as the plasma rifle and the BFG9000.A scale of increasinglypowerfulweaponsisalsofoundinMedalofHonor.Inboth cases,theavailabilityofparticularweaponsisakeyfactoringameplay, morepotentorspecializedweaponsbeingnecessarytotheperformance ofparticulartasks.InMedalofHonor,however,alltheweaponsarebased on real-world equivalents, the relative capacities of which are set out inwhatispresentedasrealhistoricaldetailinthemanualandhavean impactontheirin-gamefunctionality.Cover,interfaceandotherartwork arealsodesignedtosignifyagroundinginhistoricalrealityverydifferent from the overt fantasy neo-gothic SF world of Doom. A mid-point betweenDoomandMedalofHonor,althoughclosertothepositionofthe
21
22
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS former,ismarkedbytitlessuchastheDoompredecessorWolfenstein3D (1992)anditssequelReturntoCastleWolfenstein(2001),inwhichrealworldhistoricalreferents(Nazis,aSecondWorldWarsetting)aremixed withthoseofmoreDoom-likefantasy(experimentsinthecreationofa superhumanzombiearmy,Naziwitchesandnecromanticarchaeology). Games whose localized modality markers lean towards the realism/ authenticityendofthescaleare,onbalance,morelikelytobecomesubjects ofcontroversyindebatesaboutreal-worldissues.Bymakingclaimsto authenticrepresentationofSecondWorldWarcontexts,insomerespects, MedalofHonoropensitselftopotentialcriticismabouttheadequacyof thesimulationitoffersofaspectsofanhistoricalexperience.Itloses,to someextent,theinsulationprovidedbythemodality-invokingstatement thatitisjustaworkoffantasy.Itremainsagame,however,something veryfarremovedfromanydirectlyconsequentialreal-worldactivityof thekinditrepresentsandaskstheplayertoperform.Therelativedistance betweenmoreorlessrealisticallycodedgamesisvastlyshorterthanthe large ontological gap that exists between the most authentic-seeming of games and any part of the historical/real world to which they are related.This is not to say that play is not a significant activity; merely thatitissignificantasaveryparticularkindofactivitythatoccupiesits own distinct realm. Play is usefully understood by Sutton-Smith, as‘a paradoxicalformofcommunicationandexpression’;toplayatanactivity isbothtoperformandnotreallytoperformit,afactthathelpstoexplain the conflicts and controversies that often occur at its boundaries with the‘real’world.33Therealmoccupiedbygameplayisseparatefromthat oftherestoftheworld,althoughnotentirelyso.Initsverydistinctness –thewayitisdefinedasapartfromotherrealms–gameplayremains partofthewidersocialuniverseinwhichitislocated.Inmulti-player games,forexample,theaddeddimensionofasocialrealitywithinthe game-world can blur the modal framework. More generally, meanings withreal-worldresonanceorpotentialimplicationscantranslateacross theboundary,asarguedinthesecondhalfofthischapterandinChapter 4.Thefactthattheyhavetomoveacrossaboundarytocomeintoplay underlinesthefactthataninitialstateofseparationexists. ACTIVITIES, TASKS, GOALS
Eachtypeofgame,andeachgamewithinagenre,createsaparticularset
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS ofgameplayactivities,tasksandgoals.Thesetendtocombinetoconstitute whatCraigLindleytermsagameplaygestalt,‘aconfigurationorpattern ofelementssounifiedasawholethatitcannotbedescribedmerelyas asumofitsparts.’34Fromthepointofviewoftheplayer,agameplay gestaltestablishesaparticulargroupof‘perceptual,cognitive,andmotor operations’ required for successful gameplay.35 More concretely, these present themselves as a combination of gameplay hooks; a hook being described by Geoff Howland as any activity performed by the player ‘for the purpose of furthering their playing’.36 Gameplay hooks are distinguished by Howland from marketing hooks,‘designed to attract theplayertobuythegame,orfromthestyleorgimmickhooksthatmay entice initial play’.37They constitute what might be termed the core gameplayexperience,thebasicpatternofoperationsandconsiderations withwhichtheplayerisconcernedonceanyinitialnoveltyorglosshas wornoff.DifferentformsofgameplayhookidentifiedbyHowlandare asfollows:actionhooks,requiringtheplayertomovecontrols,characters orpiecesaroundthegame-world,orinteractingwiththegameexplicitly in other ways such as talking to a non-player character; resource hooks, involvingissuessuchasammunitionandhealthinashootingorcombat based game, or finance, raw materials and available technologies in a strategy game; tactical and strategic hooks, such as decisions to be made abouttheuseofparticularmovesorresourcesinpursuitofgoals;and timehooks,involvinganythingfocusedonfutureeventsinthegamesuch aswaitingforanitemtobespawnedorcompletingamission,levelor raceundertimeconstraint. In every game, as Howland suggests,‘players spend the majority of theirtimeonasmallsetofactions’,thekeyhooksthatoftendefineits genre.38ThesecomprisewhatKatieSalenandEricZimmermanterm the‘coremechanic’,‘theessentialplayactivityplayersperformagainand againinagame’.39Alongsidethesearefoundsupportinghooksusedto differentiateonegameinagenrefromanother.Inafirst-personshooter, for example, key hooks found across the genre include action hooks suchasthenavigationoftheplayer-characterthroughspace,shootingat enemiesandtakingcover.Thesearecombinedwithresourcehooks,principallythemonitoringofammunition,healthandthesupplyofweapons and other necessary equipment, and with tactical and strategic hooks –howtocombineshootingwithtakingcoverorwhichweaponstouse
23
24
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS tomaximumeffectinparticularcircumstances.Examplesofsupporting hooksfoundinparticularexamplesincludetheintroductionofastealth modeinReturntoCastleWolfensteinandthehigherthanusualpremium putontheneedtoremainincovertoavoidbeinghitbyoftenunseen enemiesinVietcong(2003),anattempttomapintothegameoneofthe distinctivefeaturesoftheAmericanmilitaryexperienceinVietnam. Key hooks in the third-person action adventure genre are similar in some regards, although with a stronger emphasis on action hooks such as exploration, the performance of tricky climbing or jumping manoeuvres and finding objects, and tactical/strategic hooks such as thesolvingofpuzzles.Supportinghookswouldincludethespecialized forms of movement permitted in some individual titles: the ‘bullettime’modeinMaxPaynethatslowsdowntheaction,givingtheplayercharacterextracapacitytoavoidbeingshot;thevarietyofspecialmoves, includingwalkingalongwallsandshootingatenemieswhileperforming cartwheels, that can be performed in‘focus’ mode in Enter the Matrix (2003). In role-playing games (RPGs), key hooks are usually provided byfightingand/orcastingspells,explorationandthepursuitofquests in order to gain experience points and increase the capabilities of the player-character, with a strong social dimension involving interaction with other players in massively multi-player online variants. Resource hookstendtoloomlargeinstrategygames,muchoftheactivityinwhich revolvesaroundprocessessuchasconstructingbuildingsandequipment, developingsourcesofrawmaterialsand/orfinanceanddeployingsuch resourcesinwhateverkindofprocedureisforegroundedbyaparticular title.Examplesofsecondaryhooksincludetheuseofa‘creature’todo thebiddingoftheplayerinBlackandWhite(2001),andthechoiceof ‘good’ or‘evil’ moral alignments offered to the player. Both Black and Whiteandthereal-timewarstrategygameGroundControl(2000)also offer a distinctive free-moving camera effect that can be used to shift from the genre’s usual top-down overview to more close-up detail of theaction. COMPELLING AND IMMERSIVE
Each of these activities offers its own particular potential to create pleasurefortheplayer,anumberofaspectsofwhichareinvestigatedin detailindifferentpartsofthisbook.Afeatureofmanygames,however,
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS
2.Multipledemandsontheattentionoftheplayerofafirst-personshooter inDeltaForce:BlackHawkDown(2003).Notegaugestobemonitoredfor healthandammunitiononlowerscreen-leftandinsetmapshowingenemies anddirectionofobjectiveonlower-right.
across generic boundaries, is that they require the performance of a simultaneouscombinationofactivities,thebalanceofwhichvariesfrom one example to another. It is the imposition of numerous different demandsthathelpstoaccountforboththechallengeofferedbymany games and their compelling and immersive qualities. A typical game situation requires the player to attend to a multitude of tasks while moving forward, incrementally, through a particular mission, level or stage of development. In a first-person shooter, this means gradually gaining ground through dangerous terrain, attention divided between attack,defenceandthemonitoringofvitalstatistics.Inastrategygame, itinvolvesmonitoringprogress(orsetbacks)onmultiplefronts,keeping alargenumberofballsintheair.IngamessuchasCivilization(1991), Age of Empires (1997) and Command and Conquer (1996), this involves management of resource production and its deployment, the latter oftenincludingongoingactionatdifferentendsofthegamemap.The
25
26
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS demandisparticularlyhighinreal-timestrategygames(suchasAgeof EmpiresandCommandandConquer)inwhichtheplayerhastorespond to the simultaneous moves of opposing forces, without the space for reflection afforded in the turn-based variant (such as Civilization) in whichplayersareallowedtimetocompletetheirmovesbeforefacing anyresponse.InMMORPGsthesenseofhavingtoattendtodifferent actionssimultaneouslyisatitsstrongestingroupactionssuchasattacks against difficult adversaries, during which players have to concentrate ontheirownhealthandthatofothergroupmembers,someofwhich mightneedprotectionorthehelpofhealingspellswhileothersmovein totakethebruntoftheattack–atthesametimeaskeepingalook-out forotherpotentialthreats. The incremental nature of gameplay tasks helps to explain its compellingnature(anaspectofplayemphasizedbyHuizinga),theurgeit createstokeepplaying.Ingamessuchasfirst-personshootersandthirdperson action-adventures, players are confronted with tasks that often havetoberepeatedbeforesuccessisachieved,thedegreeofrepetition dependingonfactorssuchasthesavingregimeusedbyaparticulartitle, theplayer’sabilityandthedifficultysettingonwhichthegameisbeing played.Enforcedrepetitioncanbefrustratingandoff-puttingandmight, insomecases,leadtotheabandonmentofthegame.But,shortofthat point,itcanalsocreateastrongimpulsetokeeptrying,especiallywhen it is a case of finishing off a particular component before the end of thecurrentplayingsession.Thecompulsionto‘justhaveonemoretry’ –andthen‘justonemore’andanother,andanother–canbeastrong one, even when it requires back-tracking and repeating a sequence of trickymanoeuvres.Theurgetokeepplayingcanalsobefeltatthepoint whereamuch-repeatedsectionhasjustbeencompleted.Thetemptation isofferedofafresh,newsituation–usuallytheringingofafewchanges withinthesamebasicscenario–theimmediateappealofwhichcanbe strong,asarewardforpersistence.Thesamecyclecaneasilyrepeatitself: extendedperiodsofbeingstuckorforcedintorepetitionfollowedby periodicbreakthroughandtheopportunitytomoveforwarduntilthe nextpointofdifficulty,astructureofexperiencedescribedbyAarseth asoneofaporiafollowedbyepiphany.40Gamesthathavefeworwidely scattered‘save’pointscanbeparticularlydifficulttostopplaying.Astrong incentiveiscreatedtocontinuetothenext‘save’optionbecauseofthe
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS lossofprogressthatresultsifplayishaltedbetweenonesaveandanother. AparticularlynotoriousexampleisfoundinsomeoftheTombRaider games,inwhichplayerscannotquick-saveatwilland‘save’crystalsare oftenlocatedattheendofaseriesoftrickymanoeuvres.In Buffythe Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds (2003) a whole level has to be completed before the game can be saved, creating potential for high levels of frustrationand/orgreatlyextendedperiodsofplay. Inreal-timeorturn-basedstrategygames,asimilarurgetokeepplaying canbecreatedbythedesiretoseewhathappensnext,howoneofmany localizedscenariosmightplayout.Thefactthatoperationsareusually ongoingonmultiplefronts,andthattheyincludeboththoseinitiatedby theplayerandmovesbynon-playerrivals,cancreateaself-perpetuating momentumthedefaulttendencyofwhichistokeepgoinguntilmarked breakssuchasthosecreatedbyvictoryordefeat.InagameofCommand andConquer:Generals,forexample,inwhichtheplayerchoosestheside of the Global LiberationArmy (GLA), the player might send out an attackingforceagainstUnitedStatespositions.Battleensues,itsoutcome afunctionofbothautomatedcalculationsbythegameengineandmicromanagementbytheplayer(pullingbackdamagedunitstopreventtheir destruction,sendinginreinforcements,andsoon).Duringthethickof thisaction,theGLAbasemightfaceaerialattackfromtheUS,including the use of devastating fuel-air bombs that create an urgent need for repairstoessentialresource-buildinginfrastructureandairdefencessuch asstingermissilesites.Ontopofthis,USgroundforcesmightlaunchan assaultandtheplayermightbeintheprocessofconstructingaforceof scudmissilelauncherswithwhichtostrengthentheattackontheenemy base. Events such as these overlap, but occupy their own time-frames. Theydevelopatdifferentrates,givingtheplayerthechancetoturnfrom one to another, and always, in mid-game, inviting the player to keep going,toseewhatwillhappennext.Inaturn-basedstrategygamesuch as Civilization, the incremental nature of play is institutionalized.The numberofturnsrequiredtoachieveanynewmoveisopenlyadvertised acrosstheterritorialmap,somedevelopmentusuallytemptinglycloseto fruition,whiletheoptiontokeepplayingforjustonemoreturn–and another–isasexplicitasthepressingofabutton. Inrole-playinggames,theurgetokeepplayingisoftenstimulatedby thedesiretoachievethenextlevel,tokeepfightingbeastsorembarking
27
28
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS on quests to gain those few more experience points required to gain thesatisfying‘ding’thatgreetslevelling-upinEverQuestoritsequivalent in other titles; and then, once that is achieved, to set out on the path towardsthenextlevelandthenewcompetenciesandabilitiestoexplore thegame-worldthatitbrings.Inmulti-playergames,anaddedpullcan becreatedbyinvolvementingroupplayactivitiesthatcannoteasilybe delayedorputonhold:theplayerusuallyhastokeepgoing,maybeforan agreedperiodoftime,orbeforcedtodisbandinapotentiallyhostilearea, withaconsequentlossofbenefitsandtheriskofgainingareputationfor unreliability.RegularvisitstoaMMORPGworldenableplayerstokeep upcontactswithfriendsmadeinthegame,butalsocreatepressureto keepplayingorriskbeingleftbehindasothersadvanceincapability. The potential to create an immersive effect, in which the player is absorbedintothegame,isanimportantaspectofgameplay.Immersion inthesenseofestablishinganillusionofquasi-physicalsensorypresence in the on-screen world of the game is considered in greater detail in Chapter2.Butimmersioncanalsobecreatedatthelevelofgameplay activities, through the establishment of combinations of ongoing perceptual, cognitive and motor demands sufficient to engage a high proportionoftheplayer’sattention.Gamesfocusedonaction,hand-eye coordinationandpersonalidentificationbetweenplayerandon-screen character seek to create immersion through sensory input, as François Laraméeputsit:through‘realisticvisuals,positionalaudio,force-feedback, dramatic acting, and so forth.’41 Strategy games offer what Laramée terms‘intellectualimmersion’,inwhichtheplayerisrequiredtomake aconstantstreamofabstractdecisions:‘Inbothcases,thedesigner’sjob istocreateaclosedenvironment,asetofperceptionsthataresufficientto representanexperienceandtoabsorbtheconsciousmind.’42 Termssuchasthese,usedtodescribetheimmersivequalityofawide range of games, have much in common with the notion of‘optimal experience’ outlined in numerous studies by the psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.Optimalexperience,identifiedbyCsikszentmihalyiin awiderangeofworkandleisureactivities,resultsinthecreationofa stateofflow,‘thestateinwhichpeoplearesoinvolvedinanactivitythat nothingelseseemstomatter.’43Theconnectionbetweengamesandthe conceptofflowisfarfromaccidental,Csikszentmihalyihavingturned toplaytheoristsincludingHuizinga,CailloisandPiagetatanearlystage
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS inhiswork.44Theparticularrelevanceofplaytotheunderstandingof flowliesinitsqualityofintrinsicmotivation:thefactthatitisengaged foritsownsake,asasourcepurelyofpleasure,regardlessofanyextrinsic significanceitmighthave(asabeneficiallearningoradaptiveprocess, forexample).Tounderstandthegameplayofvideogames,itisnecessary tobeginwithafocusontheintrinsicdimension,thespecificpleasures ofgameplayasgameplay,ratherthanasasublimatedformofsomeother aspect of experience.As Brian Sutton-Smith suggests, even if play in general is considered to serve adaptive purposes in humans (teaching certain activities or capacities such as flexibility), its adaptive function mightitselfbeintrinsic.Itsadaptiveness‘mightcentreonwhatplaydoes forasenseofwell-being,asecstaticplay,ratherthanwhatplaydoesas workorasadaptation.’45 Csikszentmihalyi’s concept of flow is offered as a phenomenology of enjoyment, an outline of eight major components identified in analysisofthewaysindividualsdescribetheirmostpositivelyheightened experiences.46The fit between these components and the experiences offered by videogames is remarkably close. The eight components are: challenging activity that requires skill; clear goals and feedback; a merging of action and awareness; concentration on the task at hand; lossofself-consciousness;theparadoxofcontrol;thetransformationof time;andwhatCsikszentmihalyiterms‘autotelicexperience’,theendof whichliesinitself.Thefirstofthesecomponentscouldbeadescription ofmostvideogames,leaningtowardstheludusendofthepaidea/ludus scale: challenging activities that require skill, usually rule-bound and goal-oriented.To create the potential for a flow experience a balance is required between the challenge posed by the activity – in this case, thegame–andtheskillspossessedbytheplayer.Agame,orpartofa game, that is too challenging for the player is likely to cause anxiety; one that is too easy is likely to create boredom. In between lies what Csikszentmihalyi terms the‘flow channel’, in which the skills of the playerarejustsufficienttomeetthechallengesofthegame.47 The flow channel is not static, either in the illustration used by Csikszentmihalyi(tennis)orinvideogames.Aplayerstartingwithalow levelofskillwillrequiremodestchallengesinitially,butthesewillneed tobeincreased,incrementally,tomatchtheincreasingskillgainedwith practicebytheplayer.Thisispreciselywhatisofferedinmanyvideogames.
29
30
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS InearlyarcadegamessuchasAsteroids(1980)andSpaceInvaderstherate atwhichenemiesappearandthethreattheyposetotheplayerincreases, steadily, as progression is made from one stage to the next. Opening missionsinafirst-personshooter,anaction-adventuregameorastrategy gameoftenserveanintroductorypurpose,pitchedataneasierleveland/ oraccompaniedbyon-screenhelpfeaturesthatgiveguidanceonhow toperformthebasicmoves.Insomecases,thesefunctionsareperformed in what are framed as training modes, in locations such as the indoor andoutdoorobstaclecoursesatthepalatialhomeofLaraCroftinthe TombRaidergames.Theavailabilityofarangeofchallengesappropriate toplayerskills,andearnedplayer-charactercapacitiesandequipment,is built very clearlyinto a MMORPGsuch asEverQuest.Anassortment ofcreaturesandmonsterspopulatesthevariouslandscapesofthegame, eachbeinglabelledexplicitlyintermsofthelevelofchallengeitwould present if engaged in combat by the player. Colour-coding is used to indicate the relative status of a potential adversary: green‘looks like a reasonablysafeopponent’fornon-playercharacters(NPCs)wellbelow theleveloftheplayer;blue‘lookslikeyouwouldhavetheupperhand’for NPCsoneorafewlevelslowerthantheplayer;white‘lookslikeaneven fight’foranNPCofthesamelevelastheplayer;yellow‘lookslikequitea gamble’forNPCsoneortwolevelshigher;andred‘whatwouldyoulike yourtombstonetosay’formorethantwolevelshigher.Thesegradations are not fixed but relative to the level attained by the player-character. Creatures that offer a reasonably safe and useful source of experience pointsintheearlystagesarebarelyworthyofnoticeonceafewlevels aregained(unlesstheypossesssomethingrequiredinaparticularquest), a pleasurable sense of progression being created by the gradual ability oftheplayertotakeonopponentsthataremorechallengingandbring greaterrewardsastheylevel-up. In this case, what is involved is the level of skill embedded in the player-charactermorethanthatoftheplayerhm-orherself.Thesame factorsenabletheplayer-charactertoembarkonincreasinglyelaborate quests and to become a more valuable resource to others in group activities. In genres such as shooters and action-adventures, progress throughthegameisgenerallyaccompaniedbyasteadilyincreasinglevel ofimmediatedifficultyfortheplayerintheformoftougheropponents ormorecomplexanddifficultmanoeuvres,puzzlesandotherchallenges.
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS Examples include the increasing difficulty of dispatching game bosses inQuakeorAmericanMcGee’sAlice(2000),amongmanyothertitles,or theincreasinglymoretricky(andoftenfatal)jumpingrequiredinthe TombRaiderseriesandtowardstheendofBuffytheVampireSlayer(2002). Theaimofthedesigneristomaintainanappropriatelearningcurve,to increasethelevelofdifficultyinstepwiththeanticipatedincreaseinthe skillsoftheplayer,aprocessthatinvolvesbalancingboththedifficulty level of individual activities and the total number of demands placed ontheplayer.Anincreaseinthenumberofgameplayhooksmakesthe game more complex and demanding.Too many hooks can become overwhelming,asHowlandsuggests;toofew,andboredomislikelyto setinoncetheinitialnoveltyofanewtitleisexhausted.48 A crucial factor in the balancing of activity and skill, in games as elsewhere,isidentifiedinanotherofCsikszentmihalyi’scomponents:the existenceofcleargoalsandfeedback.Toengageeffectivelyinchallenging activity,matchingskillagainstchallenge,itisessentialthataclearsenseis establishedofwhathastobeachieved.Thisisthecaseinboththeshort andlongerterms:immediately,killingoravoidingaparticularopponent or solving a particular puzzle; or, at the ludus end of the scale, in the pursuitoflarger-scalevictoryinaleveloracrossthelengthofagame(in BuffytheVampireSlayer:ChaosBleeds,forexample,theplayermustdefeat hordesofvampiresanddemons,andsolvepuzzles,tocollectdisparate parts of a body needed to defeat the First Evil, the game’s definitive boss).Unambiguousfeedbackisalsorequired:aclearsenseoftheextent towhichanyactivitybytheplayersucceedsorfails.Manygamesoffer instantfeedback.Fortheplayer-characterthatfailstonegotiateaspace inafirst-personshooter,immediatefeedbackcomesintheformofthe character’sdeathandtheneedtorestartthelevelorreturntoaprevious savepoint–oratleastasignificantreductioninhealthclearlyregistered throughsoundeffects(grunts,groans)andamarkeddownwardshiftin thehealthbaronthegame’sinterface.Thecentralityofshootingtoa widerangeofgamesmightbeexplainedasmuchbyitssuitabilityfor theprovisionofactionthatcreatesanimmediatefeedbackresponseasby anybroaderculturalfactors,asMarie-LaureRyansuggests.49Feedback canbedramatizedon-screen–thespectaculardeathofanenemyblasted withapowerfulweapon,forexample–oraccompaniedbydrytextual information such as‘x hits y for 120 points’ or‘you gain experience’
31
32
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS ondefeatingasuitableopponentinEverQuest.Insometypesofgames, especiallystrategygames,thefruitsofactionaredelayedintothefuture –thetimeittakesforaparticularresourcetobedeveloped–butinstant feedback is usually provided to signify that the process is underway andsomeindicationisgivenofhowlongitwilltaketobecompleted. Withoutaframeworkofcleargoalsandfeedback,gameplayisliabletobe confusing,whichcanbethecase,especiallyfornewplayers,inextremely open-endedgamessuchasMMORPGsorlargelynon-directivegames suchasAnimalCrossing(2002). AthirdcomponentofflowidentifiedbyCsikszentmihalyi,themerging ofactionandawareness,oneoftheprimarysourcesoftheterm‘flow’ itself,isalsoapplicabletothepleasuregeneratedbythemostsatisfying examples of gameplay.The right balance of challenge and skills can createastateinwhichtheplayer’sattentioniscompletely,orveryclose tocompletely,absorbedintheactivity.Humanshaveafiniteattention capacity, which limits the number of involving mental tasks in which wecanengageatanytime.50Sufficientlydemandingandengaging(i.e. wellbalanced)gameplaycangoalongwaytowardsfillingthatcapacity, creatingastateofperceptualandcognitiveimmersionthatleaveslittle spaceforconsiderationofanythingelse.‘Peoplebecomesoinvolvedin whattheyaredoing,’Csikszentmihalyisuggests,‘thattheactivitybecomes spontaneous,almostautomatic;theystopbeingawareofthemselvesas separatefromtheactionstheyareperforming.’51 In the early stages of playing a new game or a new type of game, players are likely to be distinctly aware of themselves as separate from theactivityofplay.Anewinterfacemayhavetobemasteredandanew configurationofkeyboardorjoypad.Thecommandsandcontrolsused insomegamesaremoreintuitivethanthoseofothers,seemingtomap with more intrinsic logic to the action they cause in the game-world on-screen:theuseofajoysticktomoveanavatarinthesamedirection asthemovementofthestick,forexample,ascomparedwithsomeof thecomplexcombinationsofabstractbuttonpressingrequiredinbeat‘em-upgamessuchastheMortalKombat(from1993)orTekken(from 1995)series.Somecontrolsystemsandinterfacestakelongertogetused tothanothers,atimefactorreducedinmanycasesbytheemergence of familiar patterns of controls used across a range of titles (the PC keyboard convention of using the‘w’ key for forward movement, the
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS ‘s’ for backwards and the‘a’ and‘d’ for sideways, for example). More complexinterfacescanprovidegreaterfunctionality,however,thanthose whicharemostrapidlygrasped.Withsufficienttimeandpractice,most systemscanbecomefamiliar.Atahighlevelofhabitualuse,thecontrol/ interfacesystemcanbecomeclosetoinvisible,inthesamewaythatan experiencedtypistnolongerhasconsciousawarenessoftheprocessof reachingforeachofthekeysrequiredtotypeasentencesuchasthis. Repeated usage results in the creation of customized neural pathways in the brain, reducing the amount of processing required for reaction toon-screenevents.AsthegamedesignerChrisCrawfordputsit:‘The differencebetweenabeginnerandaskilledplayeristhattheskilledplayer haslearnedtobuildshorter,fasterneuralpathwaysfromthevisualcortex tothecerebellum.’52Whencontrolsandinterfaceareeffaced,througha combinationofmoreintuitivedesignandfamiliarity,theplayerisgivena strongersenseofactinginthegame-world,anillusionofmoreimmediate (i.e.lessapparentlymediated)participation. Corollaries of the merging of action and awareness are two other components identified by Csikszentmihalyi: concentration on the task athandandlossofself-consciousness.Oneofthepotentialpleasuresof immersiveabsorptioninactivitiessuchasgameplayistheopportunity theyprovideforotherpreoccupationsandanxietiestobeforgotten.A strongfocusofattentiononthetasksathandleaveslittleornoroom foranythingelse.Gameplay,likeothersourcesofleisureandworkthat requiresustainedconcentration,canprovideanorderlyarenaintowhich theplayercanmovetoescapethemultitudeofdisordersanduncertainties often characteristic of everyday life.53As Huizinga says of the ordered realmoftheplaygroundmoregenerally:‘Intoanimperfectworldandin theconfusionoflifeitbringsatemporary,alimitedperfection.’54This narrowingoffocuscanalsoincludealossofconsciousnessofself;nota lossofself,andcertainlynotofconsciousness,asCsikszentmihalyistresses, butalossofconsciousnessoftheselfasaseparateentity.55Theplayercan feel‘atone’withthegameor‘inthezone’,anexperiencedescribedby manygamersofthemostheightenedandabsorbingperiodsofplay. Anotherdimensionofthiskindofexperienceisthesenseofcontrol gainedbytheplayer.Or,asCsikszentmihalyiputsitinothercontexts, ‘thepossibilityratherthantheactualityofcontrol.’56Thegame-worldisan arenasetofffromtherestoftheworld,oneinwhichspecialrulesobtain
33
34
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS that, in most cases, give the player the possibility of gaining a level of controlgenerallyunavailableinordinarylife.Whatpeopleenjoy‘isnot thesenseofbeingincontrol,butthesenseofexercisingcontrolindifficult situations.’57The paradox of control, in this sense, is that its exercise requirestheabsenceofasituationwherecontrolcanbeguaranteed.This fitsverywellwiththestructureofmanyvideogamesinwhichtheplayer faces a combination of being both in and out of control.The player is granted a certain scope for controlling agency in all games, yet this isdeterminedbytheparticularrulesandparametersofanyindividual game.Thepleasureofplayinglies,often,inaparticularcombinationof freedom and determination, control and lack of control.The sense of control is strongest when the player has freedom to complete tasks in morethanoneway,butthis,itself,isdeterminedbythegame.Successful momentsofgameplay,suchasgettingthroughadifficultchallengeina shooter or an action-adventure game or levelling-up in a role-playing game,createanimpressionofcontrolormastery.Thisislargelyillusory, however,giventhattheplayerusuallyhasnocontroloverthechallenges setorparameterssuchasthosedeterminingtherequirementsneededto attainahigherlevel.Inmulti-playergames,thesenseofaccomplishment andcontrolfeltbyexperiencedplayerscanbeincreasedbythepractice ofhelpingnewplayers;muchofthein-gamechatrevolvesaroundthe comparison of strategies and skill levels, including frequent boasting about achievements. Processes such as learning new in-game skills or discoveringnewwaystoachievegoalsarelikelytofurthertheplayer’s sense of gaining control but this is almost always pre-structured by the controlling power of the game itself, the exception being cases of unanticipated player innovation such as ‘rocket jumping’ and other examplesdetailedabove. Anexperienceoftenreportedbygameplayersisthesensethattime passesdifferentlyduringanythingotherthanshortperiodsofgameplay, particularlythatittendstopassmorequickly,thathourscandisappearin whatseemlikeminutes.Thiskindoftransformationoftimeisanother componentoftheflowexperienceasdocumentedbyCsikszentmihalyi. Intenselevelsofabsorptionorimmersioninthegame,andtheclosingout oftheexternalworld,implyamoveintoitsrhythmsandtimescalesrather thanthoseofthereal-worldclock.Thisisanotherdimensioninwhich gamescancreateapleasurableescapefromtheroutinesandconstraints
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS ofdailylife,althoughitcanalsohaveanegativeimpact,inthesenseof timethatseems‘lost’,appointmentsmissedorreal-worldtaskspostponed orleftunfinished(isthatthesoundofthebathoverflowing?). The concept of flow, and its various elements, applies very well to optimalgameplayexperiences,althoughitisimportanttorecognizethat thisisanoptimalstate,farfromalwaysattained.Anumberofspecificfactors cancontributetoitsachievementor,often,preventsuchastatefrombeing achieved.Thebalancebetweenchallengeandskillcaneasilygoawryfor reasonsrangingfrompoorgamedesigntoalackofsufficientinvestment oftime,patienceandeffortonthepartoftheplayer.Frustrationcreated bytheneedforrepetitionofadifficultmanoeuvreorinabilitytofind theroutetothenextstageofalevelislikelytoreduceanyimpressionof immersion,althoughitalsoincreasesthesatisfactionpay-offthatresults whensuccessisfinallyachieved.Howmuchfrustrationcanbecontained withinthisexperience,withoutcreatingalienationfortheplayer,islikely tovaryfromoneexampletoanother.Manygamesgivetheplayerthe opportunity to adjust the balance, principally through difficulty-level settings, ranging through categories such as‘easy’,‘normal’,‘hard’ and ‘heroic’. In shooters such as Doom and Halo (2001), for example, the numberofenemiesdecreasesoneasiersettings.SilentHill(1999)anda numberofothertitlesincludean‘auto-lock’weaponsfeature.Whenit isswitchedon,enemiescanbehitmerelybyshootingintheirgeneral directionratherthanrequiringmoreaccurateaiming,achangethatcan make all the difference in the heat of the action and when subject to panic-inducedbuttonfumbling. Players who find a game, or parts of a game, too challenging can alsoresorttodevicessuchascheatsandwalk-throughs.Theseshiftthe balanceinfavouroftheplayerbutareinthemselvesliabletodisruptany strongsenseofflow,requiringahaltinplaywhilethecheatisenabled. Cheatssuchastheuseof‘god’modeinashooteroraction-adventure game,orconstantreferencetoawalk-throughorstrategyguide,cantilt thebalancetoofarinfavouroftheplayer,takingmuchoftheedgeout ofplayandreducingitsabsorbingqualities.Usedmorejudiciously,cheats canenableplayerstogetbackclosertotheflowchannel,however,during especially difficult periods of play: indestructible‘god’ mode might be usedbriefly,andthenleft,inagamesuchasMedalofHonor,forexample, to help the player-character get across a particularly broad expanse of
35
36
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS opengroundwithoutbeingshot;extraammoorhealthmightservea similar purpose, temporarily, before normal play is resumed. From an industrialperspective,itisimportantforsomeflexibilityofcapabilityto bebuiltintotitlesthatseektoappealtoamassmarketaswellasmore dedicatedor‘hardcore’gamers. Game design of a more or less intuitive variety can also affect the degreetowhichplayersarelikelytogainoptimalexperiencesofflow or immersion, or the ease with which they are likely to be obtained. Consciousness of the existence of relatively arbitrary game devices is likely to reduce immersive potential. Hit-point systems, for example, usedtocalculatetherelativestrengthofcharactersandtocharttheirstate ofhealthduringcombat,haveanumberofadvantages,JonathonSchilpp suggests,includingtheireaseofuse,versatilityandfamiliaritytoplayers.58 But they tend to draw attention to the device itself, as a mechanical process,ratherthanembeddingitinthefictionalqualitiesofthegameworld, even if players can become sufficiently habituated to particular devicesforthistobecomelessnoticeableovertime.Hit-pointsystems laybarethenumericalmodelsusedbygamesoftware,especiallywhen their dynamics are presented explicitly to the player, as is the case in theon-screeninformationsuppliedduringcombatinexamplessuchas EverQuest.Amoreimmersiveeffectcanbecreatedbytheuseofhiddenhitpointsystemsor,asFrançoisLaraméesuggests,byturningmathematical calculationsinto‘symbolic,qualitative,orfuzzyrepresentationsthatmake more intuitive sense to the player’.59 If the measurement of health is mappedmoredirectlyontotheappearanceandbehaviouroftheplayer’s character,forexample,Schilppsuggests,thefocusisnotonabstracthitpoints,butdirectlyonthecharacter’shealth,strengtheningthesuspension ofdisbelief,tighteningtheemotionalbondbetweenplayerandcharacter andhelpingtodrawtheplayermoredeeplyintothegame-world.60A somewhatcrudeexampleistheuseofaninsertimageoftheavatar’sface, insteadofalinearhealthbar,intheDoominterface,increasinglybloodied astheplayer-character’shealthdeteriorates.Manysubsequentgamesmap healthstatusontotheappearance,behaviourandcapacitiesoftheplayercharacter.InTheGetaway(2003),forexample,gunshotwoundscreate darkblood-stainpatchesontheclothingoftheavatarandcausehimto groan,limpandgenerallymovemoreslowly,affectingfunctionalityfor theplayeraswellassignifyingalowerstateofhealth(aprecedentsetby
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS SilentHillandResidentEvil[1997]). Numerousotherfactorscanalsointrudeonthegameplayexperience, reducing the likelihood of reaching anything like an optimal state. Inadequate equipment might make gameplay too slow and frustrating (a dated graphics card or slow connection speed causing ‘lag’ when playing online) while an unsuitable playing environment might create toomuchscopefordistraction.Gameplayersoftenseekaprivatespace inwhichoutsideinterferencecanbeminimalized,usingdevicessuchas headphoneswherenecessarytoincreaseseparationfromthesurrounding world,61 but it is not always possible to prevent interruption.62 Realworld concerns, demands or timescales might also be too pressing to bekeptfromconsciousness,dependingonthesituationoftheplayer.A variablebalanceexistsbetweentherelativestrengthofdemandsposed by real and game-world activities.The latter exert sufficient attraction tocounterbalancesomeoftheformer,butonlywithinlimits:thebath mightoverflow,onoccasion,duringa‘quick’nipintothegame-world(or thephonemightgounanswered),butthehouseisunlikelytobeallowed to burn down. The qualities of flow identified by Csikszentmihalyi are useful as an ideal type of the state that might be produced by the most absorbing gameplay.They can also be located more broadly in a particularkindofculturalframework,fittingintooneofanumberof rhetoricsunderlyingtheoriesofplayidentifiedbyBrianSutton-Smith. TheconceptofflowcanbeunderstoodinthecontextofwhatSuttonSmithtermsthe‘rhetoricoftheself ’,establishedintheoriesthatinterpret playintermsofthesubjectiveexperiencesoftheplayer.Suchtheories can be seen as products of a particular social, economic and cultural conjunction, dominant in contemporary western society, in which an emphasis is put on notions of individual freedom.63 Concepts such as flowandintrinsicmotivationmakenosenseinthecontextofdifferent notionsoftheselffoundinmanyothercultures,asSutton-Smithargues. Thisdoesnotmakesuchconceptsofanylessuseintheunderstanding ofcontemporaryvideogameplay,butsuggeststhattheyshouldnotbe elevatedtothestatusofuniversals.
Gameplay Contexts: Narrative, Genre and Beyond If it is important to start with analysis of the nature and pleasurable effectsofgameplayinitsownright,afullunderstandingofgamesalso
37
38
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS requiresconsiderationofthecontextualmaterialwithinwhichgameplay is situated in any individual game or game-genre. Gameplay does not exist in a vacuum, any more than games do as a whole. It is situated, instead, within a matrix of potential meaning-creating frameworks. These can operate both at a local level, in the specific associations generated by a particular episode of gameplay, and in the context of broadersocial,culturalandideologicalresonances.Theextenttowhich contextual material or associations are likely to come into play during playisvariable,accordingtofactorsrelatingtothenatureofthegame andthemannerinwhichitisplayedinaparticulargamingcontext.In somesituations,quitecommonlyattheheightofthegameplayaction, contextualmaterialislikelytorecedefromview.Butgames,likeother culturalproducts,alwayscontainpotentialforthecreationofextrinsic as well as intrinsic meanings. Some of these are considered in greater detail in Chapter 4, in which we focus more broadly on the social andculturaldimensionofgamesandgameplay.Theremainderofthis chapterconsiderstheroleofcontextualframeworks,principallythose established by narrative and genre associations.We start by analyzing aspects of narrative and genre that can be identified in the design of thegame-text:thefixedparametersofthegameasitisofferedtothe player,orthenarrativeandgenrereferencepointswithinwhichitmight besituated.Inthelastpartofthechapter,weconsidermorecloselythe relationship between gameplay and contextual material: the extent to whichsuchdimensionsarelikelytobein-play,ratherthanrelegatedtoa positioninthebackground,duringparticularsessionsofgameplay. NARRATIVE
The narrative potential of videogames has been one of the dominant concerns for a number of theorists, including some coming to games fromabackgroundinliterarystudies.Gameshaveoftenbeenincluded in studies of interactive fiction, along with non-game forms such as hypertext fiction, in which computer-mediated texts typically offer a numberofdifferentpathwaysforthereader.Thenarrativedimensionof gamestendstobeseeninthiscontextassomewhatcrudeanddebased. Hypertext fiction is located by George Landow as part of a more elevated literary tradition, modernist and/or postmodernist, including theworkofnovelistssuchasJamesJoyce,RobertCooverandJorgeLuis
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS Borges.64A recurrent concern in the work of some commentators is withthefuturepotentialgamesmighthavetoaspiretowardssomething moresophisticated,innarrativeterms,thantheirtypicallyexistingform. Henry Jenkins has suggested, for example, that in terms of narrative depthandmeaning,contemporarygamesareatalevelofdevelopment equivalenttothatofearlycinema,inthefirstdecadeofthetwentieth century,yettoachieveanythingliketheirfullpotential.65Asimilarfocus onthenarrativedimensionofgames,combinedwithasenseofitsgreater unrealizedpotential,isfoundintheworkofJanetMurray,BarryAtkins andthedesignersPeterMolyneuxandRandyLittlejohn.66 Counter-arguments have responded on at least two levels: that narrativeisnotcentraltogamesorthatitexistsessentiallyinopposition togameplay,andthatitismisguidedorunhelpfultoconceiveofgames intermsofwhattheymightbecomesometimeinthefutureratherthan whattheycurrentlyare.Oneofthemainreasonsforobjectionstoany emphasisonthenarrativecomponentsofgames,wheretheyexist,isthat the narrative dimension itself is not usually interactive, and therefore lacksthequalityseenasthemostdistinctiveelementofvideogamesas comparedwithothermedia.Narrativestructuresinmostgamesarefixed inadvanceand,generally,unchangedbytheactivityoftheplayer.On occasion,debateinthisareahasdescendedintoahyperbolicdismissal of the role played by narrative in games, most notably in Markku Eskilinen’sinjunction‘toannihilateforgoodthediscussionofgamesas stories, narratives or cinema’.67 In Eskilinen’s oft-quoted view, perhaps overstatedforpolemicaleffect,‘storiesarejustuninterestingornaments orgift-wrappingtogames,andlayinganyemphasisonstudyingthese kindsofmarketingtoolsisjustawasteoftimeandenergy.’68 Narrativeisentirelyabsentfromsomegames,especiallyabstractpuzzle gamessuchasTetris.Aspectsofnarrativearepresentinmanyothers,but theyoftenplayamarginalrole.Littlemorethanaminimalbackstoryis createdinsomecases.Moresubstantialoverarchingnarrativeframeworks are developed in others, along with localized narrative components. Exactly how narrative is mobilized where it is present, and of what importanceitislikelytobetoplayers,isvariable–anditsoperationhas tobeconsideredinthespecificcontextofgames,acontextverydifferent fromthatofhistoricallymoreestablishednarrative-orientedformssuch asnovels,playsorfeaturefilms.Gamesshouldnotbediscussedsimplyas
39
40
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS stories,asEskilinensuggests;eventhemorestory-orientedgamescannot be reduced to their narrative dimensions. But stories in games can be agooddealmorethanjust‘uninterestingornamentsorgift-wrapping’ andevenwheretheseareusedasmarketingtools,thatitselfisasubject worthyofconsideration. AusefulstartingpointhereisJesperJuul’sdistinctionbetween‘gamesof emergence’and‘gamesofprogression’.Gamesofemergence,assuggested above, are those in which a number of simple rules combine to form a wide range of interesting variations.This, for Juul, is‘the primordial gamestructure…foundincardandboardgamesandinmostaction and all strategy games’.69 In games of progression, a series of separate challengesarepresentedtotheplayerinserialform,theplayerhavingto perform‘apredefinedsetofactionsinordertocompletethegame’.70The designercontrolsthesequenceofevents,makingthisthearena‘where wefindgameswithcinematicorstory-tellingambitions’.71Progressionis identifiedasahistoricallymorerecentstructure,comingintovideogames intheformoftheadventuregame,andisthekindofgamestructureon whichnarrative-orientedcommentatorstendtofocus. NarrativeframeworksarefoundinsomegamesthatfitJuul’scategory ofemergence,includinglarge-scalerole-playinggamesinwhichplayers haveagreatdealofscopetoexploretheworldontheirownterms.Such frameworksplayafarlessdirectingrole,however,thanisusuallythecase ingamesofprogression.TheplayerofanexamplesuchasTheElderScrolls III: Morrowind (2002) can choose whether or not to pursue activities relatedtolargerplotelements,suchasthereasonwhytheplayer-character is released from Imperial custody at the start or the machinations of variousfactionsstrugglingforcontrolofthefictionaluniverse.Substantial advance can be made through the game – exploration, combat, the pursuitofquests,increasingtheexperienceandskillslevelsoftheplayercharacter–withoutanymorethanpassingengagementwiththiskind ofnarrativebackground.InEverQuest,thechoiceofwhetherornotto worryaboutnarrativeismadeexplicitintheformofacontrolthatcan beusedtoturnonoroffastorymodeinwhichnarrativeupdatesare provided. Players can also choose to invest more strongly in narrative contextbyreadingbooksinwhichamythicbackgroundiselaboratedor byvisitingnewareasthatmightbeopeneduptemporarilyinlinewith anewstoryarc.Localizedformsofprogressive,pre-structuredgameplay
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS arealsofoundembeddedingamesofemergencesuchasthis,principally in the form of quests.72 Quests take the form of narrative fragments, eitherverybriefone-offstory-contextsforaparticularrewardingaction bytheplayer(anon-playercharacterwhohasbeenabandonedinthe wildsbyhisprotectorinMorrowind,forexample,andneedsescortingto thenearesttown)orsometimescombinedorintersectinginlargermininarratives.Narrativematerialcanberealizedwithintheplayofgamesof emergencemorethanisoriginallyanticipated,aswastheexperienceof thedesignerPeterMolyneuxwithBlackandWhite:‘Wethoughtitwould sitquietlybehindthegame,butthestorycamealiveandstartedtodraw theplayerthroughthegameinawaynoneofus,apartperhapsfromthe scriptwriterJamesLeach,hadenvisaged.’73 A form of narrative that is itself emergent can also be identified in game genres such as role-playing, simulation and strategy. Relatively undirectedplayfrominitialrule-setscancreateanimplicitnarrativethat emergesfromtheparticularchoicesmadebytheplayer:theexperiences of a player-character in role-playing games such as Morrowind or EverQuest, the developing relationships in a game of The Sims or the assorted ‘counter-factual’ historical narratives that emerge in each playingofCivilization.Thesearelikelytobelesstightlystructuredthan pre-programmednarrative,but,asHenryJenkinssuggestsinthecaseof The Sims,‘they are not as unstructured, chaotic, and frustrating as life itself.’74 Relatively unstructured forms of progression are written into manysuchgames:theprogressivedevelopmentoftheplayer-character inarole-playingtitle,forexample,whichimpliesaprocessofforwardmoving character development that has something in common with the development found in other forms of character-centred narrative. Charactergenerallyplaysasmallerroleingamesthaninmoretraditional narrative-centredmediabecausethecentralcharactertendstobecome ‘our complete surrogate ego’, David Joiner suggests, with little or no intrinsic personality of its own:‘As such we are less interested in the protagonist and more concerned with the external environment in whichitisembedded.’75Distinctivecharacterfeaturescanbebuiltinto gameplay,however,shapingdimensionssuchasthegoalstobepursued byplayers/player-charactersandtheirparticularin-gamecapabilities.76 Playersarelikelytohaveastrongerinvestmentincharacterinroleplayinggamesthaninothergenres,giventheirresponsibilityforchoosing
41
42
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS fromarangeofinitialcharacterattributesandthemannerinwhichthese arestrengthenedasthegameproceeds.Inonlinerole-playinggames,this investmentislikelytobeincreasedbecauseplayersinteractwithothers in the guise of their chosen characters: the attributes of character to someextentframethemannerinwhichplayersregardoneanother.As Chris Crawford suggests, however, the kind of character development that results is different from that found in more traditional narratives: ‘This emphasis on character development tends to work against the needsofdramaticdevelopment–dramatictwistsandturnsclashwith the prevailing tone of steady advancement.’77The player-character can facesetbacks,intheformofthelossofexperienceresultingfromdeath, butonlyinarathermechanicalmanner.Theplayercanchoosetoavoid theprocessofongoingcharacter-development,butnotwithoutseverely limiting the scope for other forms of emergent gameplay (an increase of character experience being necessary if freedom is to be gained to roamthegame-worldinrelativesafetyandtoembarkonawiderrange ofactivities).Theimplicitemergentnarrative‘lived’throughthegame canalsobecomeexplicit,especiallyinitsmoredramaticallyheightened sequences,generatingretrospectively‘tellable’events,asLisbethKlastrup suggests, in cases such as higher level‘epic’ quests in EverQuest.78The experience might be understood as one of ‘story-living’ rather than story-telling,Klastrupsuggests,althoughthetellingitselfhasanappeal, asasecondaryformofactivity,evidencedintheprevalenceofplayers’ storiessectionsonMMORPGwebsites.79Herethejourneythroughthe game-world might be retrospectively understood as having a narrative arc,representingakindofgestaltoftheexperienceofgameplay,butthis depends on the extent to which players actively reflect afterwards on theirplay,orthedegreetowhichagameisplayedthroughtotheend. Ifplayersofgamesofemergencecan,amongotheractivities,generatea varietyofemergentnarrativesortellablestoriesfromtheinitialparameters, oneofthetaskssetbysomegamesofprogressionistorealizeanarrative structuredinadvanceintothegamescape.Thisisnotthecasewithall gamesofprogression,someofwhichhavelittlesubstanceinthenarrative dimension.Manyfirst-personshooters,forexample,includingpopular classics such as the Doom and Quake games, supply a single minimal backstoryscenariothatisnotdevelopedduringprogressionthroughthe differentlevelsofthegame.Progressionentailsamovementfromone
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS locationtoanotherinwhichprogressivelytougheropponentsarefaced, progressively more powerful weapons can be obtained and players are expectedtoincreasetheirskillsthroughpractice,butinwhichlittleif anythingisexperiencedinthewayoffurthernarrativedevelopment.The basicdynamicisoneofrepetitionofgameplayactivitiesatincreasingly higherlevelswithinacontextthatremainsessentiallystaticafterbeing establishedatthestart:reiterationsofthesametypesofactions.Other games,includingthefirst-personshooterHalf-Lifeandmanythird-person action adventures, including Max Payne, The Getaway and TheThing (2002),aremoreplotoriented.Narrativematerialisdevelopedduring the course of the game, often interspersed with gameplay activities in whichthedynamicismuchthesameasthatsuggestedabove:broadly similarassortmentsoftaskstoperformbutoftenmoretesting,andwith accesstomoreresources,asthegameproceeds.80 Anumberofnarrativedevicesaredeployedintheopeningsequences of Half-Life, for example, as the scientist player-character Gordon Freemangoestoworkatthehigh-securityBlackMesaresearchfacility. On-screentextprovidesbasicinformationaboutFreeman’sidentityand background,alsoservingtoestablishinitialpointsofnarrativeenigma.His administrativesponsorislistedas‘classified’,implyingasecretivemotive theplayercanexpecttoberevealedatalaterstage.Commentsbynonplayercharactersintheearlystagesbuildexpectationsthatsomethingis amiss,creatinganexplanatorycontextforsubsequentevents.Asecurity guardrefersto‘someproblem’inthechamberofthe‘anomalousmaterials laboratory’.AnumberofmessagesawaitFreemanbutcannotbeaccessed because the computer system is down – narrative information that is missing, in other words, increasing the overall impression of suspense. Two scientist non-player characters standing outside the laboratory comment about the ‘purest’ or ‘most unstable’ sample they have yet seen,onegivingthereassurancethat‘nothingwillgowrong’–aclear foreshadowing,accordingtogenreornarrativeconvention,thatitwill. Aftereverythingdoesindeedgowrong,a‘dimensionalbreach’resulting in alien infestations, another scientist asks why the authorities did not listentohiswarnings,furtherimplyingthatthesituationisnotmerelythe resultofinnocentaccident.Anumberofplottwistsimpactongameplay asthegameproceeds.Securityguardnon-playercharactersaidtheplayer on a number of occasions in the early levels, during which the goal
43
44
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS establishedforthecharacteristosurviveandtoreachthesurface.Atwist occurs, however, when the player first encounters a group of soldiers. Sounds of shooting accompany the player-character into the space in whichthesoldiersarelocated,whichmight,atfirst,beassumedtobethe soldiersengagingthealienenemy.Itsoonbecomesapparentthatthey areshootingattheplayer-character,however,althoughmaybetoolate topreventthecharacterbeingkilledandtheplayerhavingtoreturnto thelastsave-point.Whythetroopsareshootingattheplayer-character, hereandsubsequently,becomesanothersourceofenigma,background totheimmediatetaskofhavingtodealwithanotherhostileforce.The player-character’sgoalalsohastoshiftwhenhesubsequentlyreachesthe surfaceonlytobeforcedtoreturnundergroundonfindingitoverrun withhostiletroops. The carefully crafted narrative of Primal pivots around the fact that chaosandorderarenolongerindualisticequilibrium.Themainplayercharacter,Jen,isplungedinadvertentlyintoamythicalrealmandcharged withthetaskofrebalancingtheseprimalforces.Acentralenigmarelating to her origins is established, raising questions about the nature of her true identity and the source of demonic attributes that transform her bodyintoalethalfightingmachine.Anumberofdifferentdevicesare usedtosupplythiskindofnarrativematerial.Some,suchascut-scenes, entail a break out of the main gameplay arena.When Jen transforms into demon form for the first time (complete with an impressive set ofhornsanddamage-inflictingclaws),theplayerhasjustcompleteda fight with the first boss of the game. Exploiting the post-fight lull, a cut-scene ensues in which the camera tracks in slow motion around Jen’stransformingbodyasitisvisiblywrackedbyasupernaturalforce. When the time- and body-bending effect fades, Jen asks her fighting partnerwhatishappeningtoher.Heimpartsalittleinformationabout thepowergiventoherbythetransformationbutnoticeablywithholds anyfullexplanationofthecause,adevicethatservesanarrativepurpose –increasingtheplayer’smotivationtocontinue,insearchofananswer –atthesametimeasurgingtheplayertomakemoreimmediateuseof thecharacter’snew-foundfightingskills. Narrativerelianceoncut-scenesandother‘out-of-game’devices,as theyaretermedbythedesignerRichardRouse,isoneofthemainreasons whythenarrativedimensionisoftenseenasessentiallyopposedtothatof
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS gameplay.81Cut-scenescancreateanarrative-orientedframeworkwithin whichsubsequentsequencesofplayeractivityaresituated,however,as RuneKlevjersuggests,asillustratedbytheaboveexamplefromPrimal. The cut-scene, for Klevjer,‘is a narrative of pre-telling, paving the way forthemimeticevent,makingitpartofanarrativeact,whichdoesnot take place after, but before the event.The cut-scene casts its meanings forward, strengthening the diegetic, rhetorical dimension of the event tocome.’82Narrativematerialcanalsobeprovidedby‘in-game’devices, more seamlessly integrated into the game-world. Examples include writtenmaterialssuchassignsornotesinthegame-worldthatcanbe readwithoutswitchingoutofthesceneintoaseparatescreenfilledwith text,dialoguewithnon-playercharacters,thebehavioursofnon-player charactersandthedesignoflevelsettings.83Half-Lifemarkedanotable developmentinthisdirection,avoidingcut-scenesorotherinformation thathastobeaccessedoutsidethemaingame-space.Scenesimportantto theplotofHalf-Liferemainfullyinteractive,allowingtheplayertomove aroundwhileinformationisrelayedbynon-playercharactersandother integrateddevices. In games such as these, the challenge offered to the player includes realizing the pre-existing narrative structure and making sense of the narrativecontextinwhichgameplayoccurs.Itinvolvesanexperience described by Julian Kücklich as akin to‘the hermeneutic process of reading a literary text, by challenging the player to make predictions aboutwhatistocome,ortoreconstructtheeventsthatleduptothe presentsituation’.84InTheThing,forexample,theplayeroftencomesupon scenesofdeathanddestruction.Damaged,blood-spatteredinteriorsand theremainsofcarcassesfromwhichshape-shiftingalienshaveemerged providebothevidenceofrecentevents,asconstructedinthenarrative past,andwarningaboutthelikelykindsofeventstocome.Thisinvites a process of hermeneutics of the kind suggested by Kücklich, even if ratherlimitedandobviousintheconclusionsitsupports.Thegamealso includes more fleeting and potentially intriguing elements, including appearancesofthenon-playercharacterWhitley,afigurewhoturnsup onseveraloccasionsinthemarginsofthegameplayandexpositionand turnsouttobeaprimarysourceofcentralplotevents. Narrative development of this kind can play an important role in establishing qualities such as variable pace, drama and suspense – to
45
46
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS give added depth to gameplay that might otherwise become onedimensional.This is an issue not just for academics, especially those disposed favourably towards narrative as a culturally sanctioned form thatcanenablegamestobetakenmore‘seriously’,alongsideformssuch asnovelsandfilms.Italsomatterstomanygamedesigners,animportant point given the tendency of some commentators to treat narrative as essentiallyaconcernbroughttogamesfromoutside,principallyfrom thoseseekingtoimposeongamesstudyperspectivesmorerelevantto othermediasuchasliteratureandcinema.85Narrativestillremainsin the background a great deal of the time, however, even in the more story-orientedgamesofprogression.Theprovisionofnarrativematerial can be seen as a reward for successful gameplay.The unveiling of a newplotdevelopmentoftencomesafterthecompletionofaseriesof gameplaytasks.ForKücklich:‘Typically…theplayerispresentedwith taskstobecompletedandpuzzlestobesolved,whichserveasretarding elements,or“narrativebarriers”,asitwere,againsttheplayers’impulse tounravelthe“plot”ofthegame.’86Ajudgementismadehereabout the relative investment of the player in either side of the gameplay/ narrative-progressive dynamic, but it is not possible to say with any certaintythatplayersplayforthenarrative,assuch,ratherthanenjoying thegameplayasmuchas,ormorethan,theaccessitgivestonarrative progression.Thebalanceofpleasuremightchangefromonegameto another–dependingontherelativequalityofbothgameplayactivities andnarrativedevelopment–andfromoneplayertoanother,depending onindividualpreferences. Whatever the preference of the player, however, or the particular narrative development offered in any individual title, the bulk of the playingexperienceofmostvideogamesthathavenarrativedimensions occursinbetweenthemomentsofnarrativeelaboration.Narrativeusually functionstostringtogethersequencesofgameplayactivitiesofthekinds outlinedinthefirstpartofthischapter,makingcontextualsenseofsmaller, morelocalcause-and-effect-basedactions.Gameswithoverarchingand developingnarrativeframeworkssuchastheexamplescitedabovemight bereducedtoabasicthree-actstructureofbeginning,middleandend, but,asCraigLindleysuggests,withahighlyextendedsecondactinwhich gameplayactivitiesdominateovernarrativedevelopment.87Arecursive structureisidentifiedbyLindley,inwhichthesamemodelisappliedto
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS thegameasawhole,toindividualgamelevelsandtoindividualgame taskswithineachlevel.Ineachcase,thecoregameplayexperienceoccurs intheextendedsecondact,framedbyintroductoryorclimacticmaterial thatdoesmostofthenarrativework,oftenthroughtheuseofout-ofgamedevicessuchascut-scenes. Factorsdeterminingthedegreetowhichnarrativematerialislikelyto remainin-playthroughoutthegameincludethepaceatwhichmovement throughthegameisallowedorencouraged.Afasterpace,otherthings being equal, is likely to increase the proximity of narratively loaded components,creatingastrongersenseoflinearcontinuity,ofnarrative binding,acrosssequencesofgameplayactivity.Aslowerpace,orlarger gapsbetweennarrativedevices(ormorewidelyspacedplaysessions),is likely to reduce any impression of narrative continuity or progression, creatingamoreepisodicexperience.Likelyspeedofprogressioncanbe increasedthroughtheuseofdevicessuchasnavigationalaidsthatsteer theplayerinthedirectionnecessaryforprogression,encouragingamore linearpassagethroughthegame-worldinwhichnarrativecontinuityis morelikelytobesustained–anissuetowhichwereturninChapter2. InEntertheMatrix,forexample,player-characterscanmoveatahelterskelterpace,fasterthanusualforthird-personaction-adventures,andare constantlyprovidedwithorientationbyadirectionalarrowatthetop right-handcornerofthescreen.Theeffectistocreateastrongimpression ofmomentum,verydifferentfromtheexploratorywanderinginsearch oftherightroutethroughthemorepuzzle-likegamescapecharacteristic oftitlessuchastheTombRaidergames.Forward-drivingmomentumis oftenhalted,ofcourse,bymoredifficultgameplayactivities–atricky series of rooftop jumps to perform, for example, or engagement with alargenumberofwell-armedenemies–butonlyaslongasittakesto reloadandtryagain,givingthegameaclearsenseofdirectedprogression, evenifthisisoftenperformedinfitsandstarts.Thelengthofagiven gamemightalsoaffecttheexperiencedcoherenceofanarrativearc:in shorter games, the impression of coherence might be enhanced while longer games often place emphasis on the more general experience of being in the world of the game (especially in subscription-based MMORPGs).Generally,narrativeisdeliveredandexperiencedingames inamorefragmentaryanddrawn-outmannerthaninmorenarrativecentricforms.
47
48
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Narrative does not only exist in games in the form of the larger, overarchingframeworkswithinwhichgameplayissometimessituated. Manysmallerormorefundamentalnarrativecomponentsareoftenfound, starting at the level of basic cause/effect relationships. Linear narrative implies an ordered sequence of events in which one factor influences anotherinachainofcausesandeffects:factoracauseseffectb,which goesontobethecauseofeffectc,andsoon.Cause/effectprocessesof thiskindareanessentialcharacteristicoftheaction/feedbackstructure of all games, at a local level, whether or not they build up to a more substantiallynarrative-orientedframework.Particularactionscanaffect the player’s broader relation to aspects the game-world, in addition to theirmoreimmediatelyapparentconsequences.Ifplayerschoosetokill certainguardsinEverQuest,forexample,theymightfinditmoredifficult, subsequently,toenterorexitareaspolicedbyguardsofthesamefaction (andtheywillnotbeabletousethemasshieldsagainstotherenemies). IfplayersofHalf-Life:BlueShift(2001)choosetoshootunthreatening NPCstheyreceiveawarningfrominsidethediegeticuniversethatthey haveviolatedtheircontractofemploymentandarethrownoutofthe game.Moregenerally,playersarelikelytounderstandthatiftheyignore variouscuesprovidedduringthecourseofagametheyarelesslikelyto achievegoalsortoachievetheminthemostefficientmanner. Gamesoftenusenarrative-orientedcomponentssuchasindividuated characters and fictional settings in which actions are performed in pursuit of particular goals. Marie-Laure Ryan argues that ingredients such as these are not used for their own sake but as means towards another end, that of luring players into the game-world. For Ryan: ‘Narrativity performs an instrumental rather than a strictly aesthetic function:oncetheplayerisimmersedinthegame,thenarrativetheme maybebackgroundedortemporarilyforgotten.’88Howfarthismight bethecase,andinwhatcircumstances,isconsideredinthelastpartof this chapter. Even seen Ryan’s way, however, as strictly secondary, the roleofnarrativecomponentsremainssignificant,giventheimportance usuallyattributedtothecreationofanimpressionofimmersion.Basic narrativeelementsordynamicscanalsobelinkedmorecloselytocore gameplayactivities.Iftheagon,orcontest,isoneofthefundamentaltypes ofgame,assuggestedbyCaillois,itisalso,JanetMurrayremindsus,a basicnarrativeunit:
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS TheGreekwordagonreferstobothathleticcontestsandtodramatic conflicts,reflectingthecommonoriginofgamesandtheatre.Asimple shoot-‘em-upvideogame,then,belongstotheextremelybroaddramatic traditionthatgivesusboththeboxingmatchandtheElizabethan revengeplay.89
Many games also draw on long-established traditions in their use of narrative models such as the quest and the heroic journey, formats foundinawiderangeofculturalmythologiesandfolktales(including blueprint action-adventure tales such as The Odyssey and Beowulf). Quest frameworks, in which characters are sent on missions (often to exoticplaces)toperformheroicactions,formthebasisofmanygames, especially in the action-adventure and role-playing genres, obvious examplesincludingPrimal,EverQuestandtheTombRaiderseries.Quests are also found as more locally embedded mini-narratives within the more open structure of games of emergence, as suggested above.The questformatandthehero’sjourney,anarrativearchetypeidentifiedby JosephCampbellinawiderangeofmythsandstories,lendthemselves particularly well to the requirements of action-adventure and roleplayinggames,providingtheidealframeworkwithinwhichtosetthe taskstobeperformedbytheplayer-character.90Inthehero’sjourneythe centralcharacterisforcedtoleavebehindtheordinaryworld,entering anotherrealminwhichaseriesoftestsandordealshavetobeovercome. TheformatisofferedbyTroyDunniwayasanidealnarrativetemplate for game design, its facility being based largely on the simplicity and familiarity of the form.91 Structures such as these, with their roots in oralstory-telling,havealwaysallowedforaloose,episodicstructureof a kind particularly suited to games.The emphasis tends to be on the journeyitself,andtheassortedexperiencesencounteredenroute,rather thanontheend-pointordestination,muchthesameascouldbesaidfor gamesthathaveoverarchingnarrativeframesbutinwhichthemajority of attention is devoted to the performance of the particular gameplay tasksrequiredforprogression. In Campbell’s account – which has influenced narrative theorists and practitioners, the latter including StarWars creator George Lucas –thehero’sjourneyiscomprisedof25separateplotcomponents,from ‘TheCalltoAdventure’to‘FinalVictory’.Manyofthoseinbetween,
49
50
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS suchas‘MonsterCombat’,‘TheEnchantedForces&HelpfulAnimals’ and ‘Descent into the Underworld’ can easily be imagined as game ingredientsorlevels.AsimplifiedandupdatedversionbyChristopher Vogler includes as an early stage‘The Reluctant Hero’, a device used ingamessuchasMaxPayne,TheGetaway,PrimalandBuffytheVampire Slayer to provide moral justification for the actions of the playercharacter.92 In both Max Payne and The Getaway, the central figure is forced by circumstances, against his will, into a series of extremely violentencounterswithbothpoliceandcriminalforces.InPrimaland Buffythecentralcharactershavetheirheroicdestiniesfoisteduponthem by metaphysical forces.A similar set of plot components is found in theliterarytheoristVladimirPropp’searlierstudyofRussianfolktales, alargebodyofwhichisreducedtovariationsonaseriesofbasicplot ‘functions’.93Games,asJanetMurraysuggests,tendtobequitesimple andcrudeintheiruseofsuchcomponents,comparedwiththecomplex range of substitutions and rearrangements available in the folk tale.94 A small number of elements are usually repeated with only limited variation: typically, in many cases, using Propp’s typology,‘The hero is given a difficult task’, followed, eventually, by‘The hero successfully performsthetask’,andsoon.Thefactthatthenarrativedimensionof gamesisoftencrudeandsimpleshouldnotbeconfused,however,with claims that narrative is of little or no significance.The one does not followfromtheother,asissometimesimplied.Existingvideogamesmay be disappointing to some critics in their lack of narrative subtlety or sophistication, but the narrative dimension still exists and needs to be understood, both in its own terms and its interaction with gameplay. Relativelycrudenarrativematerialis,infact,probablybestsuitedtothe job,inexistinggameformats,providingafewstronghooksonwhichto hanggameplayactivitiesandwell-matchedtotheprotractedandmultilevelledengagementofmostgames. Thefamiliarityofarchetypalnarrativeframeworkssuchasthequest or the hero’s journey is such that they can be drawn upon without theneedforextensiveelaborationinanyparticularmanifestation.The notion of a central character being sent off on a quest or a series of missions, usually involving a shift out of more recognizably everyday routines,issufficientlywell-establishedasanarrativeconventiontobe accepted usually without question.This is particularly useful in forms
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS suchasvideogamesinwhichnarrativeelaborationisoftenlikelytobe experiencedasadistractionfromthemoreactiveplayingofthegame. Briefly sketched, familiar conventions provide a frame within which focuscanbedirectedtothemoreimmediatedemandsofgameplay.This isthecasewithbroadlyarchetypalformatsandwithmorespecificpreestablishednarrativeframeworkssuchasthoseprovidedbyintertextual reference.Animportantpoint,sometimesoverlooked,isthatthenarrative dimension of gameplaying is not limited to the function of narrative materialthatcanbelocatedexplicitlywithintheindividualgame-text itself.Gamescanalsoplayintothecontextofnarrativematerialelaborated elsewhere.Thisismostobviousingamesdesignedasspin-offsfromother mediaforms,suchasgamesbasedonfilmfranchises,butitcanalsoapply morewidely. AgoodexampleofthisphenomenonissuggestedbyHenryJenkins in his response to Jesper Juul’s analysis of the arcade game StarWars (1983).The game, Juul reports, comes in three phases, each involving the control of a spaceship engaged in different combat actions. In the third phase, a version of the climactic assault on the Death Star, some similaritywithscenesfromthefilmmightbedetected,Juulargues,‘but you would not be able to reconstruct the events in the movie from thegame.Theprehistoryismissing,therestofthemovie,allpersonal relations’.95StarWarsthegame,Juulconcludes,‘cannotbesaidtocontain anarrativethatcanberecognisedfromStarWarsthemovie…’96Thisis true,asfarasitgoes,butitrathermissesthepoint.Thenarrativecontext fortheactionperformedinthegameisestablishedinadvance,inthe movieand,especiallyinthiscase,asaresultoftheprominentposition itattainedinthepopularcultureofitstime.Thegamedoesnotneedto repeatanyofthismaterialtobeabletoplayintoacontextinwhichit canbeassumedthatplayerswillbeabletofititintoitsnarrativeplace, either directly, in the case of a scene based on one from the film, or moregenerally,inthesenseoflocatingactioninthebroadframeworkof rebelsvs.empireestablishedbythefilmanditssequels.Thisisthecase bothinthisindividualexampleandinthewidereconomyofwhichit isaprominentmanifestation,inwhichanimportantemphasisforlarge mediaconglomeratesisontheproductionoffranchisepropertiesthat canbeexploitedacrossarangeofdifferentmediaforms.AsJenkinsputs it:‘Increasingly,weinhabitaworldoftransmediastory-telling,onewhich
51
52
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS dependslessoneachindividualworkbeingself-sufficientthanoneach workcontributingtoalargernarrativeeconomy.’97 The value of franchise operations for media corporations is that thefamiliarityofsuccessfulpropertiesinonerealm,suchascinemaor television, can be used to sell a range of spin-off products, including games. Games are themselves the source of spin-offs in some cases, including films, but the dynamic tends to work more often in the oppositedirection.Itiseasier,generally,toadaptmorenarrative-centred formssuchasfilmandtelevisiontogamesthanitistodotheopposite. Popularfilmsortelevisionseriesprovidewell-establishedcharactersand scenariosthatcanbemobilizedingameswithouttheneedforextensive narrative elaboration in the game itself. Narrative frames established elsewhere provide contexts for gameplay more readily than gameplay –withinitsownlimitednarrativeparameters–lendsitselftocinematic adaptation, because games are usually weaker in the development of dimensionssuchasplotandcharacterthatareimportanttofilms.Filmto-game adaptations are often greeted with scepticism by gameplayers whosuspect,notunsurprisingly,thattheyarelessthanusuallylikelyto have been developed with their distinctive gameplay features in mind. Licensedpropertiescanbeattractivetodevelopers,however,andnotjust forthecommercialreasonsassociatedwiththeadvantageofhigherlevels ofawarenessfromwhichtheycanbenefitinacrowdedmarketplace.As designersDanielTanguayandBrentBoylensuggest:‘Alicensedproperty canprovideanimmediateuniverseofreferencestohelptheteamfocus ongameplayinsteadofancillarycontent.’98Theconstraintsimposedby licensedpropertiescanrestrictthefreedomofdevelopers,buttheyare freedfromtheneedtocreatetheirownnarrativecontextfromscratch. TheBuffytheVampireSlayerfranchise,forexample,hasahighbrandrecognitionfactor,spanningarangeofmediaandincludingseveralgame versions.The television show ran for seven series from 1997 to 2003, buildingaloyalaudienceforitsprotractedconstructionofacoherent fantasy world: the‘buffyverse’.With an emphasis on action – fights againstvariousvampiresanddemons–andatoughgood-lookingaction heroine,theformatlendsitselfwelltotheaction-adventuregamegenre. Thegameslocatethemselvestemporallyatvariouspointsinthestory arcestablishedbytheseries.BuffytheVampireSlayerissetduringSeason Two(BuffyisstillgoingoutwithvampireAngel)whileBuffytheVampire
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS Slayer:WrathoftheDarkhulKing(2003),onlyavailableontheGameboy Advance, is located in Season Four (when Buffy is in a relationship withtheunsuitablyhumanRiley).BuffytheVampireSlayer:ChaosBleeds makesmoregeneralallusionstoeventsthroughoutthewholeseries.99 Thesegamesspendverylittletimeestablishingcharacters,assumingthat playersarealreadyfamiliarwiththeeventsoftheseries.Asaresult,there are relatively few expository cut scenes (or the static picture and text equivalent in the more resource-restricted context of the Gameboy). TheBuffygamesalldrawheavilyonthepre-existing‘buffyverse’,with itsparticularmetaphysicalorder,createdbytheshowandotherspin-offs suchascomicsandnovellas.Variousin-jokesandnarrativeresonances areexpresslyaddressedtoBuffy-literateplayers. UsefulcomparisoncanbemadebetweentheBuffygamesandPrimal, a free-standing game that is similar in some significant respects but that has to do more work to create its own world and characters.An unusuallylargenumberofexpositionalcut-scenesarerequired,bothat thestartandthroughoutthegame.Extensivemarketingwasneededto sellfromscratchthecentralcharacter,Jen,andtheworldsheinhabits.The advertisingcampaignwasmuchbiggerthanthatusedfortheBuffygames, including expensive television spots. Competing for the same target marketastheBuffygames,Primalmakesuseofvariouscodestoidentify thenatureofthegame,creatingpointsofrecognitionforfantasy-literate gameplayers(including,asthevoiceofJen,theactorHudsonLeick,who playedatoughwomanwarriorcharacterinthetelevisionseriesXena: WarriorPrincess).AmoreriskyventurethantheBuffygames,thepay-off forPrimalisthecreationofagamethatstandsoutfrommanyothersby havingawell-developedstorylineofitsowninwhichemphasisisplaced oncharacterdevelopment,adimensionunusualingames. Forplayers,theexistenceofapre-establishednarrativeframeworkcan createaddedresonancetothegameplayingexperience,asenseofbeing abletooccupyandexplorestory-worldscreatedelsewhere.Theplayer ofoneofthemanyStarWarsspin-offgamesmight,forexample,gainan extradimensionofpleasurefromtheimpressionofinhabitingapartof theStarWarsuniverse,eitheronecloselyconnectedtotheeventsofthe filmsoronethatexistsonthemarginsofthemultiplenarrativelinesofthe series.Forenthusiastsofthefranchise,playingtheMMORPGStarWars Galaxies(2003)islikelytobeasignificantlydifferentexperiencefrom
53
54
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS thatofotherwisebroadlysimilargamesinthegenre.Acloseconnection exists in many such cases between narrative and the particular spaces inwhichitunfolds,orforwhichanarrativecontexthasbeencreated elsewhere.Thenarrativedimensionofgames,asHenryJenkinssuggests, canbeunderstoodinthecontextofatraditionof‘spatialstories’,the principaldynamicofwhichisthecreationoffictionalworldsthrough which the protagonists travel – another point of connection with the quest,theodysseyandthetravelnarrativeaswellasmorerecentworks ofsciencefictionandfantasy.Gamesconsolescanbeviewedas‘machines forgeneratingcompellingspaces’,anaspectofgamestowhichwereturn inmoredetailinthefollowingchapter.100 Game spaces can be imbued with narrative meaning in a number ofways.SpacessuchasthoseoftheStarWarsgamesevokeestablished narrative associations. Others contain what Jenkins terms ‘embedded narratives’, in which narrative material is built into the space itself, a processtermed‘environmentalstory-telling’byDonCarson,adesigner of theme park attractions cited by Jenkins, who suggests a number of techniquesthatcanbeadoptedbygamedesigners.101Thestoryelement in theme park rides and other attractions is‘infused into the physical spaceaguestwalksorridesthrough’,aprocessthatcanalsobeappliedto games.Narrativecluescanbedistributedthroughouttheenvironment, Carsonsuggests,includingtheuseof‘causeandeffectvignettes’,staged areas‘that lead the player to come to their own conclusions about a previous event or to suggest a potential danger just up ahead’.102The effectsoughtbyCarsonissimilartothatidentifiedinnarrative-oriented games by Kücklich, encouraging a process of narrative reconstruction and projection by the player. Players can also be pulled through the storybyfollowingatrailof‘breadcrumbs’,indicatorsofthepassageof apreviousfictionalcharacter,thekindofroleperformedbyWhitelyin TheThing.AsimilarconceptsuggestedbyMurrayiswhatsheterms‘the storyinthemaze’,inwhichthedevelopmentofnarrativeisagaintiedto, andemergesthrough,thenavigationofspace.103 GENRE
Gamespacescanalsoplayonestablishedgenreframeworkssuchasthose of horror, science fiction or fantasy. Genre associations take numerous forms,asdodefinitionsofgenresthemselves(weusethetermhereinthe
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS senseinwhichitiscommonlyusedinreferencetodifferentthematic, narrativeandothertypesinmediasuchasfilmandtelevision–torefer tocategoriessuchashorror,sciencefictionandfantasyratherthangamespecifictypessuchasfirst-personshooterorrole-playinggame).Some genresaredefinedatleastpartlyaccordingtotheirsettings,thealternative worlds of science fiction and fantasy, for example, which makes them readilyavailablefortheprovisionofspatial-contextualmaterialingames. Genresorsub-genrescanalsobedefinedinnarrativeterms,accordingto theparticularscenarioswithwhichtheyareassociated:Doom,Half-Life andTheThing,forinstance,asexamplesofthe‘alieninvasion’variantin science fiction. Developers and academic commentators agree on the importantrolegenrecanplayinprovidingacontextforthepursuitof gameplayactivities.Designersofgame-worldsshouldfocusinitiallyon thematicandnarrativegenresratherthangameplayconventions,Joshua Mosqueira argues,‘because genres like fantasy, sci-fi, cyber-punk, and eventheWildWestaremoreevocativeandofferabetterstartingpoint forbothstoryandgameplay’.104 World-buildingingames,asMosqueirasuggests,isaboutthecreation ofcontextasmuchasthecreationofanentire,detaileduniverse.Context provides answers to key questions such as: the identity of the playercharacter,whattheyaretryingtodo,howtheymightwinorlose,where theactionishappening,andwhy:‘Whyistheplayercrawlingthrough corridors?Whyisshegatheringresourcestobuildarmies?Towin,yes, butforthegametobeanexperience,thewhyneedstobelessabout gamemechanicsandmoreaboutinteractionand,yes,story.’105Orjust somemixtureofthetwo.Genreisaparticularlyusefulsourceofsuch context because of its familiarity, in much the same way as broader narrativearchetypesorlicensedproperties.Thisisthecaseinallpopular media,establishedgenresofferinganinstantsourceofidentificationof the kind of experience likely to be offered by a particular text. It is especiallyusefultogames,however,asmedianotsowellsuitedtothe articulationinanydepthoftheirowncontextualbackgroundbecause oftheirparticipatorystatus.Genres,likeotherarchetypes,offerinstantly recognizable frames of reference that allow gameplay to proceed with onlyminimalelaborationofthespecificscenarioofferedinanyparticular example.Themainreasonwhyonlyabriefpageofbackgroundtextis sufficientintitlessuchasDoomandHalf-Lifeisthatsomuchofthework
55
56
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS
3.Genericterritory,instantlyrecognizable:scientistandfuturist/laboratory settinginHalf-Life(1998)
in establishing their contexts is done at the level of genre associations builtintoaspectsofthegamesrangingfromtitlesandcoverarttothe designofthein-gameworld–thehigh-tech/gothiccombinationinthe formerandthearchetypalsecretresearchlaboratoryofthelatter. Genre‘helps to bind a game’s elements into a cohesive whole’, as Mosqueiraputsit,‘whileatthesametimeitprovidesabasicunderlying structureandevensuggestsgameplaymechanics’.106Genrecaninfluence gameplay options themselves, not just the background against which they are set, especially in the case of the supporting gameplay hooks. Theabilityoftheplayer-charactertoteleportfromoneplacetoanother, forexample,isgenericallymotivatedaspartoftherepertoireofscience fictioninDoom,oraspartofthemagical-fantasyqualityoftheworld ofEverQuest,inwhichitcanbeofgreatvaluetoplayersseekingarapid meansoftransitintheextensivelandscapeofaMMORPG.Theabilityto ‘gate’or‘port’,astheprocessisknown,isasignificantfactorinEverQuest gameplay.Asagameplaydevice,itmightseemarbitraryandintrusiveif itwerenotforthebroadgenericmotivation.Thisisagoodexampleof
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS thewaycontextualbackgroundtendstowork,notnecessarilydrawing attention to itself greatly for its own sake, but providing a context in which otherwise arbitrary gameplay actions make some kind of sense. Anactivitysuchasteleportationwouldbeincongruousingamessuch asGrandTheftAutoIII,MaxPayneorTheGetaway,forexample,inwhich player-characteractionshavetoapproximatenotsomuchtorealityasto theconventionallimitsofthethrillergenre. Genreoften‘scriptstheinteractor’,asMurrayputsit.107Inaninteractive horrorstory,asshesuggests,theplayeralwaysknowstoenterthehaunted house,becauseitisawell-establishedconventionofthegenre.Inagame, the player might have little choice. Not much happens, for example, if a player stays outside in the relatively uninteresting garden and does not dare enter the Old Dark House of Clive Barker’s Undying (2001). Genreprovidesacontextthatmakestheactionmeaningful,withinan establishedframeofreference,ratherthanarbitrary–afactorthatstrongly increases the immersive and pleasurable potential of the experience.A similarpointismadebyPetriLankoskiandSatuHeliö,drawingonthe schemeofnarrativecodesestablishedbyRolandBarthes.108Oneofthe codesidentifiedbyBarthesisthe‘hermeneuticcode’,whichdealswith the creation and resolution of narrative enigma – as applied to games byKücklichand,implicitly,byCarson.Anotheristhecodeof‘narrative action’,termedbyBarthestheproaireticcode,acodethattakesonanadded dimensioningames,whenmuchoftheactionistobeperformedbythe player-character. Understanding of the code of action‘is the basis for decisionmakinginagame’,109asLankoskiandHeliöputit,andparticular codesofaction–actionsthatareconventionalandexpected–arefound in particular genre frameworks.The cut-scenes of GrandTheftAuto III speaktotheplayer,RuneKlevjersuggests,andtheyspeakinaparticular way:‘Arecognizablerhetoricmeetsyou;thevoiceofagenre.’110 Genre conventions are widely used to provide motivation for the actionsrequiredofplayer-characters,tosupplycontextsinwhichactivity suchastherampantshootingspreesrequiredinmanyfirst-personshooters and third-person action adventure games does not appear entirely gratuitous.War and gangster genre conventions serve this purpose for conflictagainsthumanenemies;horror,sciencefictionandfantasyfor the destruction of the alien and otherworldly. In GrandTheftAuto III, thesub-genericcontextisthatofthenewrecruittothegangsterworld
57
58
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS makinghiswayuptheunderworldladder,acontextthatinvolvesthe performance of a variety of missions, most of which involve violence againstothers.Abroadintertextualmediacontextisestablishedinthe openingtitles,resonatingparticularlywiththecontemporaryrediscovery –as‘cool’/‘cult’objects–of1970siterationsofthiskindoflandscape: alaid-backjazz-influencedthemeevocativeofperiodcrime/car-chase movies,accompaniedbydrop-infragmentedimagesandtypeface-design suggestiveoftelevisioncop/crimeseriesofthetime.InMaxPayneand TheGetaway,thefamiliarscenarioisthatoftheoutlawedanti-hero,forced todemonstratehiscapacityforviolenceagainsthiswill.Inhorror-based games,andsomesciencefictionandfantasy,thecontextualframework tendstobemoreblack-and-white,theplayer-characterestablishedasa protagonistworkingintheinterestsofgoodagainstevilforces,overtlyin theBuffytheVampireSlayergames,lessovertlyintheResidentEvilcycle (1996–present) and slightly more ambiguously in Silent Hill 2 (2001). BloodOmen2(2002)strikesadifferentmetaphysicalandmoralchordby puttingtheplayeronthesideoftheglamorousblood-drinkingbad-boy vampire.Theseareallrelativelysimple,clear-cutcontexts.Theyhavethe virtue,forgames,ofbeingbothfamiliarfromotherproductsofpopular cultureandlendingthemselvestotheproductionofextendedvariations onthemainthemeintheshapeofwhateveractivitiesareforegrounded bythetypeofgameinwhichtheyareused. Contextualframessuchasthoseprovidedbygenreandnarrativecan bemorallyloaded,asmanyoftheaboveexamplessuggest,providingnot justpopular-culturallymeaningfulassociationbutvalue-judgement.Story orgenreframeworksoftenseektojustifythekindofbehaviourrequired oftheplayer-characterifprogressistobemadethroughthegame.Max Payne,asoperatedbytheplayer,doesnotjustindulgeinorgiesofviolence, butisaput-uponcharacterleftwithnochoiceifheistosurvive;Mark HammondinTheGetaway,likewise,isforcedintoviolentactivitiesby gangsterswhohavekidnappedhisyoungson.JamesSunderlandinSilent Hill2islookingforhiswife.Ineachofthesecases,sympathyforthe plightoftheprotagonistissoughtthroughthemelodramaticdeviceof violentintrusionintotheirdomesticlife.InsciencefictionorSF/horror hybrids,theplayer-character’staskisoftentosavetheworldorhumankind,sometimessingle-handedly,fromtheonslaughtofalienforces:John Dalton,forexample,inUnrealII(2003)andtheMaster-Chief,‘bredfor
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS combat,builtforwar’,inHalo.Wargamestend,withsomeexceptions, particularlyinthereal-timestrategyformat,toputtheplayerontheside defined–fromtheperspectiveofcreatorsandprincipaltargetmarket,at least–as‘thegoodguys’.FavouriteenemiesaretheNazisintheSecond WorldWar,theirprimaryattractionbeingtheirwidelyacceptedstatusas adversariesbeyondtheacceptablepale,andthusworthyofanymayhem inflicted by the player (exceptions include the Close Combat series, in whichtheplayercontrolsNaziforcesinanumberofSecondWorldWar scenarios);thisstrategyisgivenitsfullestexpressioninReturntoCastle Wolfenstein,inwhichtheNazi/demonicequationismadeliteral. In some cases, morally coded reference points have been imposed on games specifically to make them more acceptable, to regulators if notnecessarilytopotentialplayers.TheclassicexampleisCarmageddon (1997), in which figures to be knocked down by the player were at onestageduringaregulatorydebacleturnedfromhumanpedestrians (even if little more than bunches of fuzzy pixels) into zombies, a shift signified by changing their blood from red to green, to provide an apparent framework of moral justification for killing.Whether moral frameworkssuchasthis,andothercontextualassociations,haveamore thansuperficialimpactongameplayisthesubjecttowhichweturnin the remainder of this chapter. If narrative, genre and other resonances providecontextsinwhichgameplayoccurs,arethesedimensionsreally in-play,orjustsomewhereinthedistantbackground,duringgameplay?
Gameplay in contexts/contexts in gameplay A potentially wide variety of associational meanings can be attached tothematerialsthroughwhichgameplayisengagedinanyindividual game or game-genre.These include associations from broadly generic contexts, from particular genre-oriented narrative themes and from specific narrative products such as individual films, television shows or other cultural materials. Broader socio-cultural values can also be encodedintothegame-world,fromthekindsofmoraloppositionscited above to more overtly political-ideological implications. But how far are these dimensions likely to be in-play in games? It is one thing to identify elements such as narrative, genre or ideological significance, butquiteanothertosuggestexactlyhowoperativetheyarelikelytobe duringgame-specificactivitiessuchasthoseoutlinedinthefirstpartof
59
60
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS thischapter.Anumberoffactorscanbesuggestedthatmightshapeor determinetheextenttowhichcontextualassociationsarein-playinany particulargameoranyparticularplayingsituation.Ausefulstartingpoint istofocusongamesthathaverelativelyexplicitorcontentiouspoliticalideological dimensions, a situation in which the impact of contextual associations might be drawn more sharply to our attention (an issue towhichwereturnmoregenerallyinChapter4).Twoexamplesfrom different game genres that can serve as illustrations, alongside some of theexamplesusedearlierinthischapter,arethereal-timestrategygame CommandandConquer:Generals,alreadycitedinadifferentcontextabove, andthefirst-personshooterDeltaForce:BlackHawkDown(2003). Both games offer material typical of the kind expected in their respective game genres.The main gameplay concerns for the player of Command and Conquer are resource development, management and deployment.Barracksareconstructedandmanagedtoproducetroops; war factories or their equivalents to produce armoured and other vehicles.Moreadvancedbuildingsareusedtodevelopmorespecialized technologiesandcapabilities.Resourcesarebuiltupand/ordeployedin thefieldagainstenemiesandfordefensivepurposes.Aneyehastobekept onstrategicfactorssuchasthedevelopmentofanyparticularoffensive campaign, the availability of sources of revenue and the potential for enemyattacks.BlackHawkDowncallsforfamiliarfirst-personshooter tasks such as rapid but careful passage through the on-screen space of the game, avoiding and/or shooting enemies, taking cover, trying not to shoot figures marked as innocent civilians, taking advantage of the helpofferedbynon-playercharactercomrades,monitoringammunition andhealthlevels(whileseekingtoreplenishboth)andcompletingthe requirementsofindividualmissions. Inbothcases,thesegenericfeaturesaresituatedwithinideologically and geopolitically loaded contexts. Command and Conquer: Generals contains many points of reference uncomfortably close to geopolitical issues that were pressing and current at the time of its release, most notably the supposed‘war against terrorism’ proposed byAmerica in the wake of the attacks on theWorldTrade Center and the Pentagon in September 2001 and the invasions ofAfghanistan and Iraq led by America in 2002 and 2003.The player has a choice of playing as the UnitedStates,ChinaortheGlobalLiberationArmy(GLA).Thelatteris
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS identifiedasa‘terrorist’organization,makingkeystrategicgameplayuse ofundergroundtunnelnetworksandequippedwithweaponsincluding scudmissilelaunchers,anthraxshellsandsuicidebombers.Anumberof signifiersaretherebyputintoplaythathadacutereal-worldresonance whenthegameappeared:scudmissilesasapreviouslyfavouredweaponof theSaddamHusseinregimeinIraq,anthraxbeingamongthebiological weapons feared byAmerica and its allies (and having gained renewed saliencyafterdeathscausedbysporessentthroughtheUSmailfroma domesticsourcein2001),suicidebombersbeingcommoncurrencyof IslamicmilitantsintheMiddleEastandelsewhere,andtunnelnetworks featuringasthefavouredbaseofoperationsusedbytheal-Qaedanetwork inAfghanistan.TheGLAofthegameisnotmeanttobearepresentation ofal-Qaeda,beingmoreakintoaconventionalarmyinsomerespects.Its representationinthegame–troopsandvehicles–isdistinctlycartoonlikeinstyle,animportantelementinestablishingCommandandConquer’s modalityasagameratherthananymoreseriousgeopoliticalsimulation. But, within this arena, the game includes numerous semantic elements –unitsofmeaning–capableofplayingstronglyintoitscontemporary geopoliticalcontext.BlackHawkDownismoreexplicitlybasedonactual geopoliticalevents,itsmissionsbeinglocatedinaspecifichistoricaland geographical conjuncture: the operations of US forces in support of theUnitedNationsinSomaliain1993,anothercontextfreightedwith ideologicalimplications. Howfar,then,arethesecontextslikelytobeinoroutofplay?One waytoaddressthisquestionistoconstructanaxisofpossibilitieswith extremepositionsateitherendandalargegreyareainthemiddle.At oneextremewouldbeapurelyabstractprocessofgameplay,entirelyfree from any extrinsic associations or motivations.At the other would be anotionofgameplayfullysaturatedwithextrinsiccontextualmaterial ofonekindoranother.Neitherextremeislikelytobefullyapplicable. Gameplayisalwayssituatedsomewhereinbetween,anumberoffactors influencing the relative degree to which it might approach one or other end of the scale.The two extremes offer a useful starting place, however,fromwhichtounderstandtheextenttowhicheachneedsto bequalified. Atthefullysaturatedendofthescale,thegeopoliticalorideological dimensionofatitlesuchasCommandandConquer:Generalswouldbe
61
62
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS very strongly in play at every moment.When each particular, detailed gameplaytaskwasperformed,itwouldbedonewithfullconsciousnessof thecontextualassociation.Whenascudmissilelauncherwasdeveloped and moved into position by the GLA, for example, it would resonate strongly as a representation of the real-world equivalent used by the regimeofSaddamHusseininrecenthistory.Itmightbeexperiencedin thecontextofarealthreatposedtotheanti-Saddamforces–or,forthe opponentofactionagainstIraq,asavicariousequivalentofhittingback at US neo-imperialism.The powerfully symbolic real-world status of ‘scudmissile’wouldloomlarge,inotherwords,ratherthantheweapon beingexperiencedasjustoneamongmanyprovidedintherepertoireof agame.Inanaction-adventuretitlesuchasTheGetaway,theequivalent wouldbetheexperienceofeverygameplaytaskthroughtheimaginary lensprovidedbythegenericcontextandtheparticularsituationfacedby theplayer-character.Everydriving,shoot-outorstealthmissionwould bewoventightlyintothisframe,theplayeridentifyingcloselywiththe fictionalcharacter. Such associations can come into play, sometimes quite strongly. But theyareneverlikelytoreachapointapproachingthatoftotalgameplay saturation.Theyareboundtorecedefromconsciousness,probablyvery often, during the implementation of basic gameplay tasks, and in the formulationofbroadertacticalandstrategicapproachesinagamesuchas CommandandConquer.Thereisaroutinedimensiontogameplayofallkinds thatcannotentirelybedisplaced.InCommandandConquer,thisinvolves theminutiaeoftaskssuchaskeepingupasteadyproductionofresources, as well as larger considerations about the best combinations in which theyshouldbedeployed,whatfuturecapabilitiesshouldberesearched, howtorestricttheenemy’saccesstoresources,andsoon.Thecognitive demandimposedbytheseprocessesissuchthattheyoftenbecomethe focus of attention in their own right; it is not practicable to imagine thembeingweigheddown,always,momentbymoment,bytheavailable contextual associations.The same goes for games such asHalf-Life and TheGetaway,inwhichthegame-genericdimensionisalsoalmostcertain to come to the fore much of the time; in which Gordon Freeman or MarkHammond,andtheirgame-fictionalplights,recedeandtheplayer’s owninteractionwiththegame-worldastheworldofagame,withallof itsparticularpleasuresandfrustrations,becomesthefocusofattention.It
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS
4.ScudmissileslaunchedinattackonaUSbaseinCommandandConquer: Generals(2003):loadedwithreal-worldresonances,orjustabstractcounters inagamerepertoire?
isquitepossibletospendanentiresessionofplaystuckrepeatedlyina particularphaseofamissioninTheGetaway,forexample–shootingthe player-character’s way through a building and/or attempting a driving mission,thetwokindsofactivityoftenlinkedtogetherwithnosavepoint in between – without making any progress that activates even limited developmentsinthenarrativeconcerningHammond’seffortstolocate andrescuehisson.ThelandscapeofHalf-Lifeteemswithreferencestothe particularnarrative/genrecontext,inbothvisualiconographyandasound designfilledwithatmosphericmusicandcreepysoundeffects,including theoff-screennoisesofaliensyettobeencountered.Theenvironment,a networkofseeminglyendlesscorridors,ventilationducts,stairwaysand laboratories,isheavilycodedaccordingtogenre.Allofthis,however,can bereducedtosomethingclosertothestatusofanabstractpuzzle-maze, especiallyinlongerorrepeatedperiodsofgameplayuninterruptedbythe presentationoffreshnarrativematerial.
63
64
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS What,then,oftheotherextreme?Ifcontextualassociationscannever always be fully in play, does the routine implementation of gameplay tasksreachapointatwhichcontextualassociationsrecedeentirely?For the player of Command and Conquer as the GLA, does the production anduseofscudlaunchersoranthraxweaponsbecomeapurelyabstract feature of gameplay, in which the loaded nature of their connotations falls out of view? Does the game, as Caillois suggests, have‘no other thananintrinsicmeaning.’?111Thismaysometimesbethecaseduring gameplay, but the possibility of extrinsic, contextual meaning is never entirely absent. Much of the time, the scud launcher might just be experiencedasanotherweapon,merelyacounterinanabstractgame; onemoreitemtobeproduced,movedupintoposition,defendedfrom attackandusedagainsttheenemy.Butitremainsasignifierwhosevery particular connotative potential is always available to be mobilized in particularcircumstances.Inthesameway,‘GordonFreeman’or‘Mark Hammond’,asfictionalcharacters,mightwelldisappearfromviewquite oftenfortheplayerofHalf-LifeandTheGetaway,butcharacter,milieu andnarrativedevelopmentremainpotentiallyin-play,tovaryingdegrees, atonemomentofgameplayoranother. Even the most abstract game contains such potential, including perhapsthemostoftendiscussedexample,Tetris(1989).Thegameplayof Tetrisconsistsofrepeatedattemptstofitabstractlygeometricdescending blocks into a pattern. Janet Murray has been criticized, quite sharply, forreadingintothisanassociationalmeaning.ForMurray,inanoftenquotedpassage,thegame,althoughitwasdevelopedintheSovietUnion, ‘isaperfectenactmentoftheovertaskedlivesofAmericansinthe1990s –oftheconstantbombardmentoftasksthatdemandourattentionand thatwemustsomehowfitintoourovercrowdedschedulesandclearoff ourdeskstomakeroomforthenextonslaught’.112AsEskilinensuggests, whatMurraydoesistoprojectherowninterpretationontothegame,an actof‘interpretativeviolence’,ashetermsit,rootedin‘thedetermination tofindorforgeastoryatanycost’inordertoconstituteTetrisasanobject worthyofstudy.113Nothingislearnedofthespecificfeaturesthatmake Tetrisworkasagame.Thisistrue,butwhatisneededhere,toescapethe polemic that sometimes exists between positions constructed as those of ‘ludologists’ versus ‘narratologists’, is an appreciation of gameplay characteristics, the potential they carry for interpretive association, and
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS analysisofthelikelybalancebetweenthetwoinanyparticularsituation. Itisinthenatureofculturalproducts,includingabstract-seeminggames, thattheycantakeonmetaphoricalorassociationalmeaningofthekind Murray finds in Tetris. Similar readings of Space Invaders and Pac-Man (1980)aremadebyChrisCrawford,forexample,fromtheperspectiveof agamedesignerfullycognizantofthegame-specificqualitiesofeach.114 Tosuggestthatsuchmetaphoricalreadingscanlegitimatelybemadeis notthesameasreducinggamestosuchmeaningsorsuggestingthatthey areprimarilydefinedbythem.Thedistinctionisanimportantone.The samecanbesaidofnarrativecontext.DavidMyers,forexample,argues strongly against the value of backstory in games, suggesting that it is oftenimposedongamesforcommercialreasonsbutlikelytointerfere with,ratherthantosupport,gameplay.Itisdifficult,Myerssuggests,‘for anysingleandself-consistentbackstorytocontainthegreatbarrageof meaningsgeneratedduringplay’.115Thisistrue.Narrativeisoftenoffered asasourceofcontextwithinwhichplaycanbelocated,butitsholdis alwayslikelytobelimitedbyfactorssuchasthenatureoftheparticular gameplayexperienceinvolvedandtheorientationoftheplayer. Ifweexcludetheextremesofpurelyabstractgameplayandgameplay totallysaturatedbyassociationalmeaning,weareleftwithalargemiddle ground within which specific arguments can be made for the extent towhichcontextualmaterialmightormightnotbein-playinanyparticularexample.Whatisrequiredhere,asgenerallyinthestudyofgames, isanalysisofthegame-as-playable-text–thematerialofferedbythegame itself – and consideration of a number of different ways in which the samegametextmightbeexperiencedfromoneoccasiontoanother. It is important to stress that exactly how the balance operates betweengameplay-for-its-own-sakeandgameplay-in-contextishardto determineinotherthananapproximatefashion.Thisisnotaquestion thatlendsitselftoanexactscienceofunderstanding.Anumberoffactors can be identified, however, that might influence the extent to which contextualassociationsareinplay,including:differentmomentsofplay within any individual game or game genre; the mode of play, including factorssuchasdifficultysettingsandtheuseorotherwiseofcheatsor walk-throughs;thevolumeofexplicitreferencetocontextualmaterial inanyindividualgame;thedegreeofcontentiousnessorcontemporary resonance of contextual associations; and, crucially, the orientation of
65
66
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS players,includingtheiremotionalorintellectualinvestmentincharacter, genreorotheraspectsofcontextualbackground. Material extrinsic to the performance of core gameplay tasks is likely,onbalance,torecedefromviewasgameplayproceedswithinany particulargame.Specificframingmaterialsareusuallyforegroundedmost stronglyatthestart,inmaterialssuchasthebackstoryprovidedinthe manualandopeningcut-scenes.Asubstantialchunkofthemanualfor BlackHawkDown,forexample,isdevotedtoanaccounttitled‘Somalia: ATroubledHistory’,includingamapandgraphicalrepresentationsof statisticaldataonissuessuchaspopulationdensity,ethnicdivisionsand natural resources. The opening video sequences make stronger than usualclaimstowardsverisimilitude,mimickingtheformatofatelevision newsbroadcasttoprovidebasiccontextforthemissionsinwhichthe playertakespart.Actualityfootageanddate-stampedcaptionsthatrefer torealhistoricalmomentsareusedtogroundthegameinareal-world context.Likemanyothershootergames,thisalsoservestoestablishsome illusion of a moral context for the action.The player is situated as a causeforgood,fightingagainstmilitiaforcesthatareunderminingUN humanitarianreliefefforts.Remindersofthiscontextarealsosuppliedat thestartofeachindividualmission,severalofwhichinvolvetherescue ofUNreliefconvoys.Aseachmissionprogresses,however,theemphasis islikelytoshifttothemoregeneric,andatleastrelativelyvalue-neutral, performanceofconventionalshootertasks.116 Themissiontitled‘Besieged’inBlackHawkDown,forexample,begins with text informing the player that the task is to rescue a group of PakistaniUNtroopsprotectingasupplyconvoywhohavecomeunder siege in an urban area, the road ahead blocked.The player-character drives into the area in fixed‘rail-shooter’ mode, using a machine gun mountedonavehicletofireatenemysnipers,technicalsandmilitiamen armedwithrocketpropelledgrenades,dismountingwhentheconvoyis reached.Thetaskisthentodealwithsnipersinsurroundingbuildings andenemyforcesontheground,negotiatingstreetsandbombed-out interiors before eventually placing charges on a truck that has been used to block the road, at which point the missions ends in success. Carehastobetaken,especiallyatthestart,toavoidshootingPakistani troops by mistake (killing too many‘friendlies’ or‘innocent civilians’ leads to mission failure and a requirement to start again). Initially, the
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS specificscenario,inthe‘UShumanitarianmissioninSomalia’context, isquitevisibleandintheforeground,graphicscontributingbyevoking a reasonably concrete sense of grounding in a particular place. As the mission proceeds, however, the basics of shooter gameplay come increasinglytothefore. A game-specific decision has to be made about where and when to save the game, a limited number of saves being permitted in each mission(inthiscasesix).Tooearlyandprofligateuseofsavesisliableto makethelatterstagesofthemissionmoredifficulttocompletewithout largerportionsofrepetition.Savingcomesintoplay,asinsomanygames, becauseoftheconstantlikelihoodoftheplayer-characterbeingkilled andhavingtostartagain.Everytimetheplayerhastosaveandrestart from an earlier point, any notion of immersion in association-specific contextislikelytobereduced,asgameplaymechanicsintrudefurther intotheexperience.Othershootergamespecificsalsocomerapidlyinto play, such as the need to monitor available levels of ammunition and health.Inanearlypass,theplayermightbetooprofligatewithbullets from the character’s main weapon (an M16 rifle) and struggle, later, whenreducedtofightingfirstwithapistolandthenwithjustaknife. Areturntoanearliersave,ortothestartofthemission,mightbeused tocorrectthebalance,touseM16bulletsmorejudiciously.Reduction inthecharactershealthlevelcreatesasimilardynamic,mayberequiring morecarefuluseofcover.Theplayeralsohastobeonthelookout,asin allshootersandmanyaction-adventures,forhealthboosts(one,atleast,is available)andfurthersuppliesofammunition(no,can’tfindany,somight havetobacktrack). Contextualassociationsarelikelytoslipfurthestfromviewinextreme statesofplay,atitsmostheightenedand,equally,atitsmostpotentially tedious.Littleperceptualorcognitivespacemaybeleftforawarenessof contextwhengameplayisatitsmostfastandfurious:whentheplayerhas tomovefasttoshootandavoidbeingshot,especiallywhenammunition orhealtharelow(thelatterbeingwhenthestakesarehighest,especially if a long stretch of the mission will have to be repeated in the event of death).Attention has to be paid, simultaneously, to navigation, the interfaceprovidingamapthatindicatesthedirectionoftheobjective,the directionofenemyfireandthelocationoffriendlyandunfriendlyforces. Similarlevelsofdemandareimposedinthemostheightenedperiodsof
67
68
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS actioninareal-timestrategytitlesuchasCommandandConquer:Generals, whenattentionhastobepaidtosimultaneousongoingdevelopments onmultiplefronts.Ifcontextualassociationsoftenoccupyaplaceinthe background,thisislikelytobeincreasedundertheseconditions,inthe caseofthegeopolitical-ideologicaldimensionsofBlackHawkDownand Command and Conquer or the narrative/genre resonances of the more intensiveexchangesingamessuchasHalf-LifeandTheGetaway. Aheightenedstateofplaymightinvolveself-consciousconcentration ongame-specifictasksorsomethingclosertoCsikszentmihalyi’sconcept offlow,oneofthedefiningcharacteristicsofwhichis,precisely,toshut out everything other than an intense focus on the immediate task at hand. Regimes of saving-and-repeating can add to the intensity of the experience, especially in games such as Max Payne that permit an extremely rapid resumption of play.They can also create frustration, however,andsometimesboredom,whenaplayerisforcedintomultiple repetitions.This is another situation in which contextual background is likely to be reduced to the more distant background, the gameplay situationtakingtheshapeofanabstractproblemtobeovercomerather thanonethatretainsmuchinthewayofcontextualdepth.Gamesoften buildelementsofvariationintorepeatedattemptsatmissions,inaneffort tomaintaininterestandreducethelikelyalienationoftheplayer.These can,insomecases,helptosomeextenttomaintaincontextualawareness. In The Getaway, for example, scripted comments made by the playercharacterchangetoadegreefromoneattemptatamissioncomponent toanother.Theeffectistocreateaslightlystrongersensethanwould otherwisebethecaseoftheexperiencebeingmediatedbyacharacter, inanarrative-orientedsituation,ratherthanjustanabstracttasktobe performed(again)bytheplayer. Theextenttowhichcontextualassociationsareinplaycanalsovary accordingtotheparticularmodeinwhichagameisplayed:whetheron ‘easy’,‘normal’or‘difficult’settings,orwhethercheatsorstrategyguides areused.Ineasiermodes,orwiththeuseofaids,theplayercanmovemore swiftlythroughthegame.Thismighttendtoincreaselikelyattentionto contextualmaterial,creatingagreaterimpressionofprogressingthrough thespecificmilieuestablishedinanindividualtitle,ratherthanbecoming boggeddowninmoreabstracttasks.Theactofimplementingcheats,or consultingaguide,mightalsohavetheoppositeeffect,however,directing
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS attentiontothedimensionofgameplay-task-to-be-achievedratherthan thatofperforminginaparticularmilieu. Thevolumeofexplicitreferencetocontextualmaterialcanalsovary extensivelyfromonegametoanother,ashasalreadybeensuggestedin the case of narrative. Even with its highly contemporary geopolitical resonances,CommandandConquer:Generalsisrathervagueintermsof backstory,thesupposedrootsofitsconflictnotbeingexplicitlystated. Playersare,presumably,expectedtobringtobeartheirownbroadrealworldfamiliaritywithactualandpotentialconflictbetweentheUnited States,ChinaandtheGLA.BlackHawkDownismuchmoreexplicitand detailed.Differencescanalsobefoundintheextenttowhichreminders of context are provided in the thick of the gameplay. Command and Conquercontainsmanydetailsthathighlightthereal-worldgeopolitical context within the imaginary space of the game.The missions unfold inversionsofrealplaces,includingsomedirectlyinvolvedinrecentor contemporary conflict at the time of the game’s release. In one GLA missiontodestroyaUSairbase,forexample,itisnotablethatthebaseis namedasIncirlikinTurkey,oneofthekeybasesfromwhichUSplanes flew in the 1991 attack on Iraq.And the first mission played by the UnitedStatesseesUStroopsstationedoutsideBaghdad,muchasrealUS troopswereshortlyafterthereleaseofthegame;inthegame-fiction,the GLAuseanthraxinanattackonUStroopswhomoveintothecity,the kindofanticipateduseofbiologicalweaponsthatwasfearedbutfailed tomaterializeintherealthing. TheUSandGLAgameplayoptionsofCommandandConquer:Generals alsoresonatetoasignificantextentwiththereal-worldequivalent:the importance, especially, of air power to the US and the strategic use of tunnelnetworkstotheGLA.Itsexclusiveaccesstoairpoweroftenseems togivetheUSaconsiderableadvantage,ifnotasgreatastheoverwhelming superiorityenjoyedintherealworld.PlayingastheGLA,theplayerfaces theconstantprospectofbombingsthatinflictseveredamageonbasesor advancedforces.Thesecanbecountered,theplayerlearns,throughthe developmentofsufficientnumbersofairdefences.PlayingastheUS,lifeis sometimesmadeeasierthroughtheuseofairpower,notalwaysinvolving anyactiononthepartoftheplayer.Towardstheendofthemissionset inandaroundBaghdad,forexample,whenthetaskistodestroyaGLA scudfacility,theplayermightassemblealargeforcereadytotakeona
69
70
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS defensive line of GLA tanks.As the US force approaches, however, an automatedradiocallismadeforairsupport;afuel-airbombisdropped, wipingoutthedefensiveforcewithouttheplayerneedingtoliftafinger. Snippetsofdialoguealsoactasremindersofreal-worlddiscourse,evenif reducedtothestatusofcomedyquips.‘Americancowards;fightonthe ground,likemen’,isone,relatedtotheuseofairpower.Anotherdeclares: ‘ThearroganceoftheUSAcannotgounanswered.’ The contextual resonances of Command and Conquer: Generals are more likely to come into play than most because of their particularly contentiousandcontemporarynature,anotherfactorinthegameplay/ context equation. Explicit connection with events in the forefront of public attention at the time of release is likely, on balance, to increase the extent to which associational material remains in focus.The realhistorical-political background setting of Black Hawk Down was some yearsinthepastwhenthegameappeared,afactorlikelytolowerthe impactofsuchresonances(earliergamesintheCommandandConquer seriesincludecounter-factualversionsofColdWarconflictbetweenthe SovietUnionandwesternAllies,aswellasmorefancifulextrapolations). ThegamealsolockstheplayerintotheperspectiveoftheUSmilitary,a factorlikelytomakeitlesscontentiousformany,exceptthoseopposed to US military interventions overseas. Command and Conquer: Generals combinedtimelinesswiththestrategygameconventionofallowingthe playertoplaythe‘other’side;factorslikelytomakeitmorecontentious, tobringassociationalmaterialrelativelymorestronglyintoplay,regardless ofwhetherthe‘other’sideisdefinedhere,foroneplayeroranother,as theUSortheGLA.Playedjustbefore,duringorimmediatelyafterthe American-led attack on Iraq in 2003, the game entered an extremely heightenedcontextinwhichitsassociationalmeaningsmightbemore than usually likely to be drawn to the foreground of attention. An extendedversionofthiskindofgrabbed-from-the-headlinesexperience, includingthesametheatreofoperations,wassubsequentlyofferedbythe subscription-basedonlineKuma\Warseriesofgames,launchedin2004, providing a number of squad-based shooter games, regularly updated, basedonreal-worldmissionsfromveryrecenthistory.117Initialoptions includedare-enactmentoftheoperationinJuly2003thatresultedin the death of Saddam Hussein’s sons, Uday and Qusay, and other antiinsurgency missions in post-invasion Afghanistan and Iraq, including
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS responsetoanattackonanIraqipolicestationinFallujahthatoccurred onlyweeksbeforeitsconversionintothegame.Ineachcase,Kuma\War isdesignedtokeepthereal-worldreferentcloselyintheplayer’smind, mission gameplay being supplemented by news-style video sequences, textandothersourcesofreferenceinwhichdetailisgivenoftheevents on which it is based (including comment on exactly how real-world missionshavebeenreflectedorheightenedinthetransitionintogames). Elsewhere, the more generic-seeming the associational context – the morefamiliarandgenerallyuncontestedabackgrounditmightconstitute –thelesslikelyitmaybeforitscontextualmaterialtocomestrongly intoplay.TheSecondWorldWar,forexample,issufficientlydistancedin timeand,inmostcases,sufficientlyuncontentious(assumedgenerallyto beasimplemoralcrusade,eveniftherealitywasmorecomplex),tohave gainedlargelyunproblematicgenericstatus,asafamiliarandcomfortable contextthatcanremainprimarilyinthebackground. Anothercruciallyimportantfactorindeterminingtheextenttowhich associationalmaterialislikelytobeinplayornotisthereceptivity,and particularorientation,oftheindividualplayer.Inthecaseofgeopolitical orideologicalcontext,especially,someplayersarefarmorelikelytobe attunedtosuchmaterialthanothers–ormoreconcernedaboutsuch matters,makingthemlikelytoplayintothegamingsituation.Forthe playeropposedtotheAmericaninterventionsinSomaliaorIraq,playing BlackHawkDownorCommandandConquer:Generalsislikelytobean experienceinwhichcontextualassociationscannotbekeptatbay.AnantiwarprotestormightfinditdifficulttobringthemselvestoplayCommand andConquerastheUS,especiallyinthespringandearlysummerof2003, andmightexperienceplayingtheGLAasaformofimaginary-symbolic response.AkeensupporteroftheattackonIraqmightbeequallyattuned tocontextualresonances,iffromanopposingperspective.Foraplayer lessinformedaboutorexercisedbytheissue,manypointsofcontextual associationmightbemissedorignored,infavourofaconcentrationon materialspecifictothegame-genre.Acontributingfactormightbethe familiarityoftheplayerwiththeparticulargenreinvolved.Toafanof thefirst-personshootergenreperse,forexample,agamesuchasBlack HawkDownmightbejustanothervariationoftheformula,recognized assuch,inprimarilygame-genericterms,theparticulargarbinwhichit isproducedtakingtheformofrelativelysuperficialveneer.
71
72
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Player interest, familiarity and expertise can also be a factor in the potentialforthemobilizationofresonancesprovidedbynarrative,genre or particular franchises.To the fan of StarWars or StarTrek a greater dimension of contextual association might be experienced in any of the many spin-offs from the two franchises – a sense of occupying a spacewithinaparticularworld,withinwhichgameplaytasksaretobe performed,ratherthanamoreneutralorgame-genre-specificarenain whichtodothesame.Thesenseofthepresenceofafictionalcharacter, as opposed to just the player-playing, is also likely to be stronger in suchcontexts.TothefanofBuffytheVampireSlayer,playingasacentral character in which emotion is invested in one of the Buffy games, their own performance – good or bad – might be measured against that associated with the character.A fan of science fiction or fantasy more generally might pay extra attention to genre-specific contextual detailfoundinanytitlethatfitsintothosecategories.Playerorientations such as these can affect gameplay decisions and outcomes. Playing as aJediknightintheStarWarstie-ingameThePhantomMenace(1999), forexample,themorehighlyattunedplayermightchooseanapproach based on the minimal use of force, in accordance with the Jedi code established more generally in the franchise.The result, in a particular engagement,canbedifferentfromthatexperiencedbyaplayerwhoacts inthemoredirectandforcefulmannercharacteristicofmanyothertitles inthethird-personaction-adventuregenretowhichthegamebelongs. Depending on the orientation of the player, the balance between gameplayasamoreabstracttaskandgameplaythattakesonassociational resonancecanshift,sometimesinwhatmightbeunexpecteddirections. SomeofthemissionsinBlackHawkDown,forexample,culminateina dashonthepartoftheplayer-charactertothepointatwhichtheUS troopsaretobeextracted.Thisusuallyentailsfightingoffenemyforces ontheway.Inthemission‘RadioAidid’,aconsiderabledistancehasto becovered,acrossopengroundandbehindthecoverofbuildings,before escape is achieved. Played with few if any saves left, this can be quite demanding, requiring a number of repetitions.The primary emphasis, then, tends to fall on repetitive core gameplay activity that involves disposingofnumerouslargelyabstractfigures.Inthiscase,geopoliticalideological context can come back into play through the process of abstraction.Foraplayersufficientlyattunedtotheissue,itisprecisely
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS thenotionofhavingtokillhordesofabstractfiguresthathaspotential to resonate with the real world context, in which racist-ideological frameworkscastthealien‘other’asafacelessanddisposablemass.Thisis adynamicbuiltstronglyintothefilmfromwhichthegametakesitstitle, inwhichstrongemotionalemphasisisputonthefateofasmallnumber ofAmericanservicemenduringoperationsinwhichlargenumbersof enemydeathsarepresentedasnosignificantcauseforconcern. Iftheextenttowhichcontextualassociationsareinplayislikelytovary accordingtoanumberoffactors,aswehavesuggested,cananybroader conclusionsbemade,anytendenciesthatoverridedifferencesfoundfrom onemomentofplaytoanother?Ingeneral,thebalancebetweengameplay andmeaningscreatedbyassociationalcontextislikelytofavourtheformer overthelatter.AninstancesuchasplayingCommandandConquer:Generals attheheightoftheattackonIraqin2003,withcontemporaryresonances hardtoescape,isanextremecase;and,evenhere,theroutine,game-genrespecificdemandsofgameplayareoftensufficienttooccupyallormost oftheattentionoftheplayer,eveniftheplayerishighlyreceptivetothe contextualdimension.Ifgameplayactivitiesandcontextualbackground imposerivaldemandsonthecognitiveresourcesoftheplayer,asLindley suggests(inhiscase,theemphasisbeingongameplayvs.narrativegestalts), something might have to give.What gives is always most likely to be richnessofcontextualbackground,forthesimplereasonthatgameplay canproceedwithoutanynoticeableattentiontobackgroundwhilethe opposite is not the case.When it comes down to it, gameplay is more likelytooperateastheprimaryframethatcontextualizes and attimes obscuresextrinsicreferents. Specificcontextualdetailislessessentialtogamesthanbasicgameplay activity,anditisoftenlocatedinthebackground.Thatisnottosaythatit doesnotstillperformanimportantroleintheoverallexperienceoffered bymanygames,evenifitmightshiftinandoutoffocusduringgameplay. Familiar background, such as that provided by genre frameworks or geopoliticalassumptions,establishesagroundfromwhichgameplaycan proceed,drawingonestablishedculturalcompetencesthatdonotneed overtlytobeactivatedatallmomentstobe‘inplay’inabroadersense. Thegreatmajorityofgames,infact,drawonsomekindofbasicrealworld,humanorsocio-culturalcontext,reproducingsomeversionofa recognizableworldwithinwhichgameplayproceeds,eveninthehighly
73
74
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS stylizedclose-to-abstractuniverseofatitlesuchasPac-Man.Inessential qualities of games – like inessential qualities of other media products –canalsocontributesignificantlytothedistinctiveimpressioncreated byanyparticulartitle,eitherinthetotalgameplayexperienceitselforin establishingcommercialgroundsforproductdifferentiation. AswearguedintheIntroduction,gamesstudyrequirestheanalysis ofanumberofdifferentdimensionsofgames,includingbothgameplay and the meaning-creating contexts in which it is situated, even if the latter are often relegated to a secondary position at the height of the gameplaying action.The two cannot entirely be separated, even for a commentatorsuchasLarsKonzack,forwhomoneisclearlyprivileged overtheother.Thesemanticmeaningsofagamearesecondarytoits primaryludologicalstructure,Konzackargues: Thesignsconveyingmeaningareindeedsuperficial,buttheystillhelpin puttingthegameintoperspective.Twogamesmayhaveexactlythesame gameplay,butbyhavingdifferentornamentalsignsandnarratives(suchas pictures,soundsand/ortext)theyconveydifferentmeaningsofwhatis happeninginthetext.118
The term ‘ornamental’ implies a more dismissive attitude towards contextualmaterialthanseemstobesuggestedbytheconclusionthat differentmeaningsarebeingconveyed.Thereissomeempiricalevidence tosuggestthatthegarbinwhichgameplayactivitiesisclothedcanhave asubstantialimpactontheplayingexperience.Inonestudyinvolving childrenaged11and12,twostructurallyidenticalgameswereofferedto groupsdividedongenderlines.119Eachwassetinadifferentimaginary context: a quest to recover a king’s crown and a quest to find bears’ missinghoney.Theformercontainedovertlymale-genderedcharacters whilethelatterusedrepresentationsdesignedtobeasneutralaspossible. Boysperformedmuchthesameineachversionbuttheperformanceof girlswasgreatlyincreasedinthegender-neutralversion,anoutcomethat suggests the potential significance of contextual background:‘Despite theconstraintsanddemandsofthetaskbeingidenticalinbothversions ofthesoftware,theimagesandmetaphorsusedto“carry”thetaskhada crucialbearingongirls’interactionwiththesoftware.’120 Manygamesoffergameplaytasksandactivitiesverysimilartoothers
GAMEPLAY AND ITS CONTEXTS in the same game genre, as suggested in the first part of this chapter. Theseactivitiesarethemostdistinctiveaspectofgames,asgames,and need to be identified and analyzed as such. Contextual background material might often appear to be a relatively superficial source of product differentiation. It can have considerable impact on the overall experienceofferedtotheplayer,however,asindicatedbytheexample citedaboveandmanyothersoutlinedinthischapter.Acompletestudy ofgamesneedstotakebothlevelsintoaccount,alongwithanumberof others.121Thepleasuresofferedbygamesarecomplexandmulti-layered. Gameplayhasitsownintrinsicappeals.Itmightbesaidthatthesecan beheightenedbythelocationofgameplaywithinrecognizablecontexts, butthispresumesthatmorethanaveryrudimentarygameplaycanever existoutsidesomekindoflegiblecontextualframework.Ifgameplayis oftentothefore,itmightbearguedthatthisisonlypossibleasaresultof theexistenceofthecontexts–broadandmorespecific,crudeorsubtle –withinwhichitmakesanysense.
75
2 Gamescapes Exploration and Virtual Presence in Game-Worlds
Theexplorationofgame-worlds,andthecreationofasenseofpresence inthevirtualon-screenenvironment,canberelatedtodimensionssuchas narrativeandthegenericresonancesofgamesconsideredintheprevious chapter. Exploration of game-space, as we have seen, can be a way of realizingpre-structurednarrativedesign.Thecreationofimpressionsof presence might also increase the extent to which contextual material remainsinplay,generatingasenseofimmersioninthespecificgameworldaswellasinmoreabstractgameplaytasks.Explorationandthesense ofpresencethatresultsfromthecreationofsensoryimmersioninthe gamescapecanalsobecentraltotheaccomplishmentofgameplaytasksin manygames.Bothexplorationandthecreationofasenseofpresenceare importantaspectsofgamesintheirownright,however,withtheirown intrinsicdynamicsandappeals.Evenwhereexplorationiscloselylinked tothepursuitofgoalsormissionsthatadvancetheplayerthroughgame levels,forexample,itcanincludescopetomovemorefreelywithinand throughavarietyofon-screenlandscapes,apleasurethatcanbeindulged foritsownsake.Morethansimplyabackgroundsetting,theworldofthe gameisoftenasmuchaprotagonist,orevenantagonist,asitsinhabitants. The‘defining element’ of videogames is spatiality, according to Espen
GAMESCAPES Aarseth, who argues that games are‘essentially concerned with spatial representationandnegotiation’,1issuesthathaveoftenbeenneglectedin debatesbetweenthosestyledasludologistsandnarratologists.2 Thischapterisorganizedaroundtwoprincipaldimensionsofspacein thegamescape.Westartbyconsideringthedegreesoffreedomofferedby differentgames,fromthemostrestrictivetothosewhichoffermaximum potentialforspatialexploration,includingconsiderationofissuessuchas modesofnavigationandlocomotionwithinthegame-world.Wethen lookatthedegreetowhichgamescreatefortheplayeranimpression of virtual presence within the gamescape, a mediated sense of spatial immersionwithintheon-screenworld.Ourfocuswillrangefromthe large scale – the way entire game-worlds are structured spatially and renderednavigable–toclosertexturaldetailthatseekstofabricatean impressionofvirtualembodiment,immediacyandpresence.
Degrees of Freedom Atthemostrestrictiveendofthespectrumaregamesthataffordnoscope forspatialexploration.InclassicexamplessuchasPong(1972)andTetris,a singlefixedscreen-spaceconstitutestheentiregamearena,withinwhich theplayerhasverylittleroomforanyactivityotherthanthatrequired byimmediateresponsetothecentralgametask.Amodicumoffreedom is provided by Pac-Man, but within extremely limited single-frame confinesandheavilyconstrainedbytheneedtoavoidenemies.Agreater impression of movement through space is provided by side-scrolling games,suchasDefender(1980)andSuperMarioBrothers(1985),butthis alsoremainsentirelyrestricted.Greaterscopeforexplorationisusually associated with games that produce more detailed three-dimensional worldsthroughwhichtheplayer-charactermoves,althoughtheprincipal gameplaytasksofmany3Dgamesaresuchasnottoencourageadesign thataffordsgreatscopeforexploration.Themainactionofsportsgames, forexample,isoftenconfinedtofixedtracksorarenas.Inracinggames, the track defines the path to be taken. Even in off-road rally games, suchastheColinMcRaeRallyseries,thescopetoventureoffthetrack is usually very limited. Spatial restriction is also an integral feature of manybeat-‘em-upandwrestlinggamesinwhichfightingtakesplacein localizedarenas,keepingcombatantsincloseproximitytooneanother. In some games the player-character is carried through the game-
77
78
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS worldinmuchthesamemannerastheoccupantofathemeparkride, asifonrails,hencethenamegiventotherail-shooterformatusedasthe basisforgamessuchasStarFox(1993)andthearcade-styleTheHouse oftheDeadcycle(1998–2002).On-railstyperestrictionisalsofoundin somecasesinotherfirst-personshooters,includingtheMedalofHonor series(from1999)inwhichtheplayer-characterisoccasionallyrooted to a position such as operating a machine gun fixed in the back of a truck.Inmanycases,lowerdegreesoffreedomtoexploreareassociated witholdergamesdesignedforplatformswithfewerprocessingresources than those of today.This correlation is far from absolute, however, as suggestedbythefactthattherail-shooterformatisstillusedinotherwise innovativeexamplessuchasRez(2002),athird-persongameinwhich freedomofmovementisrestrictedtoleft/rightandup/downmotions (toacquirepower-upsandshootenemyvirusesandfirewalls)withina predefined trajectory through the simulated space of the interior of a computer.Restrictionisalsofundamentaltogameplayintheupdated 3D equivalents of earlier 2D platform-based games, examples such as Super Monkey Ball (2001), in which the player is required to keep a rollingball(containingamonkey)onvarioustilting,angledandmoving platforms. Restricted on-rails movement is also used in some cases to movetheplayerfromonespacetoanother,creatingtheimpressionof theexistenceofalargergame-worldthanthatwhichcanbeexplored bytheplayerwhileavoidingtheuseofatransitionalcut-scene;examples includetheroller-coaster-stylemine-cartrideusedinanearlylevelof AmericanMcGee’sAliceandtheopeningtrain-ridesequenceofHalf-Life. Capacity for exploration also remains limited in many graphically rich3Dgame-worlds,foratleasttworeasons.Resourcemanagementis onefactor,evenwithever-increasingprocessingpower,becauseofthe demandsmadebyothergamecomponentssuchasgraphicsrenderingor theimplementationofparticulargameplayoptions.ThedesignersofThe LordoftheRings:TheTwoTowers,forexample,chosetolimitexploration in favour of filling the game with resource-intensive movie clips and detailed, high-resolution graphics.While the franchise lends itself to theexploratoryfreedomassociatedwitharole-playinggame(ofwhich thereisaversion,WaroftheRing[2003]),TheTwoTowersemphasizesthe digitalrecreationofbattlescenesfromthefirsttwofilmsinthetrilogy, intowhichtheplayer-characterisplacedtofightthroughmassedenemy
GAMESCAPES
5.Spatialrestrictionasbasisofgameplay:SuperMonkeyBall(2001).
hordesordobattlewithaboss.Scopeforexploratoryfreedomistightly constrainedthroughout,theemphasisofthegamebeingonthebuilding andhoningofplayer-characterfightingskills. Restriction should not be understood only in negative terms, however.Itisalsothebasisformanykeygameplayeffectsthatresultfrom channellingtheplayerorplayer-characterinparticulardirections.Much ofthefunofarestrictivegamesuchasSuperMonkeyBallliesprecisely in manoeuvring within a spatially designated path. Restriction is also integraltogamesthatoffergreatermarginsforfreedomofexploration. ThisisespeciallytrueofJuul’s‘gamesofprogression’,inwhichtheplayer’s primary role is to realize a pre-existing structure of events.3 Limiting and directing the movement of the player-character is essential to the creationofpleasurableeffectssuchasfearandsuspenseinhorror-based games, for example, or creating a linear narrative framework of some kindwithinwhichgameplayactivitiesaresituated. Many 3D action-adventure or first-person shooter games occupy a spacebetweentheextremesofrestrictionandfreedomtoexplore.Apresetpathisoftencombinedwithdegreesoffreedomtoexplorearound
79
80
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS themargins.Theplayer-characterisoftenrequiredtomovethroughand investigatethegamespace,toprogressandalsotofindobjectssuchas ammunitionandhealthpower-upshelpfulornecessarytoprogression. Thisofteninvolvesperiodsofexplorationthatarenotnecessarilyfruitful, but that may be enjoyable (or in some cases frustrating, or a balance betweenpleasureandfrustration)intheirownright.Manygamespaces aredesignedspecificallytoprovidescopeforexploration,oftenincluding excessivelyconvolutedstructures(largeorsmall),theprimarymotivation forwhichistofacilitatespatialinvestigation.Examplesincludewhatthe designerErnestAdamsdescribesasthe‘strangeandwastefuldesign’of onebuildingcomplexinQuake,4thecomplexcavesystemsencountered inthefirstTombRaiderandthegothicgrandeurofthe‘olddarkhouse’ inCliveBarker’sUndying. Invitationstoexploretakevariousformsinsuchgames.Thetempting glint of a possibly useful object might lure players from their chosen path,adeviceoftenusedintheTombRaiderseries.Thevistaofanew areaglimpsedthroughawindoworappearingbetweenfeaturesofthe immediate environment might also distract the player from a more immediate goal, especially when presented in an aesthetically striking orattractivemanner–anaspectofgamedesignconsideredindetailin the following chapter.A dynamic interchange is often found between concealment and revelation of space, a spatially oriented device that bearscomparisonwiththoseusedtostructureinformationandevents in more narrative-led media.The pay-off for successful exploration is often the revelation of new spaces that offer further challenges of the sameordifferentkind.Inducementtoexplorespacesthoroughlycanalso makesensefromacommercialperspective,increasingtheamountofplay thatcanbegeneratedwithinasinglegamescape.Somehorror-oriented games,suchasLegacyofKain:SoulReaver(1999)andSilentHill,invitethe playertoexplorethesamespacemorethanonce,indifferentdimensions. InSilentHill,ashiftoccursbetweentheworldsoftheostensibly‘ordinary, everyday’andofthefantasticalnightmare.Switchingfromthematerial tothespectralplaneinLegacyofKainrevealsnewfeaturesthatmustbe exploredandinvestigatediftheplayeristogainaccesstocertainpartsof thegame-world. Encouragementtoexplorecanalsobemoredirect.PlayersofUnrealII areinvitedbyanon-playercharactertoexplorethehome-basespaceship
GAMESCAPES when they first enter it, a small space in this case that, once mapped, becomesabasetowhichtoreturntoreceivemissionsandequipment. Cues that promote exploration are often provided, sometimes in a teasingmanner,asinAmericanMcGee’sAlice.WhenAliceasksonenonplayercharacterifhecanhelpherbecomeverysmall,toaccessatiny entrance, she is told:‘The Fortress of Doors holds such secrets. But youwillneedmorethanawishtogetinside.’Game-worldsareoften designedtoobscurefromviewimportantfeaturessuchasentrancesto newspaces,requiringplayerstoexploreinamorethancursorymanner ifprogressistobemade,eveningamesinwhichprogressionisfavoured overexplorationforitsownsake.Exploratorydeviationfromprimary goalsisalsoencouragedbytheinclusionofsecrets,‘Eastereggs’orother pick-up materials not directly related to the main goal of the game – the exploration required to find the tarot cards planted in Primal, for example,someofwhicharequitewellhiddenandeasilymissedifplayers donottaketimetoexploretheavailablespacethoroughly.Somehelpful power-upsinTombRaiderarealsoobscurelyplaced,theirstatussignalled bytheon-screenmessage‘youhavefoundasecret’;asimilarfeatureis foundinQuakeII(1997).Enticementstoexplorecanalsocomefrom out-of-gamesourcessuchasgamereviewsorcommunicationwithother players.TheproducersofEverQuestatonepointofferedthefollowing message-hintinthegame’s‘tip’window:‘nopeekingoverthebigholein Paineel.Thatreallyisadeep,darkhole,andifyoufallin,youwillmost likelydie,anddon’tthinkyourlevitationwillsaveyou’;awarning,yes, butalsoperhapsatantalizinginvitationtothemoreintrepidplayer. Thebalancebetweenfreedomandrestrictionvariesfromonegameto another,asisthecasewiththedistinctionbetweenrulesandfreedomin gameplaymoregenerally.Mostgamescanbecharacterized,atvariouslevels, bythebalanceofferedbetweentheconstraintscreatedbyrulesandgoals andthescopeallowedfor‘playingaround’morefreelywithinthegameworld;betweenpaideaandludus,assuggestedinthepreviouschapter.In Half-Life,forexample,restrictionpredominates.Thegamescapeconsists ofseeminglyendlesssequencesofcorridors,ventilationducts,stairwells andlaboratories,throughwhichtheplayerisencouragedtomoveina primarilylinearfashion.5Somescopeisgivenforpaidea,primarilyinthe formofnon-essentialdestructionoftheenvironment,butrelativelylittle inthewayoffreedomtoexplore.TheTombRaidergames,bycontrast,
81
82
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS offerlargertraversablespacesinwhich,onbalance,muchmoretimeis likelytobespentinexploration.SomewherebetweenthetwoliesUnreal II,whichswitchesbetweenwhatmightbetermedthe‘corridoring’of playermovement(oftenliterally,sometimesmetaphorically)inHalf-Life andthefreedomtoexploreofTombRaider.Insomegames,theplayercan onlymovearelativelyshortdistancefromthepre-structuredpath,often little more than a narrow passage of navigable space.Appealing vistas oftenexistthatcannotbeexplored.Inothers,widerlatitudeisallowed, asinSilentHill2,inwhichquitelargeareasofthemist-shroudedtownin whichthegameissetareopenforgeneralexplorationatanyonetime. Earlysequencesrequiretheplayertoexplorethespaceavailableinsearch ofclues,buttheenvironmentcanalsobeexploredforitsownsake.From anindustrialperspective,increasingtheextenttowhichthegame-world canfreelybeexploredcanbeausefulsourceofproductdifferentiation, asinthecaseofFarCry(2004),afirst-personshooternotableatthetime ofreleaseforboththedetailofitsgraphicsandthefreedomgiventothe playertomovearounditstropicalislandsetting. Limitstoexplorationcanbecharacterizedas‘hard’boundaries,absolute restrictions in the gameplaying arena, and‘soft’ boundaries that act as temporary barriers but that can be traversed under certain conditions (a key needed to open a door, for example; hard boundaries can also be rendered soft in special circumstances such as the use of‘no-clip’ cheatcodestoenabletheplayer-charactertotraverseotherwisesolidly rendered structures). Both types of boundary can function to control the movements of players. Soft boundaries, a product of obstacles set fortheplayer,areusuallygivenjustificationthroughthefictional-world activitiesinwhichtheplayer-characterisinvolved.Hardboundariesare alsogivenplausiblemotivation,asfarasispossible,toavoidimpressions of arbitrariness that are likely to reduce the immersive qualities of a game.This is easiest in interior settings, as ErnestAdams suggests, in whichreal-worldspacesarealsorelativelysmallandconfinedbywalls. Inexteriors,artificialconstraintsareoftennaturalizedthoughtheuseof settingssuchasislandsortheuseofimpassableterrainsuchasmountains andswamps.6Icecliffsandchain-linkfencesrationalizethebordersof theexternalplayingareainthefirstlevelofTheThing.Yawningholesin thegroundthatdelimittheplayingspaceofSilentHill2operatemore enigmatically,signifyingthedestructioncreatedbysomestrangeforce.
GAMESCAPES InTheGetaway,theouterboundariesofthegame-worldaremarkedby realisticallymotivatedroad-closurebarriers. Hard boundaries are not always given such visual legitimation, however. In some cases the horizontal equivalent of a glass ceiling is encountered,haltingplayer-charactersintheirtracks.Thisisafrequent occurrenceinUnrealII,inwhichtheplayercanseespacesintowhich movementisimpossiblefornoreasonthatisgivenlegitimationbythe existenceofaphysicalobstacleinthegame-world.Wheretransgression ofspatiallimitsisarbitrary,thisissometimesrepresentedintermsthat remain consistent with the particular fictional construction of the game-world.IftheUSmilitaryplayer-characterstraystoofarfromthe mainfieldofactioninBlackHawkDown,forexample,heisdeclared AWOL and the mission is failed. Hard perimeter boundaries can be avoided altogether in some cases. Limited, single-screen game-worlds canuseawrap-aroundformat,inwhichobjectsleavingthescreenon one side reappear on the other, a feature that dates back to the first commercialarcadegame,ComputerSpace(1971).7Theedgesofgameworldscouldalsobeextendedpotentiallytoinfinitythroughtheuseof whatRichardBartleterms‘implicitterrain’,generatedonthefly.The content produced would not be very compelling, as Bartle suggests, asitisonlylikelytorepeatalimitednumberofcharacteristics,‘butit removestheproblemofclichédboundaries.’8 Soft boundaries include the many environmental obstacles to the progress of the player-character found in games such as third-person action-adventures and first-person shooters: the precarious ledges, unstablefloorsandtrickyjumpingroutinesoftheTombRaiderseries,for example.Progressthroughthegameisalsonecessarytotheopeningup ofspaceinstrategygamessuchasCivilizationandCommandandConquer, in which exploration is dependent on the movement of the player’s resourcesacrossthegamemap.Aswithmanystrategygames,Civilization beginswithmostoftheworldindarkness,thecontoursofthegamescape andthedeploymentofrivalpowersrevealedonlygraduallyastheplayer sendsfiguresouttoexplorebylandorsea.Theunveilingofnewterrain hasanappealofitsown,satisfyingasenseofcuriosityaboutwhatlies beyondthecurrentlyvisibleborder,eveninanexamplesuchasCommand andConquerinwhichitserveshighlyinstrumentalpurposesinrevealing thelocationofenemies,resourcesandkeymissionobjectives.
83
84
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Anumberofnavigationaldevicesareusedtoprovideorientationfor playersduringtheprocessofexploration,somemoreovertthanothers. Obviousexamplesincludetheprovisionofmapsofthegamescape,located bothinsideandoutsidethegame-worlditself.Mapsareoftenavailable ingamesinwhichrelativelylargespacesareavailabletotheplayeratany time.IntheParissectionofTombRaider:AngelofDarkness,forexample, amapwithinthegame-worldcanbevisitedandinspected,asisalsothe caseinsomeexamplesoftheMystseries(from1994),amongothers.An out-of-game-worldmapinSilentHill2showstheroadlayoutofthezone occupied by the player, providing an important aid to navigation and indicatingscopeforexploration.Keybuildingsareidentified,encouraging playerstovisitareaslikelytoproveimportanttoprogress,althoughaccess isoftenrestricteduntilparticulartaskshavebeenaccomplished.Out-ofgame-worldmapsofthiskindareprobablymorecommon(oftenbecause fine detail is hard to see on in-game varieties), the fiction often being (implicitlyorexplicitly)thattheyareprovidedtoplayer-charactersaspart oftheiritinerary.Playerscaninmanycasesswitchtoamapthatfillsthe screen.Suchamoveusuallyputsthegameinto‘pause’mode,permitting time for leisurely examination of the map, although in some cases, includingEverQuest,switchingtothemapinvolvesalossofattentionto ongoingeventsinthegame-worldthatcanbehazardous.Mapsaccessed outside the main space of the game can have the advantage of being moreflexiblethanthosefoundonlocation,however,oftenprovidinga rangeofscalesfrommicrotomacroviewofthegamescape.InPrimal,for example,playersmightswitchfromamicroviewthatshowsfeaturesof theimmediateenvironmenttoawiderviewthathelpsthemtofindthe waytoanewarea.Furtheroutofthegame-world,somegamesprovide printed maps of the gamescape, from the single sheet fold-out maps accompanyingGrandTheftAutoIIIandViceCitytotheextensivemaps thatcanbepurchasedinvariousprintedanddownloadableguidesand atlasestoassistplayersofMMORPGssuchasEverQuest. Smalleron-screenmapinsertsareprovidedtoaidnavigationinmany action-adventures or shooters, often located in a corner of the game screen and showing only the immediate vicinity of the player. Gameworldfeaturessuchastheoutlinesofbuildingsaredepicted,alongwith elementssuchasthepositionsoffriendsandenemies.Mapsofthisscale aregearedmoretowardsprogressionthanfreeexploration,coveringonly
GAMESCAPES restrictedpartsofthegamescapeandorientedtowardstheprovisionof informationrequiredforonwardmovementthroughthegame,including thepresenceinmanycasesofarrowssignifyingthedirectionofmission objectives.Thesecanbearbitraryimpositionsonthescreen,asinGrand TheftAuto III and Vice City, in which the map-insert marks features suchasthecharacter’shomebase,theplacesfromwhichmissionscan be obtained and the objectives of current tasks.They are realistically motivatedinsomecases,however,particularlyinsciencefictionoriented game-worlds, in which the map insert can be justified diegetically as partofaheads-updisplay.InthemoreexpansiveoutdoorlevelsofHalo, a‘nav’pointappearsattimes,asmalliconthatinformsplayershowfar inmetrestheyarefromthecurrentobjective,adevicemotivatedbythe establishmentofthecyborgnatureoftheplayer-character.TheGetaway offers a neatly integrated navigational system during driving missions, the path to be taken being signalled by vehicle indicators designating whichwaytoturn. Otherformsofguidancecanbeprojectedontothefigureoftheplayercharacteritself.IftheplayerofSilentHill2wandersthecharactertoo farfromthemainfeaturesofthegamescape,forexample,writtenhelp isprovidedintheformofanon-screencaption,thecontentofwhich ismotivatedbythepreviousexperienceofthecharacter,asin:‘Thisis theroadIcameinon.There’slittlepointingoingback.’Inthird-person games,inwhichtheplayer-charactercanbeseenbytheplayer,character movementscanbepre-orchestratedtoindicateincertaindirectionsat particularmomentsinthegame.TheinclinationofJamesSunderland’s headinSilentHill2suggeststhatsomethingofvalueliesnearbyinthat direction,adevicealsousedoccasionallyinothergamesincludingsome oftheTombRaidertitlesandBuffytheVampireSlayer.Suchdevicesareused primarilyingamesthatprovidelargetraversablespaces,muchofwhich issuperfluoustoprogressivegametasksandinwhichthedesignofthe environmentitselfisnotoverlydirective.InthecaseofSilentHill2,the largenumberofdirectionalcuesofthiskindisalsocompensationforthe lackofclearvisibilityprovidedinaworldenvelopedinfog.Non-player characterscanalsofunctionasdirectionalguides.InUnrealIIguidance, includingadviceonhowtonegotiateobstacles,isprovidedviaaninhelmetradiofromafemalecolleagueinaspacecraftorbitingabove.A similardeviceisusedinonelevelofMaxPayne2(2003)andinamore
85
86
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS aggressive and taunting form in Manhunt (2003). In some missions in Vietcongtheplayer-character,Sgt.SteveHawkins,ispartofapatrolthat includes a scout or point-man, characterized as a local trained by US advisers.Thepoint-man,whenemployed,usuallyleadsthewaythrough gamescapessuchasjungleandpaddyfields. Literal signposts within the game-world are also used to provide orientationinsomecases.Signpostsatjunctionsbetweenpathsareone ofthemostimportantsourcesofdirectionalguidanceinTheElderScrolls III: Morrowind, for example, offering an in-game-world alternative to theoptionofswitchingintoaseparatemapmode.Aswellasworking moreeffectivelytomaintainasenseofimmersionthanthemapoption, signpostsarealsoamorereliableguidetotheroutetobetakenifthe playerwishestostayontherelativesafetyofthebeatentrack,thewinding natureofwhichmeansthatcrudecompassdirection–asprovidedinthe map – does not necessarily ensure taking the correct route. In some cases,on-screennavigationalaidslackanyrealisticmotivation,anylogic establishedbythefictionalworldofthegame.Agoodexampleisthe largedirectionalarrowprovidedinEntertheMatrix,asmentionedinthe previouschapter.Playersofthegamehavesomefreedomtospendtime inwhatmightprovetobefruitlessexplorationofblindalleys,butthey arestronglyencouragedtomove(rapidly)inaparticulardirection. Directionalguidancecanalsobeprovidedbylessovertdevices.The locationsofenemiesorresourcepick-upsoftenfunctionasnavigational crumb-trails,cueingmanyofthemovementsoftheplayertowardsagoal. Thesecanalsoleaddownblindalleys:thepathmappedoutbypursuit ofanenemyorinsearchofapower-upmightnotalwaysbetheone requiredforprogressionthroughthegame,althoughpickupsfoundenroute might be important to survival.Auditory features, including the triggeringofmusicatcertainpoints,canalsooperateaspathwaycuesor indicatethattheplayerisoncoursetowardsanobjective.Somethirdpersongamesusepredeterminedshiftsincameraanglesandframingto indicategoal-relatedpathways.WhenthegameengineofSilentHill2 initiatesashiftfromlong-shottoamid-shotorclose-up,forexample, the player is informed that the area or object in question should be investigatedmorefully. The scale of the gamescape, and the kind of perspective offered, alsoplayrolesintheformandfunctionofnavigationalaids,aswellas
GAMESCAPES affectingthetypeanddegreeofexplorationencouraged.Strategygames tendtoprovideanaerialviewofthegame-world,withdirectionalcues designedtobevisibleatthisscale.InBlackandWhite,forexample,key buildingsinthelandscapesendacolumnoflightupintotheskythat canbeseenwhentheplayerisoperatingin‘god’mode.Whenthepoint of view is scaled to that of characters on the ground, directional cues aremorelikelytobefoundintheimmediateenvironment.Thesemay be apparent at a glance, or be revealed only on closer inspection. In Unreal II, interactive features of the gamescape only become apparent as the player-character walks up to and investigates them; it is only at this point that a graphical interface appears that enables the player to performagivenactionsuchasopeningadoororpressingaswitchto healanailingNPC.Encounteringindividualfeaturesofthiskindforthe firsttimeprovidesreassurancethattheplayerisontherightpath.Some explorationisusuallyrequiredinadvance,beforecloserinvestigationof particularobjectsorsurfaces.ThedetailednatureofthegraphicsofUnreal II,scaleddynamicallytocharacterpoint-of-view,encouragestheplayer toinvestigatespaceclosely;scopeforsuchdetail,intermsofprocessing resources,iscreatedbytherelativelynarrowcorridorswithinwhichthe gameplayisconfined,atrade-offbetweendetailandextensiveness. Theexistenceofnavigationaldevicescanencourageplayerstoexplore gamescapes in ways other than those oriented towards progression throughparticulargametasksorthelargerarcofthegameitself.They tend to channel movement around the game-world, however, sending theplayer-characteroffinparticulardirections,evenifthesearenotin pursuit of immediate progression. Maps can be important sources of orientation for any kind of play, including the most free-form modes of exploration.They can help to overcome the disorientation that is a common feature of gameplay, particularly in relatively featureless or unvaryingenvironments,andespeciallyinsituationsinwhichbearings canbelost,suchasaftercombatinapreviouslyunvisitedareainagame withalargeandopenterrainsuchasEverQuest.Mapscanindicateareas thatsimplyappearinterestingtovisit,atanygivenstageinagamethat offersrelativelylargescopeformovement,withouttheanticipationof anyotherimmediatepay-off.Navigationaldevicesaimtoleadtheplayer stronglyinparticulardirectionsinmanycases,however,evenwheresome scopeisprovidedformoreexploratorymovement.Theirfunctionvery
87
88
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS often is to encourage the player not to explore very far, which might oftenbeanefforttodisguisetheextenttowhichscopeforexploration islimited. While following directional indicators along a relatively narrow corridor, players can agree to participate in the illusion that the surroundingenvironmentismorenavigablethanisreallythecase;that thetraversablerouteispartofalargerworldofequallyrealizedstatus. The moment the player departs from the designated path – where this is possible, especially in outdoor spaces without clearly motivated boundaries–theillusioncaneasilybebroken.Duringajunglemission inVietcong,theplayer-characterisencouragedtofollowthepoint-man. Exploringofftothesidesofthedesignatedroute,theplayerwillquickly discovertheexistenceofverynarrowconfines,insomecasesmotivated by rocky cliffs but often seemingly arbitrary: a wall of foliage that is impenetrable while foliage closer to the path can be negotiated.The point-mandeviceprovidescontextualmotivationforstayingontrack, however, justified by the plausible fiction that he is an expert in the terrain and in spotting signs of enemy activity. If the player-character pushes ahead of the point-man, ignoring the stipulated mode of play, heisliabletobepunishedbywalkingintoaboobytrapofonekindor another,asmightbeexpectedtohavebeenthecaseinthereal-world equivalentofjunglewarfareagainstanoftenunseenenemy.Contextual association,inthiscase,supportsthespatiallimitationsofthegamescape. Adeliberatedecisioncanbetakentoignoredirectionalindicatorsinany game,however,totest-outorexplorespatiallimitsforitsownsake.This mightbeaformofpaidealikelytotakeplacewhentheplayerisstuckor repeatingataskonnumerousoccasions,asrelieffromgoal-directedplay; butitmightalsobeapleasurablestrategyinitsownright. Exploration of gamescapes can also be categorized in terms of the typesoflocomotionavailablewithinagame.Thesecandeterminethe typesofnavigationalcuesavailable,asisthecasewiththeuseofvehicle indicatorsinTheGetaway.Modesoflocomotionarealsocentraltothe relative balance between restriction and freedom. Many games offer a range of modes of movement.The player-character’s ability to run, drive,fly,jump,crawl,crouch,climb,shimmyorswimisusuallytailored to the size and contours of the gamescape, permitting various types of terrain or obstacles to be traversed.This process can strengthen the
GAMESCAPES senseofspatialfreedomandexploratoryagency,althoughthedegreeto whichmovementappearstobemeasuredpreciselytotheshapeofthe gamescapedoesevidencetheextenttowhichthepotentialformovement orexploration,ingeneral,hasbeenorchestratedinadvance.Exactlyhow the player-character moves in the Tomb Raider games is often strictly controlled,forexample.Manyspacescannotsuccessfullybenegotiated unless the player resorts to shimmying, jumping or swimming.‘Walk’ mode,asopposedtothedefaultrunningmotion,isexpresslydesignedto preventLaraCroftfallingfromthemanyprecariousledgesthathaveto betraversed.Lowledgesthatcannotbeclimbedcanonlybereachedin LegacyofKain:SoulReaverinaflyingmotionachievedbythecharacter sproutingrudimentarywingswhilejumping.Combinationsofjumping andflyingarealsocentraltoprogressioningamessuchastheSpyrothe Dragonseries(1998–2004). Insomecasesthemodeoflocomotionitselfoperatesasarestrictive device.Thisisparticularlythecasewiththejumpingmanoeuvresthat have to be performed in games such as Tomb Raider, in which very precise positioning is required if the death of Lara is to be avoided. A shift of locomotive mode is sometimes required if the player is to traverseparticularsoftboundaries,suchastheuseofamotorbikeanda speed-boatintwocasesinTombRaiderIII.Takingflightinaone-person banshee aircraft in Halo allows entry to new spaces situated high on cliff faces that cannot be accessed in any other manner. In these cases motorizedtransportisavailableonlyatcertainspecificpoints,andfor particularpurposes.Incontrast,gamessuchasGrandTheftAutoIII,Vice CityandTheGetawayofferaccesstoalargevarietyofvehiclesatany one time. Part of the pleasure of these games is trying out different examples, both to explore their cityscapes and for the fun of cruising aroundinanythingfromalow-slungmotorbike(ViceCity)toaLondon bus(TheGetaway).Usingmotorizedtransportisasourceofpleasurein itsownright,but,giventhescaleofthegamescapes,itisalsoessential to the accomplishment of missions in which time is a factor.Walking and running is also an option in these games, of course.Too slow for the efficient coverage of larger distances, locomotion on foot remains anothermodeinwhichterritorycanbeexplored,especiallyifacloser examinationissought.Itisalsoessentialforactivitiessuchasinteracting verballyorviolentlywithnon-playercharacters.
89
90
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Spatialconstraintisoftenusedtocreateorheightenemotionalresponses ingamesthatofferamixtureofrestrictionandlatitudeforexploration.In gamesthatotherwiseofferrelativelyopenspaces,closeconstraintmight beimposedinsituationssuchaswhentheplayerfacesabosscharacter. Fighting difficult opponents in limited space – with no exit, no place tohide,restortakeadvantageofpower-ups–cancreateaheightened impressionofurgencyanddanger.InPrimal,forexample,exitsfromthe battlearenaatcertainpointsinthegameareblockeduntilthefightis won.Theelationlikelytobeexperiencedbytheplayerwhenvictoryis achievedispartlyafunctionofthesubsequentopeningupofnewspace. Pleasurablereleasefollowstemporaryconstraint,adialecticalexperience typicalofmanyofthemoreintenseexperiencesofgameplay.Thegreater theinitialconstraint,andthegreaterthedelaybeforesuccessisachieved, themorepotenttheeffectislikelytobe–unless,ofcourse,theprocess is protracted to the point at which the player gives up in frustration or resorts to cheats such as the implementation of‘no clip’ codes. In conditionsoffrustration,explorationandclosespatialinvestigationcan becomeanintensive,localizedefforttoovercomeaparticularobstacle or to find a particular exit or entrance. Eventually gaining access to a covetednewspacecancreateaheightenedimpressionofplayer/playercharacter agency and of personal achievement.An oscillation between control/loss-of-control is characteristic of the experience of many games,atvariouslevels,includingtheshiftbetweenspatialrestrictionand greater freedom of manoeuvre. It works to a particularly pronounced andgenericallyresonanteffectinhorror-orientedgames. Restrictive devices are used to create a palpable sense of fear and claustrophobiainhorror-relatedgamessuchastheSilentHill,Resident EvilandDoomseries.Theseincludeenclosedspacesand/orlimitstothe rangeofvisionoftheplayer-character,thelattertheresultofinsufficient lightor,inthefirsttwoiterationsofSilentHill,thepresenceofenveloping mist.Restrictedvisibilityimbuesexplorationwithanincreasedsenseof danger,theuncertaintyofwhatmightbelyingaheadinwait.Thiscan alsobecreatedbyfixed,pre-determinedcamerapositionsthatprevent theplayerfromseeingareasfromwhichthreatsmightcome,removing the freedom of looking otherwise usually provided in third-person games.Suspensecanbecreatedbypre-determinedcutstospacesother thanthosecurrentlyoccupiedbytheplayer-character;spacesinwhich
GAMESCAPES threatsareidentifiedthatwillsoonbefacedbytheplayer,adeviceused intitlesincludingtheResidentEvilseriesandTheThing. The greatest scope for exploration is usually found in role-playing games,whichoftencreatelargegamescapesacrosswhichplayer-characters areconsiderablyfreetoroamatwill,thelargestgame-worldsbeingfound inmassivelymulti-playerrole-playinggamessuchasEverQuest,Anarchy Online(2001)andStarWarsGalaxies.Explorationforitsownsakecanbe asubstantialsourceoftheappealofsuchgames,alongwiththecentral process of developing the capacities of the player-character and the opportunities provided for interaction with other players. Constraints stillexist,however.Explorationcanbeenjoyedforitsownsake,butonly uptoapoint.Player-characterdevelopmentand/orcollaborativeaction withotherplayersareessentialifmanypartsofthegame-worldareto becomenavigableinanysafety.AnyofthewildregionsofEverQuestare hometomonstersthatposeathreattothenoviceplayer,forexample, whilethe‘PlanesofPower’regionsareaccessibleonlytocharactersof level46orabove.ThesizeandmodeofimplementationoftheEverQuest worldofNorrathisalsosuchthatitisbrokenupintoseparatezones, eachofwhichhasalimitednumberofpointsofentryandquitenarrow confines,theboundariesofwhichoftenseemarbitrary–yetanotherset ofmountainsthatcannotbescaled,forexample.Thestructureiscloseto thatofthe‘rhizome’,anon-hierarchicalorganizationthatcanbeexplored inmanydifferentdirections,afavouredimageinpoststructuralisttheory usedbyJanetMurrayasanalternativetothemoreprogressivelyoriented ‘storyinthemaze’,althoughinMurray’scaseitisusedinreferenceto hypertextfictions.9 TheimpressionofuninterruptedfreedomofexplorationinEverQuest can also be hampered by the time lag that occurs when the playercharacter moves between one zone and another, the extent of which dependsonthecomputingresourcesavailabletotheplayer.Thisisthe resultofthemannerinwhichthedifferentgeographicalspacesofthe game are implemented, each zone running on a separate computer as partoftheclusterthatcompriseseachoftheserversonwhichthegame canbeplayed.InthisrespectEverQuestsuffersincomparisonwiththe lesscommerciallysuccessfulAsheron’sCall(from1999),whichadopteda differentsystemofload-balancinginwhichresponsibilityforgeographical areasisdividedamongsub-servers,theresultofwhichisthecreationof
91
92
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS what presents itself as a more seamless world that establishes a greater senseofunencumberedfreedomofmovement,moreakintothatfound inthelargebutlessextensivelandscapeofsingle-playerRPGssuchas Morrowind.10InMorrowind,entirelyhardboundariesarefoundonlyaround theouteredgesofthegame-world,althoughmanysoftboundaries,such ascliffsandlavastreams,canonlybenegotiatedwiththeaidofspellssuch asthosecreatingthepossibilityoflevitation.Gameplaystrategiesadapt toshortcomingssuchastheseparationofzonesinEverQuest,however. Pursuingmonstersareescapedinthepassagefromonezonetoanother, whichcanpromptastrategyofembarkingondangerouscombatfrom therelativesafetyofapositionclosetoazoneboundary.Zonesalsooffer convenientsub-divisionswithinwhichplayerscanidentifywhoelseis playinginthesamelocality. Players of games such as EverQuest and Morrowind can choose to emphasize exploration over other activities, but not absolutely. Some engagementinprocessessuchasfightingenemiesandtakingonquestsis requiredifthecapabilitiesandequipmentnecessaryforsurvivalaretobe obtained.IfplayersofEverQuestaretocontinuetogaintheexperience points required to advance to higher levels, they are required to keep travelling farther afield.The gamescape is designed with this in mind. Playersbegininanassignedhometown,thelocationofwhichdepends ontheraceoftheircharacter.Asacharacterbeginstolevel-up,itloses the ability to gain experience from killing monsters in the immediate homeenvironment.Newareasmustbeexplorediffurtherexperience is to be gained. Encouragement to explore and to gain acquaintance withnewspacesisprovidedbyquestsavailableintheearlystagesofthe game,includingmissionstodelivermailtounfamiliarplaces;inmany casesthesewillprovetobelocationsinwhichexperiencenecessaryfor levelling-upwillbeavailableatalaterdate.Accesstonewareasisoften a source of pleasure, as suggested above, although new spaces can also bring new anxieties: new types of terrain, with consonant threats and dangerstobemastered.Tothrive,theplayermovingintoanewzone needstopaceouttheterrain,notingareasofsafety,geographicalhazards (suchaschasms)andplacesinwhichmonstersspawn.Thein-gamechat facilitymightbeusedtoseekguidancefromothersmorefamiliarwith the space; in single-player games, a walk-through or other sources of external advice might be consulted.The learning curve is usually not
GAMESCAPES toosteep,however,andhere,asinotheraspectsofgameplay,anxietycan soonturntowardsapleasurablesenseofmastery.Theestablishmentof knowledgeofagivenspace,andhowitconnectswithothers,isoften moreimportantinlargemulti-playergamesthaninsingle-playergames, intermsofboththespatialextensivenessofMMORPGsandtheirgroup dynamics. Knowledge operates as a significant form of cultural capital in such games, demonstrating Michel Foucault’s thesis that (spatial) knowledgeispower.11 Easeofexplorationdoesnotequateunequivocallywithadvancement oflevel,however.Itiseasierandlesshazardous,inonerespect,toexplore thelargegame-worldofEverQuestbeforetheplayer-characterreaches level 10, after which character death becomes of greater consequence (thebodyhastobefoundifitspossessionsaretoberetrieved,which isnotalwayseasy).Asanotherplayeradvisedoneoftheauthors:‘when yougettolevel8–9,seetheworld,asthereisnorealcostinvolvedif youdieinthecourseofexplorationthen.’Certainspellsalsofacilitate greaterexploration,givingadvantagesinthisrespecttoparticularclasses ofcharacter,oneofmanydevicesthatencouragescooperationbetween players.‘Spirit ofWolf ’ enables characters to run faster, which makes explorationquickerandsafer,asmostmonsterscannotcatchcharacters moving at this speed. Various ‘(tele)porting’, ‘gating’ and ‘binding’ devices also aid the process of travel, reducing the often considerable timerequiredtojourneyacrosstheworld.Notallplacesareaccessiblein thisway,however,andwhileportingcansavetheplayerfromhavingtoretreadfamiliargrounditcanalsoreducetheextenttowhichnewterrain isactuallyexploredenroutetoadestination.AsEddoSternsuggests,the useofsuch‘magical’portalsinEverQuest,UltimaOnline(from1997)and Asherson’sCallpermits‘thecondensationofasprawlingCartesianvirtual space into a compact non-Cartesian data space … allowing nonlinear navigation that takes advantage of instantaneous RandomAccess Data Retrieval, a “right” many post-industrial consumers demand being accustomed to navigating freely through their CDs, DVDs, Databases, Internetsites,HypertextsandTelevisionchannels.’12 Exploration looms larger in the equation in EverQuest and other large-scaleMMORPGsthaningameswithmorerestrictedgeographical scope,butthedesignencouragesabalanceofactivitiesratherthanany exclusivefocusofattention.Itisprobablythecasethatmostplayersof
93
94
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS
6.Explorableandrecognizablegameterrain:crossingavirtualWestminster Bridge(illegally!)inTheGetaway(2003).
EverQuestspendmoretimefightingingroupsandfocusingonlevellingupthantheydoonspatialexplorationforitsownsake,whichismore likelytobethepreserveofnewerplayers.Travelisveryoftenundertaken togainaccesstoexperiencepointsortoacquireitemsneededintheir ownrightorforuseinspells,alchemyortrade,ratherthanforthesake ofexplorationitself.Thesamekindofbalanceisofferedbygamessuchas GrandTheftAutoIIIandTheGetaway.Eachoffersaprogressive,missionbasedstructurelocatedwithinanextensivelyexplorablecontemporary urban gamescape. In The Getaway, players are given freedom to roam, towalkordrivearoundthevirtualcityscape,butnotatalltimes.Ina time-baseddrivingmission,forexample,failuretokeeppaceortokeep ontrackleadstomissionfailureandtheneedtostartagain.Duringa shootingorstealth-basedtaskitispossiblesimplytowalkout,hijacka carandindulgeinfree-formdriving,untilorunlesstheactionsofthe player-character result in death (if the car crashes to the point that it burstsintoflames)orarrest,afterattractingtheattentionsofthepolice. Free-range activities such as these can be a valuable source of release from the frustrations that can arise from being stuck in or repeatedly failingaparticularmissioncomponent.
GAMESCAPES GrandTheftAutoIIIoffersawiderchoiceofactivities:theacceptance ofmissionsgiventotheplayer-characterbycrimebosses,thesuccessful achievementofwhichleadstotheadvancementofthecharacter,orthe optiontoengageinfreelanceactivitiessuchasrandomactsofexploration, driving,vehicletheftorviolence.PlayersofbothGrandTheftAutoIIIand TheGetawayalsohavefreedomtobreakspatialrulessuchasdrivingon thewrongsideoftheroad(subjecttotheriskofcrashing)andthrough pedestrianandotheroff-roadareas.TheGetawayoffersasinglegamespacewithinwhichsoftboundaryrestraintscomeandgo,dependingon thenatureofthelatestmission.Softboundariesplayamorefixedrole inGrandTheftAutoIII,restrictingaccesstodifferentpartsoftheLiberty City setting depending on the state of the player’s progress through thegame.Atthestart,forexample,accessisrestrictedtotheislandof Portland,alimitationgivendiegeticmotivationbythedestructioninthe opening sequence of the Callahan Bridge that leads to the next zone, StauntonIsland,andsignsannouncingthatthesubwayisclosed.Driving onto the bridge is prevented by road-closure barriers. It is possible to walkmuchofthewayacrossthebridge,butthenalargeandimpassable fissureisencountered,abarrierjustifiedbythefictionalexplosionthat occurred during the previous incident on the bridge. A substantial numberofmissionshavetobecompletedinPortlandbeforeaccessto StauntonIslandispermitted.SimilarboundariesinthesequelViceCity areexperiencedmorearbitrarily.Anumberofbridgesareinitiallyclosed totheplayer,restrictingaccessinmuchthesamewayasintheoriginal. Barriers prevent vehicle access but gaps exist through which it would clearlybepossibletopassonfootifthiswerepermitted;itisnotpossible, however,whichisexperiencedasanunmotivatedrestriction. Thepleasureofexplorationiscloselytiedupwithmanyotherfeatures ofgameplay,aswehavesuggestedthroughoutthischaptersofar.Different kindsofpleasure–and,insomecases,un-pleasureorfrustration–can resultfromfreedomtoexploreatwillandtherestrictionthatresultsfrom amorechoreographedgameplayexperience.Manygamesofferabalance betweenthetwo,seekingtogivethebestofbothworlds:aworldthat playerscannavigateforthemselves,uptoapoint,andoneintowhicha numberofspecificactivitieshavebeenorchestratedbythedesigners.The pleasureofexplorationseparatedoutfromotheraspectsofgameplay,as farasthisispossible,mightbeunderstoodintermssimilartothosethat
95
96
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS applytospatialexplorationinthereal,externalworld.Theremightbe a pleasure intrinsic in the fresh stimulation offered by movement into newspaces,especiallywhenthisfollowsextendedperiodsoftimespent interrainthatisfamiliartothepointofbecomingstale.Howwemight makesenseofthisinbroaderculturaltermsremainsopentoquestion. Itisalsoworthpointingoutthat‘new’spacesoftenresemblethosefrom whichtheyareenteredmorethanmightbesuggestedbyconceptssuch asfreshnessandnovelty;there-useofsimilarterrainfeatures,withonly slightchanges,canusuallybeexplainedintermsofresourcemanagement. Insomegames,tomoveintoanewspaceistofindonemuchthesame as the old, or just the ringing of a few relatively minor changes (yet anotherseriesofcorridorsorventilationductsinthelikesofHalf-Life, forexample,orstillmorewarehouse-typespacesfullofboxesinmany shooterandaction-adventuretitles). Agenuinesenseoffreshnessanddifferenceisexperiencedinsome cases, however: the move in EverQuest from a region of grassy open groundandwoodlandtooneofdesertorfrozenwaste,forexample.Itis temptingtoinvoke,inthiscontext,awidespreadhumandrivetowards, orpleasurein,explorationforitsownsake,asasatisfactionofcuriosity or an expression of growth or restlessness. Such tendencies are liable tobeculturallyspecificratherthanuniversal,however.Theyhavebeen expressedhistoricallyinmovementssuchastheEuropeanexploration and colonization of the globe in earlier centuries, a process given its nearestgameequivalentintitlessuchasCivilizationandAgeofEmpires. Real-worldimperialventuresofthiskindhaveoftensoughtlegitimation inclaimsabout‘natural’propensitiestowardsgeographicalcuriosityand expansion–qualitiesthathavenotbeencentraltothevaluesofallother cultures.ForHenryJenkins,inamoreculturallyandhistoricallyspecific account,game-worldsprovidevirtualspacestobemasteredinplaceof real-worldplay-spacesthathaveoftenbeenlostasaresultofdevelopment oftheopenspacesavailabletoearliergenerations,especiallyintheplaycultureofboys.13Iftheappealofspatialexplorationingamesisclosely connectedwithacontinualsearchforavenuesoffreshstimulation,this mightalsobestronglyresonantwithbroaderprocesseswithincapitalist/ consumeristculture,whichreliesontheconstantcreationofnew‘desires’ tobesatisfied.Howeveritmightbeunderstoodinsocial-culturalterms, exploration remains a significant dimension of many games. It is not
GAMESCAPES onlythebalanceofexploratoryfreedomandrestrictionthatshapesthe player’s experience of the gamescape, however. It is also important to considertheextenttowhich,andhow,theplayeroccupiesorisgivena senseofpresencewithinthegame-space.
Degrees of Presence In some games, regardless of the scope for exploration, the player occupiesaspaceclearlydistancedandseparatefromthegame-world.In others,theplayerisgivenanillusionofpresence,ofbeinglocatedinside thegamescape,directlyinthethickoftheaction.Distinctionsbetween degreesofpresencearecloselycorrelatedwithdifferencesinthevisual perspectiveprovidedonthegame-world.Themostdistancedgamestend to be those that use god-like aerial perspectives.The greatest sense of presence,orsensoryimmersioninthegamescape,isusuallyprovidedby gamesthatofferthefirst-personperspectiveofafigurelocatedwithin thefictionalworldofthegame.Inbetweenaregamesthatofferavariety of third-person views, located inside the game-world but not directly throughtheeyesoftheplayer-character.Impressionsofpresencecanalso differwithinthesebroadcategories,however,dependingonanumber ofotherfactors. The most distanced and abstracted view is found in management, strategyandother‘god’games,inwhichplayershaveahighdegreeof agency–anabilitytoaffecteventsinthegame-world–butlittlesense ofoccupationofthefictionalworlditself.Theplayerisoftenpositioned asacharacterinsuchgames–themayorofacityinSimCity,theleader ofapeopleinCivilization,thegeneralinchargeofanarmyinCommand andConquer:Generals–butonethatremainsabsentfromthefictional spaceoftheon-screenworlditself.Characterizationisnominal,alargely transparentstand-infortheroleofplayersthemselves.Amarkerofthe lackofin-worldpresencecreatedinsuchgamesisthefrequentuseofan isometricperspective,oneinwhichparallellinesremainparallelrather than disappearing to the vanishing point familiar from conventions of linearperspective.Linearperspective,oftenusedinfirst-andthird-person games,isorientedtowardsasingleviewingposition,aplaceoccupied bytheplayerthatisdirectlyrelatedtotheinternalarchitectureofthe gamescape.Anisometricperspective,whichcreatesanapproximationof a3Dview(sometimesknownas2.5D),presentsanimpossibly‘objective’
97
98
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS viewpoint, appropriate to that of a disembodied and god-like abstract playerposition. Later versions of classic management or strategy games, such as the CivilizationandSimCityseries,offerincreasingdetailedthree-dimensional graphics,includinganabilityinSimCity4(2003)tolookmoreclosely atthecityscape,todetectsignsofaffluenceordeclineatthelocallevel. Abarrierremains,however,betweentheoverheadviewandanysenseof presenceatstreetlevel.Theclosesttheplayercanmovetogroundlevelin SimCity4isintheregionofafewhundredfeetupintheair.Characters from The Sims can be moved in to properties in Sim City 4, but not playersorplayer-charactersthemselves.Anevenmoredetailed,close-up view can be obtained in the strategy game Black andWhite, in which playerscanzoomfromonhightogainapoint-of-viewatthesamelevel asthatofthesubjectsoftheirworld,amovethatisfunctionalinmaking iteasiertotargetindividualfigurestobeassignedtaskssuchasfarming, fishingorcoupling.Theviewisstilldisembodied,however,ratherthan creatingasustainedsenseofpresenceontheground. Third-person games give the player a representative clearly located insidethegamescape,anavatarthatactsastheplayer’sagentinthegame. A greater sense can be established of what might be termed being-inthe-game-world, a phenomenological impression of presence in the gamescape.Thesenseofpresencecreatedbythird-persongamesisleast strong in early two-dimensional and isometric examples in which the player’ssourceofrepresentationissomewhatrudimentary:theabstracted chompingmouthofPac-Manorthefewpixelsthatconstituteaspaceship in Defender. Filmed characters used in some two-dimensional games such as Phantasmagoria (1995) provide less abstract and more detailed characters,butacombinationofstatic,stage-likeframesandapoint-andclickmodeofmovementcreatesafragmentedanddistancingimpression, characteristicsalsofoundingamessuchastheearlyexamplesoftheMyst seriesandBaldur’sGate(1998)(furthercompoundedinthelattercaseby theuseofa60degreeisometricperspective). Afarstrongersenseofpresenceisestablishedinfullythree-dimensional third-persongames,inwhichtheplayer’spoint-of-viewisoftenanchored directly to the movement of the player-character. A more seamless experience of the game-world is created. Graphical representation is redrawnconstantlyonthescreen,creatinganimpressionofcontinuous
GAMESCAPES movement through navigable space.A player-character, by definition, actsastheplayer’son-screenembodimentinthegamescape.Thevirtual cameraofthird-persongamesisusuallylocatedbehindandoftenslightly abovethecharacter,makingtheplayer’sexperienceconditionalonthe orientationofthecharacter.Theplayercontrolsandcloselyfollowsthe movementsandactionsofthecharacterinthegamescape.Thecapabilities andlimitationsofthecharacterareusuallysharedbytheplayer.Ifthe characterhastheabilitytolookaroundcorners,socantheplayer,asin gamessuchasTheGetawayinwhichitispossibletoleanoutaround environmentalfeaturestocheckforthepresenceofenemies,ortoshoot beforequicklyspringingbackintocover.Ifthecharactercannotperform suchmanoeuvres,neitherinmanycasescantheplayer.InTheThing,for example,otherstrategieshavetobedevelopedbytheplayertocopewith the various potential threats that might lurk around corners.The first timeasubstantialthreatisencounteredtheresultisoftenthedeathofthe avatar,theresultofaformofattackforwhichtheplayerisunprepared. Onsubsequentattempts,theplayercantakeevasiveaction,knowingwhat toexpect.Ashiftoccursherebetweenthequalitiesofsurprise(asudden attackfromanunexpectedquarter)andsuspense(thetensioncreatedby theplayer’sawarenessthattheattackisabouttobetriggered). Inmanycasestheplayercanalsomovethecameraindependentlyofthe player-character,swingingitaround,pastoroverthetopofthecharacter togainadifferentperspectiveonthegame-world.Thisisoftenimportant to the achievement of gameplay activities – getting a better sense of therelativepositionofLaraCroftinthelandscapetoperformaprecise jumping manoeuvre, for example – but it alters the manner in which the player’s presence is established. Character-independent movement ruptures,ifmomentarily,thealignmentofplayerandplayer-character.A moredisjunctivefractureofplayer/player-characterorientationisfound in third-person games such as the Resident Evil series and Dino Crisis (1999)thatusefixedcameraanglesnotconnectedtotheperspectiveof thecharacter.Inthiscase,theforwardmovementofthecharactercan requiremovementofthecontrollerinoppositedirections,dependingon whetheraparticularimageframesthecharacterfromaheadorbehind, adisorientingfeaturelikelytoreducethestrengthofanyimpressionof presence. Lateral movement is also affected by this reversal: when the charactermovesbacktowardstheplayer,thecontrollerhastobemoved
99
100
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS totherighttomakethecharactermovetotheleft,andvice-versa.Itis possibleforthecameratomovebetweenpositionsbehind,infrontor tothesideoftheplayer-characterwithoutcreatingthisconfusion,asin GrandTheftAuto:ViceCity.Ifthecamerastartsbehindthecharacterinthis case,thecharactercanalsobeturnedaroundandmovedbacktowards thecamera.Todothisinvolvesamovementforwardofthecontrolstick andasubsequentmovementbackwards.Thepointoforientationremains that of the player, rather than shifting to follow that of the character. Thedirectionalmovementofthecharacterremainsweddedtoafixed forward-backwardaxisonthecontroller,asopposedtothesystemused inResidentEvilandDinoCrisis,inwhichcontroller-directionmapsonto the movement of the character even when the character’s viewpoint changesdirectionindependentlyoftheplayer. The fact that the player’s sense of being-in-the-game-world is mediated is made explicit in third-person games because the playercharactercanbeseen,asanentityclearlyseparatefromtheplayer.The character is designed to-be-looked-at, as well as to-be-played-with, whichraisesanumberofissuesinvolvingthemannerinwhichcharacters arerepresented,anissuetowhichwereturninChapter4.Oneofthe pleasuresofthird-persongamesisthatofwatchingtheplayer-character inaction,performingitsmoves,aprocessthatentailsacombinationof distancefromcharacter(watching)andproximity(makingthecharacter perform,withinitsestablishedrepertoire).Theactofstringingtogether aseriesofdiversemovementsintoasmoothacrobaticsequencewhen playinganyoftheTombRaidergamesorPrinceofPersia:SandsofTime (2003)providesgratifyingvisualproofofaplayer’scompetence. Insomecases,oftentemporarily,acharacteractsindependentlyofthe player,alossofcontrolthatactsasareminderofthedistancebetweenthe two.Thiscanresultfromtheuseofthenavigationaldeviceconsidered above in which the central character looks in a particular direction accordingtoapreordainedcuedesignedtoguidetheattentionofthe player.Asimilarsenseofproceedingsbeingtakenoutofthehandsofthe playercanbecreatedwhentheplayer-characterengagesinconversation withanon-playercharacterand,mostobviously,whenthegameshifts intoapre-renderedcutscene.Attimes,playersmightexperienceastrong senseofbeinginvestedin,boundtoorinsynchwiththecharacter,but they never step fully into the character’s shoes, entirely present in the
GAMESCAPES gamescape.Theplayerisnotpositionedasthedirectagentinthegameworld,akeyfactorindistinguishingthedegreetowhichanimpression ofpresenceiscreatedinthird-andfirst-persongames. Linearperspectiveconventionsareusedinmanythird-persongames tocreatetheimpressionofaworldthatiscentredon,andrevolvesaround, thepositionoftheplayerand/ortheplayer-character.Perspectivelines thatrecedetoavanishingpointinsidetheimageimplyaviewingposition in front of the screen.The question in third-person games is whether linear perspective is oriented towards the player or the character, or a combination of the two.Where the player’s viewpoint is fixed behind (orslightlyaboveandbehind)thatofthecharacter,thetwoarelikely tobemuchthesame.Linearperspectiveissometimesusedsomewhat looselyandapproximately,makingithardtodistinguishminorvariations betweentwopositionsclosetooneanother.Inmanycases,therulesof perspectivearefollowedquiteprecisely,linesofconvergenceshiftingin accordancewithmovementoftheplayer-character–andthustheplayer’s perspective–withinthescene.InonesequenceinTomClancy’sSplinter Cell(2002),forexample,theplayer-characterisinvitedtocrossasurface comprisedofanumberofplankslyingmostlyinparallelalongsidetwo metalfloorgirders.Planksandgirdersarepresentedinlinearperspective; they stretch away from the player-character, growing narrower as they recede from the viewpoint. The perspective illusion is maintained, dynamically,astheplayer-characterismovedacross.Inthemiddleofthe planks,fromapositionlookingdownwardsfromabove,theiredgelines areparallel;onthefarside,lookingback,theyrecedetoare-established vanishingpointintheoppositedirectionfromtheoriginal. Thefactthatmovementofthecharacterandmovementoftheangle ofviewcanbecontrolledseparatelyingamessuchasSplinterCellcreates thepossibilityofadisjunctureinlinearperspectivebetweenplayerand character,however.Thiscanbeseeninanimmediatelyprecedingscene in Splinter Cell in which the player-character, the security agent Sam Fisher,movesthroughanoffice.Theofficeisdepictedaccordingtothe conventionsoflinearperspective,linessuchasthosedescribedbywalls and the edges of desks converging towards a vanishing point.As the charactermovesacrosstheroom,theperspectivelinesreadjustsmoothly, maintainingtheperspectivalillusioncentredontheviewofbothplayer and character. If the character is halted, however, and the direction of
101
102
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS viewisshiftedindependently–pivotingaroundthecharacterbutnot givinghispoint-of-view–thelinearperspectivesystemshiftstofavour thepositionoftheplayer.Ifthecharacteriscrouchedbehindadesk,for instance, facing the desk, a viewpoint from behind the character will createanimageinwhichthesidesofthedeskconvergeastheyrecede. Ifthecameraisthenpivotedthrough90degrees,toapositionateither endofthedesk,theperspectivesystemisre-drawntoaccommodatethe newlocationoftheplayer:thefrontandbackedgesnowconverge,while thesidesthatwereconvergingdivergeastheyaretracedawayfromthe positionofthecharacter. The third-person perspective is a strange hybrid in many respects, neithercompletelyobjective(thecharacter,viewedfromadistance,in thegame-world)nor entirely subjective(thegame-worldexperienced directlyfromtheviewpointofthecharacter).Linearperspectivecreates an impression of orientation towards the position of both player and character,whenthetwoareinalignment,butthepositionoftheplayeris usuallyfavouredwhentheyareoutofsynch.Whatispresenteddiegetically asthesubjectiveexperienceoftheplayer-characterisalsoprojectedonto theentiregamescapeinsomeinstances,inwhichcasetheplayerseesas ifthroughthecharacter’seyes,evenwheretheplayerremainsinview. InAmericanMcGee’sAlice,forexample,theplayer’sperspectiveaccords withthepredeterminedsize(tiny,normalorlarge)ofthecharacterat anyonetime:inonelevel,whereAliceistiny,flowerstowerabovethe player/character and become life-threatening; in other levels, where Aliceishernormalsize,theypresentnosuchhazard.Distortionofthe player’s perspective within the game-world also results when the title characterofMaxPayneisforcedtotakedrugsorwhendrinkingalcohol inEverQuest,wheretheperspectivelengthensandbendsliketheeffect ofafish-eyelens.Gamesthatpermitbothfirst-andthird-personmodes canalsocreateoddlymixedperspectivestatesinsomecircumstances.If GrandTheftAuto:ViceCityisplayedinfirstperson,forexample,itseems appropriate that droplets form on the screen when it rains, especially when driving (droplets on the screen when on foot might be a loose approximationofrainbeingexperiencedbytheindividual;whenina car,theyaremorerealisticallymotivatedasdropletsonawindscreen,even iffarfewerdropsappearthanwouldequatewiththelevelofrainfall). The same happens in third person, however, which seems disjunctive:
GAMESCAPES dropletsappearontheplayer’sscreenevenwhentheplayerisfollowing thecardrivenbytheplayer-character.Bycontrast,whenaspelliscaston players-charactersofEverQuestthatalterstheirsize–a‘shrink’spell,for example–itaffectstheplayer’sperspectivewhenplayinginfirstperson mode.Inthirdperson,theplayer-characterappearssmalltotheplayer, and to others, but the perspective in which the surrounding world is drawn remains the same.A clear distinction is maintained in this case betweensubjectiveandobjectivepointsofview. Amoreimmediateandunambiguouscentringofthegamescapeon thepositionoftheplayerisfoundinfirst-persongames,inwhichthe impressionisgivenofamoredirectlysubjectiveplayerexperienceinside the game-world. First-person games bind the player directly into the gamescape.The game-world is experienced at eye level, a viewpoint experiencedasdirectlyconsonantwithmovementsmadebytheplayer. First-person interfaces create the impression that the player can look right, left, up and down within an on-screen world that appears to envelop the player, creating a stronger illusion of presence. Hands and arms,oraweaponheldbytheplayer-character,areoftenvisibleatthe loweredgeofthescreen,approximatingthepositiontheywouldoccupy ifthescreenimagereallywasthesubjectivepoint-of-viewoftheplayer – an innovation widely adopted in first-person shooters since being introducedinoneofthefirstthree-dimensionalgames,Wolfenstein3D. Legsandfeetcanalsoenterthescreenwhenkickingfunctionsareused. Theeffectistocreatetheillusionthatthegamespaceextendsbeyond the screen to connect with and incorporate the bodies of players or objectsintheirgrasp. Thedifferentimpressionsofpresencecreatedinfirst-andthird-person modescanbeidentifiedmostreadilyingamesthatpermittheplayerto move freely between one or the other, providing the opportunity for closecomparison.InEverQuestashiftfromfirsttothirdpersonandback againcanbeachievedsmoothly,bytheuseofthemouse-wheelcontroller: a continuous camera movement that creates a strange impression of movingintoorout-ofbody.Amoreabruptshiftiscreatedwiththeuse of the keyboard, which offers a wider range of viewpoint options.A simplepressofaconsolebuttoninMorrowindplayedontheXboxcreates asimilarlystrikingsenseofjumpingmorecloselyinto,oroutfrom,the gamescape.Inthiscase,independentcontrolofcharactermovementand
103
104
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS
7.TheworldofTheElderScrollsIII:Morrowind(2002)asexperiencedin thirdperson,behindandslightlyabovetheplayer-character.
player/characterlookcreatesanumberofpossibleorientationswithin the third-person option.The default is a standard behind-and-slightly above-charactercameraposition.Theviewinganglecanalsobeswung forwards, to a directly overhead view, or backwards, to a perspective lookingupatthecharacter’scrotchfromapositionbetweenitslegs.A rangeofintermediateperspectivescanalsobeused,includingaposition immediatelybehindthecharacter.Fromside-to-side,theviewofferedto theplayercandescribeacomplete360degreearcaroundthecharacter ineitherdirection.Ineachofthesecases,theworldtiltsorturnsaround the character in keeping with changes of perspective.Varying degrees ofpresencecanresultfromdifferentoptionswithintheup/downaxis. Thesenseofpresenceisatitslowestwhenthecharacterisviewedfrom directly above. It is at its highest, in one respect, in the view upwards fromtheground,althoughthisissostylizedastobeadistractionand impracticalforgameplay(itisimpossibletoseewherethecharacteris going,itsfeetandthegroundinfrontbeingoutofview).Forpractical purposes,thegreatestsenseofpresenceiscreatedwhentheviewpointis
GAMESCAPES anchoreddirectlybehindandatthesamelevelasthecharacter,aposition fromwhichtheplayergainstheimpressionoffollowinginthecharacter’s footsteps.Thisalsohasshortcomingsforgameplay,however,asthefigure ofthecharacterblockstheplayer’simmediateviewahead,whichiswhy apositionbehind-and-aboveisusuallyfavouredinthirdpersongames. In first-person mode in Morrowind, the impression of presence is unchanged by alterations in the direction of character view: whether up/down or from side-to-side, the perspective remains rooted in that ofthecharacter.Whileasidewaysshiftofviewinthirdpersoncircles aroundthecharacter,thesamemovementinfirstpersonisexperienced asapivotingaroundoftheplayer-character,rotatingonthespot.Looking inanydirectionisexperiencedasdirectingthegazeofratherthanatthe character.Howtheseshiftsinperspectiveaffecttheexperienceofbeingin-the-world-of-the-gamecanbeillustratedmorefullybytheuseofa concreteexample.Whathappens,forexample,whentheplayer-character is walked through vegetation, in this case the fronds of a plant about thesameheightasthecharacter?Inthestandardthird-personbehindand-above mode, the character walks through the plant, the fronds of
8.Attackedfromabove:fendingoffanaerialassaultinMorrowindinfirstperson.
105
106
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS which pass out of the lower edge of the screen as the virtual camera movesacrossitfromaslightlyhigherposition.Inthird-persondirectly behind-the character, the character passes through and the impression is given that the player follows and also passes through, foliage briefly obscuring the view of the character ahead as the player brushes past. The player’s experience here is of a position inside the game-world, muchthesameasbutseparatefromthatofthecharacter.Infirstperson, vegetationagainfillsmostofthescreen,givingtheplayertheimpression ofmovingthroughtheplant,althoughthistimetheexperienceisnot oneoffollowingbutofbeingthecharacter.Asimilarthird-personmove from above-and-behind to more directly behind, and therefore more presentontheground,isavailableinon-footmodeinGrandTheftAuto: ViceCity.Inthiscaseafullfirstpersonoptionisavailableonlyindriving mode. On foot, first person is used in a more disjunctive manner. It is available only in‘free-look’ mode, when the camera can be moved sideways or up/down independently of the player-character, a process thatinvolvesanawkwardsenseofjumpinginandoutoftheshoesofthe player-character. The third-person perspective creates a reduced impression of presenceingamessuchasMorrowindandGrandTheftAutobut,aswith other examples, this can be beneficial to gameplay.The first-person perspective in games lacks one important feature of human eyesight: peripheral vision. Peripheral vision, while less detailed in resolution, is highly sensitive to movement, a factor of considerable importance in activities such as hunting or travelling through terrain such as that traversedinmanygames,inwhichtheplayer-characterissubjecttothe possibilityofunexpectedattackfromanyquarter.Infirstpersonmode inagamesuchasMorrowind,lackingperipheralvision,itiseasytobe attackedwithouthavingcaughtsightoftheapproachoftheattacker.The firsttheplayeroftenknowsofanattackfromabovebyapterodactyllikecliffracer,forexample,isthesoundofitscrymixedwiththatof theimpactitsassaulthasontheplayer-character’shealth.Theresponse of the player might be a hasty process of looking around, down and abovebeforetheexactnatureandlocationoftheassaultisidentifiedand defensiveactioncanbetaken.Equally,attackcancomefromcreaturesat groundlevel,closetothefeetoftheplayer-character,inthiscasetoolow andclosetobewithinthelooking-forwardfirst-personfieldofvision.
GAMESCAPES Thesameexperiencecanoccurinmanyfirst-persongames,hampering effortstodealwithsuddenthreatsfromclosequarters.Inthirdperson, any such attack will immediately be visible, making this perspective sometimesasaferbetwhenstrayingintoparticularlyhazardousterritory. InEverQuest,forexample,wheresixfixedperspectivesareavailable,ahigh overhead view is the most secure option when the player-character is sittingtoregainmana(neededtocastspells)orhealth,aperspectivefrom whichtheplayercanseeanypotentialsourceofattackbeforeitistoo late.Attackitselfisexperiencedverydifferentlyinfirst-andthird-person modes.Infirstperson,attackisexperienced,atoneremove,asapersonal attack on the player, the monster facing directly at the screen.A more distancedimpressionresultsinthird-person,inwhichtheplayerwatches (aswellasrespondingto)themonster’sattackontheplayer-character. Diegeticsoundin3Dgamesisalsodesignedtocentreontheplayer’singameperspective,especiallyinfirst-persongamesandwhenexperienced throughsurround-soundspeakersystemsorwiththeuseofheadphones thatcutoutextraneoussound.InonelevelofUnrealII,forexample,the player-characterisinagroupunderattackfromenemiescomingfrom several different directions.A high level of attention to sound cues is requiredtojudgetheproximityofenemies,enablingplayerstochoose thedirectionsinwhichmosteffectivelytofocustheirfirepower.Spatial organization of the sound field strengthens the impression of being surroundedbythegame-worldandincreasesthesenseofdangercreated by the game. Spatially located sound can contribute strongly to the impressionofpresence,onestudyinvirtualrealityenvironmentshaving shownthatsubjectsthoughtthequalityofgraphicswasimprovedwhen identicalimageswereaccompaniedbybetterqualitysound.14Soundcan also be used to create an illusion of physical presence in other ways, suchasmarkingthefootfallofplayer-charactersastheymovewithinthe gamescape.Manygamesofferafootstepsoundthatdoesnotalterfrom onetypeofterraintoanother(andthatisnotalwaysveryconvincing). Changesinthesoundoffootstepsaccordingtothenatureofthesurface onwhichtheywalkcanheightentheimpressionthattheavataroccupies aworldofsomesubstance,eitherasanaddedextraoramorecentral aspect of gameplay strategy.The latter applies to stealth games such as Splinter Cell, in which the movement of the player-character in the vicinity of enemies has to take into account the level of noise made
107
108
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS bydifferentmaterials,specialcarehavingtobetakenonnoisysurfaces such as metal or wood. In this case, the exploitation of such effects is morelikelytooccurinthird-personthanfirst-persongames,theformer lendingthemselvesmorereadilytoaperspectiveinwhichthenatureof surfacetexturesisapparenttotheplayer.Inmanygamesdiegeticsoundis usedtoprovidecuesthatrelateeithertothebroaderenvironmentofthe gameortheactionsperformedbyplayers.Environmentalsoundsrange fromthecontext-specificatmosphericsoundsofunseenfrogsandother beastsintheEmeraldJunglezoneatnightinEverQuesttotheubiquitous sounds of doors opening and closing in almost any action-adventure game.Soundsthatrelatemorecloselytotheactionoftheplayer-character includethenoisesmadebyparticularweapons:theswooping‘whoosh’ ofthescytheweaponinUndying,theclickofreloadingarmsinUnrealII ortheslicingsoundmadebytheknifeinAmericanMcGee’sAlice.Often layeredwithothersoundsandorganizedaccordingtovarioustemporal and spatial coordinates that pivot around the place and actions of the player,soundssuchastheseenhanceimpressionsofpresencebyadding tothetexturalrichnessofthegamescape. First-person games typically provide some kind of representation oftheplayer-characteratthestartofagame,andincut-sceneswhere these are used. In many cases these are drawn from a standard range of(generallywhitemale)figures:theubiquitousmarine,specialforces operativeorundercoveragentandafewothervariations.Anexception totheruleononecount,ifnotothers,istheuseofablackmalefigurein UnrealII,whilesomefirst-personshooterssuchasTimeSplitters2(2002) offerachoiceofgender(representationsofgenderandraceingamesare consideredindetailinChapter4).Thesensethattheplayer’sexperience is mediated through the character is much less evident than in thirdpersongames,however,especiallyinthethickoftheaction.Characters tendtoberelativelyundeveloped,assuggestedinthepreviouschapter,to functionasconstructsintowhichtheplayercanstepratherthanoverly determined figures in their own right.The first person experience is generally closer to one of immediacy than the third person, although reminders of mediation can be frequent: direct address by name to the character from non-player-characters, for example, or the abrupt interruptionthatoccurswhentheplayer-characterdiesandtheplayer isthrownoutofthegame-worldandintothenon-diegeticroutinesof
GAMESCAPES reloadingandstartingagain.Thatthethird-personperspectiveimpliesa playerpositionfurtheroutsidethegamescapeisunderlinedbythefact that the moment of death in first-person games is often accompanied byashiftintoathird-personview,awithdrawalthatenablesplayersto witnessthedeaththroesoftheiravatar.Anunusualvariationisfoundin Half-Life,inwhichthefirst-personperspectivesurviveslethalencounters, creatingthestrangeimpressionofbeingabletolookaroundthroughthe otherwiseimmobilizedplayer-characterseyes,oftenseeinghisownbody partslyingstrewnaroundthescene. Evenatthefrenziedheightoftheactioninafirst-personshooter,with the emphasis on attack and survival, overt reminders of the mediated natureoftheexperienceexistintheformofscreendisplaystowhich the player must remain attentive, as suggested in the previous chapter – crucial health and ammunition gauges, for example, and inventories of available weapons and other supplies.These can be switched off in somecasestocreatewhatisofferedasamoreimmersiveandlessovertly mediated experience. EverQuest includes a mode in which all the onscreeninformationsourcescanberemoved,whichreducesthepresence of markers of mediation although at the cost of limiting the player’s capacity to respond to events in the game-world, itself an important sourceofanyimpressionofpresence.Ammunitionandhealthgaugescan alsoberemovedfromthescreeninVietcongtocreatewhatthemanual describesasamoreauthenticimpressionofjunglewarfare.SilentHill2 isarareexampleinwhichnoplayer-relatedinformationiscarriedonscreen;eventhestateofhealthisembeddedintheinventorysystemand canonlybecheckedbyashiftoutofthemaingame-space.Information sources can also be realistically motivated within the fictional world of the game, as the heads-up display of a helmet worn by the playercharacter,particularlyinsciencefictionorientedgamessuchasHaloor MetroidPrime(2002),assuggestedintheprevioussection.Inmanycases, however,whethertheyareoverlaiddirectlyontheimageoftheworld or occupy a space outside, on the margins, attention to such displays impingestosomeextentonanyillusionofpresencewithinthegamespace. Qualitiesofvisionandsoundareusuallythemostpotentsourcesof impressionsofpresenceingames,butacontributioncanalsobemade bytheuseofhapticfeedbackdevicesthatworkonthesenseoftouch.
109
110
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Anersatzimpressionofphysicalimpactisquitecommonintheformof ashakingoftheimageatmomentsofimpactontheplayer-character,a devicethatcontributestothesenseofimmersioninfirst-persongames andisalsousedonoccasionfromthemoredistancedperspectiveofa strategygame,asinthecaseoflargein-gameexplosionsinCommandand Conquer:Generals.Asimilarvisualsimulationofphysicalimpactisfound in shooting games in which the recoil of weapons, if not felt, can be registeredasajumpoftheweapon’simageon-screen,withconsequent impact on the aim of the next shot.Two main sources of real haptic feedback are usually distinguished: force feedback, which creates the impressionofasensationofforcebeingimpartedonmusclesandtendons, andtactilefeedbackthatstimulatesnerveendingsnearthesurfaceofthe skin.15Themostcommonformsofforcefeedbackingamesaretheuse ofjoystickorsteeringwheelcontrollersequippedwithelectricmotors designed to provide resistance to the player’s actions.This can be an effectivewayofincreasinganimpressionofpresence,givingsomesense ofrealweightandmasstoanexperiencesuchaspushingaracingcarto itslimitsonatrack. Tactile feedback can also be provided through a steering wheel interface,orconsolecontrollers,intheformofvibrationsdesignedto createtheimpressionofdrivingoverroughgroundinarallygameor departing from the tarmac on a racetrack.The most common source of tactile feedback, however, is the vibration created by handsets such as the PlayStation‘dual-shock’ controller. In many cases the effect is crudeandlackingindiscrimination,ofonlylimitedpotencyincreating animpressionofpresence.Thesamebasicvibratingorpulsingeffectis providedforarangeofverydifferentexperiences:fallingfromaheight, being hit by a bullet or sword, or being attacked by a monster. More effectiveistheuseofvibrationinrhythm-basedgamessuchasRezand SpaceChannel5(from2000),inwhichthecontrollerpulsesintimewith themusic;intheformer,astheplayershootslargernumbersofenemies andprogressesthroughthelevel,rhythmandpulseratesincrease,providing atactileconnectionwiththeworldcreatedbythegame.Insomecases, tactilefeedbackcanprovideasensoryimpressionmorecloselyanalogous toaparticularon-screenactivity,althoughthisisnotgenerallythecase. InSplinterCellplayedontheXbox,forexample,theuseofalock-pick toopendoorsentailsajigglingmanipulationoftheleftstickcontroller
GAMESCAPES inamannernotdissimilartowhatmightbeimaginedtobeinvolved intheon-screenact,vibrationsindicatingthepointsatwhicheachpart ofthelockfallsintoplace.Similarly,toopenriftgates(portingdevices) andsomeotherlocksinPrimal,playersmustrotatetherelevantconsole joystickclockwiseatsomespeedtomakethetwoon-screencharacters windthevalvethatopensthegate. Theterm‘presence’isoftenassociatedwithconceptsofvirtualreality (VR),ofwhichgamesareoftenseenasavariant,ifrelativelyweakin theexistingscaleofpossibilities.IftypicalcharacteristicsofVRsystems arenavigationof3Dgraphicalenvironments,interaction,presenceand immersion,manygamesqualifyuptoapoint.16Withtheexceptionofa relativelysmallnumberofspecializedVRgames,inwhichtheplayeris equippedwithahead-mounteddisplaythatshutsoffexternalsourcesof sightandsound,gamesfallwellshortofbeingtrulyimmersiveinterms of sensory perceptions.The illusion of presence or immersion created by contemporary game design and technology is clearly less than that providedbyVRsystemsinwhichoccupantsexperienceasenseofbeing entirelysurroundedbycomputer-generatedenvironments,oftenableto reachoutandmanipulatevirtualobjectswithaninterfacesuchasadataglove. AnumberofattemptshavebeenmadetointroduceelementsofVR, orquasi-VR,intodomesticgamingsystems,butnonehavesofargained morethanamarginalpositionintheindustry.Theearlytomid1990s witnessed several innovations, prominent failures including Nintendo’s Virtual Boy, a 32–bit table-top unit into which the player peered at 3D graphics produced in shades of red against a black background; launched for $179.99 in 1995, it was withdrawn a year later, a victim offactorsincludingitshighprice,thediscomfortcausedbyplay(back andheadachesespecially)andwhatwaswidelyjudgedtohavebeena poorlyhandledmarketingcampaign.As‘VR’,theexperienceonoffer was limited, lacking the head-tracking mechanism associated withVR systemsinwhicharealillusioniscreatedofoccupyingaspaceandbeing able to look around within – rather than just into – the virtual world. ThetoycompanyMattelintroducedthePowerGlovein1989,pricedat about$100,much-hypedatthetimeasareplacementcontrollerforthe NintendoEntertainmentSystem(NES).Asmallnumberofgameswere designedspecificallyforthePowerGlove,whichenabledanimageofthe
111
112
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS player’shandtoappearon-screen,includingSuperGloveBall(1990),a science-fictionthemedmazegame,theactionofwhichrevolvedaround themanipulationoffloatingenergyballs.SuperGloveBallcouldalsobe playedwithaconventionalNEScontroller,butsomemoveswereonly possiblewiththe‘moreintuitivecontrol’providedbytheglove,another innovationthatprovedshort-lived.17 One of the main problems for homeVR has been providing a sufficientlevelofqualityatapriceaffordabletoabigenoughmarket tojustifylarge-scalecorporateinvestmentinthenecessarytechnology. Affordable head-mounted display units have been of limited quality, reducing their appeal and thus restricting the user-base to a level that doesnotsupporttheinvestmentrequiredtoupgradethemanufacturing process.18 Virtual reality technology has gained a more substantial footholdinarcadeandotherlocation-basedgames.Arcadeshaveproved amoresuitableenvironmentforVR-basedgamesforatleasttwomain reasons.Thearcadesettingisappropriatefortheuseofmoreexpensive, specialisthardwareofthekindthathasgenerallybeennecessaryforthe productionofVRexperiencesofsufficientqualitytoenticeplayers.A matchalsoexistsbetweentheeconomicsofthearcadebusinessandone ofthechieflimitationsofVRsystems:thefactthattheyarerelatively uncomfortabletowearandcancauseanumberofphysiologicalproblems, including motion sickness and eye-strain, if used for more than short periodsoftime.Thethroughputrequirementsofarcadegamingrequire theprovisionofshort,intenseburstsofplaytowhichVRiswellsuited.19 Thepleasureofdomesticgamingofteninvolvescommitmenttolonger periodofplay,inwhichthesensoryimmersionprovidedbyVRmight exacttoohighapricenotjustfinanciallybutintermsofplayercomfort. VRalsooffersmoreobviousbenefitstosometypesofgamesthanothers, primarily to those that offer an‘intense“in-body” experience’ in first person.20HomeVR-typesystemshaveformanyyearsbeenseenas‘the nextbigthing’ingamestechnology,apromisethathasyettoberealized forreasonsnotonlyofcostand/orquality. VersionsofhomevideogameshavebeenimportedintoVRsystems, most notably the experimental use of parts of Quake II in the CAVE virtualrealityenvironment,oneofthebest-knownformsofhigh-end VRinstallation,asysteminwhichtheplayerwearingaheadsetcanmove aroundfreelyinaroominwhichimagesareprojectedontowallsand
GAMESCAPES floor.21CheaperwaystocreateanimpressionofsomethingclosertoVR thanordinarygamingincludetheuseofglassesthatcreateanillusionof 3Dimagesemergingfromacomputerscreen,atechnologythatcanalso beusedwhenwatchingtelevision.Thesecanbecombinedwithjoystick andforce-feedbackheadphones(creatingrumblingsensations)toprovide whatonesupplierterms‘theultimatelow-costVirtualRealitysystem’, withwhichanumberofmainstreamgamesaresaidtobecompatible.22 Otherhead-mounteddisplaysenablegame-worldstofillthevisualfield oftheplayer,butneitheroftheseexamplesincludesanyhead-tracking componentthatwouldenabletheplayertolookroundinsidethegameworld.Atthelow-qualityendoftheVRspectrum,anumberoffreestandinggamesareproduced,suchasMGAEntertainment’s‘ColorFX VirtualReality3DGames’range,includingsuchtitlesasSpaceInvaders, SpiderManandTheHulk.Eachcomeswithitsownjoystickandheadset, pricedinthesamerangeasaPCorconsolegame,althoughwithgraphics ofverylowqualitycomparedwiththoseofitsnon-VRcontemporaries. A different sense of presence within the game-world is created in the mainstreamPlayStation2gameEyeToy:Play(2003),inwhichavideo camera(aninexpensiveperipheralthatdoesnotincreasethecostofthe game) is used to project an image of the player into the game-world. Players look at their own images, inside the screen, using real bodily motions (primarily of arms and hands) to move aspects of the image in time to perform whatever actions are required by the various subgamesprovidedinthepackage.Theplayeristakeninsidethegame,in onerespect,butonlyintheformofadoublecontrolledfromaposition clearlylocatedseparatelyoutside. Ascalecanbesuggestedthatrunsfromrealworldexperiencethrough avarietyofmedia,accordingtothedegreetowhichanillusionofpresence canbecreated.High-endVRwouldlietowardsthereal-worldendof the scale, although a considerable distance from a convincing illusion ofanythinglikepresenceinarealenvironment;VRhasgenerallyfailed to meet many of the high expectations set by enthusiastic predictions of the later 1980s and early 1990s. Contemporary games occupy a position somewhere between virtual reality systems, including those usedinhigher-endVRgames,andnon-interactivescreenmediasuchas large-formatcinema,conventionalcinema,widescreenandconventional television.Impressionsofpresencecanalsobecreatedimaginativelyby
113
114
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS moretraditionalmedia,includingnovelsandplays,andintheproduction ofimmersiveimage-spacesthatdatebacktoantiquityinexamplessuch as Egyptian tombs, Roman fresco rooms, Renaissance and Baroque perspectival-illusionspacesand19thcenturypanoramas.23 The videogame player occupies what Jesper Juul terms‘a twilight zone where he/she is both an empirical subject outside the game and undertakes a role inside the game’’,24 experiencing what Barry Atkinsterms‘half-life’(afterthegameofthattitle).25Thisisaposition somewherebetweentherealexternalworldandtheimaginedworldsof representationalformssuchasliteratureandcinemainwhichthereader/ viewer has no constitutive involvement in the action. How can this positionbeunderstood?Oneapproachistosuggestastateofbeing-inthe-game-worldthatcanbedistinguishedbothfrombeing-in-the-world, asunderstoodbyphilosopherssuchasMartinHeideggerandMaurice Merleau-Ponty,andfromtheactsofprojectionintothefictionalworld involvedintheconsumptionoftextssuchasbooksandfilms.Being-inthe-world,forHeidegger,AlecMcHoulsuggests,involvesthetreatment ofobjectsas;thatistosay,anobjectistreatedastheparticularthingitis.26 ‘Againstthisactual’,McHoulsuggests,‘wemightposethevirtual.Here, equipmentbecomesintangibleanditscharacteristicmanifestationswould beinart,fiction,poetry,andallthetechnologiesoftheimaginarywhose modeofunderstandingisunderstanding“asif ”.’27Thisdivisiondoesnot quite apply, McHoul suggests, to what he terms‘cyberculture’, which includesvirtualrealityandvideogamesamongothercomputer-mediated forms: ‘Rather the cyber’s unique equipmentality flick(er)s or hovers betweentheactualandthevirtual,betweenthe“as”andthe“asif ”.’ McHoul’sargumentappliesmoreobviouslytoVRtechnologies,the mainexampleheusesinillustration,thantoconventionalgames.Ifhe usesaVRheadsetandglovetoplayaversionofgolf,forexample,‘my actualarmmovesasitwouldwhenaddressinganactualgolfballonan actual course.’ In this case, there is no actual ball or course:‘That is, I addresstheballasaballbutithasitsbeing“asif ”.Theensembleorgestalt thatisthegameof“virtual”golfactuallycirculatesatrapidspeedbetween theactualandthevirtual.’28Theextenttowhichthesamecanbesaid ofplayinggameswouldseemtodependonhowfargameplayactivities arephysicallyanalogoustotheirreal-worldequivalents.Usingasteering wheelinterfaceinadrivinggamewouldqualify,forexample,aswould
GAMESCAPES theuseofajoystickinaflyinggameoralight-guninashootinggame: thearmssteerastheywouldwhendrivingarealcar,evenifthecarand thesurfaceonwhichitisdrivenareentirelyvirtual;thejoystickismoved up/downandfromside-to-sideinthesamemannerasthejoystickofa realaircraft;thegunispointedatatargetandthetriggerpressedaswould bethecaseinreality,evenifbulletandtargetexistonlyintheworldof thegame.Muchremainsmissingintheseexamples,ofcourse,especially indimensionssuchasfull-bodyhapticfeedback:asteeringwheelmight providesomeforcefeedbacktothearms,butnottheg-forcesexperienced by driving a real car at speed or occupying an expensive professional racingcarsimulator;thesamecanbesaidofajoystickcontrollerusedin anythingotherthanafull-scaleaircraftsimulator. More standardized controllers such as keyboard/mouse and console padgenerallyofferincreasinglystylizedandabstractedactionsinwhich the as quotient is reduced. Steering a car with an analogue console joystick is less like the action performed with a wheel, although the deviceisstillmovedinthesamedirectionasthatcreatedon-screen;using akeyboardand/ormouseevenlessso(althoughkeyboardcontrolsalso containsomedirectionalmotivation:theuseofarrowkeys,orevenjust thefactthatthe‘w’keyusedtomoveforwardisaheadofthe‘s’usedto movebackwardandthat‘a’and‘d’toeachsideareusedtomoveinthe respectivedirection).AninterestingexceptionistheuseofstandardPC controlsinUpLink(2001),agameinwhichtheplayertakestheroleofa computerhacker,animaginarycharacterwhousesinterfacetechnology preciselythesameasthatonwhichthegameitselfisplayed.Thecontrol systemusedbythegameis,inthiscase,entirelymotivatedbythediegetic context,creatingagreaterthanusualslippagebetweenasandasif;the playeroftenactsexactlyasimaginedinthefiction–almostasifthegame werenotafiction,butasubtledisguiseforrealcoverthackingofthe kindaroundwhichthegamerevolves. Game players are required to act as their imaginary real-world equivalentsinwaysotherthanthoseinvolvingthenatureofthephysical activity before the screen, however. If players/characters become lost duringexploration,forexample,thephysicalactionsinvolvedintrying tofindtheirwayaroundmaynotmapverycloselyontothosethatwould beinvolvedinanequivalentrealworldsituation.Movingaroundwith a combination of keyboard and mouse or the dual control sticks of a
115
116
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS joypad is only loosely analogous to the activity of wandering around in the world.The activities represented might be of a similar nature, however.Botharelikelytoinvolveasearchforrecognizablelandmarks orothersourcesoforientation.Bothmightincludeconsultingamapof somekind(physicalinbothcases,insomeinstances,ingamesforwhich printedmapsoratlasesareavailable;orphysicalinonecaseandvirtual in the other). Both involve the experience of really being lost and/or stuckintheirownrealm,evenifonemighthavepotentiallymoreserious consequencesthantheother.Tobelostinthegamescapeisnotthesame asbeinglostintherealworld,butitsharessomecharacteristicsofthe real-worldexperience.Thesamecannotusuallybesaidofwatchingor readingaboutacharacterbeinglostinafilmorabook:viewersofThe BlairWitchProject(1999)mightempathizewiththecharacters,butare notthemselveslost,aqualitythatwouldresultonlyinthecaseofatext withalabyrinthinestructureofitsown. A similar point can be made about the experience (or threat) of deathinthegame-world.Thedeathofaplayer-characteris,clearly,not remotelyakintothedeathoftheplayer.Itcanhaverealconsequences ofitsown,however,ofakindthathasnoequivalentinfictionalmedia suchasliteratureorcinema.Therecanbearealpricetopay,whichcan amount to hours or days of effort in a single-player action-adventure gameinwhichregular‘save’pointsarenotavailable.Lengthysequences of difficult activity might have to be repeated for the player-character to reach the position at which it was previously killed.The degree to which‘save’pointsareoffered–ortowhichtheplayercan‘quick-save’ atwill–canbeafactorinthedegreeofpullexertedontheplayerbythe diegeticillusion;theextenttowhichsomethingisreallyatstakeduring sequencesofhazardousin-gameactivity,asitwouldbeinthereal-world equivalent,evenifthenatureofwhatisatstakeinthegameisofamuch lowerorderofmagnitude.Quick-saveregimesreduceconsiderablythe consequences of the player-character’s actions. In multi-player online role-playinggames,thestakescanbeconsiderablyhigher,involvingthe potential loss of hard-earned equipment as well as experience points. The issue of‘permanent death’ is a contentious one,‘the single most controversialsubjectinvirtualworlds’,accordingtothedesignconsultant RichardBartle.29Whereplayersmayhaveinvestedhundredsofhoursin games,overperiodsofmonthsoryears,theprospectofpermanentdeath
GAMESCAPES is a much more serious one, to the extent that permanent death is a rarityandis,asBartlesuggests,theunusualandmarkedterm,thenorm beingsomeformofnon-permanentdeathfromwhichvariousformsof resurrectionarepossible. ForMcHoul,whatisinvolvedinthemixingofasandasifisadistinct modeof‘cyberbeing’.Inthecaseofgames,atleast,thisseemsarather grandterm,implyingaqualitativelydifferentkindofexistenceratherthan aplayfulexperiencethatcanbeunderstoodasaspecificcomponentof thebroadercategoryofnormalbeing-in-the-world.Howweunderstand thismightdependonhowfartheexperienceofvirtualworldsisseen asonethathasarealtransformationalpower.Bartleclaims,forexample, that‘the fundamental, critical, absolutely core point’ of virtual worlds suchasthosefoundinmulti-playeronlinegamesisthedevelopmentof theplayer’sidentity.30Suchgamesdoprovidescopefortheexploration of identity: space to try out forms of behaviour that players might be reluctanttoriskintheexternalworld,andthatmight,onceexperienced inthevirtual,leadtochangesintheirreal-worldbehaviour.Toarguethat thisisthecorepointofsuchgamesisalargeassumption,however,for whichnoevidenceisproduced.Being-in-the-game-worldmightequally wellbeunderstoodasaconfection,apleasurableillusionmorethanashift into another dimension of being or a catalyst to the development of personalidentity.Partofthepleasureinmanycases,forexample,might be the pleasurable illusion of being-in-the-world-of-another-fictionalspace: being-in-the-world of a familiar movie, movie franchise orTV show, for example. One of the appeals of many games is the capacity theyoffertheplayertoexploreandtakeontheroleofanactiveagent withinsuchfictionalworlds,eitherthoseofparticularbrandsorbroader generic regimes such as those considered in Chapter 1. In such cases another stage of removal is involved from any notion of activity in a virtualequivalentoftherealworld.Thevirtualworldofthegamescape isaversionofaworldthatisalreadyfictional-imaginary.IfTheGetaway producesadetailedsimulationofreal-worldLondonstreets,forexample, the experience offered by the game is that of inhabiting the fictional milieuofagangsterepicsetinthestreetsofLondonasmuchasormore thaninhabitingaversionofLondonitself. The creation of impressions of presence or immersion is not only dependent on factors relating to sensory perception such as those on
117
118
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS which the first part of this section has concentrated. If games create a relatively weak sense of virtual embodiment in the gamescape – or if some games create a weaker sense than others – compensation can be found in other dimensions.Terms such as presence and immersion areoftenusedinvagueandsometimesinterchangeableways,asAlison McMahansuggests,thatfailtodiscriminatebetweendifferentdimensions oftheoverallgameplayingexperience.31Adistinctionneedstobemade betweenperceptualimmersion–limitedbythetechnologicalbasisof conventional desktop computer or console/television games, and in commercialarcadesettings–andpsychologicalimmersioningameplay activities of the kind examined in the previous chapter. One involves immersioninthegame-world,theotherimmersioninthegameitself(the lattermightbestbedescribedas‘absorption’tomakeclearthedifference betweenthetwo).Thedistinctionisanimportantone,particularlywhen itcomestounderstandingtheoverlapping,multidimensionalnatureof manygameplayexperiences.Amoveoutoffirst-personperspectivesuch as those described above in Morrowind and EverQuest might diminish the relative impression of perceptual immersion, but the gameplay motivationissufficientlystrongtokeeptheplayerboundintothegame at the psychological level.The same goes for the division of attention betweenimagesfromwithinthefictionalgame-worldandthoseimposed intheformofhealthbarsorothergameplay-specificdisplaysthatare not given diegetic motivation. Gameplay activities are likely to be as immersive – very often more so – than devices designed to create an impressionofsensoryimmersionorpresence.Psychologicalimmersion can be very strong even where no great sense of sensory presence is involved,asisoftenthecaseinmanagementandstrategygamesofthe kinddiscussedatthestartofthissection.Anumberoffactorsotherthan thoserelatedtoimpressionsofsensorypresence,includingcompelling and well-balanced gameplay activities, can contribute to the extent to whichplayersexperienceastateofbeingimmersively‘wrapped-up’in agame. Other factors include what Matthew Lombard andTheresa Ditton, inareviewofstudiesofpresenceacrossarangeofmedia,term‘content variables’ and ‘media-user variables’.32 Content variables in games includegameplayactivitiesandelementssuchasthedegreeofsurface realismwithwhichthegamescapeisrendered,butalso,andoftenmore
GAMESCAPES importantly than realism, the degree of consistency with which the game-world is constructed and how the player can act in and act on thevirtualenvironment.Questionsofgraphicalrealismareconsidered inChapter3.Inconsistencyisoneofthegreatestthreatstothecreation ofimpressionsofeitherimmersionorpresence.Allplayersareaware,at somelevel,thatthegamescapeisanartificiallyconstructedandlimited environment.Playersaregenerallyveryhappy,andwilling,to‘suspend disbelief ’, however, to allow themselves to be taken in by the illusion thattheworldsinwhichtheyplayaremorethanjustentirelyarbitrary constructs.Inconsistencyofdesignorfunctionalityisoneofthequickest waystoshattertheillusion,anissuetowhichwereturninthefollowing chapter.Inconsistencytendstoremindplayersoftheconstructednature ofthevirtualworld,althoughthistendencycanbeoverstated:agestalt principle, a psychological propensity to fill-in missing details to make thingsappearwhole,mightalsobeatworkinvisualandcognitiveterms, enablingplayerstoglossoverthegaps. Asenseofagencyinthegame-world–theabilitytoaffectitscontents inwaysatleasttosomeextentapproximatetotheequivalentinthereal world – can be a major source of impressions of embodied presence, especiallyasgamesareplayedinthepresenttense,whichgivesthema temporalsenseofimmediacy.Expressionsofagencymaybegameplay/ goal-directed – puzzle-solving, shooting/killing, interacting with weapons, equipment, obstacles or gateways – or free-form and paideaoriented,suchasthecapacitytoshootuptheenvironmentofHalf-Life citedinChapter1.Agencycanonlyeverbelimited,however,andmuch of its scope is usually directed towards the performance of particular gameplaytasks.Inmanyexamplesofinteractivemediaaconflictexists betweeninteractivityandthecreationofanimpressionofpresencein thefictionalworld,amajorthemeofMarie-LaureRyan’sstudyNarrative asVirtualReality.InahypertextfictionoraninteractivemovieonDVD, forexample,theactionstopsandanyimmersivespellisbrokenatpoints wherethereader/viewerisgivenamenufromwhichachoiceofoptions istobeselected.Invirtualreality,Ryansuggest,interactivity,experienced as being performed inside the virtual world, tends to reinforce the impressionofpresence.33Thesituationofvideogamesissomewherein between the two. Interactivity via the actions of the player-character hasthepotentialtoincreasetheillusionofpresence,butalsotoreduce
119
120
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS it – depending on the extent to which it is or is not constrained by excessivelyarbitrarylimitationsorinconsistencies.Agencyisnotalways associatedwiththecreationofpresence,however,asinsimulationgames suchasSimCity,inwhichahighdegreeofagencyiscombinedwitha lowdegreeofpresence. Contentvariablesrelevanttothecreationofimpressionsofpresence includethedesignofinterfaces,aswassuggestedinthepreviouschapter. Interfaces disguised as parts of the in-game-world are generally more effectiveinthisregard.Non-playercharactersareoftenlittlemorethan interfaceconceits,asBartlesuggests,butthiscanbeaneffectivewayof clothing what would otherwise be abstract gameplay devices in garb appropriatetothediegeticenvironment.Examplesincludenon-player charactersinrole-playinggamesfromwhichplayer-charactersbuyand sell items, training or obtain quests. Guard non-player characters, such as those found in EverQuest, are ways of creating motivation for the enforcementofgameplayrulessuchaspreventingplayersfromattacking oneanotherwithinparticularpartsofthegamescape.34 Media-user variables include important factors such as the degree to which individual players are willing to suspend disbelief, not to be distracted by elements that might reduce the impression of presence, andtheplayer’sfamiliaritywiththemedium.35Anexperiencedplayer, familiar with the nuances and full scope of a game or a game-genre, might also be expected to get more‘into’, and get more out of, any particulartitle.Whatmightappeartobedistractinglimitationstoothers mightbemorereadilyacceptedaspartoftheconventionalrepertoire. The social dimension of gameplay can also contribute significantly to its immersive and engaging qualities, especially in multi-player online games that create what Lisbeth Klastrup terms a virtual social world, ‘bothsomethingimagined,something“fake”(somethingpretendingto bereal,asweknowitfromrealisticfiction)andsomethinglivedin,an actualized reality we create, inhabit and share with other people …’36 EverQuestwasdesignedtoencourageplayerstobandtogetherregularly in small groups – different character-class capacities complementing one another and group action necessary to the performance of many activities–afactorthatdifferentiateditfromothersavailableatthetime ofitslaunchin1999.‘Whateverthereasonspeoplehadforstartingto playthegame’,Bartlesuggests,‘theycontinuedtoplaybecauseofthe
GAMESCAPES otherpeopletheyhadmetthere.’37Theworldmaybevirtual,butbonds formedbetweenplayerscanbecomeveryreal;theresult,inthiscase,as Bartleputsit,isnotsomuchamovefurther‘into’thevirtualworldas amoveintheotherdirection:‘Immersionputstherealworldintothe virtual;communityputsthevirtualworldintothereal.’38 A sense of participation is central to the experience of all fictional representations, according to KendallWalton, including media such as books,paintings,playsandfilms.Theyallentailaprocessofpretence,a gameofmake-believeintherealityoftherepresentedobjects.Walton’s theory of representation is particularly interesting in the context of videogames given the importance he attributes to similarities with the processes involved in the playing of children’s games.‘In order to understandpaintings,plays,films,andnovels’,hesuggests,‘wemustfirst lookatdolls,hobbyhorses,toytrucks,andteddybears.Theactivitiesin whichrepresentativeworksofartareembeddedandwhichgivethem theirpointarebestseenascontinuouswithchildren’sgamesofmakebelieve.’39A minimal condition for participation in a game of makebelieve is considering oneself constrained by the rules of the game. If participationinchildren’sgamesofmake-believeisphysical,theemphasis inrepresentationalformsshiftstowardsthepsychological.40Videogames might,again,occupyaspaceinbetween,wheretheparticipationofthe playerisphysical,butatoneortworemoves,andalsopsychological.The experience of participation, forWalton, is one that occurs in the first person,evenwhenparticipationispsychologicalratherthanphysical.The viewerpsychologicallyinvolvedinahorrorfilm‘doesnotimaginethathe isafraid;heimaginesbeingafraid,andheimaginesthisfromtheinside.’41 A psychological sense of presence can be created, in other words, without the need for sensory immersion (althoughWalton does not documentthepreciseformaldevicesusedbyfilmstocreateorreinforce sucheffects).Thisunderlinesthepointswehavemadeaboveaboutthe varietyofwaysinwhichimpressionsofspatialpresenceorotherkinds of immersion can be created in games. It also suggests that the first person/thirdpersonoppositionmightnotalwaysbeasstrongasitfirst seems.Wecanimagineourselvesinfirstorthirdpersonmodes,Walton suggests; in daydreams, for example, where we might imagine doing something–hisexampleishittingahomerun–orwatchingourselves doing something from an exterior position.42 We can also imagine
121
122
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS ourselvesoccupyingtheplaceofthethird-personplayer-character,even if we seem more removed from the character’s perspective than is the case in first person, a fact that accounts for the acceptance of devices suchastheexamplescitedearlierinwhichtheperspectiveofthethirdpersonplayer-characterisprojectedontotheentiregamescape.Asimilar conception is found in psychoanalytic conceptions of fantasy. In the essay‘AChildisBeingBeaten,’Freudarguesthatfantasyscenarioshave multiple points of entry: we can be either the child being beaten, the beaterorwecanlookoninakindofblurredamalgamationofthetwo positions.43CoraKaplanandElizabethCowieapplythisnotiontomore public,textualformsoffantasysuchasfilmsandliterature.44Infantasy, Cowieargues,thesubjectis‘presentorpresentedthroughtheveryform of organization, composition, of the scene.’45 First-person (present) or third-person (represented) perspective is, in this account, incidental to thedegreeofinvolvementexperiencedinagivenscenario:‘weenterthe fantasy-structureandidentifyasifitwereourown’.46Thefactthatmany gamesofferarangeofpoints-of-viewsuggeststhatplayersarecapableof accommodatingshiftsinperspectivewithsomeease.
Conclusion Degreesoffreedomofexplorationandtheextenttowhichanillusion iscreatedofpresenceinthegame-worldaresignificantaspectsofgames, althoughtheyneedtobeunderstoodinthecontextofothergameplay activitiesandattributes.Anegativecorrelationmightbeexpectedtoexist betweenthetwo,otherfactorsbeingequal,ifonlybecauseoftheresource demands imposed by both extensive scope for exploration and the creationofastrongersenseofembodiedpresence.Thisisnotnecessarily thecase,however,giventhelimitedextenttowhichmostgamesinvest inanythingmorethanarelativelyminimaldegreeofsensoryimmersion. ThefactthatgamessuchasEverQuestandMorrowindcanbeexperienced ineitherfirst-orthird-personmodes,whileofferinglarge-scalescope forfreeexploration,suggeststhatthegreaterdegreeofpresencecreated in first person is, in these cases and many others, a neutral factor in termsofdataandprocessingresources.Astrongerinvestmentinsensory embodiment – extensive use of more discriminating haptic interfaces, for example – might alter the equation, but this is not generally the caseincontemporarygames.Freedomofexplorationcancertainlybe
GAMESCAPES afactorinincreasingthesenseofpresencecreatedbyagame,reducing atleastoneformofwhatcanseemlikearbitraryrestriction.Gamesthat createstrongerimpressionsofpresencearenotnecessarilythoseinwhich explorationloomslargest,however,althoughtheymaymakeexploration arelativelylessabstract-seemingexperience.
123
3 Realism, Spectacle, Sensation Qualities such as striking imagery and sound are important sources of pleasure in videogames, as are the sensations and intensities of experienceofferedbyengagementinmanygameplaytasks.Thequalities ofgraphicalreproductionon-screen,combinedwithsoundeffects,can playasignificantpartintheestablishmentofmanyofthedimensions of games already examined in this book. Relatively higher-quality graphicalresolutionanddesign/reproductionofsoundcanincreasethe extenttowhichnarrative,genericorothercontextualframeworksare likelytobeinplay,givingastrongersenseofthelocationofgameplay withinaparticular,realizedmilieu.Theycanalsoincreasethepleasures ofexplorationortheextenttowhichasenseofpresenceiscreated.The aboveeffectsmightbethecasewhereimagerycreatesanimpressionof greater‘realism’(arelativelymoreconvincingimpressionofthesurface textures of the world) or more spectacular vistas (whether these are themselves presented as broadly recognizable/‘realistic’, the product of fantasy, or a combination of the two). Intensities of engagement can have similarly supportive effects, sometimes increasing the impression ofoccupyingaparticulargamescapeofonevarietyoranother.Qualities suchasrealism,spectacleandsensationalsoofferpleasuresintheirown
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION right,however,whichmightbeequallycapableofworkingagainstother formsofimmersionintheworldon-screen. Audio-visualqualitieshavebeendismissedbysomecommentatorsas essentiallycosmeticaspectsofgames.ForthedesignerChrisCrawford, forexample,graphics,animationandsoundarenecessarybutsupporting elements, secondary to the primary dimension of interactivity. We would agree that dimensions such as realism and spectacle are usually less important, ultimately, than compelling and absorbing gameplay – althoughthesamemightnotbesaidofintensityofsensation,whichcan becloselycoupledwiththeperformanceofcoregameplayactivities.The appealofqualitiessuchasrealismandspectacleshouldnotbeignored, even if they are considered to be secondary to other aspects of the gameplayexperience.Tobesecondaryisnottobeofnoconsequence, aswearguedinChapter1,andsecondaryfactorsmightalsocontribute quitesignificantlytothemannerinwhichprimarygameplayactivities areexperienced.Itisalsonecessarytoconsiderdifferentdimensionsof conceptssuchasrealism,whenappliedtogamesratherthanothermedia. We consider realism in this chapter in two main senses. First, in the sensesuggestedabove:realismintermsofcertainqualitiesofgraphical representation(alongwithsounddesign)on-screen;realismaccordingto anaestheticdefinition.Second,though,weconsiderrealismatthelevelof functionalitywithingames:realisminthesenseofon-screenactionand interaction;theextenttowhichtheworldon-screenactsandresponds (rather than visually or aurally resembles) something like its real or imaginedequivalentintheworldoutside.
Realism Thehistoryofvideogamesisonethathasbeendominated,ononelevel, byinvestmentsinincreasingrealism,atthelevelofgraphicalrepresentation andalliedeffects.Successivegenerationsofgamesandgameplatforms have been sold on the basis of the creation of on-screen worlds that beargreaterresemblancetothetexturesoftherealworld–or,inmany cases,thetexturesofotherformsofrepresentationthatstakeclaimsto thecreationofimpressionsofverisimilitude,apointtowhichwereturn below.Qualityofgraphics,resultingfromincreasesinprocessingcapacity, hasbeenamajorfactorinthevarious‘consolewars’thathaveragedsince the 1980s, including the competition between console platforms and
125
126
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS PCs.An early breakthrough was the development of Nintendo’s 8-bit Famicom(FamilyComputer),launchedinJapanin1984,followedbythe NintendoEntertainmentSystem(NES),themodifiedversiondeveloped for theAmerican market.1 Each offered graphics of a quality superior to its predecessors. In a move that was to set the stage for subsequent developments, the NES was leapfrogged by the 16-bit Sega Genesis, which created‘bigger animated characters, better backgrounds, faster play,andhigher-qualitysound.’2ThePCthenenteredtheincreasingly competitive fray, along with following generations of consoles, each sold to a large extent on their capacity for the provision of improved graphics.Otherfactorshavealsoplayedanimportantpartinthisprocess, ofcourse.Greaterprocessingandstoragecapacityalsocreatesscopefor newdevelopmentsingameplay,andforinnovationssuchasthecapability forconsoleonlineplayintroducedbytheXbox. Advancements in technology alone have never been sufficient to guaranteesuccess,asdemonstratedinthe1990sbythefailureofthethen state-of-the-artconsoles,theAtariJaguarandTripHawkins’3DO.The dominance gained, at various stages, by companies such as Nintendo, SegaandSonywastheproductnotjustofinnovationsintechnology,but alsoinmarketing,culturalpositioningandtheprovisionofasufficient supplyofappealinggames.3Thatsaid,itremainstruethatthepromise of improved qualities of sound and visuals – and especially the latter –hasbeenamajorcomponentintheenginethathasdrivenforward developments in games platforms; probably the single most important –or,atleast,mostprominent–factor.AsfarasthePCisconcerned,it iswidelyacceptedthatthedemandsofgamingplayacentralroleinthe advanceofthetechnologyasawhole,gameplayingbeingoneofthefew activitiesthatrequiresthehigher-endcapabilities–especiallyingraphics cards – of most domestic machines. Improvements in gameplay might resultfromthepurchaseofnewPCsorconsoles,butthesearegenerally lessimmediatelyobviousandlesseasytofeatureinthemarketingofboth games and platforms. Improved graphics lend themselves more readily to such processes, creating eye-catching impressions that can easily be translatedintopromotionalartwork. Muchthesamegoesformanygamesthemselves.Acommonfeature ofsequelstopopulartitlessuchasColinMcRaeRally,TombRaiderand ResidentEvilisthatsoundandvisualqualitiesareimproved,usuallyin
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION thedirectiontowardsagreaterimpressionofverisimilitude,toalarger extentthanbasicgameplayisdeveloped.AsisoftenthecasewithnewgenerationconsolesorPCgraphicscards,increasedrealismtendstobe emphasizedinmarketing.ForTombRaider:AngelofDarkness,forexample, apressreleaseboaststhat:‘Fansoftheworld’smostfamouscyber-babe havesomethingtogetreallyexcitedabout–shecannowbeseenin10 timesmoredetail!ThenewLaraismadeupofover5,000polygonsas opposedtojust500inpreviousgames.’4 For many commentators, the emphasis put on graphics in the marketingprocesshashadadamagingeffectongames,distractingfrom thecorebusinessofprovidingsatisfyinggameplay.InthecaseofAngel of Darkness, for example, many gamers found the gameplay to be less compelling than that of earlier iterations, however much improved the graphics.As designersAndrew Rollings and ErnestAdams put it: ‘Alotofnostalgicgamershavecalledforareturntothevaluesofthe “goldenage”ofgaming–the1980s,whenhardwarelimitationsforced developers to concentrate on gameplay.’5 Core gameplay activities are, arguably, relatively more important in games produced with limited resources–whetherinthepastortoday,forhand-heldconsolesornonspecialist platforms such as mobile phones or PDAs – where there is little to disguise or supplement any gameplay shortcomings. Given its typicalprominenceinthemarketingprocess,andtheproportionofthe development budget for which it accounts, there can be a temptation to rely excessively on appearances.This is likely to have increased in themove,sincetheearly1990s,towardsahighlycompetitiveemphasis onresource-heavy‘photorealism’ingames,anefforttoproduceimages that aspire to the higher resolution qualities of still photography, film ortelevision.6Asignificantpartofthisprocesswasthemovefromthe blockyfeaturesofearly2Dgamestothecloser-grained,texture-mapped, multi-polygonconstituentsof3Dgraphics.Almosteveryonewhowrites on this subject has examples to cite of updated 3D versions of earlier gamesinwhichgameplaysuffered,directly,fromthetransitiontoamore fullyrealized,lessabstractappearance(casescitedbyRollingsandAdams, forexample,includeRobotronandCentipede[initialversions,both1982], althoughtheyalsopointtoinstancesinwhichupdateshavebeenmore successfulinmaintainingtheoldgamemechanic).7Thecreationofmore realistic graphical environments remains an issue of central interest to
127
128
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS thoseworkingatthemosttechnicalendofgamesproduction,however, evenifforspecificreasonsoftheirown.Commercialconsiderationsdo muchtoshapetheenvironmentinwhichtheywork,butaninvestment ingraphicalrealismforfiguressuchasthegame-enginedesignerJohn Carmackcanbelocatedintheintrinsicsatisfactionoffindingelegant solutionstotechnicalchallenges. It is not surprising that many gamers and designers are suspicious oftheemphasisoftenputon‘cosmetic’issuessuchasgraphicsquality, with its often concomitant emphasis on increased realism, especially giventheextenttowhichthisisseenasamarketing-ledphenomenon. Suchsuspicionsriskanoverstatementofthecase,however,arejection of the importance of graphics that fails to attend to the considerable contributiontheycanmaketotheoverallgamingexperience.Graphics areoneoftheconstitutiveelementsofthe‘videogame’asadistinctentity, whateverrelativeimportancetheyareaccorded;theprecisequalitiesof thegraphicsonoffer,generallyorinparticularexamples,have,therefore, tobeaccordedsomesignificanceifafullunderstandingoftheformis tobeachieved.8Debatesonthissubjecthaveashapesimilartodisputes about the relative merits of gameplay and narrative considered in Chapter1:aninsistence,insomecases,onthe‘purity’ofcoregameplay mechanics, as the essence of games, as opposed to their‘corruption’, as it were, by undue emphasis on secondary qualities associated with othermediaforms.Somedesigners,suchasCrawford,seemconcerned primarilywithcreatinggameswithlastingappealofthekindfoundin long-termclassicssuchasGoandChess,inwhichcasequalitiessuchas levelofgraphicalfidelityarelikelytobeofsecondaryimportance.The businesssideofthegameindustrytendstobecommittedtoaprocess of constant technological (if not other forms of) innovation, however, foundedlargelyonappealthatismoreephemeralinnature,subjecttoa constantprocessofupgradingandreiterationinwhichimprovementsat thelevelofappearancestendtofigurelargelyinthemarketingequation. Ourargument,aspreviouslyestablished,isthatgamesandtheexperience of gameplay are complex and multidimensional. Dimensions such as narrative or, in this case, aspirations towards graphical photorealism, or the other qualities considered below, contribute to the total effect offered to players – even if or where they are, ultimately, considered tobesecondary.Theycertainlyshapethenatureofthegamesthatare
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION availabletoplay,ifonlyforreasonsofcommercialconvenience,afactor thatcannotbeignored,evenifsomecommentatorsbelieveitshouldnot bethecase.Theycanalsosignificantlyshapetheexperienceoftheplayer –again,whetherornotthatisalwaysregardedas‘desirable’.Ouraimin thisbookisnottobeprescriptive–arguingwhat‘should’bethecase,or decryingwhatsomemightseeasshortcomings–buttoanalyzeexisting gamesandtrendsandthekindsofexperiencestheyoffer. What,then,isofferedtothegameplayexperiencebygraphicaland other qualities that stake claims towards greater realism?Why should agreaterimpressionofrealismbeattractive,andhowimportantlyisit likelytofigureintheoverallgameplayexperience?Thedegreetowhich gamescreatesuchimpressionscertainlyseemstofigureasasignificant factorformanygameplayers,aswellastoindustrymarketers.AsMark Wolfsuggests,gamesgraphics‘were,andtoalargeextentstillare,the maincriteriabywhichadvancingvideogametechnologyisbenchmarked bythebuyingpublic’.9Itis,perhaps,somewhatpatronizingtodismiss thisdimensionoftheexperienceofmanyconsumersofgamesoftware andhardware. Graphicsthatoffermorecloselygrainedorphotorealisticimpressions oftheworldon-screencanincrease–atleastrelatively–theresonance of the experience: the sense of acting within a more realized virtual environment,ofinhabitinga‘world’.Thiseffectisnoteasytopindown, however, and is likely to be highly variable.A range of factors might besuggestedthatmakeitmoreorlesslikelythatsuchqualitiesfigure importantly or substantially in the overall gameplaying experience, factorsbroadlysimilartothoseconsideredinChapter1inrelationtothe relativeimportanceofbackgroundcontextualmaterialsuchasnarrative, genreorideologicalresonances.Thedegreeofphotorealismachievedby graphicsismorelikelytofigurestronglyinsometypesofgamesthanin others.Itmightbeexpected,allelsebeingequal,tobemoreimportant ingamesthatarelessfastandfurious,inwhichmoretimeisavailable fordetailedconsiderationorexplorationoftheon-screenworld(hence theprominentplaceofMystanditssequelsinthehistoricalrecordof games celebrated for the realistic and/or spectacular quality of their graphics).Itisespeciallymorelikelytobeaprominentdimensionofthe experienceintheearlierstagesofnewgames,orinitialtitlessupplied for a new platform. Improvements in qualities such as realistic visual
129
130
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS texturesandsoundsofferanoveltyeffectthatcanbeappealinginitsown right,butthatisalsolikelytowaneovertime.Wequitequicklybecome accustomedtoanewleveloftexturaldetail,takingitforgrantedand becominghabituatedtowhatitoffers–atwhichpointitis,generally, morelikelytorecederelativelyintothebackground.Asinthecaseof narrative, genre and other contextual material, the admiration of the qualitiesofgraphicsisalsolesslikelytofigureduringthemostfrenetic periodsofgameplay,inwhichinsufficientcognitiveresourcesmightbe leftfortheappreciationoftheaestheticdimension.Theorientationof the individual player is another important factor. So-called‘hard-core’ gamers,extremelyfamiliarwithaparticulargenre,areprobablylesslikely tobeseducedbyimprovementsingraphicsandmoreconcernedwith getting to the‘stripped-down’ basics of core gameplay mechanisms or innovationsatthislevel.Morecasualplayersare,onbalance,morelikely to be impressed by new generations of graphical realism and texture fidelity.This association with the mass-market gamer, rather than the coreenthusiast,isoneofthefactorsthathascontributedtothedismissal, bysome,oftheimportanceofthe‘graphicsquality’componentofgames, apotentiallysomewhatelitistapproach. Thequestionremains,though:what,exactly,isthebasisoftheappeal of graphics and other effects sold and experienced as‘more realistic’? Thismightbedividedintotwoparts.First,pleasuresmightresultfrom thesheerqualityofgraphicalresolutionalone,initsownright,anissue thatoverlapsintothesubjectofthesecondsectionofthischapter,where we consider the spectacular qualities offered by some games. Second, improved graphics quality can contribute directly to gameplay itself, ratherthanremaininganessentiallysecondaryphenomenon,apointthat isoftenoverlooked. Anoticeableimprovementindegreesofresolution–as,forexample, indirectcomparisonbetweenoneiterationofagameanditssuccessor– cancreateasenseofgreatervisualplenitude,ofrichersensoryexperience, thatisinherentlypleasurable.Pleasure,here,lieslargelyinthequalityof difference;asupplementmeasuredinrelativeratherthanabsoluteterms, whatoneiterationoradditiontoagenreaddstoitspredecessorsrather thanhowcloseitcomestothequalitiesofanexternalpointofreference. This pleasure includes a celebration of the capacity of the technology itself, a significant factor in games as in other media such as special-
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION effectsorientedcinema.10Thiscanbethecaseregardlessofwhetherthe on-screenworldinquestionisintendedtobeaworkoffantasyorone thathasanidentifiablereal-worldreferent,althoughanadditionalimpact mightbecreatedinthelatter.TheGetawayisagoodexample.Partofthe pleasureofthegameresultsfromacombinationofgraphical-realistdetail initselfandthefactthatthisisusedtorecreateaspectsofthereal-world geographyandlandmarksofcentralLondonasanenvironmentwithin whichgameplaytasksareset.Fortheplayerfamiliarwiththislandscape, an extra degree of frisson is created, potentially, the result of a process inwhichphotographsofrealbuildings,objectsandsurfacetexturesare mappedontowire-framestocreatea3Denvironmentrecognizablein realgeographicalterms(albeitwithsomegame-task-specificgeographical licence).Thesamecouldbesaidofthemorespatiallylimitedarenasused inmanysports-relatedgames:modelsofreal,identifiablestadiaorrealworldgolfcourses,forexample(forwhichlicencesusuallyhavetobe obtained).Thereisasignificantdifferencebetweenplayingagamesetin arelativelyidentifiableorconvincingsimulationofanactualreal-world environmentandoneinwhichamoregenericequivalentisused(orin whichthereferentisfromtherealworldbutthequalityofresolution makes it less recognizable as such).The experience of driving at high speed around the simulated London of The Getaway, chasing enemies or seeking to escape from the police, adds an extra dimension to the equivalent experience in the generic‘NewYork’ and‘Miami’ clones (LibertyCityandViceCity)foundinGrandTheftAutoIIIandViceCity. A similar difference of experience is found in playing a fantasy golf course and a simulacrum of a widely recognizable course such as St. Andrews–providedthatthegraphicsreachacertainqualitythreshold, thepreciselocationofwhichremainsrelativeratherthanabsolute.Toplay ‘StAndrews’inWorldClassLeaderboard(1986)ontheCommodore,for example,orsubsequentversionsonplatformssuchastheSegaGenesis, istoengagewithagraphicssimulationrestricted,bytoday’sstandards, tobroadandblockyfieldsofcolour.Theresultingexperienceismore abstract than that offered by a recent title such as Links 2004 (2003), in which the famous course is simulated at a much greater and more concretelevelofdetail.Aspirationstowardsgreaterrealismatthelevelof imageresolutionalonecanapplyequallytorealandimaginedcourses, however,justasitcanalsototherenderingoftheenvironmentsofmany
131
132
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS
9.Golfsimulationinbroadandblockyfieldsofcolour:WorldClass Leaderboard(1986)ontheCommodore64.
gamessetinworldsassociatedwithsciencefictionand/orfantasy.Even if an environment or character bears little relation to what we might encounterintherealworld–ascalybipedallizardwearingarmourand wieldingasword,forinstance–ahighlevelofdetailinappearanceand movementcanincreasethedegreetowhichitseemsbelievable,inits owncontext,nomatterhowfantasticalitsnature. Greaterdegreesofimageresolution,creatingmorerealistictextures, canalsoaddsignificantlytotheimpressionofsensoryimmersioninthe game-world. Environments constructed with cel-shading graphics, for example,mightbethreedimensional,buttheimpressioncreatedbythe useofdiscreteblocksofsaturatedcolourtendstoberatherflatterthan thatcreatedbygamesthatusetexturemappingandothermeanstobuild surfacevariation.Anincreasedimpressionofspacethatcanbeoccupied bytheplayer-characteriscreatedbytheuseoftexturemappinganda varietyofothertechniquesemployedtoincreasethesubtletywithwhich such images are constructed: anti-aliasing (to smooth blocky edges), bump-mapping (to create random deviations in a plane), vertex and pixelshading(dynamiclighting),depthfogging(tocreateagreatersense of perspective), raytracing (to create shadows and reflections), particle effects(tocreateclouds,mist,smoke,fireeffects),keyframeinterpolation
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION (forcomplexfacialmovementandspeech)andtheDirectXpipeline(to createbetterreal-timedeliveryofgraphics/data).11Tostandtheplayercharacterontheteeofsomeearliergenerationgolfgames,forexample, is to be given the impression of facing what appears to be a largely two-dimensionalflattenedpictureofahole.LatergamessuchasLinks 2004createamuchstrongersenseoflookingintoasubstantialthreedimensionalspaceintowhichthevirtualballcanbehit. Higherstandardsofresolutionaremeasuredtoalargeextentbythe degreetowhichtheyremovethemoreobviousremindersofthestatus ofthegameasaconstruct.Increasedrealismislargelyamatterofthe reductionordisappearanceofobviouslypixelatedorflat-planesurfaces infavourofmoresubtleandcloser-grainedtextures,theconstituentsof whicharelessclearlydrawntotheattentionoftheplayer.Theworldof ActuaGolf2(1997),forexample,onthePlayStation,isoneinwhichthe buildingblocksofvegetationinthelandscapeareclearlyonviewandin whichtreesappeartoshufflearoundon-screeninanysequencesinvolving movementofthein-gamecamera.InLinks2004,detailismuchmore
10.Themuchmore‘photorealistic’simulationofgolfofferedbyLinks2004 (2003).
133
134
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS texturedanddiscriminating,downtothelevelofindividualleavesand thestemsofsmallerplants.Trees,bushesandotherformsofundergrowth retaintheirpositionsandasenseofsoliditywhenthecameramoves(the resultoftheuseofmoresophisticatedandrapiddeliveryofdatatothe screen).A slight agitation effect is noticeable among leaves and plants, althoughthisismotivatedatleastpartlyasanimpressionofwindmotion, noticeableassuchwhenthecameracomestoarest.Insomecasesthe issueisoneofconsistency.MaxPaynewaswidelylaudedonreleasefor the‘realistic’ quality of the graphics of its gritty, urban noir landscape, althoughitisfarfromvisuallyconsistent.Certainpartsofthegameplay screenaremorevisuallydetailedthanothers,creatingapatchworkeffect likelytodrawattentiontotheissueofvariabledegreesofrealism.Even when the game is run at recommended PC specifications, a marked visualdistinctionexistsbetweensomeenvironmentalobjectsandothers. Posters appear on the walls of the Roscoe Street subway station, for example.Manyarephotossimplypastedintothegameenvironment,as areanumberofpicturesandpaintingsthatappearindomesticinteriors. These flat two-dimensional objects have a smoothly detailed quality that contrasts quite strongly with the rest of the gamescape. When Paynestandsinfrontofoneofthem,theratherharsh‘blockiness’ofthe characterisdrawntoattention.Particleeffectsusedforrepresentations offireandexplosionsalsoproduceamorethanusuallyrealisticeffect, with a visual complexity not matched by the surfaces used for larger segmentsoftheenvironment.Thegamebenefitsgenerallyfromtheuse oftexturemapping,basedontheuseofphotographicsources,creating greaterdifferentiationoftoneinindividualsurfaces;butthis,too,isnot applied uniformly. One of the principal advances of the sequel, Max Payne2:TheFallofMaxPayne,isthecreationofamoreseamlessand consistent aesthetic. Many of the planes from which 3D objects are comprisedarelessdistinctthanintheoriginal.Objectsaregenerallymore rounded,theirplanesmoresmoothlyintegrated.Thisismostobviousin acomparisonbetweentheshapeofPayne’sheadinthetwoversions.The MaxPayneofthesequelisless‘squared-headed’,theplanesofhisface farlessnoticeableasdistinctfeatureswhenseeninprofile.Complexityof detailismoreevenlydistributedacrossthewholevisualfield,including Maxhimself,ratherthanrestrictedtothemorelocalizedzonesofgreater photorealismcharacteristicoftheoriginal.
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION Ifgraphicalrealismis,essentially,arelativequality,degreesofdifference canbelocatedbetweengamesorbetweenversionsofgames,or,asin thecaseofMaxPayne,withinanindividualtitleitself.Oneofthemost obviousinstanceswithingamesisthegapthatoftenexistsbetweenprerendered cut-scenes and in-game graphics limited by the demands of real-time delivery. In The Lord of the Rings:The Return of the King, for example,cut-scenesareoftencomprisedofmateriallifteddirectlyfrom thefilmseries,creatingaverynoticeabledifferenceingraphicalquality eventhoughthetransitionintogameplayisotherwiserelativelysmooth. In the Final Fantasy series (from 1989) – among many others – cutscenesareofhigherresolutionandexhibitmoremobilecharactersand camera effects than the playable parts of the game.A similar effect in EntertheMatrixisgivenmotivationbythenarrativecontext:cut-scenes arepresentedaslocatedinthe‘realworld’ofthegamewhilegameplay occursaftertransitionintothecomputermatrixofthetitle,althoughthis isarationalizationthatcontradictsakeypointofthefilmseries–thefact thattheworldinsidethematrixisrealizedatalevelofdetailthatmakesit indistinguishablefromeverydayreality.Ineachofthesecases,therelatively low-levelgraphicalresolutionoftheplayablepartsofthegameislikely tobedrawntoattentionbyjuxtapositionwithmorephotorealisticor cinematiccut-scenes.Othergames,suchasHalo,havesoughttoavoid thisproblembyusingthesameenginetogeneratebothcut-scenesand gameplay, leaving little distinction between the two.This might mean having lower-grade cut-scenes but has the benefit of creating a more uniformaestheticinwhichtherelativelimitationsofgameplaygraphics arelesslikelytobedrawntoattention.TheMaxPaynetitlesdemonstrate aratherdifferentapproach.Here,theroleofcut-scenesisperformedby comic-bookstylestaticpanesthatemployapainterly,almostimpressionist styleinwhichbrushstrokesareclearlyvisibleandthebleedingofcolour andblurringoflinescreatesasomewhatdream-likequality.Inthiscase, the effect of comparison between these and playable sequences is to makethelatterseemthemoresolidly‘realistic’.Asimilarphenomenonis createdinManhunt,althoughmoreambiguously:low-gradeCCTV-style footage used for cut-scenes increases the comparatively photorealistic impressioncreatedbyhigher-resolutiongameplaysequences–although thelow-fiCCTVeffecthasitselfbecomeaculturalsignifierofaccessto thereal.
135
136
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Towhatexactlyisbeingaspiredinthesearchforgreaterrealismisnot asimplematter,however.Itisnotjustaquestionofseekingtomimic an unmediated impression of the real, exterior world.Two points of orientationoftencomeintoplay.One,lookingbackwards,isthestandard ofpreviousentriesinthefield,assuggestedabove.Gamesmakeclaims torealismonthebasisofcomparisonwithwhathasgonebefore.But lookingtowardstheidealagainstwhichexistingqualitiesaremeasured, thebenchmarkisasoftensetbyotherformsofmediationasitisbythe ultimatereal-worldreferent.Ingolfgames,forexample,andmostother sportssimulations,theprimarypointofreferenceistelevisioncoverage ofthesport,ratherthantheexperienceofthesportitself.Perspectives providedontheactionare,generally,closelycorrelatedwiththosetypical of such coverage: shots from behind the golfer during the swing, for example, aerial footage of the ball in flight, fly-by previews of holes, and the wry musings of commentators, often voiced by real-world broadcasters.Itisinthemoving-camerafly-bysequenceinActuaGolf 2,forexample,thattreesappeartoshiftaroundintheirmostdistracting and cartoonish manner; what Links 2004 simulates so much more convincingly, in audio-visual terms, is the impression of a helicoptermountedTVcameraflyingoverarealhole,asmuchastheimmediate experience of play itself. Devices such as simulated lens flare, created when shooting with a real camera towards the sun, are used in many games to signify the impression of action being witnessed in alreadymediated form. Relatively few sports games, in fact, offer the player a first-person perspective, as if inside the experience.‘Replay’ sequences availableinmanyalsomimictelevisioncoverage,inthiscasecreatingan objectifiedimpressionoftheactioncompletedbytheplayer:theeffect hereistocreateasenseoftheplayerhavingparticipatedinsomething akintothe‘realthing’,initsmediatedform,especiallywheretheplayer’s performance is sufficiently good to stand visual comparison with the professional equivalent or the computer-controlled competitors (Links 2004,forexample,offersa‘highlightsreel’,recordingthebestmoments of a completed round). For many action and action-adventure type games,thebenchmark,asfarasaudio-visualqualitiesareconcerned,is cinemaortelevision.Gamesoftencreatetheirimpressionsofrealismor immediacy precisely through their use of devices familiar from other media–as,intheirownrealm,signifiersofverisimilitudeorimmediacy
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION – as is suggested by the use of the term‘photorealism’, implying as it doesasecond-orderrealism,animpressioncreatedthroughreferenceto anotherformofmediation.12 Improvements in graphical resolution are not just a question of aestheticsseparatedfromgameplay,however.Thetwooftenworktogether. Graphics establish the setting in which gameplay occurs, thus creating many of the parameters within which gameplay has to operate. Leaps inthequalityofgraphicscan,intheirownright,contributedirectlyto thequalityofgameplay:creatingtheimpressionofarealgolfordriving simulation,forexample,incomparisonwithsketchierearlierstandards, inwhichasenseoftakingpartinaversionofthereal-worldequivalent seemsmorenotionalandabstract.AccordingtoJasonRubin,co-founder of the Sony subsidiary Naughty Dog, improvements in graphics have drivensalestodatebymakinggamesbothlookandplaybetter.Thishas beenthecase,Rubinargues,during30yearsoftechnicalimprovements, a series of leaps forward having been experienced in each successive movefromearlygamestoeightbit,16-bit,32-bit,early3Dandthestate of the art in the early 2000s.13 Particular gameplay effects can also be dependentonquitespecificthresholdsofvisualresolution.Inthestealth game Thief (1998), for example, as Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman suggest, it is essential that the standard of visual representation is such thattheplayercandistinguishbetweenareasthatarewelllitandthose inshadow,becausethedistinctionisakeyaspectofgameplay:theability oftheplayer-charactertouseshadowstoavoiddetection.14Thestealth featureofthegamewouldnotfunctioninagraphicalenvironmentin whichthisdistinctioncouldnotclearlybemaintained.Thesamegoesfor manyothertitlesinwhichstealthisanimportantfactor.Insomecases, higher-resolutiongraphicsprovidealevelofdetailrequiredmorelocally, inexamplessuchasthesolutionofvisualpuzzles.InPrinceofPersia:Sands ofTime, for example, the player-character is required to manipulate a seriesofvisuallycomplexgearsinordertoalignparticularsymbolsand gainaccesstoanewarea.Puzzlesofthiskindappearedinmanyprevious games,butinthiscaseagreaterdegreeofcomplexityismadepossibleby ahighlevelofcloseenvironmentaldetail. Greater levels of graphical realism can make it much less arbitraryseemingtolocatemechanismssuchastheubiquitousswitches,leversand otherobjectsthatneedtobemanipulatedaspartofthecoregameplayof
137
138
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS manygames,especiallyintheaction/adventureformats.Ifsuchdevices cannot be represented in something akin to their real textural detail, they have to be made to stand out in other ways, which makes them morearbitraryandlesswell-integratedinthegame-world.Withhigher qualitiesofgraphicalrealism,theycanbeidentifiedintermscloserto whatmightbeexperiencedintherealworld.Needastaketodispatch marauding vampires in one of the Buffy games, for example? Find a wooden bench or crate and break it up to create a suitable weapon. Withouttheuseofreasonablyconvincingtexturemapsitmightprove difficult to distinguish between objects supposed to be made from differentmaterials.Havetojumpacrossayawningabyss,requiringclose attentiontowhereexactlytheedgelies?Greatergraphicalrealismmight help the player to be more precise in determining exactly how far it is safe to go. None of these actions are impossible in games in which graphicaldetailismorelimited;buttheycanbemademoresatisfying,as partofarelativelymoreimmersiveexperience,oncecertainthresholds ofrecognizabilityarereached. With greater processing power, game designers can construct more complex environments, containing wider ranges of interactive objects. Thismayopenuptheenvironmenttosupportdifferentwaysofachieving centralgameplaytasks.Inearlieraction/adventuregames,the‘crumb-trail’ laiddowntoenableplayerstoworktheirwaythroughthegamescapeis oftenquiteclearlyvisibleasaresultofanomaliesinthelevelofgraphical reproduction.IntheearlyTombRaidergames,forexample,asectionof wallthatstandsoutbecauseitiscolouredslightlydifferentlyfromthe restislikelytobeavisualcluethatit(alone)willrespondtoaparticular action.Thismightbehelpfultotheplayer,ononelevel,aspartofthe exploratoryinfrastructureexaminedinthepreviouschapter.Anentirely uniform quality of representation might, in this sense, make gameplay harder.Thefactthatthisisstillseenasausefuldeviceisdemonstrated byitscontinueduseinlatergamessuchasBuffytheVampireSlayer:Chaos Bleeds. In the Sunnydale Zoo level, the player-character is required to smashasheetofplateglassinthereptilehousetoreachawallpanelthat leadstothenextarea.Thatthisparticularpane,amongothers,needstobe brokenisindicatedbythepresenceofaframeoutlineontherearwallof theexhibit,theareainsidetheframebeingcolouredslightlydifferently from the rest.Visual clues such as these are convenient devices, saving
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION playersfromwhatmightbethemoretedioustaskofinvestigatingaspects ofthegame-worldatgreaterlength.Atrade-offexistsherebetweenthe demands of navigationalaids and the relative seamlessness with which the game-world is presented, although it would be possible to create formsofsignpostingthatdidnotrelyoneitherhierarchicaldegreesof graphical realism or obvious highlighting of certain items (or to give players the option of settings in which highlighting could be turned on or off). Greater uniformity of detail can make the task of locating required objects both more realistic and more difficult. In Max Payne 2,forexample,visualcomplexitycanmakeitquitehardtodistinguish usefulobjects,suchasammunition,fromtheirbackgroundenvironments, especiallywhengameplaydemandsleavelittletimeavailable.Thiscanbe seenasahandicaptotheimmediatedemandsofgameplay,butcanalso encouragethesituationofsuchobjectsinlocationsthatseemlessarbitrary andmoreintegratedintothegame-world:power-upsintheformofpills, forexample,foundinappropriatelocationssuchasbathroomcabinets. To offer high levels of detail in some areas is to create a similar expectation in others that might not be fulfilled; the result can be to attract attention to shortcomings that might not otherwise become an issue, as in the first Max Payne game.The increased level of visual character detail that comes with upgrades to EverQuest tends to make therestoftheworldlookrelativelysparse,forexample;toimprovedetail throughoutmightbedesirable,butwouldcauseproblemsofprocessing lag,althoughsomeattempttomaketheworldanditsinhabitantsequal intermsofgraphicaldetailispromisedinthesequel,EverQuest2.An example in which consistency of detail is maintained is the singleplayerUnrealII,inwhichhigherlevelsofrenderingarenotreservedfor charactersorforelementsthatstandoutasofparticularimportanceto gameplay.Aninteriorsciencefictiongamescapeiscreated,fullofvideo screenswithmovingimages,3Dwire-frameterrainmapsanddetailed consolepanelswitharraysofblinkinglights,dialsandbuttons.Outdoor spacesarealsoheavilypopulated,insomeregions,withorganicrather than cubic-looking plant life.As with the more graphically consistent MaxPayne2,theeffectistocreateastrongerimpressionofthegameworldasaseamlessvirtualplaceratherthanafunctionalconstructbuilt aroundafewkeygameplayoptions. Increased levels of graphical realism can also open up other areas
139
140
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS of expression in games, including a greater dimension of emotional engagement,aqualityoftenseenaslackinginmanygames.Characters canbemademoreexpressive.Theuseofmotioncapturetechniquesand appropriatesoundeffectscanheightenqualitiesofanthropomorphism andenhancethecapacityofcharacterstobemadetoexpressemotion. ThishasbeenoneeffectofincrementalupgradestoEverQuest,increasing the visual detail provided in the case of both player and non-player characters.Infirst-personmode,player-characterscannotseethemselves, buttheycanobservethereactionsofothers,bothvisualandaudible.Ina worldreliantontext-basedcommunicationbetweenplayers,touchessuch asthis–yelpssynchronizedtomouthmovementsoranimated‘socialemotes’suchasdoingadanceofjoytocelebratetheaccomplishmentof ataskordoublingupinlaughter–compensateforalackofemotionally richspeech,helpingtoanimateandvitalizetheinhabitantsofthegameworldinaricherandmoreresponsivemanner.15 Acombinationofdetailedgraphicsandexpressivequalitiesalsobreathes anaddedsenseoflifeintothecentralcharacterofthefantasy-basedactionadventure,PrinceofPersia:SandsofTime.Inthiscase,athird-persongame, thecentralcharacterisvisibletotheplayer:ahighlyacrobaticandmobile figure with a movement profile built from a large library of motioncapturedelements.Intermsofgraphicalrepresentation,actionandverbal reactions,theprincecreatesanimpressionofrounded,emotionallyrich characterrareintheworldofgamesatthetimeofitsappearance,with attributesdesignedtoberelativelyclosertothoseoffiguresmorenormalseemingthanthesuper-toughcharacterstypicalofmostaction-adventure titles.Balancedprecariouslyononeofthegame’smanyvertigo-inducing ledgesortightropes,forexample,heoftenstrugglestomaintainbalance, flailing his arms and emitting cries that express human fragility and a recognizablereactiontoenvironment–responsesthat,incontrastwith thecoolandsilentmannerofafiguresuchasLaraCroft,aredesignedto solicittheconcernoftheplayertoensurethecharacterdoesnotcome toharm.Graphicscapableofmakingcharactersmoreexpressivecan,in theprocess,makeasignificantcontributiontothenarrativedimension of games, helping to communicate both story-related material and emotionalresonance.AsDrewSikoraputsit:‘graphicsingamestoday arenolongerusedmerelyfor“eyecandy”,butasvisualeffectstohelp tellastorythattheplayercaninternalizeandenjoy.’16
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION Greaterdegreesofrealism,inaestheticterms,canalsoraisethestakes involvedinanumberofmorecontentiousissuesrelatedtogames.The wholequestionofviolenceingames,asubjectoffrequentmoralpanic, islikelytobeheightenedbyeveryincreaseintheverisimilitudeofingamerepresentation(anissuetowhichwereturninChapter4).Oneof theprincipaldefencesusedbythegamesindustry,inthefaceofthreatsof morestringentregulation,hasbeenthefactthatgameviolenceisusually comic-bookstyleratherthanrealistic,andasaresultmoreclearlymarked off as essentially non-serious and unthreatening. If higher standards of resolutionhavethepotentialgenerallytomakegameplayactivitymore rich and meaningful, as seems likely to be the case, the same applies towhatmanyseeasthepotentiallydisturbingaspectsofsomegames. Asignificantdifferenceofexperiencemightresultfromtheblastingof afuzzybunchofpixels–whetherrepresentingafantasymonsterora humanfigure–andtheshootinginfiner-graineddetailofsomething more closely resembling a fully realized being. In gameplay terms, of course,thismighthavethebenefitofenablingplayerstotargetenemies moreprecisely,whereshotsatheadsorchestsresultincleanerkillsand resultantsavingsinammunition. How far increased levels of graphical realism will continue to contributetogameplayremainssubjecttodebate.JasonRubinargues that graphics will keep improving, but that the return in terms of gameplayisrapidlydiminishing.17Recentleapsingraphicalqualityhave beensmallerthanthoseofthepast,hesuggests,thepay-offatthelevel ofgameplaybeingincommensuratewiththeleveloftechnicaladvance andthecostsincurredbydevelopers.Beyondacertainthresholdofhighresolution3D,hesuggests,mass-marketgamerswillceasetobeattracted byincreasedgraphicalqualityalonebecausethereisnoscopeforafuture shiftthathasanimpactequivalenttothemovefromearlyabstractionto morerealized2D,orfrom2Dtoearly3Dorearly3Dtoamorefully realized3D:‘thereisno4D’.18Ifgraphicalrealismhasbeensubstantially morethanjusticingonthecakeinthepast,thiswillceasetobethecase, forcingdeveloperstolookelsewheretoattractconsumers.Atthispoint, MaicMasuchandNiklasRöberargue,gameplayersmightbeattracted byarangeofmoreartistic,non-photorealisticgraphicalstyles.19 Sound can also play a strong part in the creation of impressions of realistic texture. If sound effects often serve to increase the effect of
141
142
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS sensorypresencecreatedbygames,assuggestedinthepreviouschapter, theycanalsobedeployedinamannerthatismoreorlessrealistically layered or modulated. In earlier games, sounds often exist as separate anddiscreteevents,appearingoneatatime.Thefunctionofsoundin somesuchcasesistoprovideauralsignificationofactivities,suchasthe picking up and putting down of objects, that could not be presented graphicallybecauseofverylimitedresources.Doommarkedasignificant stepforward,producingarangeofdifferentsoundssimultaneously,closer tothemannerinwhichsoundisexperiencedintherealworld.Sounds are often abruptly cut short in Doom when new events are triggered, however,resultinginajarringlydisjointedsoundscape.Amoreseamless impressioniscreatedinsubsequenttitlessuchasMaxPayne2,inwhich sound-bridgesareoftenusedtosmoothbreaksbetweenonepartofthe gameandanother(fromcut-scenetogameplaysequence,forexample). Moregenerally,naturalisticsoundeffectsoftencontributetotheextent towhichthegame-worldprovidesarealisticsensoryimpressionofits real-world equivalent: the sounds of objects in use, from keys turning in locks to the sound of swords clashing in battle; the sounds of the footsteps of player and non-player characters, or aural responses to changesinenvironmentalconditionssuchastheuseofechoeffectsin largeundergroundchambersorthereverberationofenginenoisewhen aracingcarentersatunnel. Recordings of‘real’ sounds can provide compensation for relatively lowerlevelsofgraphicalfidelity,contributingtotheoverallimpression ofverisimilitude.MaxPayne2usesalargenumberofrecordedsounds to construct a complex and multi-layered soundscape.Ambient sound provides a sense of increased dimensionality in interiors, examples including the opening of doors, muffled voices behind closed doors andvariablefootfalls.Thesoundsofathunderstormareorchestratedin oneleveltoincreasethesensorydepthoftheplayingexperience.The sound of rainfall is triggered as the player-character steps closer to an openwindow,thevolumeincreasingashemovesoutside.Theeffectisto sketchtheimpressionofawideroutsideenvironmentwithinwhichthe gameissituated,thebackgroundofthunderandrainalsocontributingto themelancholictenorofthepiece.Enemiesareoftenheardbeforethey areseen,adevicethatprovidesanaidtotheplayer–providingdanger cues–butthatalsocontributestotherealisticeffectthroughthecreation
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION of aural depth, texture and perspective.The effect of depth of aural dimensionisreinforcedbyotherdevices,includingthegapbetweenthe voiceofMax–closetotheplayer–andthatofhisaccomplice,Mona, ‘tinny’anddistant,directinghismovementsviaatelephoneheadset.The intimatepresenceofMax’svoiceisalsoavehiclefornuancesofcharacter emotion. Digital processing techniques, known as psycho-acoustic processing, areusedtoheightenthespatialandtexturalsoundeffectsinMaxPayne2, createdbytheuseoftheproprietarysoundmanipulationsoftwareEAX and enhanced by the use of high-quality audio recording to provide high-frequencycontentthatmakessubtleeffectsmoreaudible(helped, for the player, by the use of 5.1 speaker systems or headphones).Tiny delaysbetweenleftandrightsoundchannelsareusedtofooltheplayer’s perceptionintobelievingthatsoundsarecomingfromsourceswiderapart thanthespeakers.Changingthelengthofthedelaymakesasoundappear tomove,creatingaheightenedsenseofspatiallocationwhencombined withconventionalsidewayspanningfromonespeakertoanother.These kindsofeffectsareusedmoststrikinglyinthesoundthataccompanies thetransitionto‘bullet-time’,thevoicesofdistantnon-playercharacters andthesoundofrainfall.Reverberationisalsoemployedtoincreasethe effect of distance between sound-source and player-character. Used in combination, these effects create a more than usually realistic-seeming anddramaticthree-dimensionalqualitytothesoundscape.20 ‘Realism’ is a complex term, suggesting the extent to which representationsaccordnotjustwiththerealworld,orimaginedversions of reality, but also their relationship with other representational forms. Realismingamesalsoneedstobeconsideredattheleveloffunctionality, however,ofactionsratherthanqualitiesofsoundandimage,adimension thatveryclearlyimpactsonthecoremechanicsofgameplay.Agreater degree of realism can be created by aspects of gameplay that function consistently,forexample,justasitcanresultfromconsistencyatthelevel ofgraphicaldetail.Objectsthatfailtoactconsistentlytendtoremind theplayerofthearbitrarycharacterofgameplay,asanabstractedactivity, ratherthancontributingtothebroad–howeverpartial–impressionof immersionintheworldofthegame.InPrimal,forexample,oneplayercharactercanscalewalls,butonlysomewalls,notothers,fornoreason motivatedlogicallyfromwithinthegame;similarly,inRedFaction(2001)
143
144
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS somewallscanblastedtorubble,butnotall.AnexamplecitedbySteven PooleisthefactthatarocketlauncheravailableinTombRaiderIII(1998) canblowupenemiesbutdoesnodamagetoasimplewoodendoor.A specificgameplayrequirement–thedemandthattheplayerfindsarusty keywithwhichtoopenthedoor–underminesanygreaterdegreeof approximation to the more real-world logical capabilities of the item. Asanexampleofmuchgreaterconsistencyoffunctionality,Poolecites LegendsofZelda:OcarinaofTime(1998),inwhichmanyobjectscanbe puttomultipleusesappropriatetowhatwouldbeexpectedtobetheir natureinsomethingrelativelymoreanalogoustotherealworld.21 Ingeneral,aricherandmoreresponsivegameenvironmentincreases the potential for immersion in the game-world. As with graphical photorealism,theissueisoftenframednegatively,limitationstendingto be more prominent than strengths. Fundamental aspects of the gameworld that most closely resemble their real-world equivalents are less likelytobedrawntotheattentionoftheplayer.AsRichardBartleputs it:‘The more that players don’t have to think about interacting with their environment, the less they will think about it, and therefore the moreimmersivetheirtimeintheworldwillbe.’22Ifgravitypullspeople downwardsinthegame-world,asintherealworld,asBartlesuggests, playerswillsimplytakeitforgranted.Ifgravitydoesnotworkconsistently –unlessspecificallymotivatedbytheuseofadevicesuchasalevitation spell in a fantasy/magical context – it will be likely to stand out and intrudeonthegameplayexperience. All game-worlds are arbitrary and limited constructs. They have nothingremotelylikethecomplexfunctionalityoftherealworld.Buta greaterdepthoffunctionaldetailcancontributetotherelativedegreeof immersiveillusionthatiscreated,althoughitcanalsobeanoveltythat draws attention to itself.The environment of Max Payne is responsive in more detail than most of its contemporaries, for example. Many backgrounditemshaveadegreeoffunctionalitybeyondthatrequired for central gameplay tasks, as mentioned in Chapter 1.Television sets canbeswitchedonandoffandtoiletscanbeflushed.Functionaldetails suchasthesecreatethesenseofagame-worldcomprisingmorethan justaseriesofgraphicallyrenderedbackdrops.Theplayer’ssenseofthe arbitrarinessofactivitiesrequiredforthecompletionoflevels–orjustfor survival–isreducedafewnotchesbythefactthatitisnotonlyobjects
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION designed for a specific purpose that have any degree of functionality withinthediegeticuniverse.Ifthesequelincreasedthelevelofgraphical realism, a similar upgrading is found in the dimension of functional depth: more objects with which the player-character can interact, a furtherreductionintheextenttowhichnon-mission-criticalmaterial ismerelyinertbackground.Thisindicatesasituationinwhichsurplus resourcesareavailabletothedesigners,perhapssuggestingthatthescope foradditionalgraphicaldetailhasbeenexhaustedonaparticularconsole orgraphicscard. Degrees of functional realism are also important for objects more crucial to core gameplay activities. Military games often invest quite considerablyinthecreationoffunctionally(relatively)realisticweaponry, setoutinsometimesnear-fetishisticdetailinthemanual.Agamesuch as Medal of Honor: Allied Assault seeks to replicate some of the key characteristics of different weapons, as suggested in Chapter 1: their relativevaluesinparticularsituationsofcloseormoredistantcombat,or specificdetailssuchasthedifficultyofreloadingtheM1Garandsemiautomaticriflewhenitsclipispartiallyused–framedasbothhistorical fact and a factor to be considered during gameplay.Weapons create a fairlyrealisticimpressionofrecoilthatmakestargetshardertohit.When usingariflewithatelescopicsighttopickoffmoredistantenemies,the barreljumpssharplyupwardsaftereachshot,throwingofftheaimand puttingapremiumonone-shotsuccess(missedshotstendtodrawthe fire of the enemy, the impact of which creates jolts that make aiming increasinglydifficult);whenusingasub-machinegun,theplayerhasa choice between the greater firepower of lengthy bursts, in which the muzzleshakesandaccuracyislost,ormorecarefullycontrolledsingle shotsorshorterburstsoffire.Detailssuchastheseappeartobemodelled, ifonlyapproximately,onthereal-worldequivalents;suchanimpression isgiven,atleast,forthebenefitofthoseforwhomthisisanimportant issue, even in instances where it might be greatly simplified.A clear distinction is apparent between this approach and shooting sequences in games such as The Getaway and many others in which devices are available to target enemies automatically, making gameplay easier but severaldegreesfurtherremovedfromanykindoffunctionalrealism.A particularlycontroversialexampleoffunctionalrealisminthisdomainis theuseof‘realistic’bodyhitzonesinSoldierofFortune(2000):26different
145
146
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS ‘hit locations’ are structured into the bodies of non-player characters, whichresponddifferently–‘appropriately’–dependingontheaimof the player: characters shot in the lower body scream and writhe with pain,forexample,ratherthandyinginstantly. A broad sense of some reality-equivalence of functionality is also impliedinreal-timestrategygamessuchastheCommandandConquer and Age of Empires series. Details of the relative capacities of different militaryunitsareprovided,manyofwhichseemtohavesomegrounding inreal-worldequivalents(obviousexamplesbeingthefactthatarchersin AgeofEmpiresaremoreeffectivefromrelativedistancewhileswordsmen can only perform in up-close engagement). Details such as these are partlydrivenbythegame-specificneedforthebalancingoftherange of different forces and resources provided to each of the various sides thatcanbeplayedwithandagainst.Theresultsoughtbymanyreal-time strategytitlesisarelationshipbetweenthedifferentsidesequivalentto thatfoundinthegame‘Scissors,Paper,Stone’,inwhicheachsidehasits ownvariouspotentialstrengthsandweaknesses,noneofwhichensures either overwhelming superiority or inferiority.23Variation in detailed, specific capacities also creates an impression of relatively fine-grained distinctionsthatcontributestoasenseofgreaterrealityoffunction.This mightbebasedtoa significantextentonreal-worldequivalents,as in MedalofHonorandAgeofEmpires,butitcanalso–likequalityofgraphical rendering–lendasenseofrealitytothemoreimaginarycreationsof sciencefictionorfantasygames,ortoreality/fantasyhybridssuchasthe extrapolationsfromexistingtechnologiesfoundinmanygames. Modes of transport can also be provided in this kind of functional detail,fromthemilitaryvehiclesofMedalofHonortothevariouscars availableinmanyracinggames.Someofthelatterclearlyinvestmore innotionsofrealismofbehaviourwithinthegame-worldthanothers. Environmental factors can also be modelled with varying degrees of functionalrealism.Ifsnowappearsontheroadsurface,itscontribution toimpressionsofrealismcomespartlyinitsgraphicalrendering–notthe mostdifficultofchallenges,inthiscase–butalsointheextenttowhich itadverselyaffectsthehandlingofavehicleinamanneratleastanalogous toitsequivalentintherealworld:thatis,thecarskidsandlosescontrolif driven,corneredorbrakedtoohard(moreorlessforgivingly,depending onfactorssuchasdifficultysettingsorthedesignofparticulargames).
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION Theissueofrealism-of-functionisespeciallyprominentinsports-related games, including many driving-related titles, because, as Rollings and Adamssuggest,theytakeplaceinenvironmentsaboutwhichtheplayer ismorethanusuallywell-informedfromexperience,evenifthismaybe themediatedexperienceofwatchingontelevisionasmuchasactually takingpart.24Golfgames,forexample,offeranumberofdifferenttypes anddegreesofrealismintermsoftheirfunctionality. Twobasicmechanismshavegenerallybeenusedtosimulatethegolf swing.Theoriginalvarietyinvolvesathree-clickoperation,usingeither a mouse or console buttons.An abstracted graphical representation of thepathoftheswingisprovidedon-screen,asanout-of-game-world partoftheinterface.Theplayerclicksoncetostarttheswing,asecond time when the gauge reaches the top of the backswing and again in anareamarkedasthe‘hittingzone’.Theswingconstructedinthisway is then acted out, automatically and separately, by the player-character figureofthegolferon-screen(Links2003[2002]offeredadevelopment in which the mouse-click swing was performed in real-time, the onscreen figure beginning its backswing at the same time as the player). The aim is to time mouse or button pressing to achieve the required lengthofbackswingandtohittheballattheidealsweetspotattheend ofthedownswing.Gettingtheformerwrongaffectsdistance;thelatter affects quality of contact and/or direction (typically,‘hitting’ too early producesasliceoff-targettotheright,toolateahooktotheleft).This mechanismreplicatesoneimportantaspectofarealgolfswing–timing –butlittleelse;andthewaytimingisachieved(ornot)isviaadevice usedgenericallyinothersportsgamesratherthanhavinganyparticular ‘golf-ness’(theplayerhastopressabuttonattherightmomenttostop thesurginglineofapower-meterwithinpre-setlimits,eitherexactly, for a perfect shot, or approximately, for one that is acceptable; exactly thesameisusedforambitiousshotsinthetennisgame,Topspin[2003], amongmanyotherexamples). Latergolfgamesadoptedamechanismthatmapssignificantlymore closelyontothereal-worldexperience:theuseofaconsoleanaloguestick controller to produce a real-time version of the swing.The left stickonthePlayStation2orXboxisusedtoenactaminiatureswing: pulledbackforthebackswingandpushedforwardforthedownswing. The result is something that feels much more like swinging a golf
147
148
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS club–notasmuchastheVRequivalentimaginedbyMcHoulinthe previouschapter,butaninterfacemechanismdistinctlyanalogous,inits ownthumb-scaledrealm,tothereal-worldaction.Thisalsocreatesthe opportunityforfurtherrealismattheleveloffunctionality.Ifthestickis movedjerkily,apoorshotresults,asisthecaseusuallywithajerkygolf swing.Ifthestickismovedforwardandbackotherthaninastraight line,slicesorhooksarelikely;this,again,isrelativelyclosetotherealworld equivalent, if somewhat simplified. Other aspects of functional realism also feature in some golf games: the fact that the ball is likely tobehittotheleftiflyingonanup-slopeortotherightonadownslope;thatthequalityofthelieaffectshowwelltheballcanbehit;that variouskindsofspincanbeimpartedtocontrolthebehaviourofthe ball in flight or on landing. Realism-of-functionality can also extend to the level of the emotional reactions of the player: the creation of verygolf-likefrustrationandanxietyinrelationtoshot-making.Onits beginnerssetting,forexample,Links2004oftenseemsrathereasy,giving thenoviceplayerthecapabilityofatournamentprofessional:booming longdrivesofftheteeintothefairwayandsendingironshotscloseto thepin.Badshotstendtoinfectthelevelofplay,however,muchasthey doontherealgolfcourse.Whileplayingwell,theswingoftheanalogue stickseemssimpleandeasy.Onceaplayerbecomesself-consciousabout themotion,however,usuallyafteramis-hit,moreerrorsarelikelyand confidencecaneasilybelost(andannoyedfrustrationresult!). The emotional dimension is explicitly built into the mechanics of OutlawGolf(2003),atitlethatinotherrespectsinvestslessthanmajor franchisessuchasLinksandTigerWoods(from1998)inqualitiessuchas sober graphical realism and the replication of recognizable real-world courses.OutlawGolfispeopledbyunlikelyplayers–thugsandscantily cladwomen-with-attitude–andfavoursimaginedcoursessuchasaNew Jerseylinkscrossedbyresolutelyun-scenicfeaturessuchasanelevated highwayandapipeline.Thegenerallevelofgraphicaldetailislessthan thatfoundinLinks2004,butanextrafunctionalfeatureisfoundinthe shapeofa‘composuremeter’.Badshotsmakethecomposuremeterfall –whichtendstomakemorebadshotslikelytofollow–whilegoodshots havetheoppositeeffect(truetothe‘tough/attitude’tenorofthegame asawhole,themosteffectivewayofimprovingcomposureisbeating upyourplayer-character’scaddie,althoughcertainfeatsofgameplayare
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION requiredtoearnthe‘beatingtoken’thatallowsthistobeachieved). Functionalrealismatarelativelyhighlevelofdetailoftenmarksthe differencebetweensimpleabstractionandmoresubstantialsimulation: thedifference,forexample,betweentheclassicPongandatennisgame suchasTopspinontheXbox.Relativelysimpleabstractionhasanappeal ofitsown,reducingmorecomplexactivitiestoafewcleanandsatisfying lines,asinthecaseofPong.Asasimulationoftable-tennisortennis,it reducesthegametoaverylimitednumberofparameters:basically,adot tobehitbackwardsandforwardsacrossalinerepresentingthenet.The onlyrealvariationavailabletotheplayerisexactlywhereonthepaddle tocatchthe‘ball’;eithercentrally,tohititbackdirectly,ortowardsthe extremities, in which case shots can be directed at an angle. Compare thiswiththemoreliteraltranscriptionoftennisfoundinTopspin.The gameis,obviously,more‘realistic’atthelevelofgraphicalrepresentation, providingathree-dimensionalfigurationofrecognizabletennisplayers, stadiumandcourt,andaregimeof‘cut-away’shotsandothertransitional devicescloselymodelledontelevisioncoverageoftherealthing.Itisalso muchmore‘like’tennisinfunctionalterms,enablingplayer-characters toproduceversionsofspecifictennisshots,usingtopspin,backspin,lobs anddrop-shots,andtodevelopstrategiesduringrallies–placementofthe ball,playingsaferormoreriskyshots–thatalsomirror,quiteeffectively, thereal-worldequivalent. Thereare,ofcourse,limitstofunctionalrealism,intheseandother cases.Thisispartlyamatteroffiniteresourcecapacityandtherestrictions imposed by game controllers and gameplaying environments, few of whichareeverlikelytoconstituteanythingclosetoafullvirtualreality versionofgamessuchasgolfortennis.Somegames,suchasthemusic or rhythm oriented rail shooters Rez and Amplitude (2003), bear very littleinthewayoffunctionalrealism;theyremainabstractinfunctional and visual terms, making little reference to the function of real-world objects.Limitedfunctionalrealismisalsoapositiverequirementofgames more generally, however – if they are to remain, precisely, games.Too much realism of function would make sports and other games simply toodifficult,andwoulddiffusethedefinitionofcoregameplayfeatures. Aperfectsimulationcouldonlybeplayedreallywellbytheverysmall numbercapableofperformingtothesamestandardonarealgolfcourse, tennis court, race-track or other sporting arena. Generally, the whole
149
150
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS pointofgamesistobeeasierand,formostplayers,morefunasaresult ofthefactthattheycanachievethingstheywouldfindimpossiblein the outside world.There is a clear difference between what is usually expectedfromagameandamoresubstantiallyrealizedtrainingsimulator (agolfdevice,forexample,inwhicharealclubisusedtohitacaptive ball,fromwhichagraphicallydisplayedmodelisproducedoftheshot likelytohaveresultedfromtheactualdynamicsofcontact;orahighly expensive cockpit simulator used in the training of real pilots).What mightoftenbedesiredingamesissufficientfunctionalrealismtocreate animpressionof‘somethinglike’therealthing–necessary,ingameswith thataspiration,forthecreationofafeelingofachievement,ratherthana senseofagamebeingmadetooeasy,abstractorover-simplified,without thisbeingtakentoofar,tothepointatwhichthedominantexperience might become one of frustration.Where this point might lie for one player or another is far from easy to judge, which is one reason why degrees of functional realism – like other difficulty-related aspects of gameplay–tendtovary,bothfromonegametoanotherandwithinthe settingsavailableinasingletitle.Links2004,forexample,canbeplayed onthreedifferentdifficultysettings.Themoredifficultthesetting,the relatively more functionally realistic are the parameters of the thumbstickswing.Oneasiersettings,thegameismoreforgivingofswingsthat shiftslightlyoff-centre.Onthehardestsetting,errorsarepunishedmore severely,andotherelementssuchaswinddirectionhaveagreaterimpact onshots–althoughitisstillmucheasiertohittopqualityshotsthan wouldbepossibleformostplayersintherealworld. The market for driving games is sharply divided, Rollings and Adamssuggest,betweenthosewhoarehappywithanenjoyableifvery approximatesimulationofsomethingliketherealdrivingexperienceand thosewhodemandamuchclosermodellingoftherealphysicsofvehiclehandlingatspeed.25Mostracinggamesprovidesomesimulationofaspects ofrealforcesthatshapeperformance,‘career’typemodesofplayusually allowing for the improvement of various dimensions of performance throughthepurchaseofupgradedvehiclesorcomponents.Theinclusion ofmultiplefactorsdeterminingrelativedegreesofperformancehelpsto increase the impression of functional realism, while also supplying the constituentsofgreaterdepthofgameplayinitsownright;ideally,thetwo canworkinmutualreinforcement.The‘fun’elementofgamesformany
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION players,however,isdependentuponconsiderabledeparturefromrealism offunction:thepleasureofbeltingavirtualgolf-ball300yardsdownthe fairwayquiteconsistentlyorwhizzingaroundarace-track,bouncingoff crash-barriersandothercarswithoutanysubstantialdamage.Ahigher quotientofpleasuremightresultwhenmoreworkhasbeenrequiredfor moredifficultsuccesstobeachieved–asintheperiodicbreakthroughs thatactasmotivationalcarrotsindifficultstretchesofawiderangeof games – but quicker pay-offs are also desired on many occasions.To caterforboth,asRollingsandAdamssuggest,manysportsgamesoffer a combination of more exacting ‘simulation’ and more immediately accessible‘arcade’ modes, the latter including a greater fudging of key aspectsoffunctionalbehaviour.26 Otheraspectsoffunctionalrealismareoftendownplayedverystrongly. Inwar-basedgames,forexample,whetherfirst/third-personshootersor strategygames,particularweaponsandunitsmightbesimulatedwitha degreeofauthenticity–buttheextenttowhichtheyareputintoaction isnot.Thenumberofactualinstancesofdirectcombatisenormously exaggeratedinmostifnotallsuchgames.Therealexperienceofwarfare is,generally,governedbyverylongperiodsoftediumanddiscomfort, only occasionally punctured by moments of combat action, in which theactofdirectlykillinganenemyinclosecombatisararity.Tomirror theAmerican military experience inVietnam, for example, would be tofactorsuchfeaturesstronglyintothegameplay–whichmightmake foraninterestingandoriginaltitle,butnotonelikelytoappearonthe game-shopshelves.Whatgamesofferisavariableblendofelementsthat aspire or make claims to different kinds and degrees of realism – and thatsimplify,stylize,reduceorexaggerateasaresultof,ontheonehand, capacityandotherlimitationsand,ontheother,thepositiverequirements ofenjoyableplay.Thisisabalancecentraltogamingbothtodayandback totheoriginsoftheform,asDavidMyerssuggestsinthecaseofSpacewar (1962),thedesignandsubsequentmodificationofwhichwasshapedby twosometimesconflictingsetsofrules:thoseofsimulationandthoseof play.27Asthegamewasmodified,insuccessiveversions,physicalrealism –inthemodellingofmovementandforcessuchasgravity–wasreduced, preciselyinordertoincreasethespecificqualityofplay. Are there any games that offer complete functional realism?There maybeoneexception:theformatthatcallsupontheplayertoperform
151
152
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS computer-related activities identical in form to those required in the fictionalworldofthegame.ExamplesincludeUplink,consideredinthe previouschapter,andthepuzzlegameInMemoriam(2003).Inthelatter, the conceit is that the game-disk has been sent to the player, among manyothersindividuals,aspartofanattempttosolveakidnappingcase involvingaserialkiller.Theactionsthenrequiredarepreciselythesame as their real-world equivalent would be, once the premise – however unlikely it seems – is accepted.The player has to engage in activities suchastheuseofinternetsearchenginestoexplorebothplantedand pre-existing real-world information resources.The villain is framed as a crazed genius, fond of setting puzzles and mini-games designed to exasperatetheplayer/detective,adevicethatproducesperfectmotivation forthemostarbitraryoftasksimposedontheplayer:thewholepoint, inthediegeticuniverse,isthattheyarearbitrarygames,thegameplaying arch-fiend being a narrative prototype familiar from other serial-killer fictions.The impression of overlap between real and fictional world activityisincreasedbytheuseoftheplayer’semailaccountasanother sourceofinformation.‘Mixedreality’orlocation-basedgamesgofurther inblurringthelinebetweengameandrealworldspacesandactivities, examples including Botfighters (2001), produced in Sweden, in which mobilephonetext-messagingistheprincipalmediumforlocate-anddestroy contests between players in real urban environments. Physical movementandthelocatingdimensionofthegameare,functionally,fully realistic–althoughnotthedestroying,ofcourse,reducedtothesending of a‘shoot’ message when the target is within range, or the beingdestroyed,whichentailsaweb-based‘rechargingofbatteries’beforethe playercanrejointhegame.28
Spectacle and Sensation Realismatthelevelofgraphicalrepresentationcanreducetheextentto whichtheattentionoftheplayerisdrawntotheissueofimage-quality itself,especiallywhenenactedinaconsistentmanneron-screen.Itoften declares its status as realism, however, especially in the context of the heavyemphasissometimesputonsuchqualitiesinmarketingandother discourses surrounding the playing experience. Realism might, in one sense,beintendedtocreatearelativelytransparenteffect,basedonnot drawingattentiontodeficitsinthelevelofrepresentationachievablein
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION theplayablepartsofgames,orreducingsomewhatthegapbetweenvisual resolutioningamesandaudio-visualmediasuchasfilmandtelevision. But it also offers what can often be termed a ‘spectacle’ of realism: degreesofgraphicalrealismthatareflauntedanddesignedtobeadmired asstrikingorimpressiveimagesintheirownright.Asaformofspectacle ofthiskind,asinotherrespects,realismcanbeasourceofappealinthe realmsofeitherreal-worldreferenceormoreoutrightfantasy.TheMax Paynegames,forexample,offerenvironmentsthattendtobesomewhat dingy and functional – office spaces, warehouses, apartments and the like – rather than being inherently spectacular. Spectacle is offered at the relative (in game terms) level of detail or consistency with which suchenvironmentsarereproduced,especiallyforplayersequippedwith the most up-to-date graphics cards or consoles. Other games offer environmentsthatlendthemselvesmoreobviouslytotheproductionof spectacularvistas:thevariousexoticlocationsofEverQuestortheTomb Raiderseries,theswirlingvoidsandstrangeother-worldlylandscapesof AmericanMcGee’sAlice,theplanet-scapesofHaloorthemulticoloured pulsating-neoncomputerinteriorsofRez. Spectacleisfoundingamesinanumberofdifferentforms,including spectacularaudio-visualeffectsrealizedbytheactionsoftheplayer.One possible starting point is to consider two different modes of spectacle alsofoundinrecent/contemporaryHollywoodactionorspecial-effects orientedcinema–asasourceofbothcomparisonandcontrastwiththe wayspectacleislocatedingames.29Someformsofgameandcinematic spectacleinvitetheplayerto(ineffect)sitbackinastateofadmiration, contemplatingthescale,detail,convincingtextureorother‘impressive’ attributesoftheimage.Othersseektocreateamoreaggressive,explosive and‘inyourface’varietyofspectacularimpact(althoughthedistinction is not always entirely clear-cut). In cinema, the more contemplative varietytendstoofferlongerandmorelingeringspectacularvistaswhile thelatterismorereliantonrapidmontage-styleeditingand/orcamera movementtocreateitsvisualimpact. The more contemplative variety invites the look of the viewer or playerwhilethe‘impactaesthetic’offerssomethingclosertoanassault onthesensations,avicariousimpressionofparticipationinspectacular action/destruction on-screen.These map onto games to some extent, butwithsomecrucialdifferences.Spectacleofthecontemplativevariety
153
154
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS is offered by some videogames, although it is more likely to figure prominentlyinsomethanothers,particularlyinslower-pacedgames(or slowermomentswithinparticulartitles),assuggestedaboveinrelation to the appeals of graphical realism more generally. New or unfolding spectacularvistas–includingthosesuppliedintheformofcut-scenes –arefrequentlyofferedasrewardandincentiveforthecompletionof particular tasks, sub-sections, levels or entire games. Spectacular vistas canoffercompensationforperiodsinwhichplayersbecomestuckor areforcedintorepeatedattemptsatatask,althoughtheoppositemight also be the case: pleasures created by even the most spectacular and impressivelyrealizedenvironmentsarelikelytowaneasalevelorsection isfailedandrestartedfortheumpteenthtime.Sourcesofspectaclerange fromlarge-scaleaspectsofthegameenvironment–spectacularimagined landscapes–tocloserdetail,includingthequalitiesofdesignandmotion ofplayer-andnon-playercharacters. Manygamesincludelarge-scale‘vista’shotsintheirexpositionalcutscenes,partlytoestablishasenseofspaceintheplayer’smind,butalso oftenasanenticementtoexplorethegame-world.Apanoramaofglobal scaleisfoundatthestartofAgeofMythologies,forexample:thecamera pulls out from a localized scene to show a complete world on which variouslandmarksareviewedalongwithfiguresofpeoplegoingabout theirvarioustasks.Spellforce:OrderoftheDawn(2004)offersapre-rendered opening cut-scene that leans heavily on the type of fantasy-oriented cinematic spectacle provided by the Lord of the Rings films. Swooping cameramovementsarcbetweenviolentsubterraneanvolcanicactivity,a vastbattlefieldthroughwhichitexplodesandtheconflictbetweentwo arch-foesthattakesplaceinatowerhighabovethemainbattleground. Thevisuals,renderedinhighqualityanimation,createanimpressionof dynamism and exhilaration, although the in-game imagery is not of a comparablestandard. Quieter varieties of spectacle are also found, as in the glowing and airbrushed,dreamlikequalityofPrinceofPersia:SandsofTime,suitedto itsArabianNightsfantasysetting.Atcertainmomentsinthegame,the usual pattern of jumping and fighting activities is halted to allow the player-charactertoadmirestrangenewspaces,clearlymarkedasmagical dimensions existing outside the normal diegetic environmental fabric. In a section titled‘Did I really see her?’, a dark, enclosed passage is
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION
11.Spectacularvista:thebridge-crossedvoidinPrinceofPersia:Sandsof Time(2003).
entered, to the accompaniment of non-diegetic, low-key tinkling-bell soundsofthekindoftenusedtofigurethepresenceofmagicinfantasy games.Thescreengoesentirelyblack,disorientingtheplayer.Outofthe darkness,aspectacularvistaappears,framedbyanelaborategoldenarch inwhichtheplayer-characterstands.Thevirtualcameraislocatedata distance,behindandabovethecharacter,tomaximizethedepth,scope and impact of this new and‘othered’ space. Stretching out below is a bottomlesssmoky-bluevoid,criss-crossedbyrope-and-wooden-slatted bridges strewn with torches emanating an unearthly blue glow.‘What the…?’,asksthecharacter,ashetakesinthespectacle,cueingtheplayer tojoinhiminregardingthespacewithcontemplativeawe.Inthiscase, thefantasy-world-within-fantasy-worldalsoservesafunctionalpurpose, as the player-character crosses a bridge to find a health-increasing magicalfountain.Magicallytransportedbacktotheconfinedhallwayof thepalace,wehearthathenowfeels‘wonderful’,atermthatcaptures boththe‘wonder’oftheworldhehasvisitedandtheincreasedability gainedasaresult.
155
156
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Many games draw on the rhetorics of visual spectacle associated withestablishedgenreterritories,especiallysciencefiction,horrorand high-fantasy.Earlygameswithlimitedgraphicalresources,suchasSpace Invaders,usedtheblackvoidofouter-spaceasmerelythebackdropfor gameplay, the emphasis being on intensive gameplay rather than space asasourceofspectacle.Latergamesprovidedspaceandplanetaryvistas closer to the equivalents found in film and television science fiction. Despite being rather blocky in its graphical qualities, the slow-paced puzzlegameDig(1994)presentsimagessuchasEarthasseenfromspace, asteroidsandglowingcelestialbodies,aswellasdepictingthelandscape ofadesolateplanet.Similarenvironmentsarerealizedingreaterdetailin laterscience-fictionorientedtitles,fromthefinedetailofthespacesof UnrealIItothespectacleofapairofalienmoonsrisingagainstapurple skyinHalo.Inhorrorgames,thedominantsourceofspectacleliesin thevisceralandthemonstrous,inassortedweirdandwonderfulforms. Spectacleservesherenotjusttosolicitthegazeoftheplayerbutalsoto unsettle. Environmental spectacle that evokes myth, magic and mystery is particularly important to games set in high-fantasy locations, which often create extensive worlds composed of various differently styled landscapesdesignedtoengagethelookoftheplayerjourneyingtowards the achievement of particular quests. High-fantasy offers much that lendsitselftospectacularvisuals,itsimaginedmedievalistpastproviding imagerysuchashighlydecoratedguildhalls,temples,castlesandfortresses, and landscape features ranging from the volcanic to deserts and seascapes.Thegazeoftheplayerisoftenthefirstthingtobeengagedbya darkforestthathaboursancientruinsandfabulousbeasts,orimpressive cityscapessuchasVahShir,homeofthecatpeopleinEverQuest–before thestrikingimpressiongiveswaytorenewedemphasisonperformance of the game-tasks in hand. Many players of EverQuest and other such gamesspendagreatdealoftimetravellingtoseethedifferentspacesof thegame-world,actingliketouristsofthevirtuallandscape(maybeeven snapping photos with the game’s screen-shot facility). Such activity is promotedinsomecasesbythefactthatcertainspacesareonlyavailable forshortperiodsoftime. Spectacle can also be found more locally, sometimes used to mark out significant and sought-after objects. In Warren Robinett’s early
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION action-adventure title, Adventure (1978), the object of the quest is an ‘EnchantedChalice’,presentedwithashimmeringeffecttoexpressits importance and magical qualities, an impression created by an image thatcyclesrapidlythroughthespectrumofavailablecolours.InBuffythe VampireSlayer:ChaosBleeds,thefinalbosscanonlybedefeatedbythe useofaspecialweapon,Hope’sDagger,anobjectthatishard-wonby collectingthepiecesofthecharacterHope’sbodythroughouttherest ofthegame.Thedaggerispresentedasaglitteringjewelledobjectthat stands out from more utilitarian weapons such as wooden stakes and gardeningtoolsusedduringthegame.Lighteffectsareafrequentsource ofthemorelocalizedvarietyofvisualspectacle,rangingfromtheneonglowingbody-suitsofTron2.0(2003)tothecloudymassesofglowing colour used synaesthetically to represent different types of collectable smellinADog’sLife(2003).Gamesthatfeaturetheuseofmagicoften useparticle-basedlightingeffects,combinedwithanimation,toindicate the use of spells.A range of different visual effects are produced, for example,byspellscastbykey-padcombinationswhenplayingthewitch, Willow,inChaosBleeds.ThenumerousspellsavailableinEverQuesthave theirownindividualspectacularqualities,examplesincludinggrasping handssummonedfromtheearthtoclawatatargetedenemyandaspell thatproducesalargeglowingyellowshieldaroundthetargetedplayer. Otherspellstransformplayerimagesintovariousforms:bears,wolves,or the‘boon’spellthatstrikinglyturnsaplayer-characterintoascarecrow withapumpkinheadandlightshiningfromtheeyes.Themainplayercharacter, Jen, is subjected to spectacular magical transformations into various demon forms in Primal: at the player’s command, a cut-scene ensuesinwhichsheliftsintotheair,bendsbackwardsandissurrounded byaglowingstarburst(aratherorgasmicimage),beforechanginginto monstrousnewformandgainingincreasedpowers.PlayersofEverQuest canalsobuydiversionssuchasfireworksthathavelittlepurposerelated togameplayandcanbeusedtoproducespectacleforitsownsake–often advertisedfortheenjoymentofotherplayers. Lizard-like alien creatures, muscle-bound barbarians, well-stacked warrior women, cute little dragons and hulking monsters: characters and non-playing characters are also potential sources of spectacle in games. Some allow considerable scope for players to map their own ‘skin’designsintothegame.Player-charactersrangefromtheexcessive
157
158
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS
12.Spectaculartransformation:cut-sceneinwhichtheprincipalplayercharacterofPrimal(2003)isabouttoshiftintonewandmorepowerful demonicform.
in appearance (the likes of Lara Croft and Duke Nukem, the genderpolitical dimensions of which are considered in the next chapter) to more ‘ordinary’ figures such as the protagonists of Max Payne, The GetawayandSilentHill.Spectacularfoesrangefromtheskinlesszombies, cloven-footed demons and blood-thirsty vampires of horror games to theassortedalienformsfoundinsciencefiction.High-fantasyoffersits ownarrayoffabulousbeasts,fromtheobligatoryunicornsanddragons tomoreinventivecreationsorcombinations. Where they are found, the potential pleasures of spectacle designed to attract the‘look’ of the player are often interrupted, however, by theimmediaterequirementsofgameplay.Toomuchidleenjoymentof spectacularenvironmentsorotherfeaturescanbebadforthehealthof theavatar,whoisliabletobeshot,eatenortofacesomeotherunpleasant fateinmanygamesifattentionisdirectedsolelyorexcessivelytothe qualityofthesurroundings–whetherthoseoflandscapesorantagonists. The very notion of‘sitting back’ and merely contemplating aesthetic qualitiesisanathematomostformsofgameplay,thedemandsofwhich require,inmanygames,amoreorlessconstantlevelofresponsefrom the player.The urgency of the need to focus on pressing gameplay
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION requirementscanbeapowerfuldistractionfromanycloseconsideration ofqualitiessuchasgraphicalrealismorspectacle–ablessing,probably, forgameslowerinsuchresources,butalsoareminderofthefactthat, in the last resort, the demands of core gameplay are paramount.That said,itisnotablethateventhemostfreneticfirst-personshootersfigure amonggameshighlyratedforthequalityoftheirvisuals:Gamespot’sten ‘best-looking’gamespollof2001,forexample,includedUnreal(1998), Half-Life, UnrealTournament (1999) and Quake IIIArena (2000) as well asperhapsmoreobviouscontenderssuchasMystandAmericanMcGee’s Alice.30Audio-visual qualities of realism and/or spectacle are likely to be appreciated somewhat subliminally in many cases, contributing to theoverallimpressioncreatedbygamesbutinamannerthatisfarfrom alwaysattheforefrontofattention. If the demands of gameplay are often a bar to more leisurely or contemplativeenjoymentofspectacle,theyclearlyoffermuchpotential fortheextensionofthekindofimpact-aestheticprovidedbysomefilms. Techniquessuchashyper-rapidediting,unstable‘subjective’camerawork and the propelling of objects at high speed out towards the screen are often used in Hollywood action sequences to create a heightened impressionofviewerproximityto,orparticipationin,theaction.Some of these are directly mimicked in games, including the impression createdofashakingorunsteady‘camera’atmomentsofimpactonthe player-character, as suggested in the previous chapter. Games can go muchfurther,though,inthetranslationfromspectacularactiontothe creationofintensivesensations.Impactthatremainsentirelyvicariousin thecinemacanbecomemoreliterallyandphysicallytransmittedtothe gameplayer,ifinhighlystylizedforms.Theshakingofthecamerawhen the player is under dangerous assault can have effects that are not just aestheticbutfunctional,affectingtheabilityoftheplayertoengagein thetaskathand(whenaplayer-characterinEverQuestissubjectedtoa strong blow, for example, the camera spins, creating disorientation on thepartoftheplayer).Impactcanalsobetranslatedthroughthevarious kindsofhapticinterfacedevicesconsideredinthepreviouschapter. Combatsequencesinmanygamescreateasenseofassaultiveimpact andsensationthatcansendthepulseracing.Limitedscaleandrelatively lowfidelityofgraphicsreducestheaudio-visualimpactofsuchsequences toalevelfarbelowthatachievedinthecinema,althoughthe‘in-your-
159
160
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS face’ variety of impact is increased in a literal sense through the close proximityinwhichtheplayerisoftenlocatedtothescreen(especiallyin thecaseofPCgames).Entirenewdimensionsofimpactandsensation result, however, from the central fact that the player has to respond. Explosive spectacle in action films impacts on the viewer. For actionmoviefans,partofthepleasureisoneofbeing‘doneto’,asitisputby MartinBarkerandKateBrooks.31Action-orientedgamesofferasimilar pleasureofsensationalimpact,ofthingshappeningforcefullytotheplayer, via the avatar, but one founded on the requirement for a substantial reciprocalresponsefromtheplayer:a‘doingto’aswellasbeing‘doneto’, anopportunitytoengagewiththesourceofsensationalimpact:tofight back,toattempttonegotiatedifficultandpotentiallyhazardousterrain, andsoon.Thiscanentailafrenziedresponseonthepartoftheplayer, as,forinstance,inMaxPayne,inwhichadifficultshoot-outmightbereattemptedrapidlymanytimesinsuccessioninanextremelycompressed burstofintenseinteractivity.Ifflamesandfireballeffectscomeoutatthe avatarandatthescreeninonepunishingsequence,inwhichMaxhas tobenegotiatedthrougharestaurantwrackedbyaseriesofexplosions, theplayerhasalsotoplungehim(repeatedly)intotheinferno–inan activeattempttonegotiatethethreat–ratherthanjustbeingassaultedby cinematicdimensionssuchasjarringandcamera-shakingimpact. Pleasures resulting from spectacle and from a physical intensity of engagementareoftencombinedinindividualgamesequences.Inone missioninTheGetaway,forexample,theplayer-characteriscalledupon tobreakavillainfromapolicevannearavirtualequivalentoftheOld Bailey courthouse. As the player-character arrives close to the scene, a non-player character member of the criminal gang involved in the operationcomments‘wait‘tilyouseethis’,cueingtheplayertoanticipate somethingspectacular.Apolicecarescortingthevanisthentorchedas partoftheescapeplan,afairlysmall-scaleoutbreakofspectacle–after whichtheplayer-characterisrequiredtochasethevan,asitmakesoff atspeed,andeventuallycrashintoitrepeatedlytoforceittoahalt.The player-characterhastosteeraroundtheblazingpolicecarandthengofull peltafterthevanasitcareersoffintotraffic.Theexperienceisoneofgreat intensity,encouragingconsiderableperipheralexertionfromtheplayer: pressing much harder than functionally necessary on the accelerator buttonontheconsolecontroller,leaningforwardand/orfromsideto
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION sidewhiledodgingothervehicles,shouting(fruitlessly,ofcourse)atother vehiclestogetoutoftheway–allofwhichcanbetakenasindicators of a heightened degree of imaginary presence in the game-world, as wellasbeingsignifiersofimmersioninthegameasgame.32Gameplay ofthiskindisexciting,andcanalsobehighlyfrustrating,especiallyon repeatedattemptsandinrelativelylengthymissionsthat–inthiscase – cannot usually be retried only in part. Failure means starting again, whichraisesthestakesoncepartofamissionhasbeenaccomplished,thus increasingtheintensityofinvestmentlikelytoresultintheremainder. Asimilarkindofintensityisofferedbymanyothergames,especiallyin sequencesinwhichtheplayerisputunderincreasedpressurebyfactors suchasparticularlyheavyassault,tightdeadlinesordirectcompetition with others (human or computer-generated). Examples include the franticbutton-mashingcharacteristicofmanybeat-‘em-upgamesorthe intensitycreatedinracinggameswhenstraining‘desperately’toovertake oravoidbeingovertakenbyanothervehicle.Thiskindofpressurecanbe increasedinmulti-playergamesbythesensethattheplayer’sactionsare beingmonitoredbyothers,particularlywhenthefateofotherplayercharactersmightalsobeatstake. The experience offered by this kind of intensity of gameplay has somethingincommonwithoneofthefourbasicqualitiesoutlinedin RogerCaillois’typology:gamesthatproducewhathetermsilinx,from theGreektermfor‘whirlpool’,thesourcealsooftheGreekexpression for‘vertigo’.Gameswhichproduceavertiginousexperience‘consistof anattempttomomentarilydestroythestabilityofperceptionandinflict akindofvoluptuouspanicuponanotherwiselucidmind.’33Initsmost literalsense,thisinvolvesgamesthatentailaphysicalwhirlingorspinning ofthehumanbody.Impressionsofsomethinglikevertigo–nausea,at least – can be created by some videogames, especially when played in thefirstpersonandwhenrapidlynavigatingtortuousspaces,agaming traditionestablishedbythevertiginoushigh-speedplayofthepioneering first-person-shooter titles Wolfenstein 3D and Doom.An impression of giddiness can also be created in third-person games such as Prince of Persia: Sands ofTime by combinations such as the use of high-angled camerapositions,cameramovementandplayer-characteractivitiessuch as balancing on precipitous ledges and swinging across yawning voids. Amoredisplacedsenseofilinxisalsocreatedbysequencessuchasthe
161
162
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS onefromTheGetawaydescribedabove,andmanyotherhigh-intensity gameplayactivities,animpressionvergingonfreneticparoxysmincluding elements described by Caillois such as‘a question of surrendering to a kind of spasm, seizure, or shock’.34 High-intensity sequences can certainly generate, in some circumstances, feelings of frenzy and panic thatcanoverridemorerationalandeffectiveactivity(wildshootingin alldirectionsratherthanmoremeasuredresponse,forexample),justas intensive assault in the real world tends to result in a momentary bypassingofthemorerationalpartsofthebrain.Gamesthatcontainthis kindofmaterialtendalsotoprovidequieterinterludestomodulatewhat might otherwise be an overwhelming and less pleasurable experience; thepolice-van-breakmissionfromTheGetawayisfollowedbyastealthbasedsequencethatcreatesintensityofitsown,butinaverydifferent, un-freneticregister. One of the reasons for the prevalence of violence in many games is, almost certainly, the extent to which violent action (and the effort to preserve the life of the player-character) lends itself readily to the productionofthiskindofintensity,inthesamewaythatitproducesa clear sense of action/feedback cause-and-effect in gameplay. Conflict, forChrisCrawford,isoneofthedefiningcharacteristicsofgames,and as Crawford suggests, violence is the most extreme form of conflict: ‘gorily physical, utterly direct, and maximally intense.’35 For many, includingCrawford,thedegreetowhichgamesrelyonthesequalities is questionable, on aesthetic as well as moral grounds, demonstrating a lack of subtlety and variation in game design; an emphasis on what Crawfordconsiderstobeessentiallychild-likedirect,intenseandphysical engagement,anicheintowhichhesuggestsmuchofmainstreamgaming hasbecomestuck.36Manygamesalsoofferintensityofexperienceofa lesscrudevariety,however,includingthemulti-taskingrequiredbyrealtimestrategygames.Inthemostintensivelyheightenedgames,thefocus tendstoberelativelynarrow,asintheheatoftheactioninafirst-person shooter, in which concentration is focused on the immediate tasks of navigation, shooting, survival and the inventory-management required tosupportthesecoreaspectsofgameplay.Strategygamesusuallyoffer a broader and more diffuse range of tasks to which simultaneous or alternatingattentionisrequired. Differenttypesofgameofferdifferentkindsanddegreesofintensity,
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION notallofwhichareappealingtoallactualorpotentialplayersorinall playingcircumstances.Howthebasisoftheappealofthemostintensified gameplay sensation might be understood is not an easy question to answerwithanycertainty.Itmightbeassociatedprimarilywithparticular demographics, as Crawford suggests, especially relatively young males, giventheconsonancebetweendirect,intenseand(mostlyvirtual)physical engagement and prevailing constructions of masculinity.The intense, sensational experience might also have wider appeal, however, as one readysourceofthe‘flow’stateexaminedinChapter1;or,moregenerally, asanexperiencedefinedbyintensityandclear-cutactionthatcontrasts pleasurably with the more mundane, routine and complexly ramified natureofdailylifeformostpeople.37Itissometimesarguedthatcontemporarymediahaveaparticularleaningtowardstheproductionofsuch experiences,anemphasison‘surface’intensityascribedtoa‘postmodern’ eraandoftencontrastedwith‘deeper’experiencessuchasthoseassociated withliteratureorlessmainstreamcinema.Iftheintensityofexperience offeredbysomemedia,includinggames,hasincreasedovertimethiscan alsobeexplainedmorelocally,however,withouttheevocationoflargescalesocial-culturalchange.Certaintendenciestowards‘uppingtheante’ arebuiltintomediasuchastheseifabroadlyequivalentimpactistobe maintainedovertime,giventheextenttowhichviewersorplayersare likelytobecomehabituatedtoparticulareffects,onceestablishedaspart of a familiar repertoire. Impactful sensation also has a longer tradition inpopularculture,however,ineventssuchasfestivalsandcarnivalsand, closertotheworldofgames,location-basedentertainmentssuchasthose providedbyridesinamusementandthemeparks. Musicandothersoundeffectscanalsobeusedtocrankuptheintensity ofgameplayingexperiences.ThesoundscapeofSilentHill2isdesigned todiscomfort,tojarandtosettheplayeronedge,asbefitsahorrorgame. Scratchy,sharp,metallicsoundsarecombinedwithapiano-framebeing hitatthebassend,heavyechocreatingadiffusedskeinofdissonantsound thatappearstocomefromsomehellishdepths.Thedisorderedcrackle ofradio-staticaddstothecacophony,alertingplayerstotheproximity ofmonstersveiledinthemistthatcloaksmuchofthegamescapeand ofteninducingapanic-strickenreactioninwhichtheplayer-characteris spunaroundinsearchofthesourceofthreat.Asimilarlevelofintensity ispromotedindifferentformbythefabricofsoundcreatedinUnreal
163
164
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS II.Anonslaughtofnoisefillstheairwhentheplayer-characteriscaught upinadog-fightbetweenaliensandsoldiersinthedark.Soldiersshout directivesandscreamforhelpwhenattacked;weapon-fireisheardfrom whatappearstobea360degreeperspectivearoundtheplayer-character (and it is raining heavily). Cued by pleas for help from other soldiers, the player-character runs around in the darkened space, attempting to locateandcontainthethreat.Theintensityofthesequencecomestoa headwhenaspacecrafthoversoverhead,assaultingtheearsasitsvolume drownsouteverythingelse.Theweightanddensityofthesoundscape createsarealsenseofdisorientationandpanic,cloudingtheabilityofthe playertothinkmorerationallyaboutwhatactiontotake.Muchthesame effectisachievedintheNormandybeachlandingsequenceofMedalof Honor:AlliedAssault, closely replicating the aural assault created in the scenesfromthefilmSavingPrivateRyan(1998)onwhichitisbased. Quietersensationsofuneaseanduncertaintycanalsobecreated,asin manyhorrorgames,includingvicariousfeelingsofclaustrophobiaindark, enclosedspaces.Strongimpressionsofsuspenseandanticipationarealso generatedmorewidelyingames,especiallyinthemomentspreceding the more frantic or furious engagements in gameplay: when about to leanaroundacornernotsurewhattoexpect(thefirsttime),orwhen knowingwhattoexpectbutnotexactlywhenorhowwelltheplayerwill fare(onsubsequentattemptsatthesamestretchofgameplay).38Tension canalsobecreatedwhenplayingagainsttheclock,anothersituationin which intensity can have a deleterious panic-inducing impact on the qualityofplay.Theachievementofgoalsoffersarelaxingofintensity,a senseofreliefoftencoupledwithanimpressionofmastery–until,that is,thenexttask/level/gameisattempted. Games can also create sensations based on particular impressions of movement through the gamescape. One of the pleasures of Descent (1995), an early first-person PC game in which the player-character occupiesasmallmobilespacecraft,isthesensationofflyingeffortlessly throughspace,unhinderedbygravityandarcingsmoothlyandswiftly throughthesubterraneantunnelsofanalienplanet.Amoreenhanced sensationofthiskindisprovidedbyRez,theon-railsmotionofwhich createsanimpressionoflightnessandofinexorablemovementtowards anever-recedingvanishingpoint,afeelingthatcarrieswithitsomething ofthesublime:asenseoftheplayer-characterbeingoverwhelmedbut
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION alsoliberatedwithinaninfinitespace.Asmooth-glidingsensationisalso createdintravelbymini-hovercraftinBeyondGoodandEvil(2003),which canbeexperiencedinbothfirst-andthird-personmodes,andwhichis enjoyableforitsownsensualappealinadditiontoitsfunctionalityasa modeoftransportandforin-gameracingcompetitionsandexploration. Levitationspellssuchas‘DeadManFloating’inEverQuestcreateasimilar sensation (as well as keeping the player/character out of the reach of earth-bound enemies), distinct from the usual slightly jerky running motionusedinthegame. An important dimension of the spectacular and sensational qualities offeredbygamesistheextenttowhichthesecanactivelybecreatedby theactionsoftheplayer/player-character–adimensionspecifictogames, in comparison with spectacular/sensational media such as Hollywood cinema.Inmanycases,thisisaspectaclerootedindestruction,although players might also gain pleasure from contemplation of structures they havecreatedinconstruction-basedgamessuchastheSimCityseries(from 1991),thespectacularand/orrealisticqualitiesofwhichusuallyincrease witheachnewiteration.Thepleasureofblowingupbuildingsorshooting enemiesspectacularlyintopiecesisclearlyfactoredintomanytitles,some ofwhichhavebecomenotoriousasaresult.Thefactthatgameplayers areactivelyinvolvedinsuchprocesses–ratherthanjustwatchingthem on a screen – is usually seen as having significant implications for the social-cultural dimension of such material in games, an issue to which we return in the following chapter. Spectacular destruction of bodies tendstobefoundmostcommonlyingame-worldsinwhichthebodies involved are either fantastic or exaggerated, rather than in those with thegreatestaspirationstowardsrepresentationaland/orfunctionalrealism. Exceptionstothistendency,suchasSoldierofFortuneandManhunt,are usuallysourcesofparticularcontroversy.Thisislargelyamatterofmoral sensitivities.Wargamesbasedonreal,historicalconflictstendtoproduce relativelyunspectacularenemydeaths,asisthecaseintitlessuchasMedal ofHonorandCallofDuty(2003).Themorefantastictheopposition,the freer developers generally feel to allow indulgence in player-created gore-fests. Examples include the protracted fights with various hybrid part-human/animal/plantmonstersinTheThing,whereseveralweapons – bullets, flamethrowers, grenades and the like – are often required to disposeofresistantthreats,ortherelentlessshootingneededtodispatch
165
166
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS the seemingly endless zombie hordes of House of the Dead III (2002). Wheregoryeffectsrelatedtohumanratherthanfantasticalbodieshave beentreatedasthestuffofspectacularexultation,controversyhasusually resulted,themostnotoriousexampleprobablybeingvictorysequences inMortalKombatinwhichtheplayer-characterperformsmovessuchas rippingouttheopponent’sheartorpullingouttheirskullandspine. Games produced by id software and Rockstar have particularly excelledinthespectacleofdeath.Thereductionoffoestocartoonish messesisclearlymarkedas‘unrealistic’inthelikesofDoomandQuake, andtoalargeextentinRockstar’slessfantasy-orientedGrandTheftAuto III and Vice City.A gratuitous spectacle of violence is available to the playerasanoptionalextrainGrandTheftAutoIII,inwhichnon-player characters can be killed and then excessively beaten after death, with resultingsplurgesofbloodonthefloor.Manhuntoptsforamorerealistic anddisturbinglyintenseaesthetic,includingup-closemethodsofkilling such as suffocating a victim with a plastic bag over the head or using a shard of glass as a knife, the effects of which are more than usually realistic at the level of both graphics resolution and in the absence of thebuffercreatedbyamoreobviouslyfantasticframework.Thedeaths ofplayer-characterscanalsoofferservingsofspectacle,whichmightbe considered as compensation for moments of failure. Max Payne often performsapleasingpirouetteatthemomentofdeathwhiletheplayerof Half-Lifeisgiventhestrangeperspectivecitedinthepreviouschapterof afirst-personviewofthedismemberedremainsoftheplayer-character’s ownbody. Spectacular destruction can also be wreaked on inorganic matter. Partsofthein-gameenvironmentcanoftenbedestroyed,aspartofthe requirements of gameplay objectives and/or for the specific pleasure ofthespectaclethatresults.InMaxPayne,forexample,objectssuchas televisionsexplodeinapleasingmanner–entirelygratuitous–when shot.IndrivinggamessuchasColinMcRaeRally4(2004)thatregister damage on the image of the vehicle (when played in third-person perspectives),enjoymentclosertothepaideathantheludusendofthe scalecanresultfromexperimentsintheextenttowhichacarcanbe wrecked before becoming inoperable.War and other combat-oriented games often require or permit the player to use explosives to destroy enemyvehiclesorstructures,althoughthisisanothercaseinwhichthe
REALISM, SPECTACLE, SENSATION enjoymentofthespectacularresultsisoftenleavenedbymorepressing gameplayrequirementssuchasescapingtheblastradiusoravoidingsome otherformofongoingattack. The creation of spectacular action is specifically rewarded by some games, forming the basis for gameplay in many stunt-based games, includingtheCoolBoardersseries(from1996)andTonyHawk’sProSkater series(from1999).Thecreationofmoredestructivespectacleisrewarded inexamplessuchasBurnout2:PointofImpact(2003),whichhasa‘crash mode’inwhichpointsareearnedforcreatingspectacularvehicularpileups.Thespectacularresultsofgameplaycanalsobeavailableformore leisurelycontemplation,intheformofreplaysequencesor‘cinematic’ cutsawayfromtheimmediateaction,asprovidedinNeedforSpeed:Hot Pursuit2(2002),inwhich‘zone’and‘jump’camsprovideinstantslowmotionshotsofexploitssuchasslammingintoroadblocksormaking vehiclesflythroughtheair. The pleasure of player-generated spectacle may be two-fold: the pleasure of the spectacle in itself, as in other cases, but also the very game-specificpleasureoftheseformsofspectacleasavividexampleof feedback,oneofthekeyqualitiesofgameplayconsideredinChapter1.To witness,instrikingform,thedestructionofbuildingsorenemiesbrought about by the player is to receive strong evidence of cause-and-effect, specificallyoftheeffectofplayer/player-characteragency,aqualitythat cancontributetothewiderimpressionofimmersioninthegame-world (assuggestedinChapter2).Adimensionsuchasthespectacular,then, whichmightfromoneperspectiveappeartobesomewhatsecondaryin games,cancontributetoverycentralaspectsofthebroadergameplay experience.Thesamecanbesaidofthevariousformsanddegreesof realismofferedbygames.Theyallcontributetotheoverallexperience, theirlevelofsignificancevaryingfromonegame–andfromoneplayer, oroneplayingcircumstance–toanother.
167
4 Social, Cultural and Political Dimensions Gameshavetheirowndimensions,distinctfromthoseofothermedia forms,aswehavearguedinthepreviouschapters.Butgamesarealso social-culturalproducts,involvedinthebroadprocessesthroughwhich meanings are circulated in the societies in which they are produced and consumed. Games do not exist in a vacuum, as we suggested in Chapter 1.They often draw upon or produce material that has social, culturalorideologicalresonances,whethertheseareexplicitorimplicit and whether they can be understood as reinforcing, negotiating or challenging meanings or assumptions generated elsewhere in society.1 Obvious examples include the kinds of characters given dominant representationingames,aswellasthesocialimplicationsofthenarrative, genericandotherassociationalframeworksonwhichgamesdraw–issues to which we return below. Core gameplay itself can also be freighted witharangeofsocial-cultural-ideologicalmeanings,numerousexamples of which will be considered in this chapter. If associational meanings mightoftenoccupyaspaceinthebackground,assuggestedinChapter1, social-culturaldimensionsembeddedingameplayaregivenpotentially increasedpotencythroughtheactivenatureofplay.Theactivityofthe player is essential to the realization of much of what unfolds in the
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS playingofgames,evenwheretheparametersareclearlyestablishedin advance.Asaconsequence,theplayercanseemmoredirectlyimplicated than traditional media consumers in the meanings that result.This is onereasonforthedegreeofcontroversyoftenstirreduparoundgames, especially in areas such as on-screen violence and representations of gender,twoissuesaddressedinmoredetailinthischapter. In most cases, the social-cultural or political-ideological dimensions ofgamesareimplicitratherthantheoutcomeofconsciousordeliberate design.Gameplayandotherfeaturesthathavesuchimplicationsareusually designedtobeappealingintheirownright,inmanyofthewaysalready consideredinthisbook.Onewaytodemonstratehowmuchpotential games have for the construction of particular social-cultural meanings is to start by considering some examples in which this dimension is madehighlyexplicit:gamesdesignedwithspecificideologicalagendas inmind.Theserangefrombrief,rhetoricalinterventionstomorefully elaborated versions of familiar genres.An example of the first variety is September 12, designed by Gonzalo Frasca, the aim of which is to makeasimplepointabouttheso-called‘waronterror’announcedby president GeorgeW. Bush in the wake of the attacks onAmerica on 11 September 2001.2The player is presented with a screen depicting an animated version of a Middle Eastern urban scene: a marketplace surroundedbyflat-roofedbuildings,populatedbyfigurescharacterized ascivilians,inblue,andweapon-carrying‘terrorists’,ingreen.Theplayer isgivencontrolofatargetingreticulethatcanbeusedtolaunchmissiles atterrorists.Theyarenoteasytohit,however,andthemissilestend,asin therealworld,tocause‘collateraldamage’tociviliansandbuildings.Each timeaterroristorcivilianiskilled,afewcivilianfiguresgatheronthe sceneandkneeldowntogointo‘mourning’animations,accompanied bythesoundofsobbing:theythentransformintoterrorists.Themore deathanddestructioniswreaked,themoreterroristsarecreated,andthe gameisstructuredtopreventthepossibilityofvictory(atimedelaybuilt intothetargetingreticuleensuresthatallterroristsorbuildingscannot bewipedoutbeforetheformermultiplyandthelatterarerebuilt).Ifthe playerstopsfiring,thenumberofterroristsgraduallyreduces,butthey donotdisappear.Themessagebuiltintogameplayhasclearreal-world reference:totrytodestroy‘terrorism’throughdirectmilitaryassaultis counter-productive,onlyincreasingthekindsofgrievancesthatusually
169
170
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS lead to the creation of the phenomenon in the first place.Taking no action is not offered as a panacea, merely as something that does not makethesituationworse,butanyoneencounteringthegameisexpected todosomethingandisforcedtoconfronttheno-winscenario. More fully realized games have also been designed as interventions into this geo-political territory, including two Arabic first-person shooters. UnderAsh (2001, developed by the Syrian publisher Dar alFikr) is based on the Palestinian intifada.The player takes on the role ofayoungPalestinian,Ahmed,followinghisdevelopmentfromstonethrowingprotestortoarmedresister,fightingagainstIsraelisoldiersand settlersintheoccupiedterritories.Amissiondownloadableasademo setstheplayer/Ahmedthetaskofrescuingthepeopletakencaptivein a village and preventing it from being demolished to make way for a newIsraelisettlement.3AnothermissionsituatesAhmedintheenvirons ofavirtualequivalentoftheDomeoftheRock,closetotheAl-Aqsa mosqueinJerusalem,akeyflashpointinthereal-worldconflict.Special Force(2003)wasdevelopedbytheguerrillagroupHizbollahtosimulate
13.First-personfreedom-fighter:Palestinianresistancefiguredin-gamein theprecinctsoftheDomeoftheRockinUnderAsh(2001).
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS itsmilitaryoperationsagainsttheIsraelioccupationofsouthernLebanon. Militarypoststobeattackedbytheplayeraredescribedas‘exactreplicas’ ofpositionsusedbyIsraelduringtheoccupation,whichendedwiththe withdrawalofIsraelin2000.Thegamealsoincludespicturesofreal-life ‘martyrs’killedintheconflict.4Bothgamesweredesignedspecifically toofferArabicplayers–especiallyyouths–analternativetoAmericandominated games in whichArabs and Muslims are often portrayed as terroristsorotherkindsofenemies. Othershavealsoseizedonthepotentialofgamesasbearersofparticular messages.Ifthefirst-personshooterformathasbeenusedasawayof figuringArabresistancetoIsraelioccupation,ithasalsobeenemployed, perhapslessobviously,inChristian-orientedgamessuchasEternalWars: ShadowofLight(2002)andCatechumen(2000).Theformer,builtonthe Quakeengine,situatestheplayerasMike,anangeldispatchedbyGodto dobattlewithdemonsinastruggleoverthesoulofatroubledteenager.5 Catechumen,setintheRomeofAD171,hastheplayer-characterfighting demons and possessed Romans in order to rescue captured Christians whofaceexecutionforrefusingtorenouncetheirreligion.Thegame offers a number of context-specific twists on the usual first-person shooterformat,includinga‘faithmeter’ontheheads-updisplayandthe screeningofBiblicalverseswhenthegameisinpausemode.Foesare notkilledbytheplayer-character’sweapons,avarietyofbeam-projecting ‘SwordsoftheSpirit’:demons,whenhit,aresentbacktotheunderworld, whileRomansareconvertedtoChristianity;theykneeldownandpray. Gamessuchastheseaimtoachieveabalancebetweengettingacross amessageandofferinggenericgameplaypleasures;thelatterisseenas importantiftheyaretoattractthetargetaudience,primarilyconsisting ofyoungpeoplelikelytobedrawntosuchgamesmoregenerally.Games areunderstoodhere,asinothercircles,ashavingeducationalpotential. Inlesscontroversialterritory,thepedagogicalusesofgameshavebeen exploredbyinitiativessuchasthe‘Games-to-Teach’projectatMIT,in whichgamesweredesignedtoaidintheteachingofmaths,scienceand engineeringatadvancedsecondaryandearlyundergraduatelevel.6Inthe 3Daction/racinggameSupercharged!(undated),forexample,theplayer wastaughtprinciplesofelectromagnetismbylearninghowtonavigatea miniaturespacepodthroughascenarioinwhichithadbeensuckedinside thecircuitryofafilmprojector.Thequalitiesofgameplaymoregenerally
171
172
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS canalsobeseenasembodyingusefulpedagogicalprinciplessuchasactive problem solving and learning through practice.7 Most games do not haveovertlyexpressededucationalorideologicaldimensions,however. Theprimaryaimisusuallytoprovideentertainment,ofonevarietyor another,ratherthantoconveyamessageofanykind.Allgamescanbe saidtobecarriersofsocial-culturalmeanings,however,sometimeswith moreacutepolitical-ideologicalimplications.Themomentanychoices aremadeaboutwhatmaterialtoinclude,howtotreatitandwhatkindsof activitiesarerequiredofplayersinordertosucceed,particularmeanings –orthepotentialforsuchmeanings–arecreated.Playisalwaysshaped by,andappearswithin,particularculturalcontexts,eveniftheseareoften largely implicit and kept in the background.These contexts are often quitebroadlyframed,particularlyingamesdesignedforsomethingclose to a global marketplace, although particular types of games and game content are sometimes favoured in one place more than another (in Japan,forexample,oneofthemajorpolesofthegamesbusiness,roleplayinggamesaregenerallymorepopularthanintheUSorEuropean markets).8Itiswithmaterialthatexistsatthelevelofbackgroundsettings andscenariosthatwebegintoexplorethesedimensionsinmoredetail. Subsequentsectionsofthischapterwillconsidermeaningscreatedwithin the processes of core gameplay mechanics.The two will be separated outhere,initiallyatleast,althoughsignificantoverlapsareoftenfound betweenthem.
Background settings and scenarios Itisinthedimensionofbackgroundsettings,scenariosandthequalities ascribed to player- and non-player characters that the social-cultural implications of games have most in common with those of other mediaproductssuchasfilmandtelevision.Thebroadcontextswithin whichgameplayoccurs–asopposedtogameplayactivitiesthemselves – are repositories for a range of social-cultural or political-ideological resonances, and for some widely repeated scenarios. If many shooter and action/adventure type games draw on the quest format or the hero’sjourneyarchetype,forexample,thishassocialimplicationsofits own, suggesting a substantial cultural investment in the notion of the individual as a source of heroic agency.The value of formats such as theseforgamesistheirveryfamiliarity,aswesuggestedinChapter1:
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS theextenttowhichtheycanreadilybedrawnuponwithoutneeding a great deal of explicit elaboration.The same goes for their social or political-ideologicalresonances.Assumptionsofindividualfreedomand agencyaredeeplyideological,especiallygiventheextenttowhichthey arecelebratedincapitalist/westernsocietiesthenatureofwhichensures thatsuchfreedomisdeniedtomany,bothclosetohomeandelsewhere intheworld.Suchassumptionshaveachievedwidelevelsofacceptance, however, as one of the key ideological underpinnings of the societies inwhichtheyarepromoted.Manygamesbuyintothisideology,asdo many other products of popular culture, a factor that may be related to the absence of real agency in many areas of life.The figure of the individualhero,theplayer-character,facedwithsomekindofupheaval thatleadstoaquestagainstpowerfulforcesiscommontomanygames – from science fiction, adventure and fantasy oriented titles to crimethrillerssuchasMaxPayneandTheGetaway–eveniftherequirements ofgameplayaresuchthatsuccessisoftennoteasilyachieved.Theherois, typically,presentedasafigurehyperbolicallyreducedtothestatusoflone individualassaultedfromallsides,withtheexceptionoftheoccasional ally,atwarwithbothpoliceandcriminalgangsinMaxPayneandThe Getaway or with alien invaders, denizens of evil and fellow humans (chiefly,marines)intheDoom,QuakeandHalf-Lifevarieties. The particular circumstances in which individual human agency is celebrated also draw, in many cases, on material with broader socialculturalresonance.Theindividualheroispittedinsomegamesagainsta conspiracyofonekindoranother.InHalf-Lifeacombinationofexternal andinternalthreatsareproposed:externally,thethreatofalieninvasion unleashed by scientific experiments; internally, the machinations of sinistergovernmentforces.9Inbothcases,thegamedrawsonmaterial thathasreal-worldsocial/politicalreference.Intheconcernitimplies about the unwise dabbling of scientists, the game plays into broader culturaldiscoursesaboutthepossibledangersofscientificinterventions into and manipulations of the world. In its government-conspiracy dimension, the game evokes both long-standing and contemporary suspicions of government – especially, in the United States, distrust of federal institutions. In bringing the two together, the game has much incommon–atthelevelofcontextualbackground–withmanyother culturalproducts,includingsciencefictionfilmsandTheX-Filestelevision
173
174
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS series. The dominant tenor of such material tends to be politically conservative,playingonfantasiessharedbyAmericanright-wingfringe groups(and,arguably,distractingattentionfrommorerealandsignificant unaccountablegovernmentactionsunderguisessuchas‘security’andthe pursuitofforeignpolicy).Other,morecomplexnetworksofconspiracy arefoundintheDeuxExgames. If the individual heroic action of Half-Life is framed as being in oppositiontoalienattackandgovernmentconspiracy,thatoftheTomb Raidergamesissituatedinacontextequallyfreightedwith(reactionary) ideologicalresonances.The‘alien’inthiscaseislargelyequatedwiththe ‘foreign’,sourcesofdangertobeexploitedbythearistocraticallysituated Lara Croft in the name of high adventure.The scenario of the earlier gamesinthecyclecanberead,asBarryAtkinssuggests,‘asprovidinga remarkablyconsistentmetaphorforakindof(British)imperialismthat is, understandably, only rarely celebrated in contemporary culture, and onlyrarelyofferedupatallwithoutaccompanyingcritique.’10Foreign space‘isfulloftrapsandsnares,andthethreatthatitrepresentsisonly defusedthroughviolenceand(often)throughtheapplicationofsuperior technology.’11 Representatives of indigenous populations are often depictedstereotypically,significantonlyasmuteaidesorobjectstobe dealtwithviolently,orarepresentonlytangentiallythroughthematerial remnants of their culture.The value given to indigenous cultures, as Atkinsandmanyotherhavesuggested,isassourcesofexoticspectacle andartefactstobestolenfortheirvaluetoothers,ratherthananyreal engagementwiththeirownqualities. The broad contours of fantasy worlds, including those found in massivelymulti-playerrole-playinggames,canalsobereadatthelevel of their social-cultural implications.A similar range of historical and culturalinfluencesarefoundinmanysuchworlds,includingEverQuest, Ultima Online and Asheron’s Call, as Eddo Stern suggests, including‘a wild amalgam of Celtic, Gothic, Medieval and Renaissance combined with a deep commitment to aWagnerian,Tolkienesque, Camelotian and D&D’ish verisimilitude.’12What, Stern asks, is the contemporary basisoftheappealoftheneo-medievalistcharacterofsuchgames,asa formofpleasurableescapefromdailyreality?Oneanswer,forAmerican players,istheofferingofasenseofhistoricallineagemorebefittingthe globallydominantsuperpowerthantheliteralaccountofahistorythat
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS leadsthroughcolonialistadventuresto‘adisconnectedandun-inscribed NativeAmericanpast.’13Moregeneralconclusionscouldalsobedrawn aboutthepotentialappealoftheneo-medieval,whichcanbedivided intotwocategoriesthatcarryratherdifferentideologicalresonances.14 Thefirstisthemedievalasromantic.Characteristicssuchasnobility, honour,grandeurandmagicprevail,attributesperhapslesseasilyimagined in a contemporary setting.This elevated rendition of medievalism is bestillustratedbyTheLordoftheRings:TheTwoTowers.Thegame’sepic battles are framed by contextualizing backstory: the agrarian idyll of Middle Earth is threatened by dark tyrannical forces that will kill or enslaveitspeopleandexploitnaturalresources.Ratherthanthestruggles betweenvariousreligiousfactionsandcultsthatcharacterizedthereal medievalperiodinEurope,thegame’sromantictakeonthemedieval enables heterogeneous races and factions to band together under the aegisoffellowshipandabattleagainsttyranny:universalgoodpitched againstuniversalevil.Thisframeworkhelpstojustifyviolentaction.The soliditywithwhichgoodandevilarepresentedaccordswithanidealistic mythic-romanticsensibilityandlocatesthecharactersinclearlymorally groundedways.Butwhataretheimplicationsofthismoralorderfora putativeidealsocialstructure,asimplicitlyrenderedinthegame?The concepts of fellowship and honour are married to the preservation of ahierarchicalfeudalsocialorder,inwhichthestrongprotecttheweak andmustresistthetemptationtopursuematerialgain.Thisprovidesthe grounds for a unification of the social and moral order.The romantic viewofthemedievalprovidesapatchworkofconservativeandliberal values that can be understood as speaking of the present through an imaginarypast. Thesecondcategoryisthemedievalasbarbaric.Civilizedbehaviours havelittleornoplace;socialcohesionisminimal.Bruteforce,amorality, self-interestandchaosprevail.Inmanyrespectsthisversionofthemedieval isfilteredthroughthevisceralmachoaestheticsof‘heavymetal’andthe vagabondadventuringofRobertE.Howard’sConancycle,asreflected in the mise-en-scene and colour palettes of games that lean in this direction.Enclave(2003),forexample,iscomposedmainlyofdungeons, forestsandfortresses;overcastskiesandthepredominanceofgreystone lendasenseofforebodinggloom.Whilethedemonicisdefinedasan evil that must be dispatched in the more romantically inclined games,
175
176
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS hereplayersareofteninvitedtopartakeofthepleasuresofbeingaligned withthedarkside;castintheroleofamoralvampireinBloodOmen2 orchoosingtoplayadarkelfnecromancerinEverQuest.Thelong-ago, far-awayfantasycontextandtheprovisionofanenvironmentmarked as potently‘uncivilized’ provide players with a licence for indulging – playfully – in what might otherwise be considered unconscionable acts.Gamesthatdeploythisbarbariccontextofferafantasyescapefrom mundane existence, behavioural restraint or alienation. Rhetorics of ‘liberation’ofthiskindareoftenusedbyplayersdescribingthepleasures ofsuchgames.15 The clearly defined Manichean – good-versus-evil – structure that characterizes most of the games that fall into the romantic medieval categoryhelpstolocatethemwithintheregulatorysystemassuitable forayoungeraudience,therebymaximizingtheirpotentialmarket(Lord oftheRings:TheTwoTowersforexampleisratedinBritainas12+,while BloodOmen2israted15).Theromanticrenditionofthemedievalmight offerplayersarelieffromthemoral,religiousandpoliticalcomplexities of contemporary existence. Games that fall into the barbaric category areoftenmorallymorecomplex,althoughattimesitisasimplecaseof beingonthe‘other’side.Thepopularityoftheneo-medievalingames might,therefore,lieinprovidingeithercompensationforalackofmoral certainty or the pleasures of aligning with the ‘transgressive’ (albeit versionsoftransgressionthattakeconventionalizedforms).Manygames combinetheromanticandbarbaricmodesofneo-medievalism,drawing ontheappealsofeach,particularlythosewhichofferchoicesinmoral alignment or that allow a certain licence to do‘bad’ in the service of ‘good’.AManicheanmoralstructureisusedbythemajorityoffightingbasedgames,notjustthoseusingneo-medievalistsettings,suggestinga general industry consciousness of the need to contextualize violence, oftenwithinfantasyframes,toavoidpossiblecensureorrestrictionto nichemarkets. Thefascinationwiththemedievalasromanticand/orbarbaricisnot a recent phenomenon or, of course, restricted to games. Eighteenthcenturygothicnovelists,Victorianartistsandculturalcommentatorsand ‘newage’culturehavealllookedtothemedievalasaneraoflostvalues or as a lucrative source of supernatural and visceral horror. Seeking a broadercultural-historicalexplanationforitspopularity,UmbertoEco
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS suggests that‘every time Europe feels a sense of crisis, of uncertainty aboutitsaimsandscopes,itgoesbacktoitsownroots–andtheroots of European society are, without question, in the MiddleAges’.16The appealofthemedievalmightbeunderstoodtoday,beyondEurope,in the context of various concerns about‘postmodern’ relativism or the lossof‘traditional’values.Formediasuchasvideogames,italsohasmore immediatesourcesofattraction,providingthematicstructuresanddesign rhetoricswellsuitedtogames.Itoffersarepertoireofmythicallystyled heroesandanti-heroestobeplayed. Player- and non-player-characters are repositories of social-cultural valuestowhichattentionhasoftenbeendrawn,especiallyintermsof representationsofgender.Thetypicalheroofthefirst-personshooter, andmanyothershootingand/oraction-adventuregames,wasoriginally averyobviousmachotemplate:large,thicklymuscled,gruffandcraggyfeatured–ideallysuited,infact,tothelimitationsofblockygraphics.This figurehassincebeensupplementedbyawiderrangeoftypes,althoughit isstillverymuchinevidence.17Inmanyrole-playinggames,forexample, achoiceofbodytypesisoftenonoffer.Theseareoftenalignedwith race, class and occupation, warriors and melee class characters often appearingmoremuscledthanclericsormagic-casters(suchaswizards). Acrosstherangeofgametypes,thetoughmachoimagefitscloselywith the kinds of actions usually required of many characters, combining individualist with patriarchal resonances.The world of games ranging fromDoomtoMaxPayneisnotsuitedto‘wimps’,evenifaslightlygreater varietyofemotionalexpressionhasbeenpermittedinsometitles.Max Payne,forexample,isnotamuscle-boundhero/anti-hero,nordoeshe havethecyborg-enhancedattributesofcharacterssuchasHalo’sMaster Chief.Ashisnamesuggests,MaxPaynesuffers.UnliketheMasterChief ’s mechanicalattitudetomowingdownalienhordes,Payne’sengagement withhisenemiesisemotional.Withhiswifeandchilddead,Payneisout forrevenge.Incombinationwithbeingsubjectedtomind-gamesanda varietyofdrugs,hecomesoverasafeverish,highlyexpressivecharacterof thetypeassociatedwithfilmnoir,inthegripofafloridlymelodramatic psychosis.TheexpressionofPayne’semotionsisframedinmasculinist terms,however.Ratherthanbeingfrozenbygrief,heiscompelledinto a frenzied and active mode of shoot-first-ask-questions-later violence. Actionequatesherewithtraditionalconceptsofmasculinityfoundina
177
178
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS widerangeofpopularmedia.ThefigureofthePrinceinPrinceofPersia: SandsofTimeisneithermechanical,psychotic,muscle-boundnorgruff, offeringanalternativeversionofthemaleactionhero.Withhisrather warmandencouragingdirectspeechtoplayers(‘no,no,no,thatdidn’t happen.MayIstartagain?’whenhedies,forexample),hisfloppy-hair,a slenderbodyandharempants,heispresentedinmorefeminizedguise thanthetraditionalmachoequivalent.Strengthandagencyareprovided, butintheformofquicksword-playandlight-footedacrobaticsrather thanbruteforceandmuscles-as-body-armour.Physicalpowermightalso betemperedwithotherattributes:theplayablecharactersofLordofthe Rings:TheTwoTowersmightbegoodinbattle,buttheyarealsoheroeswith quitehumbleattitudesandregularlyexpressconcernfortheirfellows; thisconfigurationiscuedbythegame’sromanticneo-medievalismbut alsomakesformoreroundedandhuman-seemingcharacters. Hyper-masculineimagesinpopularculturehavebeenreadbycritics suchasSusanJeffordsasattemptstorecuperatetraditionalgenderroles thathavebeenthrownintoquestionelsewhere.18Imagesofmilitaristic or barbarian heroes might be seen as offering virtual compensation for what is experienced as a lack or loss of agency and bodily power in the real world.These bodies are also designed specifically for their spectacularqualities,however,tobevisuallyarresting,assuggestedinthe previous chapter.The constructs of‘raw’ masculinity offered by fightorientedgamesarenotalwaysmeanttobetakenseriously,exaggeration sometimestippingtowardsparody,asinthecaseoftheunreconstructed cigar-chewing protagonist of Duke Nukem (‘The Man –The Mission –TheBabes’).InLandoftheBabes(2000),theDukeistransportedtoa worldinwhichallthemenhavebeenkilledandthewomenareenslaved by an alien race. He is given many of the characteristics of Arnold Schwarzenegger’sTerminator:thepumped-upmuscles,themilitaryflattop(peroxideblonde),thebikeandtheone-liners.TheDuke’sclichéd speechisdeliveredinastaccato,gravely-voiceddrawl:‘no-onemesseswith mybabes’,‘chewonthis’and,whenhedies,‘I’llbebaaack’.Compared withthefemaleheadofthe‘UnifiedBabeResistance’,heisinarticulate andcapableofonlyverybasicmotivation.Sheexplainsthesituationand gives him commands, which he translates into his own monosyllabic terms:hemayhavethemuscles,butisnottoobright.Ratherthansaving humanity or family – the stock situation for many action-adventure
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS heroes–histaskistosave‘hisbabes’(whoregularlycallforhishelpand diveintohisarmsduringorafterdanger).Insteadofanidealmasculine hero,theDukeispresentedasafigureoffun,highlightingexplicitlythe absurdnatureofthehyper-machofigurefoundinmanypopulartexts. The representation of women in videogames has promoted much controversy, especially given the influence of feminist thought on the analysisofpopularcultureinrecentdecades.Theaimofmuchofthis workhasbeentodemonstratetheexistenceofmasculineandpatriarchal agendasingames.Theearliestrepresentationsoftheplayer-positionin gamesweregender-neutral(Pongpaddles,spaceships,firingdevices).The firstexplicitlygender-markedavatarwasfemale,intheshapeofMs.PacMan(1980),signifiedbytheadditionofapinkbowandamouthlined withred.Thedominantforminwhichfemalecharacterswerefoundin manygamesuntilthe1980swasintheshapeofthestereotypical‘damselin-distress’, in examples such as Donkey Kong (1984; player-character’s girlfriendtoberescuedfromclutchesofahugegorilla)andDragon’sLair (1984;princesskidnappedbyevilwizard).19Thisformatwaschallenged insome1980stitles,inwhichfemalecharacterswerepresentedaseither strongerantagonists(thecraftyart-thiefofWhereintheWorldisCarmen SanDiego[1985])orplayer-characterprotagonists(theprincessseeking a magical cure for her dying father in King’s Quest IV: Rosella’s Peril [1988]).20Itdidnotdisappear,however,therescueofwomen-in-danger featuringinlatergamesincludingDukeNukem:LandoftheBabes,ifin moretongue-in-cheekfashion.EveninthecriticallylaudedIco(2001), asimilardynamicisfound:amaleavatarwhosemissionistorescuea delicate-looking girl from trouble. In games based on the damsel-indistress formula the rescue scenario is configured on conventionally gendered lines. Masculinity is defined as active, resourceful, powerful; femininityasweakandinneedofstrongmaleprotection. Many games have also featured female non-player characters as sexualized objects of the male gaze.The opening cut-scene of BMX XXX(2002),forexample,intercutsfilmedfootageofteenagemalebike ridersperformingtrickswithimagesofhalf-naked‘exotic’dancers.Both aredesignedforthegaze,butwithtwoverydifferenteconomiesatwork: physicalskillondisplayintheformer,sexualizedbodiesinthelatter(it isimportanttonote,however,thatinthegameitselfplayerscanchoose to perform BMX tricks as either male or female). Gameplay itself is
179
180
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS
14.Sexistimagery,combinedwithaction-stunts,inBMXXXX(2002).
lacedwithmisogynistic‘street-speak’inwhichplayer-charactersofeither genderarecalled‘ho’s’andthreatenedwithbeing‘cut’,andamalenonplayercharacterrepeatedlystates‘I’vegotahotsaltynutsackhere’while anothercommentsonthestatusofhis‘wiener’.Contemptforwomen alsoseemstounderliethefactthatprostitutenon-playercharacterscan bebeatenupandrobbedinGrandTheftAutoIII(thesamecanbesaidof allnon-playercharactersinthegame,butanadditionaledgeseemstobe inplaywhenthishappensafteravirtualencounterforpaidsex).Ifthese examplesareparticularlyblatant,moresubtleformsofpatriarchalbias canbefoundelsewhere. The sexualized appeal of women characters is a tool used by many gamestoattractattentioninacompetitivemarketplace:fromexplicitly pornographicandsleazyrepresentationsinthelikesofVirtualValerie(1990) andEroticaIsland(2000)tothewomenwarriorfiguresofgamessuchas Primal and Buffy.At one end of the spectrum are characters designed purely as objects of desire; at the other are female characters who are afforded significant degrees of subjectivity. Many hover somewhere in
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS between,asisthecasewithDeadorAlive:XtremeBeachVolleyball.Thegame isclearlyinformedbyasoft-core‘cheese-cake’agenda.Itbeginswitha montage of high resolution pin-up clichés: a parade of slender, longlegged,bustywomenperformvariouscoquettishacts,flirtingwiththe camera,dancing,feedingeachotherstrawberriesandundressing.Oneof thekeyattractionsofthegame,featuredstronglyinreviewsatthetimeof release,isthewaythecharacters’breastsjiggleincoordinationwiththeir movements,emphasizedbythefactthattheyarecladinskimpybikinis. Ratherthantheblatantsexualmovementsofthedancersatthestartof BMXXXX,theinhabitantsofXtremeBeachVolleyballaremoredemure andplayfullyflirtatious(andtherefore,perhaps,lesssexuallythreatening toateenagemaleaudience).Theplayersaregivenindividualpersonalities –particularlikesanddislikes,playingstrengthsandweaknesses–which suggeststhattheyareaccordedsomedegreeofsubjectivityatthesame timeasbeingblatantobjectsofthemalegaze. The game that has probably attracted most attention in gender termsisTombRaider,whichoffersLaraCroftasacombinationofboth object and wilful subject of her own action-adventure franchise.With her monumental breasts, waspish waist and long legs, Lara is clearly designedtoarrestthegaze(theheterosexualmalegazeintermsoflust, but perhaps soliciting more complex reactions from others).As Helen Kennedynotes,Laraoffersa‘bimodal’formofaddress,inwhichdifferent attributes are used in combination, sometimes sitting uncomfortably together,inanattempttoappealtobothmaleandfemaleplayers.21In 1996,whenthefirstintheTombRaiderserieswasreleased,mostgames werestilldominatedbymaleavatars.Itwasrefreshingformanygamers toplayasafeistyandresourcefulwoman.Whilesomewomengamers welcomedtheadditionofLaratotherepertoireofaction/fight-based games, others found her hyper-feminine figure troubling. Diane Carr, forexample,suggeststhatLara’sactivity,resourcefulnessandaggression arecompromisedby‘exaggerateddreamgirlproportions…inflatedby areactionaryimagination’.22 ThewomenwarriorsinPrimal,Xena:WarriorPrincess(1999)andthe BuffytheVampireSlayergamesmightnothavetheexaggerated‘sex-doll’ proportionsofLara,23buttheyarestillconventionallycodedas‘attractive’ inappearance,eveniftheyaretacticallysmartandlethalincombat.The gamesindustryappearstobelievethat‘girl-power’iscombinedtobest
181
182
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS commercialeffectwithphysicalattractivenessalongrathernarrowlines. Thisisessentiallyatrade-offbasedonmakinganotionof‘girl-power’ sexually appealing to heterosexually-identified male players, a strategy atworkmoregenerallyacrossarangeofmediatobroadenthegender appeal of action-adventure formats. The inclusion of ‘good-looking’ powerful women in the products of popular culture can be regarded asa‘post-feminist’gesture;certainfeministideasareincludedtospeak more directly to female players, but at the cost of excising their overt political basis. Unlike the rather distant and cold Lara, who rarely lets theplayerknowwhatsheisthinking,Primal’sJenandBuffyaresharp andwitty.Theyoftencommentwithironyandsometimessarcasmon thewaytheirgenderisperceivedbymaleNPCsasasignofweakness. Theinclusionofmorespeechingames,afactorthatmightberelated totheavailabilityofincreasedresourcesforlargesoundfiles,givesthese characters greater levels of subjectivity than game-Lara (although it could be argued that her outings in other media and the presence of morespeechinAngelofDarknessthaninpreviousgameshasboostedto someextenthercomplexityasacharacter).PrimalandtheBuffygames
15.Ordinarygirlwithextra-ordinarypowers:Buffyas‘kick-ass’woman warriorinBuffytheVampireSlayer(2002).
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS also reverse the gendering of the background rescue scenario: Jen’s primarymotivation,inmostofthegame,istosaveherboyfriendfrom theclutchesofanagentofchaos;Buffysavesvariousmaleandfemale charactersfrommaraudingvampiresanddemons.Itissignificantthatthe powerofbothBuffyandJenisderivedfromsupernaturalsources.They areordinarygirlswithextra-ordinaryslayingpowers,incontrasttomale figureswhosepowerisoftenderivedfromtheirownmasculineform. The implication is that such power is less‘natural’ for female figures, eventhoughthepowersofsomemalecharacters(suchasHalo’sMaster Chief) are also presented as the result of artificial supplementation. This device also permits the reconciliation of physical prowess with theuseoffigureswhoremainotherwiseimplausibly‘pretty’andpetite. Whilesomefeministcriticsarguethattherecentflourishingof‘postfeminist’action-heroinesplaysentirelytothemale-gazeandobjectifies or fetishizes women, others have embraced representations of women heroines as a relief from the traditional male hero that has dominated westernmythologyandfiction. Body shapes that accord with dominant/conventional notions of beautyalsodominatethecharactertypeschosen,fromarangeofpresetfeatures,byplayersofonlinerole-playinggamessuchas EverQuest. Therearemanymoreslenderblondehighelvesplayedbywomenthan therearefemaleogresortrolls.Thismightresultfromtheimportance to the game of cooperation with other players: the more visually appealingacharacter,itmightbethought,themorelikelytheyareto receivehelpfromothers.Thereisscopetobuildcharactersthatdonot accord with convention, however, including the possibility of creating abeardedfemaledwarf.Manyrole-playinggamesgiveplayersachoice ofphysicalfeatures,althoughchoiceofbuildislesscommonlyavailable. AnexceptionisUru:AgesBeyondMyst(2003),inwhichcharacterscan rangefromtheveryslendertothemoderatelyrounded.Plumpisnot onoffer,however,suggestingthatthisgame,likemostothers,buysinto limited notions of beauty/appeal. If media such as film and television offerthepleasuresofviewingfiguresofidealizedbeauty,towhichmost spectatorscannotrealisticallyaspire,gamesgoastepfurther,inoffering players the chance to occupy an alternative‘skin’.The fact that many gamesaredesignedforateenagemalemarketprobablygoessomewayto explainingthepredominanceofstereotypicalandsometimesdemeaning
183
184
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS representationsofwomen.Thatdoesnotmean,however,thatallplayers ‘read’orusethesignifiersofgenderandappearanceinthesameways. Merelyswitchingtomore‘positive’representationshasshortcomingsof itsown,itselfhavinglimitedeffectontherealitiesofgenderequality,and potentiallyexcisingtheabilityofgamecharacterrepresentationstospeak totherealandcontradictoryconditionsprevailingindailylife. Racial/ethnicstereotypingisalsototheforeinmanymachoaction/ shooterheroes,themajorityofwhicharewhite.Ingeneral,analysisof therepresentationorconstructionofraceinpopularcultureisfocused onnon-whitecharacters.AsRichardDyerargues,whitenessasaracial construct is frequently ignored because it operates in discourse as a ‘naturalized’normagainstwhichothersaredefined.24Itisasimportant toconsidermeaningsthatcirculatearound‘white’charactersingames, therefore,asitistolookatthecharacterizationsofrepresentativesofother groups.Gamesofferthepotentialto‘build’orinhabit,virtually,bodies ofafantasticalandidealizednature.Whatideologiesofraceunderliethe pleasuresofplayingintheskinofsuchbodies?Themuscledmalebody connotes physical power and control, but the meanings of these shift depending on skin colour. Dyer argues that images of white muscled heroessignifyaspectsofwhitemasculinistsupremacy.Blackmuscularity signifiesdifferently.WithinaracistparadigmthathasitsrootsinVictorian usesoftheoriesofevolutiontoshoreupideologiesofwhitepower,black musclescometoberegardedas‘natural’ratherthanacquired,indicators ofprimitivismratherthanultra-civilization.Thisequationiscomplicated, however,bythefactthatinmanygamesthepresenceofwhitebarbarian figuresalsosuggestsakindofliberatingandpowerfulprimitivism(the Nietzscheantagline‘whatdoesnotdestroyone,makesmestronger’being usedtoadvertisetheConangame[2004],forexample).Commentators suchasDonaldBogleandFrantzFanonhavearguedthattheimplied potencyofblackmuscularfigureshasthepotentialtoprovokeanxietyfor whitemen.25Suchideologiesmightnotalwaysbeactivatedingameplay, as in other acts of media consumption, but they form an underlying structureofmeaningsthatappeartobecodedintomanytextsatsome level,ifonlyimplicitly.Binaryoppositionsofthiskindseemmoreexplicit ingamesinwhichconflictoccursbetweengroupsdefinedintermsthat includeamoreobviouslyracial/ethniccomponent,includingwar-games with real historical referents such as Vietcong or Black Hawk Down, in
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS whichasenseissometimescreated,assuggestedinChapter1,ofkilling largenumbersof‘faceless’enemy‘aliens’.Aracialdimensioncanalsobe readintoexamplesinwhichthealienistakenmoreliterally,informs suchasextraterrestrialsorzombies,althoughthisoperatesatalevelof metaphor in which the otherness of enemies can be open to a wider rangeofinterpretations. Theplayer-charactersoffirst-persongamesareoftenkeptrelatively undefined, leaving plenty of space to be occupied by the player. A white(male)player-characterisoftenimplied,however,theabsenceof muchlocation-specificmaterialhavingmuchincommonwithDyer’s formulation of a form of whiteness that gains its dominance partly throughalackofarticulationofitsownqualities.Thefirst-personformat issufficientlyopentoaccommodateplayersofanyraceorgender,but the white male is usually privileged by whatever markers of identity aresupplied.Whathappens,then,whentheplayer-characterisexplicitly characterizeddifferently,asinUnrealII,inwhichex-marineJohnDalton ispresentedasAfricanAmerican?Thesetting,anintergalacticfuture,is oneinwhichsuchethnic/nationalidentityseemstohavenobearing. Dalton’sskinisblack,whenseenincut-scenes,andhisvoicearacially coded deep velvet. None of these characteristics have any bearing on his behaviour or gameplay, however.The same applies to other black characters,suchastheblackAmericanfemalescientistinDig.Amore sexualizedandfetishisticapproachtonon-whitecharactersisevidentin somegames,includingDOA:XtremeBeachVolleyball.Thewomenhave differentracialcharacteristics,includingwhite,blackandAsian,indicated byskintoneandfacialfeatures.Theirbodiesaresimilarlyproportioned, however,andtheircharacteristicsbroadlysimilar,suggestingthatracial/ ethnic features are cosmetic rather than grounded in any real cultural difference. As is the case with many pornographic texts, race here becomesjustamatteroferoticnovelty,likethechoiceofdifferenttypes ofchocolatesofferedbyaselectionbox. Somegamesarelessrestrictiveinthesedimensions,permittingchoices about the racial and gender figurations of player-characters. Deus Ex: InvisibleWar(2004),forexample,allowstheplayer-charactertobemale orfemaleandpermitstheplayertoselectfromarangeofskintones.26A similarfacilityispermittedinmanyothertitles,includingsportsgames such as Links 2004, in which skin-tone and gender are among many
185
186
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS detailsofphysicalappearancethatcanbeselected.Inthesecasesalsosuch choicesarelargelycosmetic,ratherthanaffectinggameplaycapabilities. Ifyouchoosetoplayasafemalegolferyoudonot,asaresult,hitthe ballshorterdistances,aswouldusuallybethecaseinreality.Theoverall gameplayingexperiencecanbeaffectedbychangesofthiskind,however, particular at the level of the relative degree of identification created betweenplayerandplayer-character.ForawomanplayingHalf-Lifein firstpersontobehailedas‘Gordon’,forexample,canbejarring.27Such aneffectislikelytobeincreasedingamesplayedinthethird-person, in which the player is constantly reminded of gender, racial or other characteristics projected onto the avatar. Deus Ex: InvisibleWar follows theexampleoftheoriginalDeusExinprovidingagender-neutralname, Alex (J.C. Denton in the first iteration), thus avoiding the problem at thelevelofverbaladdressfromotherswithinthegame.Asafirst-person game,itsvisualfieldismoreneutral,creatingaspacetobefilledbyany kind of player, although this is not the case in the relatively frequent cut-scenes.Cut-scenes,inanexamplesuchasthis,provideareminder of the particular characterization that has been provided or chosen. Cut-scenesaremomentsinwhichimmediateidentificationisreduced, structurally, in first-person games, which might reduce the extent to which gender or racial colouring really‘matters’ to the player; but it mightstillbeasignificantfactorformanyplayers.Studiesofgenderand racial/ethnic issues more generally suggest that media consumers tend toprefertextsinwhichtheyfeelthattheirownparticularidentitiesare represented,centrallyratherthaninthemargins.Gamesaredifferent,in thatwhatmattersisnotjustrepresentationbutalsotheactiveprocessof gameplay,aswillbearguedinmoredetailbelow;butthatisnottosay thatrepresentationisofnoconsequence.Itremainspartof,iffarfrom thewhole,experience. Decisions about details of player-character constitution are of more immediate significance in some games, most obviously role-playing gamesinwhichtheparticularcapabilitiesoftheplayeraredetermined toasignificantextentintheprocessofchoosing‘race’andotheraspects of character type. Race, as well as class and gender, is an important attributewhenchoosingthemake-upofacharacterinEverQuest.The creature races apart (bi-pedal tigers, lizards, frogs), there is a range of human-likecharacters(gnomes,dwarves,elves,ogres,barbarians,erudites
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS and humans). Sets of facial and hair types are on offer for each race, someofferingdifferentskintones(darkelvescomeinvariousshadesof blue).Humancharacterscanhavehaircolourrangingfromblondand redheadtobrunette,thelatterhavingaslightly‘oriental’cast,butthere is no variation here in skin colour.The human race as represented in thisgameisuniformly,universally,white.Thereisanotherrace,however, that has black skin and a range ofAfrican/Arab facial characteristics, theerudite,whichoriginatefromthecityofPaineel.Whileachoiceis offeredbetweenclassesthatleantowardsgood(healingclerics)orbad (necromancers,bestsuitedtosoloplay),theambienceofPaineeliscoded towards the latter.With many living dead wandering its hallways, it is a dark city – compared with the wholesome qualities associated with humanhomecitiesorthespectacularbaroquecitiesofthehighelves – leading out into a dangerous forest full of toxic ooze.A number of blackplayershavestatedtheirapprovaloftheexistenceofwell-rendered black characters, with differential facial characteristics, but the erudite cityanditsinhabitantsalsocarryresonancesofthe‘darkcontinent’from racist/colonialist literature. Erudites are spell‘casters’ rather than being figuredasmuscledwarriors,anabsencethatmightsuggesttheoperation ofthekindofanxietyaboutblackmuscledfiguressuggestedabove;they areextremelypowerfulfiguresinthegame,however,oftensoughtout asaresourcebyotherplayers(alongwithenchanterandwizardfigures ofotherskincolours)becauseoftheircapacitytoinflictagreatdealof damage.Strategygamescanalsoprovideoptionsforplayingasvarious raciallyorethnicallycodedsocialgroups:Britons,Celts,Vikings,Japanese and Mongols among others available in Age of Empires, for example. Each has its own unique class of unit, along with particular strengths and weaknesses and more superficial ways of coding difference (the accentingofthefaux-languageresponsesofcharacterstodirectionshave resonanceswiththereal-worldequivalentsinsomebutfarfromallcases, forexample).Ingeneral,however,thebroadbasisofgameplayvariesless onthisbasisinstrategytitlesthantendstobethecaseinrole-playing games.
Meanings created in gameplay What,then,aboutmeaningscreatedinthecoreprocessofgameplayitself? Thesecanvaryfromthewidestparameterstomuchcloserdetail.Starting
187
188
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS with the former, it is important to note that even such‘fundamental’ qualitiessuchascontestandcompetitionhavesocial-culturaland,indeed, political-ideological dimensions. Contest and competition – Caillois’ agon–arewidelyviewedasamongthemostdefiningfeaturesofgames ingeneral.Withinparticularsocialoreconomic/politicalcontexts,the foregrounding or celebration of such qualities is not a neutral process –eveniftheyaresoprevalentastoseemubiquitous.Thatlifeis,largely, competitive,enactedonaplayingfieldinwhichtherewardsgotothe best,andinwhichallstartoffwitharelativelyequalchance,isacore assumptionofcapitalistideology,ifmodifiedinsomecasesbyvarying degrees of recognition of inequalities and provision of support to the disadvantaged.This does not mean that all competitive games are nothingmorethanexpressionsof,orparticipantsin,thepropagationof thisideology;merelythatthosewhichexistwithinthisbroadercontext cannotentirelybeseparatedfromit.Thatcompetitionmightbeseenas closetouniversal,asataken-for-grantedaspectofsocialexperience– includinggames–ratherthanasaparticularvalue,celebratedinparticular contexts,isitselfastrongindicatorofitsideologicalcolouring.Themost potentideologiesachievepreciselythisstatus,beingtakenforgrantedas part of the‘commonsense’ understanding of particular regimes, rather thanrecognizedasideology. In many games, contest and competition, with their ideological resonances,arecloselycombinedwiththefocusontheheroicindividual. Cooperation also exists as an important dimension in some games, however,andmightbeseentosomeextentasofferingapolerivaltothat ofindividuallycentredcompetition.Insomeaction-adventuregames,for example,theplayer-characterisrequiredtocooperatewithnon-player charactersinordertoproceed.Thisoftentakestheformoftheplayercharacterbeingsupportedbymembersofasquadteam,largelyingames with a military leaning.The actions of team members are sometimes automatic,helpingoutinfire-fightsandotherexploitswithouttheneed for any intervention by the player. In many cases more active support isrequiredonthepartoftheplayer/player-character.InTheThing,for example,itisuptotheplayertoensurethatsquadmembersaresufficiently supplied with materials such as weapons and armour, often being requiredtogiveupresourcesfromtheplayer-character.Adimensionof emotionalsupportisalsoincorporatedinthiscase,ifsomewhatcrudely,
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS the player having to monitor and respond to the‘fear’ levels of nonplayercharacters.Somethingmorethanjustrampantindividualagonis structuredintogameplay,inotherwords,evenifthisremainsarelatively superficialglossontheoverallexperienceofferedbythegame. In TheThing, the bottom line remains focused around individualcentred violent engagement, even if the help of other characters is required and their status has to be monitored as a result. Some games have received critical praise for offering more options to the player withinbroadlysimilargenericandindividual-centredconfines.DeusEx isparticularlyinnovativeinthisregard,permittinganumberofdifferent modes of play, a choice particularly between direct-violent and more indirect-stealthymeansofprogression.Thegameandsequelalsoemploy dialogue/action choice structures familiar from the history of roleplayinggames.Inparticulargameplaysituations,theplayerisoftengiven thechoiceofonefromalistofdialogueresponses,rangingfrombeing meekandcooperativewithinterlocutorstobeingcurtandoffensive,and somepointsinbetween.Thenatureoftheresponsehasbothimmediate and longer-term implications for the action that follows, giving the player a significant if bounded degree of control over the attitude of the player-character and the exact shape in which the game unfolds. Conflict-basedstrategygamesalsoprovideopportunitiesforcooperation aswellascontest,usuallyfeaturing‘diplomacy’interfaceoptionsinwhich, foraprice,alliancescanbeestablishedwithneighbours.Cooperationis built much more extensively and centrally into massively multi-player role-playinggamessuchasEverQuest,inwhichcollaborationwithother playersisamajordimensionofgameplay,essentialiftheplayerwishesto progressmorethanarelativelyshortdistancethroughthelevelhierarchy ofthegame.Evenhere,cooperationwithotherplayersistiedupwith contestation – against non-player creatures to be despatched in return forlevelpointsandothercommodities;or,forthosesoinclined,indirect player-v-player conflict in areas or servers where this is permitted (or moregenerallywheretheconsentofbothcombatantsisgranted). If conflict and competition have ideological resonances in a very generalsense,someformshavemoreparticularsocial-culturaldimensions. Animperialist/colonialistdynamicisbuiltintothegameplaystructureof theCivilizationseries,forexample,asmanycommentatorshavenoted.In ordertosucceed,playershavetobuildandexpandtheirowncivilizations,
189
190
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS aprocessbasedonanumberofimplicitbutfarfromneutralassumptions aboutwhatconstitutes‘civilization’inthemorallyloadedsenseofthe term:scientific-technologicaland/ormilitaryadvancement,forexample, asopposedtoanyalternativesuchasasustainableandnon-expansionist stateofequilibrium.Akeysourceofunderstandingthesocial-cultural leanings of games is to examine the conditions for victory structured intogameplay,thekindsofactivitiesinwhichtheplayerhastoengagein ordertosucceed.Civilizationoffersarangeof‘win-condition’options,as suggestedinChapter1,buttheparametersarelimitedandallbasedona fundamentalnotionofcompetition-leading-to-dominance,ofoneform oranother.Atthestart,acolonialist/expansionistapproachisessential, thespreadoftheplayer’ssettlementsandforcesintoterritoryfiguredas ‘empty’–occupiedonlybyoccasional‘barbarian’groups,thefunction ofwhichistobedisplacedandtoactasperiodicsourcesofannoyance. Civilizationcanbewonthroughdiplomacy,bybecomingelectedhead oftheUnitedNations,butthisisanotherformofdominance,basedon diplomaticwheeler-dealingratherthanenlightenmentornotionsofviable mutual co-existence.The number of victory conditions has expanded withsubsequentiterations.Theyremainlimited,inevitably,bypractical considerations, but also restricted in kind to conditions that embody particular (and contested) ways of understanding the world.As Janet Murrayasks:‘Whyshouldglobaldominationratherthan,say,universal housingandeducationdefinethecivilizationthatwinsthegame?Why notmakeanendtoworldhungerthewinningcondition?’28 Toasksuchquestionsneednotbetoseektoimposeanotheragenda ongamedesigners(althoughthatmightalsobealegitimateaim),but tocallattentiontotheparticularnatureofthemeaningsstructuredinto theactivitiesrequiredforsuccessinthegame.Gamedesignissuesoften involvevalue-judgements,mostifnotallofwhichhavesocial-cultural dimensions,somemoreovertlypolitical-ideologicalthanothers.Chris Crawfordrecalls,forexample,thenumberofthornyproblemsthathad tobeaddressedinthedesignofhisenvironmental-issuesgameBalanceof thePlanet(1990),inwhichtherelativeweightingofanumberofdifferent factors had to be determined.The decision, in the end, was to leave the exact weighting up to the player, within pre-set upper and lower limits,theresultofwhichistomaketheplayertakesomeresponsibility for determining the relative importance accorded to variables such as
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS energyproduction,thecreationofpollution,diseaseorthelossofhuman life–drawingattention,intheprocess,tothecontestednatureofsuch judgements.29 For William Stephenson, Civilization can be read as ‘a classic demonstration of the logic of imperialism outlined by Marx.’30 StephensonalsosuggestsaMarxistreadingofotheraspectsofthegame, includingitsmodellingofinternalconflict.Progresscanbeinterrupted by outbreaks of‘civil disorder’ within the player’s chosen civilization. Todealwiththis,theplayerhasanumberofoptions.Distractionscan be provided by turning some citizens into entertainers or by shifting part of the manufacturing process into the production of luxuries; alternatively,militaryunitscanbestationedtoimposemartiallaw.‘Thus the class struggle is regulated from above by means of the carrot and stickprinciple.’31Asimilarprinciplecanbereadintotheentertainment oftheplayer,Stephensonsuggests,inanexampleofthekindoflocalized spectacle-as-rewardconsideredinthepreviouschapter.InCivilizationII, oneofthesourcesofrewardisthecompletionof‘WondersoftheWorld,’ eachofwhichnotonlyprovidesanewadvantagetotheplayer’sculture butalsotriggersabriefcut-sceneofhighervisualqualitythantheusual gamescreen:adistraction,Stephensonsuggests,fromtheworkrequired bythemoreroutineplayingofthegame. ThebasisofthegameplayofCivilizationliesinthreeactivitiesseenby AndrewRollingsandErnestAdamsascentraltomanystrategygames, oftenincombination:conquest,explorationandtrade.32Takentogether, thethreeareclosetoprovidingadefinitionofimperialism/colonialism. Ifconquestisafunctionofthebroaderqualityofcontest/competition, exploration, a dimension of gameplay highlighted in Chapter 2, often takesonconnotationsofcolonialistadventure.Manygames,including Tomb Raider, involve the exploration of spaces characterized as exotic and/oralien;territoriesintowhichtheplayerorplayer-charactermoves inordertodefeatenemyinhabitantsandinpursuitofmaterialrewards, thelattertranslatedintogame-worldcurrenciesandresources.Fromthe perspectiveofAmericanculture,itispossibletoreadmanyoftheseas displaced versions of the frontier experience, the mythology of which remainsanimportantfeatureintheideologicallandscapeoftheUnited States.33Thedimensionoftrade,andalliedeconomicprocesses,isanother respectinwhichmanygameplayprocessescanbeseenastosomeextent
191
192
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS replicating real-world equivalents of a particular social-political slant. Cyclesofproductionandconsumptionarebuiltintomanystrategyand role-playing games, which often encourage their own version of the capitalistworkethic,astrikingcharacteristicgiventhatgamesareusually assumed to offer pleasurable escape from such real-world demands. In a real-time strategy game such as Age of Empires, for example, regular attentionhastobepaidtothesupplyoffoodandrawmaterialssuchas wood,stoneandgold,resourcesrequiredforthedevelopmentofallother quantities. In the multi-player context of EverQuest a highly complex economicsystemisinplaythathasimplicationsforthesocialdimension ofthegame. PlayersofEverQuestareencouragedtogrouptogethertokillmonsters to gain experience points.These are needed to gain more levels and increase basic skills. Killing monsters also yields in-game objects that can be sold to player- or non-player characters, the proceeds being used to buy enhancements that make players more effective. Playercharacters can also work at various trades to manufacture artefacts to selltootherplayers.‘Caster’charactersoftensell‘buffs’(enhancements thataidinfighting).Tradingiscentraltothestructuralandgeographical organizationofthegame.Mosttownsandvillageshaveshopsinwhich playerscanbuyorsellgoods.TheBazaarisadesignatedplaceinwhich goodscanbesold,witharangeoffeaturesbuilt-intoaidtheprocess. A strong work ethic is intrinsic to successful and rewarding gameplay, withcreativeentrepreneurialismyieldingsignificantrewards.Thegame isfoundedonprocessesofacquisitionandexchangesimilartothoseof capitalisteconomics;asintheexternalworld,economicsdoesmuchto shapesocialstructure.Avarietyofsocialnetworksareprovidedinthe gametosupportplayersintheirefforttobuildmorepowerfulcharacters, including player-created guilds and websites that provide support and knowledge helpful to the process of advancement. Pressure to adhere totheworkethicisboundtacitlyintothesocialdynamicsofthegame: ifplayer-charactersaretokeeppacewiththosewithwhomtheyhave builtrelationships,theymustputinthehourstoensurethattheirlevels are comparable (if too great a difference in player-level is permitted, the lower level player-characters will not get experience points from group activities).The economic dimension of the game also extends intotherealworld,withitemssuchasartefacts,maps,modificationsto
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS the game interface and EverQuest accounts (with characters that have been levelled-up) regularly sold on e-bay and other internet sites, an extra-gamiceconomythatoperatesoutsidethejurisdictionofSony,the operatorofthegame. Subscription-basedgamessuchEverQuestrequireplayerstoinvesta great deal of time and money if they are to become competent and wellequipped.Thismightnarrowthepossiblemarketforthegame,but long-term commitment is rewarded by devices such as titles given to charactersthatreachcertainlevels(surnamescanbegiventocharacters thathavereachedlevel20andthetitles‘Venerable’or‘Baron’afterlevel 55).Suchtitlesdenotestatusandconstituteasignificantpartofthegame’s extremely hierarchal social structure. Players often comment in-game onthecompulsivenatureoftheworkethicbuiltintotheprocessesof advancement.Atthesametime,attentionisoftenbroughttothefactthat familyandfriendsconsidersustainedplaytobeaformoftime-wasting,an activityregardedashavingnorealbenefits(unlike,forexample,learning a musical instrument, a language or any skill that has practical use in the real world). If playing EverQuest requires labour, it is usually seen fromtheoutsideasessentiallyunproductivelabour,likethatconsumed inmanyotherleisureactivitiesorhobbies.Fromtheinside,however,it islabourthatcanhavearealoutput,atthelevelofaparticularkindof socialexperience.Itcanalsobeseenasreinforcingreal-worldcapitalist dynamics.Why, then, should players find the experience a relief from real-world labour? Long-term players generally regard EverQuest play asquitedifferentfromreal-lifework,despitetheexistenceofstructural similaritiesbetweenthetwo.Theanswermightlieinanumberoffactors resulting from the different context of in-game labour, including the fact that it brings very clear-cut benefits to the player-character (a far greaterandmoreimmediatesenseofprogression-through-labourthan isusuallyfoundinreal-worldemployment)andthefactthatitoccurs inapleasurablysociablefantasycontextasanactivityfreelychosenby theplayer. The more specific qualities of contemporary western consumerism are a prominent feature of The Sims, which perhaps rivals Civilization in the extent to which it has drawn ideological readings of its core gameplay activities. The Sims offers a consumer-capitalist version of utopia:ahome-owningmiddle-classworldinwhicheverySimiscreated
193
194
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS equal. Each character starts out with the same amount of money and thereisnodiscriminationonlinessuchasgenderorsexualorientation. Femalecharactersearnthesamesalariesandhavethesameopportunities for career success as male characters. Gay or lesbian couples can be constructed,andcanadoptchildren,eveniftheycannotactuallymarry; they face no other forms of discrimination, in a game in which the buildingofsocialnetworksisanimportantfeature.34Thechiefaimof The Sims is to make your Sim people happy and successful, which is defined in particular, value-laden terms.The development of personal skillsisimportant,butforinstrumentalistpurposes,forthebuildingof personalnetworksandforcareeradvancement.Thelatterbringsincreased income, the principal purpose of which is to permit the purchase of more and better consumer items. If the game seems broadly inclusive in some dimensions, these are limited.As Miguel Sicart suggests, the game has little tolerance for‘misfit’ characters that refuse to play by therules.HisattempttocreateaSimversionofthedeceasedrockstar Kurt Cobain – comprised of a deliberately unbalanced guitar-playing charactercompletewithaCobainskindownloadedfromtheinternet,a dissolutelifestyle,asuperficialmarriageandnosociallife–wasresisted bythegame,whichtookcontrolofthecharacteragainsttheplayer’swill, makinghimwanttohavefriends,ajobandtobenicetohiswife.35 Most games produced for the western market are, implicitly, based onsomeversionofdominantwestern/capitalistvalues,althoughthere isroomforsomevariation.Dominantvaluesarelikelytobestructured intogameplayandrepresentationalframeworks,ingamesaselsewhere, simply because they are dominant, and thus familiar and often taken for granted, capable of providing what appears (ideologically) to be a relatively neutral background for in-game tasks. Balance of the Planet is oneexamplethatgoesagainstthedominantgrain,afactorprobablynot unrelated to its failure in the commercial market (although, Crawford suggests,itprovedahitwitheducatorsandenvironmentalists,thosemost likely to be interested in the‘message’ in its own right).36 Compared with the implicit politics of many games, SimCity (from 1989) is in manyrespectsadistinctlyliberalentry,withitsacknowledgementofthe importance of‘social’ factors such as the provision of public transport and other services.There is no single‘win condition’ in SimCity, but valuessuchasthesearestructuredintothegameasnecessaryconditions
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS –amongothers–forthecreationofathrivingmetropolis,motivated atleastinpartbythegame’saspirationtotheestablishmentofadegree offunctionalrealisminthesimulationofthevariouspressuresfacedby theleadersofacontemporaryurbanenvironment.Thegameincludes elementsthathavemorereactionaryconnotations,however,includingits attitudetowardscrime.Totacklecrime,thegamesuggests,itisnecessary simplytobuildmoreprisonsandpolicestations.AsShawnMiklaucic putsit:‘ToplaySimCityuncriticallyisnotjusttobetoldthisisso,butto learnitexperimentally.Prisonsandpolicestationsmustbetheanswerto crime,onecancometobelieve,becauselook!–whenIbuildmoreprisons mycrimeratedrops.’37Thereisalso,Miklaucicnotes,nodimensionof race,genderorsocialclassinvolvedinthewaycrimeandpunishmentare modelled.Other‘godgames’leaveawiderrangeofmoralchoicesopen totheplayer,moreorlessovertlypoliticalinnature.InBlackandWhite, thechoiceisbetweenoptionsframedintheManicheantermsof‘Good’ vs.‘Evil’.Amoreovertly‘political’scenarioisfoundinTropico(2001),in whichtheplayerisElPresidentéofanimaginaryCaribbeanislandthat canberunoncapitalistorsocialistlines.Theplayerisfarfromentirely freetodeterminepolicyinTropico,however,andcanfaceinterventions fromthegamethatmirrorreal-worldconstraints;theplayerwhoruns uptoogreatabudgetdeficit,forexample,facesinterventionfromthe game’sversionoftheWorldBank,anenforcedcappingofthewagesof theworkforce. Choicessuchaswhethertoalignwithgoodorevil,ortobemorally neutral,alsohaveimplicationsforgameplayingamesofaneo-medieval/ barbariccharacter,examplessuchasWaroftheRing,EverQuestandBaldur’s Gate.Theycanaffecthownon-playercharactersreacttoplayer-characters (a player-character aligned with good in EverQuest, for example, will be killed on sight in some cities aligned with evil, and vice-versa; for neutralcharacters,thereactionisoftenmorearbitrary).Theopportunity tochoosetobe‘evil’ormorallyneutralcanallowplayersspacetoreject traditionalherorolesthatseemoutmoded,dullorthatcarryobjectionable ideologicalbaggage.Playersalignedinthiswaycanindulge,vicariously,in thetransgressivesocialbehavioursconsonantwiththeroleofthief,ogre, barbarianberserkerorevilwizard.Competitionbetweenplayersinonline gamesoftenresultsinaggressionandself-interestoverrulingin-gamevalues suchasnobilityandheroicstatus,evenwherecooperationisrequiredfor
195
196
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS particular tasks. EverQuest accommodates ignoble behaviour, including thekillingwithoutconsentofplayer-characterswhostrayinadvertently intoPlayer-Versus-Playerareasordeliberatelyprovidingmisinformation tootherplayers.Theemphasisonpersonalprogressionandself-interest contributes to the frontier world status of the gamescape, a source of particularappealinthemythiclandscapeoftheUnitedStates. An‘alternative’patinaisgiventosomegames,atthelevelofbackground context/scenario,whichmightofferrelativelylittledifferencefrommore dominant convention at the level of gameplay. State of Emergency, for example,isusuallyviewedinthelightofanti-globalizationprotestssuch asthosesurroundingtheSeattlemeetingoftheWorldTradeOrganization in1999.Thegamesituatestheplayerasaciviliancaughtupinariot organizedbyresistanceagainstthenear-futuredominanceofapowerful globalcorporationandwonovertothesideoftheopposition.Theframing devicesseemtohaveleftistandanarchisticadversarialresonance,evenif setwithinanexaggeratedbackgroundscenarioinwhichanyvestigeof democratic government or politics has been displaced (thus implicitly coding an oppositional stance as more‘normal’). Gameplay is mostly moreconventional,butnotentirelydevoidofradicalconnotations.The playercanadopt‘Revolution’mode,amission-basedformofgameplay more familiar than the name suggests. But the alternative quick-play ‘Chaos’modedoescreatesomethingofthefrenziedgleeofassaulting thematerialfabricofconsumerculture,theopportunitytorunriotin environmentssuchasashoppingmallinwhichbinsandotherobjects canbeusedtosmashshopwindowsandaggressivepolice(andassorted gangmembers)canbeattacked.Theradicaldimensionofgameplaysuch asthismightberatherlimitedandsuperficial,heavilyqualifiedbygeneric fighting/actiongamefeatures,butitisapotentialelementinthemix. Oppositiontocapitalistconsumerism,andspecificallytoanequivalentof theWorldTradeOrganization,isonedynamicstructuredintothevariety of different factions competing for influence over the player-character ofDeusEx:InvisibleWar.Thegame’sownWTOisorientedtowardsthe valuesofmultinationalcapitalist‘freetrade’andconsumerism.Directly opposedtotheWTOisTheOrder,ananti-materialistsect.Theplayeris givenachoiceofallegiancebetweentheseandothergroups,shapingthe mannerinwhichthegameunfolds.Basicgameplayrevolveseitherway, however,aroundthesamecentralprocessofprogressionandresource-
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS acquisition/consumption, regardless of affiliation or the choice of whethertoplayinmoreorlessaggressivemodes. Which brings us to a consideration of violence, an ingredient of gameplaythatwehavevisitedbeforeinthisbook.Violentactioniswell suitedtosomeofthedemandsofgameplay,assuggestedinChapters1 and 3: it offers an easily available source of both action/feedback and of the intensity of sensation offered by many games. Gameplay based on the violent activity of the player-character can also be considered insocial-culturalterms.Thisisausefulpointatwhichtostepbackand look more closely into the question of how or to what extent games might‘position’players,asactiveparticipantsin,ratherthanjustobservers of, the on-screen action. Games can be understood, up to a point, as particularlypotentsourcesof‘interpellation’,inthesenseinwhichthe termisusedinthetheoryofideologydevelopedbyLouisAlthusser.One ofthestrongesteffectsofideology,forAlthusser,isitstendencyto‘hail’ theobserverorparticipant,tocreatewhatisineffecta‘callandresponse’ relationshipinwhichthesubjectanswersthecalland,intheveryactof acknowledgement,isthussituatedinaparticularposition–inthecaseof capitalistideology,thatoftheindividualizedsubject.38Aworkofartusing the principles of linear perspective, for example, creates a position for theviewerinfrontoftheframe.Thisapproachhasbeenwidelyusedin filmtheory,especiallyinconjunctionwiththepsychoanalyticaltheories ofJacquesLacan,tosuggesthowmainstreamfilmsmight‘position’the viewerinasimilar(andsimilarlyrestrictive)manner.39Gamesseemto lendthemselvesevenmorereadilytothisapproach,forthesimplereason thattheplayerisexplicitlyrequiredtotakeonaparticularrole,tosome extent,ratherthanjusttoidentifyfromamoredetachedperspectivethat hasnoinfluenceontheunfoldingoftheactionon-screen.Theplayer israthermoreliterallyinterpellated,atthedifferentdegreesofrelative proximityordistanceinvolvedingamesplayedinthefirstorthirdperson oratgreaterremove(asexaminedinChapter2). How this process might work in games can be considered at two levels.First,thereisthegeneralsenseofthegamehailingtheplayeras anindividualsubject–offeringitselfupasanexperiencethatrequires aresponsefromabeingalreadyconstitutedasindividual(always-already constituted,asAlthusserwouldputit).Inthissense,gamescanbeseen asamongmanyothersourcesthatfunctioneffectivelytoconfirm–if
197
198
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS nottoconstitute–thestatusoftheplayerasindividual;creatingaspace that can be occupied only from this position. Multi-player as well as single-playergamescanbeunderstoodashavingthisimplicitpremise. This form of interpellation exists at the level of player as player, selfconsciouslyawareoftheactofplaying–includingalltheout-of-gameworld operations that involves – as well as any potential to function in terms of player identifications with roles or figures existing within thegame.Thelatterdimensionismorecomplexandcontroversial.Are players, really, interpellated to any significant extent into the particular kindsofsubjectivitiesofferedbythein-gamediegeticuniverse?Asthe questionisoftenframed:istheplayerofagamesuchasafirst-person shooter interpellated into that particular violence-oriented mode of being? If so, does this apply only while playing – or does it have any impactbeyondtheboundsofthegameitself? What does it mean, then, to be‘interpellated’ into the world of a first-personshooter?Towhatextentmightitinvolvetheplayertaking on some of the characteristics of the behavioural model required for progresswithinthegame?Itiseasytooverstateparallelsandexchanges betweenthegame-worldandthatoftheworldoutside,aswesuggestedin asimilarcontextinChapter1,whenconsideringthedistinctivemodality inwhichsuchactivitiesarepursuedingames.Plentyofmarkersexistthat clearlyannouncethelargegulfthatexistsbetweenplayingagamesuch as a first-person shooter and engaging in anything like the equivalent actionintherealworld.Butthereare,also,certainhomologies.Howfar thesecomeintoplaydependsonanumberoffactors,includingthetwo forms of realism considered in the previous chapter, which can shape theextenttowhichthegameexperienceapproximatesthatofthereal world.Functionalrealismmightseemparticularlyimportanthere,inthe senseofcallingupontheplayertoperformactionsofakindmoreor lessanalogoustothoseofreal-worldequivalents.Theactivitiesrequired ofthesuccessfulplayerofafirst-personshooterarecrudeandlimited, incomparisonwiththoseoftherealworld,aswesuggestedinChapter 1.Insomecases,however,theyseektoofferamoredetailedmodelling of real-world activity. In Black Hawk Down, for example, the manual includeswhatispresentedasfactualbackgrounddetailaboutweapons andtacticsusedbytheUSforcesinSomalia.Onesectiondescribesthe teamstrategyusedfortheclearingofroomsduringurbanconflict:the
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS four-manteamlinesupoutside,onethrowsa‘flashbang’grenadeintothe roomandtheteamrushesin,executingapredeterminedsetofmoves toensurethattheyactinunison.Thegameplaysectionofthemanual includestheversionbuiltintothegame,withspecificinstructionstothe playeronwhatmovestomake(‘movetothefarcornertostayoutof yourteam’slineoffire’).40 Thereis,clearly,potentialforgameplaysuchasthistobeusedto‘train’ theplayer,uptoapoint,toprovideknowledgeabouttheemployment ofparticularmilitarytacticsthatmightalsobeusedintherealworld, asevidencedbytheuseofthiskindofsimulationinsomecasesbythe military.TheclassicexampleistheMarineDoommode,butmanyother gameshavealsobeenused,fromMilitaryBattlezone,amorefunctionally realisticadaptationofAtari’stankwarfarearcadetitleBattlezone(1980), toBattlefield1942(2002).41Anexampleofacross-overintheopposite direction is Full SpectrumWarrior (2004), a commercial/entertainment product based on an infantry training simulator designed for the US army.America’sArmy(2002),thefreeonlinemulti-playershooterrunby themilitary,looksinbothdirections:usedfortrainingpurposesbythe armyandasaPRandrecruitingdeviceforplayersoutsidetheservice. GamessuchasAmerica’sArmyandFullSpectrumWarriormakeparticularly strong claims, unsurprisingly, to the status of functional realism.The formerrequirestheplayertopasstrainingcoursesthatincludereal-world educational content before being able to take on particular in-game roles. Gamers who wish to play as medics, for example,‘need to pass fourseparatetrainingcourses:airwaymanagement,controllingbleeding, treatingshockandafieldtest’,followedbyaclassroom-stylelectureand amultiple-choicetest.42 Computersimulationsofcombathavebeenusedbythemilitaryin recentdecadesinresponsetoboththecostoflive-actionsimulationand the increasingly computer-mediated character of some forms of realworld conflict.The experience of the player of a first-person shooter isrelativelyclosertodaytothatofsomerealsoldiersthanwouldhave been the case in historical conflicts such as the SecondWorldWar or Vietnam.Devicessuchashead-mounteddisplayscanbewornbytroops, projectingontotheirfieldofvisiondatanotdissimilartosomeofthat provided in games, including information presented in real-time from over-flyingaircraft.TheUSarmy,followingtheexperiencesofthenavy
199
200
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS andairforce,isdescribedbyJamesDerDerianas‘leapingintoarealm of hyperreality, where the enemy disappeared as flesh and blood and reappearedpixelatedanddigitizedoncomputerscreensinkillingzones, asiconsofopportunity.’43Inthisenvironment,bothtrainingandactual combatmighthaverelativelymoreincommonwithvideogameplaythan wouldusuallybethecase,themilitaryhavinglookedtoHollywoodand videogamesinthelate1990safterrealizingthatitwasbeingoutstripped by entertainment media in the field of simulation technology.44The distinctionbetweenrealityandsimulationmightoccasionallyappearto blur,likesomethingoutofthepagesofJeanBaudrillard,asDerDerian suggestsinthecaseoftheeventsleadingtotheGulfWarof1991.45The notionofabroaderslippagebetweenthetwocanbeseductive,especially to those well armed with quotations from Jean Baudrillard and other theoristsofthepostmodern,butitiseasilyoverstated.46Thecontextsof realandgameplayactivitiesgenerallyremainworldsapart,notleastin theobviousdifferenceinwhatispotentiallyatstakeinrealandvirtual instancesofcombat. An argument for a stronger connection has been made by some, notablythemuch-quotedmilitarypsychologistDaveGrossman,onthe basisofthefactthatsimulationsareusedbythemilitaryaspartofthe processofconditioningrecruitstobeabletokill.47Repeatedsimulationis usedtocreateaconditionedresponse,toenabletroopstokillreflexively, without conscious thought. Reluctance to shoot at other human figuresisconditionedout,accordingtothisargument,throughrepeated experience of simulations in which the victims are given relatively realisticrepresentation,asopposedtotheuseofabstracttargets.Ifthis works for the military, the logic goes, it also applies to shooter games used for entertainment, effectively conditioning players to become potential killers; not just by teaching particular strategies and tactics, butbycreatingthecapacitytokillautomatically,toovercomenormal restraints.Gamesmightbecapableofsuchaneffectinexceptionalcases, inwhichmanyotherfactorsarealwayslikelytobeinvolved(andlikely tobemoredecisive),48butthisargumentfailstoaccountforthevery differentcontextsinvolvedinmilitary-trainingsimulationandgameplay. Militaryuseofvideogame-likesimulationsoccursinacontextinwhich itisclearlyunderstoodtobepartoftrainingintheabilitytokill,and inwhichthisisreinforcedbyotherfactorssuchasthebroadermilitary
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS environment and the use of live-action simulation and real weapons. Playersofvideogamesunderstandthemselvesquiteclearlytobeplaying, not training. If Grossman were right, vastly more instances of mass shootingpromptedbyviolentgameplaywouldbeinevidence,giventhe numberswhoplaysuchgames(eveniftheyremainaminorityofgames overall).Grossmanhimselfarguesthattheabilityofsoldierstokillonthe battlefielddependsonarangeofotherfactors–suchastheexistence of a context of authority/leadership, in which troops act under strict orders–whichheignoreswhenmakingtheassumptionthatvideogame ‘training’islikelytohavethesameimpactasitsmilitaryequivalent.49 The notion of ‘media effects’ in general, in the sense of media consumptiondirectlyleadingtospecific,identifiablebehaviour,isfraught with difficulty.50 Our concern in this chapter is not with a notion of ‘effects’ of this kind, the evidential basis for which is hotly contested, but with more diffuse ways in which the meaning-creating potential ofgamesmightbeatplayinthecultureatlarge–adimensionequally resistant,however,toanyhardcertaintiesofknowledge.Ifplayingafirstpersonshooterisfarfrombeingthesameasundergoingortrainingfor theequivalentexperienceintherealworld,itmightbearguedthatit isnotentirelydifferent.Thedifficultyliesinassessingwhere,exactly,the experiencemightlie–inonesituationoranother–intheconsiderable spacebetweenthesetwoextremes.Toplayafirst-personshooterisnot to be shaped into the role of a shooter. It is to play at that role, which is very different. But to‘play at’ does suggest some potential level of investmentinatleastsomeoftheresonancesthatmightbeassociated withtherealequivalent.Onewaytounderstandthisisinrathermore generaltermsthanthoseoftenusedinthisterritory.Playingamilitary/ shootertypegamemightbeunderstoodasonepartofabroadercultural investmentinthekindofmind-setorculturalattitudeassociatedwith theterrain.Theprevalenceofgamesofthisvarietymight,therefore,be taken, among other examples, as evidence of a cultural investment in thatkindofmodeofbehaviour.Itmightalsomakeacontributionto thatinvestment,althoughnotonethatcanbemeasuredatthelevelof immediateimpactonparticular,identifiablebehaviour(becauseitisnot possiblesatisfactorilytoisolateonevariablefromalloftheotherfactors involved). Investments of this kind can be understood as the product ofparticularsocial-historicalcontexts.Anexcessiveinvestmentindirect
201
202
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS militaryactionintherecentandcontemporaryUnitedStatesmightbe understood,forexample,inthecontextofaperiodinwhichthishas beenanarenainwhichtheUShasenjoyedsuperiorityandonwhichits foreignpolicyhastendedtoplaceanemphasis,playingtoitsstrengths(as opposed,say,toitsrelativeweaknessinaglobaldiplomaticforumsuch as the GeneralAssembly of the United Nations). In Britain, a similar investmentmightbeunderstoodinthecontextofavalorizationofpast military‘glory’suchastheroleofthenationduringtheSecondWorld War.Othercasesmaybelessstraightforward,however,andplay-fantasies based on the ability to take direct action of a violent or otherwise destructivekindmaybemoreculturallyandhistoricallywidespread.51 The level of concern about games expressed from (primarily if not exclusively) politically and culturally conservative sources is somewhat ironic,giventheextenttowhichtheviolenceforegroundedingames tendsveryoftentobeframedcontextuallyasviolenceintheformof themaintenanceofexistingformsoforder.AsCliveThompsonsuggests, onlyarelativelysmallnumberofgames,suchasKingpin:LifeofCrime (1999),GrandTheftAutoandPostal(1997)‘everdaretohaveyouactas criminalsorpsychopaths.’Farlargernumberspresentviolenceinmore reactionaryform,asameansof‘quellingsocialdisturbances’.52Theextent towhichgameviolenceistakenseriouslyisalsosubjecttosharpswings ofattitude,asMiaConsalvosuggestsinananalysisoftheuseofgamesas apointofreferenceduringnewscoverageoftheAmerican-ledinvasion ofIraqin2003.53Inthiscontext,ratherthanbeingseenas‘dangerous’, videogameviolencetendstobeviewedas‘fakeandtrivial’,fromvarious perspectives, when compared with the realities of war. Contradictions suchasthis,asConsalvosuggests,underlinetheextenttowhichmedia discoursesaroundgamestendtobeintheserviceofanumberofother agendas rather than attending to the specific nature of games in their ownright. Theimportantpointhereisnottooverlookthespecificqualitiesofplay, fantasyandtheimagination.Investmentsinparticularkindsofbehaviour foundingames,violentorotherwise,canlargelybeunderstoodatthis level.Thekindofbehaviourfamiliartoindividualplayersfromparticular typesofgamesmightbeexpectedtocontributetotherepertoire-stock oftheirimaginations.Inparticularsituations,agame-typeresponseto asituationmightbefantasized:anangryemployeemight,forinstance,
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS imagine letting loose in the office with a BFG.54 Some would argue that this is dangerously close to creating the potential for real-world violence, but that is to underestimate the gulf between imagined and actualbehaviour(howmanyofushaveimaginedbehaviourwewould never remotely consider in real life?).The fantastic or imaginary have pointsofcontactwiththerealworld,andcanbereadintermsoftheir real-world resonances or implications, as we have done above in cases such as the neo-medieval. But fantasy and imagination also function as negative points of reference, as experiences that can be pleasurable preciselybecausethey are not availableintherealworld.Thepleasure ofviolentactivityinavideogamemightlieinthedegreetowhichitis clearlyunderstoodtobeforbiddeninreality.Oneofthefunctionsofplay, asGerardJonessuggests,‘istoenablechildrentopretendtobejustwhat theyknowthey’llneverbe.Exploring,inasafeandcontrolledcontext, whatisimpossibleortoodangerousorforbiddentothemisacrucial toolinacceptingthelimitsofreality.’55Ratherthancausingconfusions betweenthetwo,theexperienceoffantasyandplay,accordingtothis argument,isimportanttothedevelopmentofanunderstandingofthe distinctionsbetweentherealandtheunreal.56Aspartoftheprocessof socialization,children(aswellasadults)needtogainanunderstanding of what is and is not permissible in a given context. Many fictions communicateasenseofsuchboundaries.Gamesinparticularmightoffer aheightenedexperienceofthepermissiblelimitsofagency,becauselimits haveaprofoundimpactongameplaythroughregimesofprogressand ‘punishment’.Ratherthansimplyoccurringatthelevelofimagination, as in purely representational media, choices made in a game context areexperiencedmoreconcretely,intermsofcause-and-effectoutcomes. Infocusingexcessivelyontheliteral,Jonessuggests,criticsofviolence in games and other media overlook their emotional meanings, the impressionsofpowerandcontroltheyofferascounterstotheanxieties oflife,anargumentthatmightapplytotheexperienceofmanyadultsas wellasthechildrenwhoarethefocusofhiswork.Violencethatisoften raw,loudandangryappealstochildren,Jonesargues,becauseithasthe strengthsufficient‘tomatchandmastertheirownanxietyandanger.’57 Gameviolenceconsideredoffensivebymanyadultscanprovideasafely exaggeratedforuminwhichchildrenareabletodealwithreal-world fears;its‘shocking’naturealsooffersolderchildrenawayofmarking-
203
204
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS offtheirspherefromthatofparentalvalues.58Violenceingamescanbe positivelybeneficialtochildreninthismanner,Jonessuggests,although notnecessarilyinallcases. For something to have an impact primarily at the level of fantasy, imaginaryorcompensatoryrepertoiresisnotforittobeofnosocialcultural or ideological significance. Imaginations, like enacted realities, arebothculturallyshapedandactivepartsoftheculturalenvironments inwhichwelive.Gameactivitieswithlessbasisinexistingreal-world complexes might be rather less likely to become subject to imaginary investments,however.Itisrarelysuggestedthataplayermightbecome ‘positioned’orinterpellatedbyanexperiencesuchasplayingasthealien inAlienvs.Predator2(2001),forexample–investinginorbeing‘shaped by’ activities such as seeking out a human victim in the‘face-hugger’ stageofthedevelopmentofthespecies.Counter-examplessuchasthis underlinethelikelihoodthatgameplay–alongwithotheractsofmedia usage–hasmorepotentialtore-confirm(orrespondto)existingcultural tendencieswithwhichitresonatesonewayoranotherthantocreate somethingdistinctlynewofitsown. Wecouldreturnheretobroaderimplicationsofgameplayofthekind consideredearlierinthischapter.Particularassumptionsarestructured into gameplay, both generally and more specifically. These can be understood as taking their place in the wider context in which such assumptionsaregenerated(orchallenged,anissuetowhichwereturn below)inaparticularcultural-historicalconjuncture.Broadnotionssuch as‘progress’ and the assumption that individual action is likely to be effective and that mastery can be achieved are implicit in very many games,forexample.Theexperienceofthesequalitiesingamescanbeseen asacontributiontothewiderpropagationofsuchconcepts–concepts that have ideological implications when applied to understandings of theworldmoregenerally(thenotionof‘progress’isstructureddeeply intowestern/capitalistideologies,asisthenotionofindividualagency, assuggestedabove).Oneofthepleasuresofgameplayistheimpression of effective action that is created within the game-world; or, at least, animpressionofalwaysreceivingclearfeedbackonactions,evenwhen they are unsuccessful (as they are often likely to be in many games). Theexternalworldisrarelysoreceptivetoactionorasclear-cutinits provisionoffeedback.Playinggamesthatoffersuchqualitiescouldbe
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS understood,then,asplayingapartinthewiderprocessinwhichsuch assumptions are confirmed and reconfirmed.This, forAndrew Kurtz, is the most potent level of interpellation in games.59 Interpellation at the level of the specific representational material of a particular game isreduced,Kurtzsuggests,bythelimitationsofthevirtualrealityeffect achieved by games, principally by the player’s constant awareness of essential out-of-game sources of information (health bars, etc.), as we discuss in Chapter 2.The relationship is not just that between player and game-world, but a three-way exchange between ‘representation, individual, and technology.’60The point at which the player is most stronglyinterpellated,Kurtzargues,isnotoneof‘disappearance’intothe gamebutthatatwhichheorshemanipulatesthecomputerhardwareto respondtorepresentationalinformationfromthegame-world:‘Atthis point,theplayerarticulatestheveryheartofliberalhumanistideology, theimpulsetocountertheirrationalandtheunforeseenwithindividual freewill.’61Inmorespecificrelationtothetechnologyinvolved,Brian Sutton-Smith suggests, the cultural context of videogames is one in which they offer a forum for demonstrating mastery of computer/ computerized technology. If games in general can be seen, from an anthropologicalperspective,asadaptiveresponsestosocialproblems(as suggestedinpassinginChapter1),videogamesarearesponsetofearsof thecomputerandrelatedtechnologies,creatinganarenainwhichsuch fearscanbeconquered.62 Others have argued that what is involved here is interpellation intotheformofactivityorsubjectivityencouragedorrequiredbyan information-processingcentredeconomy;that,asformsofsocialization or familiarization, games perform a role more closely related to their owneconomic,technologicalandculturaldomain.ForPatrickCrogan, the player of a first-person shooter is engaged in a ludic variety of a morewidelyestablishmentmodelofreal-timeinformationprocessing.63 ForTedFriedman,‘thewaycomputergamesteachstructuresofthought –thewaytheyreorganizeperception–isbygettingyoutointernalize thelogicoftheprogram’,whichiswhatheseesasasourceoftheflowstate in games:‘The pleasure of computer games is in entering into a computer-likementalstate:inrespondingasautomaticallyasthecomputer, processinginformationaseffortlessly,replacingsentientcognitionwith theblankhumofcomputation.’64Alongsimilarlines,andinthecontext
205
206
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS of a reading based explicitly on Althusser’s theory of interpellation, Matt Garite concludes that ‘gaming is essentially an aestheticized mode of information processing, and therefore the digital economy’s idealformofleisure.’65InGarite’scharacterization,whatisinvolvedis a particularly aggressive process in which‘subjects are interpellated or calleduponto(mis)recognizethemselvesasdistinct,autonomous,freely acting individuals,’ a general emphasis on player freedom masking the extent to which players are subjected to a narrow range of limits and demands.66 Missing from many such accounts, however, (although not thatofCrogan)isanynotionofthe‘play’thatcanbepermissiblewithin theconfinesoftheparticulartaskssetbyanygame,thespaceforpaidea, in which rules and win-states can be ignored or subverted, as well as for more goal-oriented and prescribed ludus.The idea that something like a flow-state – where intention and skill come closely together in heightenedmomentsofabsorbinggameplay–isblanklymechanicaland devoid of emotion seems particularly to miss the point in relation to many such gameplay experiences, in which intense passions are often provokedandvocalized. Anotherfactortobeconsideredhereisthepotentialgameshaveto createfrustrationandanxiety,ratherthanimpressionsofsmooth,seamless agency,masteryorpresence.Playinggamescangeneratenegativereactions aswellaspleasures–andvariousdynamicallyrelatedcombinationsofthe two–whichcomplicatesanynotionoftheimplicationorinterpellation oftheplayerinthekindsofactivitiesstructuredintogameplay.Ifgames can be seen as engines of interpellation, generally or in more specific contexts,they(and/ortheirplayers)donotalwaysfunctionatanything likeanoptimumlevel.If‘progress’basedontheachievementofmastery isoftenstructuredintogameplay,forexample,itisnotalwaysrealized. Progressmightremainanidealtowhichtoaspireinsuchcases,implicitly maintaining its broader cultural valorization, but it might be a quality fromwhichtheplayerfeelsexcludedratherthanintowhichheorshe canbesaidtobeinterpellated.Anynotionofthe‘freewill’oftheplayeris alsosubjecttomajorlimitations,theresultofgamerulesandrestrictions thatpre-determinemuchofthegamingexperience.Itiseasy,inmany cases, to overstate the extent to which the player experience maps closelyontothematerialstructuredintogameplay,forgettingthemyriad disturbances,interruptionsandshortcomingsthatcaninterferewiththe
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS process–atthelevelofspecificrepresentationalmaterial/actions,orat themoreabstractlevelofinteractionwiththetechnology.Thiscanapply asmuchtoagamewithanexplicitideologicalagendaastoanyother. Theexperienceofapro-PalestinianplayingUnderAshorSpecialForce,for example,canbetoreaffirmastateofsufferingand/ordefeatasmuchas toassertapossibilityofvictoryoveroccupyingIsraeliforces–depending onthelevelofsuccessenjoyedbytheindividualplayer(inthecaseof theformer,technicalshortcomingsmakegameplayratherdifficultand frustrating).Theactofoppositionisenshrinedineithercase,whichis important,butwithratherdifferentresonances.Wheremasteryorsuccess isenjoyedingames,exactlywhatthatimpliesmightalsobesubjectto variance.Doesapowerfulimpressionofagencycreatedwithinagame reinforcebroadercultural/ideologicalnotionsofagency–ordoesthe pleasureinvolvedlieinsomelevelofacknowledgmentofthefactthat such agency is, precisely, not available in the outside world?A strong measure of caution is always necessary when attributing to games the abilitytocontributeactivelytotheideologicalshapingoftheplayer. How particular kinds of investments come to be structured into games can also be understood by more detailed consideration of the contexts in which they are developed and played, both social-cultural andindustrial.Muchlightcanbeshedinthismannerontheemphasis onviolentactivityfoundinmanygames.Anumberofspecificfactors helptoaccountforthisemphasis,onviolenceitselfandonviolenceasan ingredientgenerallymorelikelytobeassociatedwithproductsaimedat maleconsumers(accordingtoprevailinggenderstereotyping).Stephen Kline, Nick Dyer-Witheford and Greig De Peuter identify a series of conjunctures,theaccumulatedeffectsofwhichhavebeentoencourage this emphasis in many games.67The starting point in this account is thecombinedinfluenceonthedevelopmentofthefirstgenerationof games(examplessuchasSpacewar)ofmilitary-industrialfunding,hacker experimentation and science-fiction oriented subcultures. Each made asignificantcontributiontothegenealogyofthevideogame.68Tothis listmightbeaddedthesubcultureoftable-topDungeonsandDragons,a primarily male-oriented sector in which many older game developers wereinvolved.69Inthemoveofgamesoutfromtheserelativelyclosed military-orientedand/orsubculturalrealmstothedomainofcommercial entertainment, existing tendencies in game content were reinforced.
207
208
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Thearcade,alongwithsettingssuchasbars,becamethefirstsourceof profitfromvideogames:‘Thethemesofshooting,violence,andintense competition,presentattheveryoriginsofgaming’sPentagon-sponsored inception,atoncemadethearcadesanaturalsettingforthevideogame’s commercialplacementandwereamplifiedinthisenvironment.’70Male dominatedandalreadyconsideredsociallysuspect,assitesofsupposed delinquency, arcades contributed to the particular aura surrounding games.Itwasnotinevitablethatthegamesbusinesswouldcapitalizeon thisquality,however,ratherthanseektocounterit,toreassureitscritics and the parents of potential players, as Kline, Dyer-Witheford and De Peutersuggest.Futuredevelopmentsweretocementastrongemphasis onviolenceinmanyprominenttitles,however,oncethehomegaming market was established, along with successive waves of competition betweenoneconsolesystemandanotherandbetweenconsoleandPC. When Sega challenged the dominance of Nintendo in the early 1990s,thecompanysoughttooutflankitsrivalnotjustatthelevelof technologybutalsointargetinganolderaudience(15–17year-oldsas opposed to Nintendo’s 8–14).71A key marker of this distinction was the introduction of a new level of violence in games such as Mortal Kombat:‘UppinggameviolencewasintegraltoSega’srepositioningin the market, and to the production-differentiation strategy it deployed against Nintendo, rejecting the “kiddie” orientation of its rival and marking its own games as excitingly transgressive.’72 Nintendo offered condemnation, but eventually responded to the commercial success enjoyedbySega,tacitlyboostingtheviolentcontentofitsowngames.73 Bythemid1990s,whenPCgamesre-enteredamarketthathadbeen dominated by consoles,‘they did so in a setting where the test and touchstoneoftheiremergent3-Dcapacitieswasintherepresentation ofviolentaction.’74Withinexistinggenres,apatterndevelopedinwhich akeymarkofdifferentiationwastheelaborationandintensificationof violence. Subsequent generations of games consoles, especially Sony’s PlayStationandMicrosoft’sXbox,continuedtheprocessofsuccessively targetingolderaudiences,afactorthatfurtherconsolidatedpotentialfor theproductionofviolence,amongotherqualities,ingames.Compared with other possible innovations, the creation of greater intensities of violence is a relatively easy, commercially safe and inexpensive way of offeringproductdifferentiationwithinanestablishedgenrerepertoire.It
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS alsohastheadvantageofsellingintransnationalmarkets,formsofviolent combatgenerallyrequiringlittletranslationacrossculturalborders.‘All ofthesefactors’,as Kline, Dyer-WithefordandDePeuterputit,‘give virtualviolencemomentumandstayingpower.’75 Heavily violence-oriented gameplay is usually associated with the playing preferences of male gamers, especially adolescent and postadolescentmales.Anumberofexplanationshavebeenofferedforthis, including the potential appeal of the spectacle/sensation of hypermasculinity at a time often characterized by gender insecurity. For the game developer and researcher Celia Pearce, the pleasure of such gameplay might also, in this context, be one of sexual sublimation,‘a high-tech outlet for otherwise out-of-control hormonal oscillations.’76 Femalegamersgenerallypreferotherpleasures,Pearcesuggests,although thisisfarfromanentirelyclear-cutdivide.Fromherownresearchand testing experience, Pearce offers the following broad‘rules of thumb’: malestendtoprefergamesthatinvolveclearandfinitegoalssuchas‘killor-be-killed’; women tend to prefer activities that involve assembling, collecting, creating or constructing, favouring open-ended activities withcumulativeresultsandcooperativeratherthancompetitiveplay.77 Pac-Man was favoured by girls over other arcade games of the 1980s, inthisaccount,becausegirlplayers‘preferredcollectiontoshootingas anactivity’(thegamewasdesignedwithappealtofemalesspecifically inmind78).Tetris,anothergamehistoricallyfavouredbyfemaleplayers, ‘possessestwohighlyappealingattributestowomen–puzzlesolvingand assembling.’79A similar argument is made by the game designer Sheri GranerRay,whosuggeststhatadefinitionthatequatesgameswithzerosum forms of conflict (a clearly defined win/lose equation) tends to ignoretheformsofgameplaymostlikelytoappealtofemales.80Female players,Raysuggests,tendtopreferflexibleorvariablegoalsandreward systems,ratherthanthosebasedonclear-cutwin/losescenariosorhigh scores.Gamesbasedonconstruction,suchasSimCity,oronthecreation ofrelationshipsbetweencharacters–TheSims–are,ontheselines,also likelytobemoreappealingtomanyfemaleplayersthangamesbasedon intensecompetitionorunder-motivatedviolentaction.Thesamegoes foronlinerole-playinggames,inwhichfemaleplayersaregenerallymore stronglyrepresentedthanelsewhere,andinwhichthecentraldimension of cooperation and communication with other players might also be
209
210
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS expectedtoappealdisproportionatelytowomen. Raycitesanumberofanthropologicalandpsychologicalstudiesto suggestunderlyingreasonsforsuchgender-baseddifferencesingameplay preferences, including a difference at the level of stimulus-response dynamics.81Males,shesuggests,tendtorespondphysiologicallytovisual stimulus,providedbydimensionssuchastheincreasedgraphicaldetail producedinsuccessiveiterationsofparticulargamesandgenres.Female responses, according to this argument, privilege emotional or tactile stimuli that have featured less prominently in most games.82The best resourceforextendingtheemotionaldimensionofgames,Raysuggests, isincreasedemphasisonnarrative,includingtheprovisionofbackground contextforgameplayactivities.Tactilestimulushasbeenincreasedthough theuseofdevicessuchasvibratingcontrollersandforce-feedback(and mostsubstantiallywiththeresourcesavailabletoarcadegames),but,as wesawinChapter2,thisremainsarelativelyundevelopeddimension of gaming. Studies suggesting gender-based differences in spatial skills and navigation, with implications for game design, are also cited by Ray. Males, according to this argument, excel at targeting moving objectsinanunclutteredfield,femalesattargetingstationaryobjectsin cluttered fields; males prefer to navigate by directions (left, right, etc.), femalesbytheuseoflandmarks.83Whatevertheirultimateprovenance (deeplyrootedgenderdifferenceormorerecentculturalconstruction), differencesofthesekindsprovidethebasis,Raysuggests,foreffortsto designgamesmorelikelytoappealtofemaleplayers.Otherstudieshave indicated more nuanced or less-clear cut distinctions between players on the basis of gender, however, including a suggestion that repeated exposure to gameplay tends to reduce initial differences.84The latter point has something in common with our suggestion that contextual factorsgenerallyareliabletorecedefromattentioninconditionssuchas extendedormoreintensiveplay. In general, gaming remains a realm of popular culture dominated bymaleplayers.Thegamesindustryhasusuallyfocusedonwhatsoon becameestablishedasitscoremarket–relativelyyoungandmale–rather thantakingwhatisseenastheriskymoveofseekinggreatlytowidenits appeal.Theresultcanbesomethingofaself-fulfillingprophecy:games targetedatyoungmalesthatattract,primarilyifnotexclusively,relatively young males. Some developers – a minority – have sought to design
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS gamesspecificallytoembodythekindsofplaygenerallythoughttobe favoured by the under-served female constituency. Examples include mainstreamproductions,suchasMattel’sBarbieFashionDesigner(1996), and more alternative interventions. Early attempts to make games appealing to girls‘largely consisted of having female protagonists and makingthecontentnonviolent’,butwerenotgenerallyverysuccessful.85 The greater success of Barbie Fashion Designer is attributed by Kaveri SubrahmanyamandPatriciaGreenfieldtotheconstructionofgameplay activitiesthataccordedwiththepreferencesofyounggirls,specificallyas anaccessoryinperson-oriented‘pretend’play,basedonreal-lifemodels androlesandassociatedwithqualitiesofnurturance(thepowerofthe Barbiefranchisewasobviouslyasignificantfactor,but,asSubrahmanyam andGreenfieldargue,otherBarbie-relatedgameswerenotassuccessful asFashionDesigner).86ThesuccessofBarbieFashionDesigner,whichsold morethan500,000copiesinitsfirsttwomonths,caughttheattention ofthegamesindustry,suggestingthecommercialpotentialofalargely untappedmarketatatimewhenthatforgamesdesignedprimarilyfor young boys appeared close to saturation.87A number of new, femaleowned and staffed developers also came into existence, motivated by both a feminist agenda and a desire for commercial success, including HerInteractive(whereRaywasdirectorofproductdevelopment),Purple Moon,GirltechandGirlGames.Across-overbetweentheseandmajor industryplayerssuchasBroderbundandIBMwascreatedintheform oftheGirlInteractiveLibrary(GIRL),whichsoughttogiveincreased profiletoeffortstoincreasethefemalegamemarket.88Gamesdesigned byPurpleMoon,foundedbyBrendaLaurel,includeRockett’sNewSchool (1997) and related titles based on the life of a girl of the same age as the8–12brackettargetedbythecompany,thechiefgameplayactivities of which revolve around relationships;‘emotional rehearsal for social navigation’, as Laurel puts it.89A similar relationship-negotiation basis isstructuredintoDeadorAlive:XtremeBeachVolleyball,adimensionthat appears to be targeted clearly at women (in a game the scantily clad visualsofwhichseemofmoreobviousappealtoyoungmales);arange ofpresent-givingandothersuchbondingactivitiesarerequiredifthe player-characteristosecurevolleyballpartners.What,exactly,shouldbe producedtoappealtogirlsorolderwomenhasbeensubjecttooften heateddebate,feministandcommercialimperativesoftenbeingdifficult
211
212
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS to reconcile (Purple Moon soon ran into economic difficulty, despite beingfinancedbytheMicrosoftco-founderPaulAllen,eventuallybeing soldtoMattel,thebastionofthemainstream/conventional,in1998).To designgamesintendedtoappealtogirlshasoftenbeenunderstoodas designinggamesthatreinforcefemalegenderstereotypesthatmightbe justasrigidandconfining,intheirownways,astheviolence-oriented malestereotypesfavouredinmanyexistingtitles. Calls for a widening of the horizons of activities structured into gameplaymoregenerallymightimplyabroadeningoftheirlikelyappeal onthebasisofdominant/conventionalgenderpreferences.Gamesthat allowwiderexpressionsofemotionmight,forexample,bemorelikelyto appealtoalargerrangeoffemaleplayers,aswellasopeningupthebounds ofgameplayinabroadersense.Somegameshavealsobeendesignedto allowabridgingofwhatoftenappearstobeawidegendergap,although theirappealalsosuggeststhatdistinctionsonthebasisofgendercanalso beblurred.Thebi-modaladdressofsomeaction-adventuregamesthat featurefemaleheroineswasaddressedintheprevioussection,inwhich thefocuswasonthelevelofrepresentationsofgender.Manystudiesof genderissuesingamestodatehavebeenrestrictedtothislevelofanalysis (atellingsymptomofthisshortcomingisatraditioninwhichthefocusis limitedtoout-of-gameplaydimensionssuchascut-scenesorevencover artwork).90Butgamesdonotoperateonlyatthelevelofrepresentation. Gamesarealso,aswehavestatedmanytimesinthisbook,aboutactivities performed,inamediatedway,withinagame-space.Wereturnhereto theexperienceexploredinthepreviouschaptersof‘doing’andof‘beingin-the-game-world’.Muchanalysishasbeenmadeofwomenwarriors infilmandtelevision,butlittlethataddressesthespecificnatureofsuch figuresinthegamecontext.Theresulthasbeenanalysisthattendsto hingearoundissuesofgenderrepresentationandthe‘gaze’atthescreen. Ingames,theissueismademorecomplexbythefactthatplayersare asked to align themselves, to some extent, and to act through playercharacters,adimensionthatincludesbutalsogoesbeyondtheboundsof issuesofrepresentation. Anumberofgamesutilizewomenwarriorfiguresestablishedinother mediaproductsasawaytoincreasepotentialappealtoafemalemarket. BuffytheVampireSlayer:ChaosBleedsand Primalreplacethetraditional maleherowithfeistywomencharacters,buttheyalsoincludeelements
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS that involve meaningful interpersonal relationships, dimensions absent from the raw masculinist individualism of games such as Doom or Far Cry.Tosomeextent,theseinterpersonalrelationshipsarebuiltintothe narrativeelementsofthegames.InthecaseofBuffygames,agreatdealof back-storyandcharacterdevelopmentisprovidedbytheseriesonwhich thegameisbased,assuggestedinChapter1.Interpersonalrelationships arealsoembeddedintothemechanicsofgameplay,however.InPrimal, theleadfemaleprotagonist,Jen,ispartlydependentonhermalesidekick, an animated stone gargoyle named Scree, who acts as her guide and mentor.Atcertainpointsinthegametheplayermustswitchtoplaying ScreetoundertaketasksthatJencannotperform.InChaosBleeds,players not only fight alongside other characters from the series but actively playasthemattimes,toretrievevariousbodyparts.Thestructuringof cooperationandfriendshipintothefabricofgameplayinthismanner, extending beyond the dimension of representation, might make the action-adventure/fightingformatmoreappealingtofemaleplayers. In both games, the player’s task is to master the game controls sufficientlytoenableeviltobedefeatedandthegame-storytounfold. Magicplaysasignificantroleinbothcases,andcanbeunderstoodhere ashavingagendereddimension.Thesupernaturalbasisofthegamescan be understood in the same context as the contemporary flowering of magic-basedfilmsandtelevisionshowssetinthepresentwithcentral femaleprotagonists,aimedprimarilyiffarfromexclusivelyatafemale audience (examples such as Buffy theVampire Slayer, The Craft [1996], Charmed [1998-] and Sabrina theTeenageWitch [1996-2003]). Magic is usedinsuchtextsasawayofsignifyingpower,desireandactivitywithin afeminizedregisterinanoftenpositiveandempoweringway.Tosome extentthisdrawsonolder,morenegativeandsometimesmisogynistic discourses in which female power is associated with witchcraft, but it isrecasthereinthelightofcontemporaryinterestinfemale-oriented formsofspiritualityandpower.InthegamecontextofPrimalandChaos Bleeds,magicextendstotheabilitiesaffordedtotheplayer.Whenplaying asWillow,awitchinChaosBleeds,theplayermustactivatespellsthrough variouskey-presscombinationstodefeatevil,ratherthanusingphysical fightskillsthatmightbemorecommonlyassociatedwithmalecharacters. Thisisnotsimplyanegativealternativetophysicalpower,butawayof articulatingaformofagencyderivedfromotherspheres:bookishstudy,
213
214
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS imaginationandtheforcesofnatureratherthanbody-honingdisciplines. AlthoughJenandBuffyusemorephysicalskills,theyarebothchosen by the‘powers that be’ to become champions.The presence of occult powersdoesnotonlyoperateatthelevelofrepresentationorstory– theyarealsofeltdirectlybytheplayerintermsofregimesofagencyand restriction.Theplayerhas,ineffect,ahands-onexperiencethatinsome respectsgoesbeyondthatofthecharacter. Thattheplayermightbeunabletodefeatamonsterthatthecharacter canpotentiallyvanquishaddsadimensionnotpresentinothermedia. Theplayermightaspiretothestatusofwomenwarrior,butonlybeable to achieve it if committed to the task of mastering the game controls (anotherexampleofthegamework-ethicinaction).Thedimensionsof agencyandrestrictionarepersonaltotheplayer,therefore,andcapable ofresonatingwithsuchexperiencesinreallife,aswellasbeingaspects ofthediegeticuniverse.Thismightspeakdifferentlytomaleandfemale players(andalsoalongdifferentlinessuchassocialclassorconstructions ofrace/ethnicity).Partoftheback-storytobothgamesisthatBuffyand Jenhavetolearntobeefficientfighters.Theyalsofacevariousdilemmas andproblemsthatrelatetotheiridentity:specificallytheproblemsthat pertaintobeingafemalefighter.Botharepresentedasstrugglingwith theimpactoftheirnew-foundstrengths:Jenwiththemeaningsofher acquireddemonicforms,Buffywiththewayherpoweraffectsherrole asateenagegirlinterestedinboysandclothes.Powerisnotpresented asstraightforwardlypleasurablebutasaformof‘otherness’thatdisturbs theorderoftheir‘ordinary’lives(adimensionmorerarelyseeningames withmaleprotagonists).Playersalsohavetolearntofightinthegames, whichmayrepresentasteeperthanusuallearningcurveforsomefemale players(likelyingeneraltohavelessexperienceofthebeat-‘em-upform) andmightleadtothembeingregardedwithcuriosityorsuspicionbythe malegamingfraternity.Learningtofightingametermsmayalsoprovide girls and women with an opportunity to express a type of aggression oftenrepressedinaccordancewithdominantgenderexpectations. Thefactthatgamesinvolveplayersdevelopinggame-specificphysical andcognitiveskillsmakesthemqualitativelydifferentfromothermedia. Doesthisalterthe‘meaning’ofthewomenwarrior?Atonelevel,the answeris:yes.Thefactthatplayerscontrolthecharactercomplicatesand fractures arguments about the object-of-the-gaze. But these characters
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS remainconstructionsoftheimaginationthroughwhichweplay(afact underlinedbythemagical/fantasycontextsinwhichthegamesareset). Aplayer’sinvestmentinsuchcharactersislikelytobecontingentona numberoffactors.Thesemightincludewhetheraplayerisattractedto acharacterorabletorelatetoitinonewayoranother.Awiderange of social-semiotic and representational factors might affect a player’s relationshipwithcharacter:bodysize,race,nationality,haircolour,dress, speech,personaltraits.Eachmayhaveanimpactonthedegreetowhich aplayerfeelscomfortableplayinginthatskin,assuggestedintheprevious section.Aplayer’sparticulargamingskillsmightalsobeafactorinthe natureoftherelationship.Whenthingsaregoingwell–controllingthe characterinanaccomplishedmanner–theplayermightfeelempowered andmorestronglyidentifiedwiththecharacterthanispossibleinthe purely imaginary identification that exists in media such as film and television.When things are going badly, however, it is likely that the player will feel distinctly disempowered, frustrated and incapable.The womanwarriorinthiscasemightseemadistantprospectfortheplayer. The same can be said of any relationship between player and playercharacter. Playing as a woman warrior might sometimes afford female playersavirtualexperienceofakindofliberationandcontroltheyare oftendeniedbythegenderinequalitiesandlimitationsofreallife.Yet,this isclearlyanunstableexperience,onethathasconstantlytobeworked for,inthegame,andthatiscapableofproducingfrustration. Female playable characters in games are not always endowed with magically enhanced physical strength. More ordinary-seeming women featureinsomesurvivalhorrorgames,forexample.WhenplayingasJill inResidentEvilorHeatherinSilentHill3,itisoftenmoreexpeditiousfor theplayer-charactertorunthantostandandfight,inordertoconserve healthandlimitedsuppliesofammunition.Thismightbereadingenderspecificterms,seemingtoreinforcenotionsoffemaleweaknessorofa characteristicallyfemaleneedtofindothersolutionstoproblemsthey cannotresolvethroughphysicalforce.Asimilarstrategyisrequired,butto alesserextent,ifthealternativemaleplayer-characterisusedinResident Evil.AsSaraGrimessuggests,however,Jillisphysicallyweakerthanthe maleprotagonist,Chris,afactthatinfluencesgameplayoptions.91This makesforsomeinterestingdifferencesingameplaystrategyaccordingto whichcharacterisemployed,althoughtheyremaingroundedprimarily
215
216
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS inverytraditionalgenderconventions.ThegeneraltenorofResidentEvil and Silent Hill is one of vulnerability and dread, in which the relative weaknessofplayer-charactersseemsappropriate(compared,say,tothe rapid and easy dispensing of zombies in House of the Dead III).The physicallimitationofcharacters,particularlyintheneedtoavoidcertain threats,contributestothegenerationofemotionalqualitiessuchasfear and suspense.The player-character has to wander around in a state of uncertaintymuchofthetime,wonderingwhatthreatmightemerge.For Carol Clover, the vicarious experience of abject terror offered by the horrorfilmisgenderedfeminine,inoppositiontoformsofmasculinity defined by qualities such as autonomy and control.The inclusion of victimizedfemaleprotagonistsinslasher-typefilmsallowsmaleviewers toexperienceterrorvicariously,withoutanyrealthreattotheirgendered identity,shesuggests.92Thiskindofgenderedterror-economymightalso beatworkinsomegames,butthedifference,again,isthatplayersactively operatethroughtheplayer-characterandareawarethat,withsufficient honingofskills,thethreatcanbemasteredthroughtheirownactivity. Thismight,insomecases,beunderstoodasareassertionofmasculine identity, at the level of mastery of the game itself more than mastery ofthediegeticin-gamesituation.Forfemaleplayers,thesameprocess mightactasanassertionofmastery,eveninthefaceofwhatmightatfirst appeartobetheweaknessofafemale-codedprotagonist. Thetraditionallymacho-codedqualitiesoffighting-basedgamescan bechallengedorsubvertedinvariousways,includingtheforegrounding ofinterpersonaldynamicsinPrimalandtheBuffygames.Theuseinthe latterofitemssuchaswaterpistols(filledwithholywater,ofcourse!), broomsandpiecesofbrokenfurnitureshiftsthedomainofweaponry – often subject to macho-oriented fetishization – into a more playful andfemale-codeddomesticarena.SpaceChannel5offersanothersuch gender twist by having the central female character, Ulala, dispose of aliensbydancingthemtodeath,theplayerbeingrequiredtopresskeys intimetothemusictocompletetheprocess.Gendersubversionmight also be introduced through player-created modifications and skins, as intheuseofemphaticallyun-machocharacterpatchessuchas‘Fighter Chicken’and‘GumbyDoll’inDoom.Gendertransgressionalsoresulted fromtheunintentionaljuxtapositionscreatedbytheearlyuseoffemale skinsinQuake.Softwarelimitationsresultedinthemappingoffemale
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS skins onto what remained the standard-issue macho musculature, the resulting figure having the transgender appearance of what became knownas‘fragqueens’,aqualitysubsequentlyembracedbythePsycho MenSlayersclan.93 Ifgender-roleassumptionsbuiltintogamescanbesubverted,socan manyothers,inplayeractivitiesrangingfromrefusaltoabidebydominant ‘win-conditions’totheconstructionofpoliticallyorientedmods.Games canbeplayed‘againstthegrain’,althoughtheremaybelimitstohow far this practice can be sustained. If it is possible to play the‘enemy’ GLAinCommandandConquer:Generals,forexample,itisalsopossible deliberatelytosubverttheobjectivesofplayastheUS.Suchactivities usuallyinvolveplayatthepaidearatherthantheludusendofthescale: ‘playingaround’insidethegameratherthanplayingtowinorprogress. Thesecanbepleasurableintheirownright,aswesuggestedinChapter 1,buttheyareliabletoberestrictedinscopeandlackthedimensionof clear-cutchallengestructuredintoludus-orientedgameplay.Subversive formsofplayofthiskindofteninvolveatestingofthelimits,seeinghow fartheboundsofthemeaningsstructuredintothegamecanbepushed. Theyofteninvolvedeliberatefailure:allowingonesidetoloseaconflict orlettingyourunconventionalSimsdieratherthanrespondingtotheir demandsforwhatthegamepresentsasthemore‘normal’satisfactions ofsuburban-consumerlifestyle.Somegamesallowmorescopeforsuch experimentthanothers.Insomeshooters,forexample,itispossibleto ‘frag’ officers on your own side (as occurred in some cases in the US forces during theVietnam war), while others render any such attacks harmless(intheofficialversionofUScombat,America’sArmy,asmightbe expected,anysuchactionisliabletopunishment,includingbeingthrown out of the game).A game such as Civilization provides considerable scopefor‘playingaround’ordevelopingcounter-factualhistories,which might be politically/ideologically motivated; playing as America and deciding to turn the country communist, for example, or playing an AztecdefeatofSpain.94Theunderlyingcolonial/expansionistdynamic remainsinplaceinsuchcases,butstructuredintothegameisanability toplaywithoutcomesandrelationshipsinamannerthathaspotentialto openparticularcolonialassumptionstoquestion.Massivelymulti-player online role-playing games are often policed quite strictly to prevent subversionofgameplay.Playersfoundtohavehackedintogamestogain
217
218
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS unfair advantage are likely to have their accounts cancelled. EverQuest alsoemploysalanguagefiltertoexciseswearing,althoughthiscanbe subvertedthroughtheuseofminorchangesofspelling.Playersreported forbreachesofrulesagainstracist,sexistorhomophobicspeechalsoface cautionsorthecancellationofaccountsandtheforfeitofcharacters. Modificationscanresultinvariouswaysofalteringorsubvertingthe meaningstructuresofgamesatthelevelsofrepresentationorinteraction, either working on an original or through the creation of new games basedonmodelsestablishedelsewhere.Thelatterwouldincludeshooters suchasUnderAshandSpecialForce,andaCivilizationIIImodificationpack includinganoptiontoplayasPalestinewith‘suicidebombers’asaspecial unit.95A British example cited by Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman is Backlash, an anti-racist ‘re-versioning’ of the arcade game Tempest (1981): ‘Building on the game’s existing shoot-or-be-shot structure, Backlash transforms the aliens of the original game into comic book renditions of hooded Ku Klux Klan members and uniformed British policeofficers.’96Anotherexample,LosDisneys,pitchespost-apocalyptic first-personshooteractionintotherealmofaDisneylandthemepark, a patch for Marathon Infinity (1996) that allows the player to shoot oversizedDisneycharactersand‘toblasttheirwaythroughlengthylines ofchildrenandtheirparentswaitingforrides.’97Oneofthebest-known mods,themulti-playerHalf-LifevariantCounter-Strike,whichbecamea commercialproductinitsownright,hasalsobeensubjecttosubversive modification in the form of‘Velvet Strike’, a collection of spray-paint effectsthatcanbeusedasgraffitionthewalls,ceilingsandfloorsofthe game.CreatedafterGeorgeW.Bush’sdeclared‘waronterrorism’,Velvet’s Strike’stargetis,appropriately,agameinwhichtheplayerchoosesthe role of ‘terrorist’ or ‘counter-terrorist’ – gameplay being much the same, tellingly, in either case. Sprays available for download from the VelvetStrikewebsiterangefromavarietyof‘peaceandlove’messages, includingimagesofrivalterrorists/counter-terroristsembracing,tomore pointedcommentaryontheAmericaninvasionofIraq.98Asimilarpost9/11featureenabledplayersofTheSimstodownloadantiwarposters forin-gamedisplay.99ThecreatorsofVelvetStrikewentontoproduce a multi-player Quake mod, Anime Noir (2003), in which the aim is to meetotherplayer-charactersand,insteadofshootingthem,touchtheir body parts in what could lead to a number of increasingly erotic in-
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS gamemoves.100AnothermodificationofHalf-LifeisEscapeFromWoomera (2004),afirst-personaction-adventuregamedesignedtohighlightthe plightofasylumseekersheldinAustralia’sinfamousWoomeradetention centre.101Thegame,basedonresearchincludinginterviewswithformer detainees,invitesplayerstoseetheworldfromtheirperspective,aview largelydeniedtomoretraditionalmediaaccess.Thisisagoodexample ofusingthespecificqualitiesofgames–theopportunitytoexplorea virtual world, into which particular characteristics and behaviours can bemodelled–toofferaversionofexperiencesotherwiseinaccessibleto mostpotentialplayers. Somegamescanalsobeunderstoodasnotinvitingthemselvestobe taken too seriously, building an element of subversion into their own representations.This might be the case with the excessive versions of masculinity or femininity built into some games, as suggested above. The Sims can easily be read in this way, as an ironic commentary on consumeristideologyaswellas,orinsteadof,beingseenasacelebration of such values.As Kline, Dyer-Witheford and De Peuter suggest, the games industry, like other aspects of popular cultural production,‘has learnedthatironyisano-losegambit,a“haveyourcakeandeatittoo” strategywhosesimultaneousaffirmation/negationstructurecangivethe appearanceofsocialcritiqueandretractitatthesamemoment–thereby letting everything stay just as it is while allowing practitioners to feel safelyaboveitallevenastheysinkmoredeeplyin.’102
Game cultures and industry Tobeunderstoodfully,gameshavetobesituatedwithintheculturesin whichtheyarefound,includingthewiderindustrial/economiccontext. Theyalsohaveculturesorsubculturesoftheirown,however,assuggested more generally in Huizinga’s definition of play, which includes the tendencyforplaytogenerateparticularplay-communitiesonthebasisof ‘thefeelingofbeing“aparttogether”inanexceptionalsituation,ofsharing somethingimportant,ofmutuallywithdrawingfromtherestoftheworld’ –aqualitysimilartothatinvokedinmorerecentstudiesofsubcultural forms.103AsubcultureisdefinedinsociologicaltermsbyGaryAlanFine, inastudyoffantasyrole-playinggames,asagroupthathas‘networksof communicationthroughwhichcommoninformationistransmitted’;a grouprecognizedassuchbythoseoutsideandbyitsownmembers.104
219
220
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS
16.Gameplayascommunity:groupplayscreen-shotfromEverQuest.
Farfromallgameplayerswouldregardthemselvesaspartofasubculture definedinthismanner,particularlythosewhoplaygamesmorecasually. Thosewhoinvestagreatdealoftime,moneyandenergyinplayinggames aremoreinclinedtoidentifythemselvesaspartofadistinctcategoryof ‘gamers’, however. For many regular or hard-core gamers, gaming can provide a strong sense of identity and might, in some cases, frame the waytheypresentthemselvestoothers.AsFinenotes,asubcultureonly developsiftherearestrongcommunicativenetworksamongmembers. Gaming magazines, websites and chat rooms devoted to gaming are centraltothecreationofagamingsubcultureingeneral,andtoparticular subcultures related to individual games or genres.The internet looms especiallylargeinthisarea,adomainthatcutsacrossnationalboundaries andinwhichgameplayersareparticularlylikelytobeadeptbecauseof thecomputer-basednatureofthemedium.Thesemainlyparticipatory modes of communication promote a distinctive shared language that helpstomarkgamersoffasasubsectionofsociety.Becomingacquainted withthelanguageofgamingandsharingexperienceswithothergamers createsasenseofsharedidentityandinterest.
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS Gaming subculture is not a unified entity, however. Disputes are common, in a dimension of popular culture in which the values of individualism and competition are often prevalent. Gaming culture is also deeply hierarchical. Game designers are often the most highly venerated.Thosewithsufficientskilltocreateinterestingmodifications come a little way below, followed by highly skilled players such as winnersofhigh-profilecompetitions,game’smasters,thosewhowrite walk-throughs, reviewers and beta-testers. More ordinary gamers are usuallyrankedaccordingtotheirplayingexperience.Thosewhocreate ormodifygamescomewiththestatusof‘hacking’,valuedamongthe computer-literateforqualitiessuchastransgressionanddemonstrating high levels of control over the digital domain. Experienced players of massivelymulti-playeronlinerole-playinggamescanaccumulatestores ofsubculturalcapital:formsofknowledgeandexpertiseintheparticular domain of a game-world on the basis of which they might earn the respectofotherplayers.105 Gamingculturehastendedtobelargelymale-oriented,assuggested above, as evidenced by many factors including the predominance of maleplayersatLAN(localareanetwork)events,andthefactthatthe majority of game designers, reviewers and senior figures such as guild leaders in EverQuest are male. Numerous social and historical factors havecreatedthisgenderimbalance,someofwhichareconsideredabove. Withinthebroadergamingsubculturearesmallergroupsfocusedaround individualgames(includingsome,suchasthefemaleQuakeclanscited above,definedongenderlines).Thisisparticularlythecasewithplayers ofmulti-playergames:LAN-basedorsmallandlargemulti-playeronline games(consoleorPC).LAN-basedcompetitionsofteninvolvecontests between teams playing the same game in close physical proximity. In small-group online play, physical proximity is usually surrendered in returnforotherformsofinter-playerfamiliarity.Massivelymulti-player gamesprovidescopetoplaywithlargenumbersfromacrosstheworld. Clansandguildsarecommoninsuchgames,creatingtheirownforms ofgroupidentityforplayerswhogenerallyhavenocontactoutsidethe gamescape(itisnotuncommon,however,forextra-gamicfriendshipsto result from relationships established in-game). Fine’s term‘idioculture’ capturesasenseofthemorelocalizedandidiosyncraticsubculturesthat candevelopwithinindividualgames.106InEverQuest,forexample,the
221
222
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS variousguildshaveratherdifferentidentities.TheSoulDefendersguild (ontheStrommserver)advertisesitselfasafriendlyguildthatwelcomes newplayers;questionsaregenerallyansweredingoodfaithwithhumour and‘guildies’ often help one another. Other guilds are less tolerant of questionsandrequestsforhelp,insomecasesonlyadmittingplayerswith high-levelcharacters.Theseguildstendtoconcentratemoreintenselyon raidsinwhichnewerplayersmightprovealiability.Oftenaguild’sname says much about its particular culture.The social coherence of guilds isbasedonanin-gamehistorysharedbetweenitsmembers.Particular eventsbecomefeaturesofthecollectiveidentity–asintheconstruction ofexternal-worldcultures–andaresubjecttofrequentreference.Any guildthatfailstoconstructanidentityandhistoryislikelytodisband before long. Rivalries or perceived injustices often create situations in which players from different guilds refuse to play with one another. AsFinenotesofDungeons&Dragonsgroups,playersofmulti-player online games often also tease one another, not primarily as a form of denigration but to promote sociability, particularly the case in guilds andsmallergroupsthatfighttogetheronaregularbasis.107Hierarchies operatewithinguilds,aselsewhereingamingcultures,oftenonthebasis ofplayeraccumulationsofsubculturalcapital. If gameplaying has an array of niche cultures, and the broader subcultureofself-identified‘gamers’,ithasalsoestablishedaplaceinthe muchwiderlandscapeofpopularcultureandentertainmentinrecent decades.Ithas,intheprocess,becomethebasisofaverylargeindustrial enterprise.Theheightsoftheindustryarefoughtoverbyanumberof big business players, the principal rivalry at the time of writing being between the electronics and entertainment giant Sony and Microsoft, the globally dominant force in computer operating systems. Former heavyweight contenders include Atari (which first demonstrated the potentialofgamestobecomebigbusinessandbecamepartoftheWarner Communicationsempirein1976,beforefallingvictimtoamajorcrash that saw much of the games business wiped out in 1983), Nintendo (which effectively resurrected the business after the Atari crash and dominatedtheindustryfromthelate1980s,subsequentlybeingforced toacceptthirdplacebehindSonyandMicrosoft)andSega(challenger to Nintendo in the early 1990s, later abandoning its investments in hardware platforms after a series of disappointments).108The console
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS endofthebusinessiswellcharacterizedbyKline,Dyer-Withefordand De Peuter as existing since the early 1990s in a state of‘tumultuous oligopoly’:dominatedbyasmallnumberoflargecompanies,butinan unstablefashion,withfiercecompetitionamongthekeyplayers(unlike, forexample,theHollywoodfilmindustry,whichischaracterizedbya morestableformofoligopolyamongthemajorstudio-distributors).109 The stakes are huge, as demonstrated by the billions poured into the development and marketing of the PlayStation 2 and Xbox platforms and their successors. The games industry is not only big corporate businessinitsownright,butalsoviewedasakeyelementinthewider entertainment and communications sector. Microsoft’s enormous investmentinthedevelopmentoftheXbox,forexample,wasmotivated bystrategicconcernaboutnotjustthemachinesonwhichgameswould beplayed(PCorconsoles)butaboutcontroloverwhatwouldbeseen astheportalforarangeofotherapplications.ThePlayStation2wassold asahomeentertainmentcentre,capableofplayingCDsandDVDsas wellasgames,seekingtointegrateSony’sinvestmentingameswithits broaderstakeinhomeentertainmentelectronics.Thedecisiontogive the Xbox similar capabilities, plus a broadband internet connection, was part of its rival claim to become a unified home entertainment/ communicationscentre(apotentialbuiltearlier,toalesserextent,into Nintendo’s Famicom/NES, which came equipped with a data point capableofbeingconnectedtoamodem). The games industry is viewed by Kline, Dyer-Witheford and De Peuter as an exemplar of the high-technology end of contemporary capitalism, ‘information capitalism’ as it is termed by Tessa MorrisSuzukiinherstudyoftheJapanesehigh-techsectorthathasplayeda central role in the global games business.110 One of the characteristics of this form is the creation of economic sectors based on‘perpetual innovation’,inwhichthethreatoffallingconsumerdemand(alwaysa keyissueforcapitalistsystems)iskeptatbaybytheconstantupgrading ofproducts,aprocessclearlyattheheartofagamesindustryfounded onthecyclicalproductionofnewgenerationsofconsolesorupgraded capacitiesforPCs.Productcyclesareshortened,promisinghigherrates ofprofitthantheslowercyclesassociatedwithtraditionalmanufacturing industries,althoughatgreaterriskofinstability.111IfTheSimsstructuresa celebrationofconsumerismintoitsgameplay,gamesthemselves(aswell
223
224
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS asgameshardware)arequintessentiallyconsumeristproducts,constantly updatedandofferingnoveltiesthatappeartorenderexistingtitles‘out ofdate’andinneedofregularreplacementorsupplement.112Otherkey factorsforKline,Dyer-WithefordandDePeuter,alliedtotheabove,are thecentralitytothegamesindustryofintensiveadvertising,promotional and consumer-surveillance strategies, designed to build and monitor marketsfornewgamesandgamesystems.Thiskindofcapitalismisoften describedaspost-Fordist,atermusedtodistinguishregimesbasedon flexibleproductionandniche-marketingtoparticularconsumergroups fromthe‘Fordist’processofmassproductionandmassconsumption.113 For some commentators, the term post-Fordism has been used to suggestaformofcapitalisminwhichtheemphasisisonlargenumbers of smaller, high-tech or highly consumer-oriented companies:‘In the most optimistic versions of such theory, post-Fordism is portrayed as an era of digital artisanship, based on a multitude of small enterprises, organizing production as high-technology craft-work and forming vibrant community networks of efficient but human-scale business.’114 Sceptics point out that the chief beneficiaries of the high-tech digital economy tend to be large corporations, new technologies and new waysoforganizingproductiontending‘notintheleasttodiminishthe pulltowardsconcentrationofownership,oligopoliesofknowledge,and corporategiganticismof“globalimageempires”.’115Thegamesindustry, Kline,Dyer-WithefordandDePeutersuggest,canbecitedasevidence ofbothtendencies,althoughwithanoverallleaningtowardsthelatter.At thelevelofplatformtechnologies,especiallyconsoles,corporateoligopoly holds sway. In software, something closer to the vision of small-scale high-techartisanproductioncanbefound,intheshapeofthemanyand changing companies involved in game development. Strong pressures exist,however,todrivethelatterinthedirectionoftheformer. Themodelonwhichtheconsolebusinesshasfunctionedinrecent decadeshasbeenoneinwhichhardwareandsoftwareproductionare closelyintegrated.Hardwarehasbecomeseenessentiallyasalossleader, orasonlyatbestasmallprofit-centre,aphenomenonthatdatesback atleasttotheperiodofNintendo’sdominanceinthe1990s.Softwareis theprincipalsourceofprofits,salesofwhicharekeytooverallprofitor losscalculations.Microsoft,forexample,initiallyworkedonthebasisofa pricingformulathatmeantforeachXboxtobreakeven,ninegameswould
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS havetobesold,threeofwhichwouldhavetobein-houseproductions (licencefeesarechargedtooutside‘third-party’developers,butalarger shareofprofitisretainedfromgamesdevelopedin-house),agoalthathad beenachievedbySonyduringthelifetimeoftheoriginalPlayStation.116 Atlaunch,Microsoftexpectedtolose$87oneachbox(afigureincreased byafter-launchprice-cutting).Theimportanceofsoftwaretothesuccess ofindividualconsoleswasdemonstratedbytheindustrycollapseofthe early 1980s, a major aspect of which was attributed to the glutting of the market with inferior products. Nintendo learned the lesson in its reconstructionoftheindustry,maintainingtightcontroloverthelicensing ofgamesbyoutsiders,restrictingmarketcompetitionandmakingitself unpopular with many game developers in the process.117At the same time, corporate-controlled console manufacturers have also sought to court the favour of developers, recognizing the crucial importance of creative design to their business (both Nintendo’s Famicom/NES and Microsoft’sXboxweredesignedtobeeasytoprogramfor,specifically to make them attractive to developers).The development end of the businesshasmovedinexorablyinthedirectionoflarger-scaleandmore consolidatedoperation,however,theresultoffactorssuchasescalating technologicalcapabilityandtheincreasinglymarketing-centrednature ofthemainstreamgamesbusiness.Gamedevelopmenthasmovedfrom itsartisanalrootsintheworkofindividualdesigners,employinglimited resources,tobecomealarge-scaleindustrialenterpriseinitsownright,the developmentofatypicalgameinvolvingaperiodofsometwoormore yearsandbudgetsrunningintotensofmillionsofdollars,farmorewhen marketingandpromotionalcostsareincluded.Theresultis,inevitably, a more conservative industry, more likely to stick to familiar genres, formatsandfranchises,ratherthanindulginginriskierexperiments.A similarproblemoflargenessofscaleexistsintherapidlygrowingarena of massively multi-player online gaming, in which a different revenue modelexists,basedprimarilyonthepaymentofmonthlysubscriptions. Torunagameofthiskindalsorequiressubstantialinvestment,notjust in initial design but in the provision of regular patches and upgrades, to keep longer-term players interested, and in maintaining sources of technicalsupport. Themainstreamingofthegamesindustryisseenbysomeasathreatto itsrootsinthekindsofsmallerandmoreparticularsubculturesconsidered
225
226
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS inthefirstpartofthissection.Gamesaimedatawidermarketmight generallybeexpectedtobelessinventiveortobemademoreaccessible and less difficult to master, reducing their appeal to the hard-core gamer.Thenatureofgamingasanactiveprocessissuchthatspacesare alwayslikelytoexistforalternativepractices,however,rangingfromthe productionoflessmainstreamor‘indie’gamestothemodificationand useofexistingtitlesinwaysnotenvisagedbytheirproducers.Whetheror notanindependentgamessectorexists,asanythingotherthanextremely marginalized,remainsopentoquestion.Thereisabigdifference,asEric Zimmermansuggests,betweenasustainableindependentgamessector, on the kind of model associated with independent cinema, and more inward-looking fan-based sub-cultural production.118 Independent developers have their own‘special interest group’ in the International Game Developer’sAssociation (IGDA), which defines an independent developer as one ‘that has a substantial amount of control over the development,design,implementationanddistributionoftheirgame.’119 Thelatterstage–distribution–isespeciallyimportantandoneinwhich alternativechannelsarerequiredifindiedevelopersaretoreachamarket (itwasthecreationofindependentdistributionnetworksthatwascrucial tothegrowthofAmericanindependentcinemaasasubstantialalternative toHollywood).Inthegamesbusiness,mainstreamwholesaleandretail networks are tightly controlled by dominant industry players.120The numberoftitlesstockedbyretailersisrelativelysmall,largelyrestricted totitlesinwhichlargesumsareinvestedinmarketingandpromotion. The situation is much the same as that of major studio control over filmdistribution,exceptthatthereisasyetnoequivalentingamesretail of the indie-friendly or ‘art-house’ cinema that exists alongside the Hollywood-dominatedmultiplex.Instead,likesomeindependentfilmmakers,advocatesofalternativeoutletsforgameshavelookedprimarily to internet distribution. Games can be downloaded from sites such as RealOneArcade,consideredin2003tobeoneofthemostimportant portals available to independent developers, or GarageGames.121 Sites such as RealOne have some features in common with mainstream gameretailing,includingahit-basedeconomy,inwhichthemarketis dominated by a relatively small number of top-selling titles, although onlinedistributiongenerallymakesiteasierforalargerrangeofgames to be made available, reducing the intense competition for shelf space
SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL DIMENSIONS experiencedinretailsales.Italsoreducescostsofproduction,promotion anddistributionitself,enablingdeveloperstooperateatlowerlevelsof investmentandtospreadtheirrisksacrosslargernumbersoftitles.Outlets suchasthiscanbeseenasmorecommercialmanifestationsofalonger traditioninwhichgameshavebeenmademorefreelyavailableonline intheformofshareware,inwhichpartsofgamesarereleasedwithout chargeonlineorondisksprovidedonthecoversofmagazines,players beingchargedtoobtaintherest.122 Modificationofexistinggameshasoftenprovedthemostaccessible form of alternative development, although this comes with its own restrictions,includingthetermsofEndUserLicenseAgreements.The costsoflicensingproprietarygame-enginecodeanddevelopmenttools oftenstandinthewayofindie/alternativedevelopment,asJulianOliver suggests.123 Licensed usage of established game-engines is expensive (writingin2003,Oliversuggestsacostof$250,000foruseofthethen two-yearoldQuakeIIIengine,plusapaymentofa5percentroyalty onthewholesalepriceofthetitleproduced).Existingproductsarealso limitedinhowfartheycanbeputtoentirelyneworinnovativeuses,or intheextenttowhichsourcecodeismadeavailableforanalysisofexactly how it functions. Cheaper and sometimes more accessible alternatives exist in the form of open-source materials, however, including freely availablegame-engines‘notfarbehindmanyoftheproprietaryproducts available.’124Thesharingofcodeandmodificationshasitsrootsinearly game development, an alternative economy associated more recently withthe‘elite’endofhacker/gamersubculture. Themoremainstreamtheindustryasawholebecomes,themoreit might be expected to draw on material with dominant social-cultural orpolitical-ideologicalimplications,atthelevelsofeitherbackground context or meanings structured implicitly or explicitly into gameplay. Thisdependstoalargeextent,however,ontheparticularconstituencies beingtargeted.Thereisnofixedcorollarybetweensizeofmarketandthe dominant/alternativenatureofthematerialproduced.Plentyofgames aimedatrelativelynarrowlydefinedgroups(youngmales,forexample) play on material generally very dominant/conventional in that arena, evenifaccompaniedbyqualitiessuchasviolenceandgoresoldonthe basis of its‘transgressive’ edge.To widen the target group (to include more women, for example) might mean reducing the extent of some
227
228
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS forms of dominant/conventional stereotyping (if probably at the cost of introducing others). It remains the case, though, that game content thatraisesquestionsaboutdominantsocial-politicalassumptionsismore likely to be found in niche products than those which seek to reach a mass market, as is also the case with other media such as film and television,eveniftheformerdoesnotalwaysfollowfromthelatter.
Afterword Fromcoregameplaymechanics–asproceduresthatcanbeabstracted fromanykindofcontext–toreadingsoftheirmostheavilypoliticalideological implications, games offer multidimensional experiences. Gameplay takes numerous forms, even if these tend to resolve into a relativelylimitednumberofdominantgame-genericregimes,especially inthecommercialmainstream.Dimensionssuchasnarrative,genreor otherassociationalcontextscancomeintoandoutofplay;sometimesas relativelysignificantelementsintheoverallexperience,sometimesnot. Gamescapesareoftenripeforexploration,butthis,too,canbeshaped, limitedorconstrainedinavarietyofways;ascanthedegreetowhichan impressionofpresenceiscreated,of‘being’(insomesense)inthegameworld. Qualities such as these are often inter-connected, as we have argued throughout this book, as they are with additional dimensions suchasformsofgraphicalrepresentation,sounddesignandtheintensity of gameplay activities.The gaming experience, in general, is one in whichdimensionssuchasplay,representation(includingthepoliticsof representation)andimmersion–initsvariousforms–cometogether intoacomplexgestalt,theexactnatureofwhichvaries,aswehaveoften stressed,fromonegameorplayertoanother.Allpossiblecombinations areimpossibletoembraceinaworksuchasthis–alimitation,forus, that is also a measure of the richness and multifaceted nature of the videogameasapartofcontemporarypopularculture.
Notes
INTRODUCTION 1. Weusetheterm‘videogames’inthisbooktoencompasswhataresometimes separately described as‘computer games’ (a term associated with games playedonpersonalcomputers)and‘videogames’(associatedwithvarious consoleplatforms),alsosometimestermed‘digitalgames’. 2. Different sources often give different dates for the release of games. For the sake of consistency, we have generally used dates as given by www. gamespot.com. 3. For a brief sketch of earlier work, see Jonas Heide Smith, ‘Computer GameResearch101–BriefIntroductiontotheLiterature’,GameResearch, December 2002, www.game-research.com/art_computer_game_research. asp;ontheprospectsforgameresearchasanacademicfieldinitsownright, see EspenAarseth,‘Computer Game Studies,Year One’, Game Studies, 1, July2001,www.gamestudies.org/0101/editorial/html. 4. Forexamplesofstudiesthatincludesuchanalysis,seeMarinkaCopierand JoostRaessens(eds.),LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearchConference,Utrecht University,2003,contributionsby:Tosca;Klastrup;Engfeldt-Nielsen;Kerr; ErmiandMäyrä;Halloran,RogersandFitzpatrick. 5. ExamplesincludeEspenAarseth,SolveigMarieSmedstadandLiseSunnanå, ‘AMulti-DimensionalTypologyofGames’,inCopierandRaessens,Level Up;CraigLindley,‘GameTaxonomies:AHighLevelFrameworkforGame Analysis and Design’, Gamasutra, 3 October 2003, www.gamasutra.com/ features/20031003/lindley_01.shtml.
NOTES CHAPTER 1 1. For a summary of six different definitions of this kind, along with anotherofhisown,seeJesperJuul,‘TheGame,ThePlayer,TheWorld: Looking for the Heart of Gameness’, in Marinka Copier and Joost Raessens (eds.), Level Up: Digital Games Research Conference, Utrecht University,2003. 2. HomoLudens,8. 3. Ibid. 4. Ibid.10. 5. Ibid.12. 6. Man,PlayandGames,9. 7. Ibid. 8. Ibid.10. 9. Ibid.9. 10. Ibid.10. 11. ‘What are games made of?’, Level Up: Digital Games Research Conference,UtrechtUniversity,November2003. 12. RulesofPlay:GameDesignFundamentals,86–91. 13. ‘Playing Research: Methodological approaches to game analysis’, Digital Arts and Culture conference, Melbourne, 2003, accessed at hypertext.rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/. 14. Man,PlayandGames,27. 15. Ibid.27. 16. TheGrasshopper:Games,LifeandUtopia,34,41. 17. ‘Videogames of the Oppressed: Videogames as a means for critical thinking and debate’, master’s thesis, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2000, accessed at www.jacaranda.org/frasca/thesis/ FrascaThesisVideogames.pdf. 18. Play,DreamsandImitationinChildhood,ChapterV. 19. Ibid.112. 20. ‘VideogamesoftheOppressed’,18–19. 21. ‘CommunicationandCommunityinDigitalEntertainmentServices: Prestudy Research Report’, Hypermedia Laboratory Net Series, 2, University ofTampere Hypermedia Laboratory, accessed at tampub. uta.fi/tup/951–44–5432–4.pdf,14. 22. ‘Hearts,Clubs,Diamonds,Spades:PlayersWhoSuitMuds’,accessedat mud.co.uk/Richard/hcds.htm.
231
232
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS 23. 24.
25.
26. 27.
28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44.
45. 46.
‘VideogamesoftheOppressed’,13. ‘The Open and the Closed: Games of Emergence and Games of Progression’,inFransMäyrä(ed.),ComputerGamesandDigitalCultures: ConferenceProceedings. Mactavish,‘GameMod(ifying)Theory:TheCulturalContradictionsof ComputerGameModding’,‘Power-Up:ComputerGames,Ideology andPlay’,Bristol,July2003. ‘KnowYourMeta-Game’,inFrançoisDominicLaramée(ed.),Game DesignPerspectives. ‘ATheoryofPlayandFantasy’,inStepstoanEcologyofMind:Collected Essays inAnthropology, Psychiatry, Evolution, and Epistemology, 179; see alsoBrianSutton-Smith,TheAmbiguityofPlay,23. HomoLudens,10. RulesofPlay,97. TheGrasshopper,41. SeeRobertHodgeandDavidTripp,ChildrenandTelevision:ASemiotic Approach. ToysasCulture,62–4. Ibid.139–40. ‘The Gameplay Gestalt, Narrative, and Interactive Storytelling’, in FransMäyrä(ed.),ComputerGamesandDigitalCultures,215. Ibid.208. ‘BalancingGameplayHooks’,inLaramée(ed.),GameDesignPerspectives, 78. Ibid. Ibid.81. RulesofPlay,316. Aarseth,Cybertext:PerspectivesonErgodicLiterature,91. ‘2.0Introduction’,inLaramée(ed.),GameDesignPerspectives,61. Ibid. Flow,4. Forahistoryofthedevelopmentanduseoftheconceptofflow,see Csikszentmihalyi, ‘Introduction’, in Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and IsabellaSelegaCsikszentmihalyi(eds.),OptimalExperience:Psychological StudiesofFlowinConsciousness. TheAmbiguityofPlay,34. SummarizedinFlow,48–67.
NOTES 47. 48. 49.
50.
51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61.
62. 63. 64. 65. 66.
67.
Flow,74. ‘BalancingGameplayHooks’,83. ‘Beyond Myth and Metaphor –The Case of Narrative in Digital Media’,GameStudies,vol.1,1,July2001,accessedatwww.gamestudies. org/0101/ryan/. Formoredetailandsources,seeCsikszentmihalyi,‘TheFlowExperience and Human Psychology’, in Csikszentmihalyi and Csikszentmihalyi, OptimalExperience,17–18. Flow,53. ChrisCrawfordonGameDesign,43. Flow,58. HomoLudens,10. Flow,64. Ibid.60. Ibid.61. ‘ProsandConsofHitPointSystems’,inLaramée(ed.),GameDesign Perspectives. ‘AlternativestoNumbersinGameDesignModels’,inibid.104. ‘ProsandConsofHitPointSystems’,101–2. SueMorris,‘First-PersonShooters–AGameApparatus’,inGeoffKing andTanyaKrzywinska(eds.),ScreenPlay:Cinema/Videogames/Interfaces, 86. Gamingcanalsobemorecommunal,however,withplayersgrouping aroundasingleconsoletoplaytogether,inturnand/ortowatch. Forasketchofitshistoricalroots,seeSutton-Smith,TheAmbiguityof Play,175–81. Hypertext 2.0: The Convergence of Contemporary Critical Theory and Technology. ‘The Game as Object of Study’, Game Cultures conference, Bristol 2001,question-and-answersession. Murray, Hamlet on the Holodeck:The Future of Narrative in Cyberspace; Atkins, More than a Game: The Computer Game as Fictional Form; Molyneux,‘Black andWhite’, inAustin Grossman (ed.), Postmortems from Game Developers; Littlejohn, ‘Agitating for Dramatic Change’, Gamasutra,29October2003. ‘TheGamingSituation’,GameStudies,vol.1,1,July2001,section8, accessedatwww.gamestudies.org/0101/eskilinen.
233
234
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS 68.
69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75. 76.
77. 78. 79. 80. 81. 82. 83. 84. 85.
86.
Foranargumentthatsuggeststhatthisdebatehasbeenoverstated,asa falseopposition,seeGonzaloFrasca,‘Ludologistslovestoriestoo:notes fromadebatethatnevertookplace’,inCopierandRaessens(eds.), LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearchConference,UtrechtUniversity,2003. Juul,‘TheOpenandtheClosed’,324. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid.328. Molyneux, ‘Black and White’, in Grossman (ed.), Postmortems from GameDevelopers. ‘GameDesignasNarrativeArchitecture’,accessedatweb.mit.edu/21 fms/www/faculty/henry3/games&narrative.html. ‘RealInteractivityinInteractiveEntertainment’,inClarkDodsworth (ed.),DigitalIllusion:EntertainingtheFuturewithHighTechnology,154. For more on this, see Petri Lankoski, Satu Heliö and Inger Ekman, ‘CharactersinComputerGames:TowardUnderstandingInterpretation and Design’, in Copier and Raessens (eds.), Level Up: Digital Games Research Conference, accompanying CD-ROM, Utrecht University, 2003. ChrisCrawfordonGameDesign,163. ‘A Poetics ofVirtualWorlds’, Digital Arts and Culture conference, Melbourne,2003,accessedathypertext.rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/. ‘APoeticsofVirtualWorlds’,107. AsimilaroppositionissuggestedbyAtkins,20. GameDesign:TheoryandPractice,219–20. ‘InDefenseofCutscenes’,inFransMäyrä(ed.),ComputerGamesand DigitalCultures,200. Rouse,224–5. ‘TheRoadLessTraveled–TheCaseforComputerGamePhilology’, paragraph5,accessedatplayability.de/en/txt/cgpabs.html. For design-oriented work that stresses the importance of narrative, see,forexample,TroyDunniway,‘UsingtheHero’sJourneyinGames’, ‘Gamasutra’, 27 November 2000, accessed at www/gamasutra.com/ features/20001127/htm/dunniway_01.htm, on the importance of pacing; and Joshua Mosqueria, ‘World Building: From Paper to Polygons’,inLaramée(ed.),GameDesignPerspectives. ‘TheRoadLessTraveled’,paragraph5.
NOTES 87. 88.
89. 90. 91. 92. 93. 94. 95. 96. 97. 98. 99.
100. 101.
102. 103. 104. 105. 106. 107. 108. 109. 110. 111.
‘TheGameplayGestalt’,205. ‘Beyond Myth and Metaphor –The Case of Narrative in Digital Media’,GameStudies,vol.1,1,July2001,accessedatwww.gamestudies. org/0101/ryan/. HamletontheHolodeck,145. Campbell,TheHerowithaThousandFaces. ‘UsingtheHero’sJourneyinGames’. TheWriter’sJourney:MythicStructureforStorytellersandScreenwriters. MorphologyoftheFolkTale. HamletontheHolodeck,197. ‘GamesTellingstories?–Abriefnoteongamesandnarratives’,Game Studies,vol.1,1,accessedatgamestudies.org/0101/juul-gts/. Ibid.7–8. ‘GameDesignasNarrativeArchitecture’,5. ‘Adapting Licensed Properties’, in Laramée (ed.), Game Design Perspectives,126. For a more detailed analysis of the Xbox game version of Buffy the VampireSlayer,seeKrzywinska,‘PlayingBuffy:Remediation,Occulted Meta-game-Physics and the Dynamics ofAgency in theVideogame VersionofBuffytheVampireSlayer’,Slayage8,March2003,www.slayage. tv. ‘GameDesignasNarrativeArchitecture’,4. ‘Environmental Storytelling: Creating Immersive 3DWorlds Using LessonsLearnedfromtheThemeParkIndustry’,Gamasutra,1March 2000, accessed at www.Gamasutra.com/features/20000301/Carson_ pfv.htm,2. Ibid.3. HamletontheHolodeck,132. ‘WorldBuilding:FromPapertoPolygons’,68. Ibid.69. Ibid. HamletontheHolodeck,192. ‘Approaches to Computer Game Design’, in Frans Mäyrä (ed.), ComputerGamesandDigitalCultures;Barthes,S/Z,18–20. ‘ApproachestoComputerGameDesign’,316. ‘InDefenseofCutscenes’,201. Man,PlayandGames,7.
235
236
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS 112. 113. 114. 115.
116. 117. 118. 119.
120. 121.
HamletontheHolodeck,144. ‘TheGamingSituation’,14. ChrisCrawfordonGameDesign,30–1. ‘Theattackofthebackstories(andwhytheywon’twin)’,inCopier and Raessens (eds.), Level Up: Digital Games Research Conference, accompanyingCD-ROM,UtrechtUniversity,2003. Social-culturalissuesraisedbyconventionssuchasthesemoregenerally areaddressedinChapter4. kumawar.com. ‘ComputerGameCriticism:AMethodforComputerGameAnalysis’, inFransMäyrä(ed.),ComputerGamesandDigitalCultures,95. KarenLittleton,P.Light,R.Joiner,D.MesserandP.Barnes,‘Gendertask scenariosandchildren’scomputer-basedproblemsolving’,Educational Psychology,vol.18,3,1998;citedbySimeonYatesandKarenLittleton, ‘Understandingcomputergameculture:Asituatedapproach’,inEileen GreenandAlisonAdam(eds.),VirtualGender:Technology,Consumption andIdentity. YatesandLittleton,‘Understandingcomputergameculture’,110. Konzacksuggestsaseven-levelmethodforthestudyofgames:hardware, programme code, functionality, gameplay, meaning, referentiality, and socio-culture.
CHAPTER 2 1. ‘AllegoriesofSpace:TheQuestionofSpatialityinComputerGames’, paragraph6,accessedatwww.hf.uib.no/hi/espen/papers/space/. 2. ApointalsomadebyBernadetteFlynn,‘LanguagesofNavigationWithin ComputerGames’,DigitalArtsandCultureconference,Melbourne, May2003,accessedathypertext.rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/. 3. ‘The Open and the Closed: Games of Emergence and Games of Progression’, in Frans Mäyrä (ed.), Computer Games and Digital Cultures. 4. ‘TheRoleofArchitectureinVideogames’,Gamasutra,9October2002, accessedatwww.gamasutra.com/features/20021009/adams_02.htm. 5. AsimilarpointismadebyBarryAtkinsinMorethanaGame,Chapter 3. 6. Ernest Adams, ‘The Designer’s Notebook: Defining the Physical DimensionofaGameSetting’.
NOTES 7. 8. 9.
10. 11. 12.
13.
14.
15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.
MarkWolf,‘SpaceintheVideoGame’,inWolf(ed.),TheMediumofthe VideoGame,56. Bartle,DesigningVirtualWorlds,278. Theconceptoftherhizome,usedinthissense,isdevelopedbyGilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari in AThousand Plateaus: Capitalism and Schizophrenia.Therhizome,spreadingoutinalldirectionsinexamples suchasbulbandtubersystems,iscontrastedwiththemorehierarchical modelofroot-and-tree.DianeCarrusesMurray’sdistinctionbetween solvable maze and tangled rhizome in a comparison between the structuresofSilentHillandPlanescapeTormentin‘PlayDead:Genreand AffectinSilentHillandPlanescapeTorment’,GameStudies,vol.3,1,May 2003,accessedathttp:/www.gamestudies.org/0301/carr/. RichardBartle,DesigningVirtualWorlds,28,100. An argument made in numerous works including TheArchaeology of Knowledge. ‘ATouch of Medieval: Narrative, Magic and ComputerTechnology inMassivelyMulti-playerComputerRole-PlayingGames’,inMäyrä (ed.),ComputerGamesandDigitalCultures,268. ‘“CompleteFreedomofMovement”:VideoGamesasGenderedPlay Spaces’, in Justine Cassell and Jenkins (eds.), From Barbie to Mortal Kombat:GenderandComputerGames. Joanna Alexander and Mark Long, ‘Designing and Developing for Head-Mounted Displays’, in Clark Dodsworth (ed.), Digital Illusion: EntertainingtheFuturewithHighTechnology. See,forexample,ChristopherHasserandThomasMassie,‘TheHaptic Illusion’,inDodsworth,DigitalIllusion. See,forexample,JohnVince,EssentialVirtualRealityFast,5–6. Gamemanualreproducedatwww.world-of-nintendo.com/manuals/ nes/super_glove_ball.shtml. Joanna Alexander and Mark Long, ‘Designing and Developing for Head-MountedDisplays’,inDodsworth,DigitalIllusion. Ralph Schroeder, PossibleWorlds:The Social Dynamic ofVirtual Reality Technology,65,88. Stephen Clarke-Willson, ‘Applying Game Design to Virtual Environments’, in Dodsworth, Digital Illusion, 232; Clarke-Willson argues,however,forthepossibilityandvirtueofusingthethirdperson inVRgames.
237
238
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS 21. 22. 23.
24. 25. 26.
27. 28. 29. 30. 31.
32. 33. 34. 35. 36.
37. 38. 39.
SeeBruceGeryk,‘CAVEQuakeQ&A’,accessedatwww.gamespot/ features/cave_quake2/. Seewww.c3dnow.com/showcase/products/3/Dcombo.htm. On the creation of impressions of presence in both traditional and electronic literary texts, see Marie-Laure Ryan, Narrative asVirtual Reality: Immersion and Interactivity in Literature and Electronic Media; onthelongertraditionofimmersivespacesofwhichcontemporary virtualrealitycanbeseenasthelatestinstance,seeOliverGrau,Virtual Art:FromIllusiontoImmersion. ‘GamesTellingStories–Abriefnoteongamesandnarratives’,17. MorethanaGame,75. ‘Cyberbeing and ~space’, accessed at www.mcc.murdoch.edu.au/ ReadingRoom/VID/cybersein.html;seealsotheaccountofMcHoul’s position in Brett Nicholls and Simon Ryan,‘Game, Space and the PoliticsofCyberplay’,DigitalArtsandCultureconference,Melbourne, May2003,accessedathypertext.rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/. ‘Cyberspaceand~space’,numberedparagraph16. Ibid. Bartle,DesigningVirtualWorlds,415. Ibid.159. ‘Immersion,Engagement,andPresence:AMethodforAnalyzing3–D Video Games’, in MarkWolf and Bernard Perron (eds.), TheVideo GameTheoryReader. ‘AttheHeartofItAll:TheConceptofPresence’,accessedatwww. ascusc.org/gcmc/vol3/issue2/Lombard.html. Ryan,NarrativeasVirtualReality,284–5. Bartle,DesigningVirtualWorlds,288. SeeLombardandDitton. ‘A Poetics ofVirtualWorlds’, Digital Arts and Culture conference, Melbourne, May 2003, accessed at hypertext.rmit.edu.au/dac/ papers/. Bartle,DesigningVirtualWorlds,26. Ibid.222. Walton,MimesisasMake-Believe:OntheFoundationsoftheRepresentational Arts, 11.Walton has been cited by a number of commentators on games and virtual reality, including Marie-Laure Ryan, Narrative as Virtual Reality, Lisa Klastrup, ‘A Poetics ofVirtualWorlds’, and Jill
NOTES
40. 41. 42. 43. 44.
45. 46.
Walker,‘PerformingFictions:InteractionandDepiction’,DigitalArts andCultureconference,Melbourne,May2003,accessedathypertext. rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/. Walton,Mimesis,228. Ibid.247. Ibid.29–30. InFreud,OnPsychopathology,161–193. Cora Kaplan,‘TheThorn Birds: Fiction, fantasy and femininity’, in Victor Burgin, James Donald and Cora Kaplan (eds.), Formations of Fantasy. Elizabeth Cowie, Representing theWoman: Cinema and Psychoanalysis, 134. Ibid.140.
CHAPTER 3 1. ThisandthefollowingdetailisfromtheaccountgiveninKline,DyerWithefordandDePeuter,DigitalPlay. 2. Ibid.129. 3. Ibid.139–40. 4. www.eidosinteractive.co.uk/gss/trangel/home.html.Accessed 4 February2004. 5. AndrewRollingsandErnestAdamsonGameDesign,13. 6. For a sketch of this history, seeAki Järvinen,‘Gran Stylissimo:The AudiovisualElementsandStylesinComputerandVideoGames’,in FransMäyrä(ed.),ComputerGamesandDigitalCultures. 7. AndrewRollingsandErnestAdamsonGameDesign,293–4. 8. MarkWolfandBernardPerronincludegraphicsinalistofthefour ‘mostfundamental’elementsofthevideogame,alongsidealgorithms, theinterfaceandplayeractivity;‘Introduction’,TheVideoGameTheory Reader,WolfandPerron(eds.),14–15. 9. TheVideoGameTheoryReader,53. 10. SeeAndrewMactavish,‘TechnologicalPleasure:ThePerformanceand NarrativeofTechnologyinHalf-LifeandotherHigh-TechComputer Games’,inKingandKrzywinska(eds.),ScreenPlay. 11. For more on the technical aspects of these processes see www. GameDev.net. 12. Forthedefinitiveaccountofthiskindofprocess,includingvideogames
239
240
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS
13.
14. 15.
16. 17. 18. 19.
20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28.
29. 30. 31. 32.
among a wider range of media, see Jay David Bolter and Richard Grusin,Remediation:UnderstandingNewMedia. ‘Great Game Graphics… Who Cares?’, Game Developer Conference (GDC), 2003, video accessed at www.gamasutra.com/ features/20030409/rubin_01.shtml. RulesofPlay,145. Foramoredetailedmodelofhownon-verbalcommunicationcanbe usedtoincreasetheexpressivityofgamecharacters,seeTomiKujapää and Tony Manninen, ‘Supporting Visual Elements of Non-Verbal Communication in Computer Game Avatars’, in Marinka Copier andJoostRaessens(eds.),LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearchConference, UtrechtUniversity,2003. ‘Storytelling in Computer Games’, in François Laramée (ed), Game DesignPerspectives,277. ‘GreatGameGraphics’. Ibid. ‘Game Graphics Beyond Realism: Then, Now, and Tomorrow’, in CopierandRaessens(eds.),LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearchConference, accompanyingCD-Rom,UtrechtUniversity,2003. We are grateful to David Bessell for his advice on the use of sound effectsprocessinginthegame. TriggerHappy:TheInnerLifeofVideogames,65–6. DesigningVirtualWorlds,240. Forafulleraccountofthisprocess,seeRollingsandAdams,258–9. Ibid.371. Ibid.396. Ibid.383. TheNatureofComputerGames:PlayasSemiosis,3–6,20. See Olli Sotamaa, ‘All the World’s a Botfighter Stage: Notes on Location-basedMulti-UserGaming’,inFransMäyrä(ed.),Computer GamesandDigitalCultures. See Geoff King, Spectacular Narratives: Hollywood in the Age of the Blockbuster,Chapter4. Accessedviawww.gamespot.com. KnowingAudiences:JudgeDredd,It’sFriends,FansandFoes,146. On the role of such effects as indicators of presence in games,VR andothermedia,seeMatthewLombardandTheresaDitton,‘Atthe
NOTES
33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38.
HeartofItAll:TheConceptofPresence’,sectiontitled‘TheEffectsof Presence’. Man,PlayandGames,23. Ibid.23. ChrisCrawfordonGameDesign,62. Ibid.66–7. Forausefulaccountofthelatter,relationtoHollywoodcinema,see RichardDyer,OnlyEntertainment. Formoreonsuspenseingames,seeAaronSmutsandJonathanFrome, ‘Helpless Spectators: Generating Suspense inVideogames and Film’, TextTechnology,forthcoming.
CHAPTER 4 1. By ideology here, we mean meanings at the social or cultural level that have specifically political implications, often taking the form of presenting particular meanings that favour particular socialeconomicgroupsasiftheywereofmoregeneral,universalor‘natural’ provenance. 2. Availableatwww.newsgaming.com. 3. Availableatunderash.net. 4. See‘Special Notice’ on the game’s web pages, at www.specialforce. net/english/important/htm. 5. TomLoftus,‘Godintheconsole:Lookingforreligioninvideogames’, MSNBC News, 20 August 2003, accessed at www.msnbc.com/ news/954674.asp?Osi=-&cp1=1. 6. SeeWalterHolland,HenryJenkins,KurtSquire,‘TheorybyDesign’, inMarkWolfandBernardPerron,TheVideoGameTheoryReader,27. Games-to-Teach has since been replaced by the Education Arcade project(www.educationarcade.org). 7. SeeJamesPaulGee,WhatVideoGamesHavetoTeachUsAboutLearning andLiteracy. 8. Forabriefoutlineofsomesuchdifferences,seeAndreasLange,‘Report fromthePALZone:EuropeanGamesCulture’,inLucienKing(ed.), GameOn. 9. Foraverysimilarreading,seeBarryAtkins,MorethanaGame,61. 10. Ibid.59. 11. Ibid.
241
242
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS 12.
13. 14.
15.
16. 17.
18. 19. 20. 21.
22. 23. 24. 25.
26.
‘ATouch of Medieval: Narrative, Magic and ComputerTechnology in Massively Multi-player Computer Role-Playing Games’, in Frans Mäyrä(ed.),ComputerGamesandDigitalCultures:ConferenceProceedings, 258. Ibid.259. Umberto Eco quoted in Christopher Frayling, Strange Landscapes: A JourneyThrough the MiddleAges, 179. Eco lists a number of other categoriesbutthesetwoapplymostpertinentlytotheneo-medieval ingames. For indicative interviews with gamers of neo-medieval paper-based D&Dgamesthatsupportthisclaim,seeGaryAlanFine,SharedFantasy: Role-PlayingGamesasSocialWorlds. EcoinFrayling,7. Theextenttowhichsuchfiguresdominategamescanbeoverstated, however.Acontentanalysisstudyof130gamesbyJeffreyBrand,Scott KnightandJakubMajewskiin2002foundthatonly10percenthad characters with unrealistic, hyper-masculine or sexualized bodies, 80 percentofwhichweremale;‘TheDiverseWorldsofComputerGames: AContentAnalysisofSpaces,Populations,StylesandNarratives’,in Marinka Copier and Joost Raessens (eds.), Level Up: Digital Games Research Conference, Utrecht University, 2003, accompanying CDROM,10. SusanJeffords,TheRemasculinizationofAmerica. Formoreonthisaspectoftheseandothergames,seeSheriGraner Ray,GenderInclusiveGameDesign:ExpandingtheMarket,19–20. Ray,GenderInclusiveGameDesign,23–5. HelenW. Kennedy,‘Lara Croft: Feminist Icon or Cyberbimbo?: On theLimitsofTextualAnalysis’,GameStudies,vol.2,issue2,December 2002,2;accessedatwww.gamestudies.org/0202/kennedy. DianeCarr,‘PlayingLara’,inKingandKrzywinska(eds.),ScreenPlay, 178. Carr,‘PlayingLara’,171. RichardDyer,White,2. DonaldBogle,Toms,Coons,Mulattoes,MammiesandBucks:AnInterpretive History of Blacks inAmerican Films; Frantz Fanon, Black Skin,White Masks. Thefirstgametoofferachoiceofavatargenderandrace,according
NOTES
27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33.
34.
35. 36. 37.
38.
39.
40.
toRay,wasUltimaVIIPartTwo,TheSerpentIsle;GenderInclusiveGame Design,27. SueMorris,personalcommunication. HamletontheHolodeck,89. ChrisCrawfordonGameDesign,383–94. ‘TheMicroserfsareRevolting:SidMeier’sCivilizationII’,BadSubjects, 45,October1999,accessedateserver.org/bs/45/stephenson.html. ‘TheMicroserfsareRevolting’. AndrewRollingsandErnestAdamsonGameDesign,324. For an account that makes some direct connections between games and colonial-era American mythology, see Mary Fuller and Henry Jenkins,‘Nintendo and NewWorldTravelWriting:A Dialogue’, in StevenJones(ed.),Cybersociety:Computer-MediatedCommunicationand Community. Among other writings about the game, see the account in Stephen Kline,NickDyer-WithefordandGreigDePeuter,DigitalPlay,275–9, andMiguelSicart,‘FamilyValues:Ideology,ComputerGames&The Sims’,inCopierandRaessens(eds.),LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearch Conference,UtrechtUniversity,2003,accompanyingCD-ROM. ‘FamilyValues’,8–9. ChrisCrawfordonGameDesign,402. ‘VirtualReal(i)ty:SimCityandtheProductionofUrbanCyberspace’, Game Research, July 2002, accessed at www.game-research.com/art_ simcity.asp. LouisAlthusser,‘IdeologyandIdeologicalStateApparatuses’,inLenin andPhilosophyandOtherEssays,170–76.Althusser’sapproachhasbeen widely criticized, both within and outside Marxist-oriented critical circles, especially for the absolute nature of the determining power attributedtoideology,fromwhichnofreedomisallowedotherthan foraMarxismcharacterizedas‘science’.Hisconceptofinterpellation isusedhereforitsbroaderandmoresuggestivequalities,ratherthanin quitesuchrestrictiveterms. Anotherareainwhichthisapproachhasbeencontroversial,usedby someinamannerthatexaggeratesthecapacityofanysuchmedium fundamentally to ‘position’ or ‘shape’ the viewer, rather than to contributetoabroaderrangeofinfluences. BlackHawkDown,‘OfficialManual’suppliedwiththegame,31.
243
244
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS 41.
42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48.
49. 50. 51.
52. 53.
54. 55. 56.
Shenja van der Graaf and David Nieborg, ‘Together We Brand: America’sArmy’,inMarinkaCopierandJoostRaessens(eds.),Level Up:DigitalGamesResearchConference,UtrechtUniversity,2003. Ibid.329. Virtuous War: Mapping the Military-Industrial-Media-Entertainment Network,14. Ibid.164. Ibid.15. Thenow-classicsourceisBaudrillard’sSimulations. Grossman,OnKillingand,withGloriaDeGaetano,StopTeachingOur KidstoKill:ACalltoActionAgainstTV,Movie&VideoGameViolence. Foranextremelycogentanalysisofthevariousfactorsinvolvedinacase suchastheColumbineHighSchoolshootingsinLittleton,Colorado, oneofthekeyreferencepointsinrecentdebateaboutviolentgame ‘effects’, see the testimony provided by Henry Jenkins to the US Senate Commerce Committee which considered the issue in May 1999,availableatwww.senate.gov/~commerce/hearings/0504jen.pdf. OnKilling,113. For useful critical commentary, see Martin Barker and Julian Petley (eds.),IllEffects:TheMedia/ViolenceDebate. Gerard Jones, in Killing Monsters:Why Children Need Fantasy, SuperHeroes,andMake-BelieveViolence,arguesthatchildhoodplayinvolving gunsorotherweaponsiswidespread,childreninallculturesdeveloping fantasiesofprojectingdestructivepoweracrossspacetoknockdown large opponents as part of their ways of imaginatively dealing with anxietyordisempowerment;48. ‘ViolenceandthePoliticalLifeofVideogames’,inLucienKing(ed.), GameOn,27. ‘It’s no videogame: news commentary and the second gulf war’, in CopierandRaessens(eds.),LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearchConference, UtrechtUniversity,2003. TheBFG(bigfuckinggun)isthebiggestandmostpowerfulweapon availableintheDoomandQuakegames. KillingMonsters,11. Asimilarargument,inrelationtochildren’sdevelopingsenseofwhatis andisnot‘real’,ismadeinrelationtotelevisionprogrammingbyRobert HodgeandDavidTripp,ChildrenandTelevision:ASemioticApproach.
NOTES 57.
58. 59.
60. 61. 62. 63.
64. 65.
66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74.
KillingMonsters,101.BrunoBettelheim’sTheUsesofEnchantmentand Melanie Klein’s work on children’s play reach similar conclusions. Bettelheim argues that fairy tales offer children scenarios through whichtheycanprojecttheirownconflicts–repressedorotherwise – with parents and siblings. Klein found that very young children symbolized latent resentments and aggressions in their imaginative play.Inanessayonplay,Bettelheimmakesanargumentverysimilar tothatofJones,suggestingthatchildrencanworkthroughandmaster difficultiesandanxietiesthroughplayandthatparentalconcernabout shootinggamesisafunctionmoreofadultanxietiesaboutaggression thananythingdirectlyrelatedtotheexperienceprovidedtochildren (‘TheImportanceofPlay’). KillingMonsters,142. ‘IdeologyandInterpellationintheFirst-PersonShooter’,inRonald Strickland(ed.),GrowingUpPostmodern:NeoliberalismandtheWaronthe Young. Ibid.114. Ibid.117. Sutton-Smith,ToysasCulture,64–7. ‘The Experience of Information in Computer Games’, DigitalArts andCulturesconference,Melbourne,2003,accessedathypertext.rmit. edu.au/dac/papers/. ‘CivilizationandItsDiscontents:Simulation,Subjectivity,andSpace, accessedatwww.duke.edu/~tlove/civ.htm. ‘TheIdeologyofInteractivity(or,VideoGamesandtheTaylorizationof Leisure)’,inMarinkaCopierandJoostRaessens(eds.),LevelUp:Digital Games Research Conference, Utrecht University, 2003, accompanying CD-ROM,10. ‘TheIdeologyofInteractivity’,6. DigitalPlay. Ibid.85–90. GaryAlanFine,SharedFantasy. DigitalPlay,91. Ibid.130. Ibid.133. Ibid.134. Ibid.250.
245
246
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS 75.
76. 77. 78. 79. 80. 81.
82. 83. 84.
85.
86. 87.
Ibid.251;ontheissueoftheeaseofdevelopingviolentgames,seealso CeliaPearce,‘BeyondShootYourFriends:ACalltoArmsintheBattle AgainstViolence’,inClarkDodsworth(ed.),DigitalIllusion:Entertaining theFuturewithHighTechnology. ‘BeyondShootYourFriends’,211. Ibid.215–16. StevenKent,TheUltimateHistoryofVideoGames,141. ‘BeyondShootYourFriends’,214. GenderInclusiveGameDesign,42. Ray relates many of these differences to earlier human cultures, includingfamiliarargumentsabouttheneedsofmalesas‘hunters’as opposedtotherolesofwomenaschild-bearersandnurturers.Howfar anysuchdifferencesmightberootedinnotionsof‘primordial’human gender-roles, or might be the outcome of more specific, arbitrary or more recent cultural constructions, reinforced through process of socialization,remainssubjecttomuchdebate. GenderInclusiveGameDesign,54. Ibid.68–9. SeeYasminKafai,‘VideoGameDesignsbyGirlsandBoys:Variability andConsistencyofGenderDifferences’,inJustineCassellandHenry Jenkins (eds.), From Barbie to Mortal Kombat: Gender and Computer Games, 92–3. For further consideration of gaming qualities likely to appealtofemaleplayers,seeCorneliaBrunner,DorothyBennettand MargaretHoney,‘GirlGamesandTechnologicalDesire’,inCasselland Jenkins. In a small-scale study byAphra Kerr, women players listed sportsandracingtitlesaswellasGrandTheftAutoIII,conventionally seenasmale-oriented,amongtheirfavouritetitles;‘WomenJustWant toHaveFun–AStudyofAdultFemalePlayersofDigitalGames’,in Marinka Copier and Joost Raessens (eds.), Level Up: Digital Games ResearchConference,UtrechtUniversity,2003. Kaveri Subrahmanyam and Patricia Greenfield, ‘Computer Games forGirls:WhatMakesThemPlay?’,inCassellandJenkins(eds.),From BarbietoMortalKombat,48. ‘ComputerGamesforGirls’,65. Justine Cassell and Henry Jenkins,‘Chess for Girls? Feminism and ComputerGames’,inCassellandJenkins(eds.),FromBarbietoMortal Kombat,14–5.
NOTES 88. 89. 90.
91. 92. 93. 94.
95. 96. 97. 98. 99.
CassellandJenkins,‘ChessforGirls’,16–7. ‘An Interview with Brenda Laurel (Purple Moon)’, in Cassell and Jenkins(eds.),FromBarbietoMortalKombat,124. Studiessuchasthesetendtousea‘contentanalysis’methodology,in whichfixedelementsofcontentarecountedandtabulated,ratherthan includinganyconsiderationofgameplayactivitiesthemselves.Foran example that focuses exclusively on cut-scenes, see Jeroen Jansz and Raynel G. Martis,‘The Representation of Gender and Ethnicity in Digital Interactive Games’, in Marinka Copier and Joost Raessens (eds.),LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearchConference,UtrechtUniversity, 2003.JanszandMartisarguethatintroductorycut-scenesprovide‘an adequatesummaryofthegame,itspurposeandcontent’(264),which wewouldargueissimplynotthecaseifafullunderstandingofgamesas gamesistobeachieved.Theyciteanumberofearlierexamplesofsuch studies,intwoofwhich,includingE.F.Provenzo’sVideoKids:Making Sense of Nintendo, the analytical data is limited to cover illustrations. The conclusions of these studies suggest a trend towards increasing numbers of female leading characters, to the point of equality with malecharactersinJanszandMartis. SaraM.Grimes‘“YouShootLikeaGirl”:TheFemaleProtagonistin Action-AdventureVideoGames’,6. CarolJ.Clover,Men,WomenandChainsaws:GenderintheModernHorror Film,51–64. Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman, Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals,560–2. SeeStephenson,‘TheMicroserfsareRevolting’,andSybilleLammes, ‘On the Border: Pleasure of Exploration and Colonial Mastery in CivilizationIII:PlaytheWorld’,inMarinkaCopierandJoostRaessens (eds.),LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearchConference,UtrechtUniversity, 2003. Lammes,‘OntheBorder’,128. RulesofPlay,562. Ibid. www.opensorcery.net/velvet-strike. Cindy Poremba,‘Patches of Peace:Tiny Signs ofAgency in Digital Games’,inCopierandRaessens(eds.),LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearch Conference,accompanyingCD-Rom,UtrechtUniversity,2003.
247
248
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS 100. 101. 102. 103. 104. 105. 106. 107. 108.
109. 110. 111. 112. 113.
114. 115. 116. 117. 118. 119. 120.
121.
Brad King and John Borland, Dungeons and Dreamers:The Rise of ComputerGameCulturefromGeektoChic,217. Seeescapefromwoomera.org. DigitalPlay,277. HomoLudens,12.Fortheclassicstudyofpopularsubculture,seeDick Hebdige,Subculture:TheMeaningofStyle. Fine,SharedFantasy,26. Forausefulstudyofsubculturalcapitalinadifferentarena,seeSarah Thornton,ClubCultures:Music,MediaandSubculturalCapital. SharedFantasy,123. Ibid.59–71. Forausefulgeneralaccountofthehistoryofthegamesbusiness,see SteveKent,TheUltimateHistoryofVideoGames;alsoseeKline,DyerWithefordandDePeuter,DigitalPlay. DigitalPlay,171. Ibid., Chapter 3; Morris-Suzuki, Beyond Computopia: Information, AutomationandDemocracyinJapan. SeeDigitalPlay,66–7,formoresourcesofthisanalysis. Brian Sutton-Smith suggests a similar reading of commerciallyproducedtoysmoregenerally;ToysasCulture,187–9. The concept of ‘post-Fordism’ has been contested, however, and subjecttomuchdebate,someofwhichissummarizedbyKline,DyerWithefordandDePeuter,62–6;itisbestusedinrelationtoparticular sectors of the economy (and, some would argue, the wider society) ratherthantosuggestwholesalechangeacrosstheboard. DigitalPlay,170. Ibid.171. DeanTakahashi,OpeningtheXbox,185. SeeDavidSheff,GameOver:Nintendo’sBattletoDominateVideogames. ‘DoIndependentGamesExist?’,inLucienKing(ed.),GameOn. ‘IndependentGameDevelopmentSIG’,www.igda.org/indie/. Formoredetailonhowthisprocessoperates,intheparticularcaseof thelaunchofNintendo’sNESintheUnitedStates,seeSheff,Game Over,151–2. On this and the following detail in relation to RealOne, see Brian Hook, ‘Indie Interview – David Nixon –The Real Deal’, IGDA website,www.igda.org/indie/interview_nixon.htm.
NOTES 122.
123.
124.
Foraradicalcallforsuchalternative,lower-costsourcesofdistribution, and a polemical critique of the existing games business, see ‘The ScratchwareManifesto’,availableatwww.the-underdogs.org/scratch. php. ‘Developers in Exile:Why Independent Game Development Needs anIsland’,DigitalArtsandCultureconference,Melbourne,May2003, accessedathypertext.rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/. ‘DevelopersinExile’,158.
249
Select Bibliography Note:multipleentriesfromeditedcollectionscitedinthenotesarenotgenerallyincluded inthisbibliography. Aarseth,Espen(1997)Cybertext:PerspectivesonErgodicLiterature.Baltimore:Johns HopkinsUniversityPress Aarseth, Espen (1998) ‘Allegories of Space: The Question of Spatiality in Computer Games’, available at www.hf.uib.no/hi/espen/papers/ space/ Aarseth,Espen(2003)‘PlayingResearch:MethodologicalApproachestoGame Analysis’,DigitalArtsandCultureconference,Melbourne,availableat hypertext.rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/ Adams,Ernest(2002)‘TheRoleofArchitectureinVideogames’,Gamasutra,9 October,availableatwww.gamasutra.com/features/20021009/adams_ 02.htm Adams, Ernest (2003) ‘The Designer’s Notebook: Defining the Physical DimensionofaGameSetting’,Gamasutra,30April,accessedatwww. gamasutra.com/features/20030430/adams_01.shtml Atkins,Barry(2003)MorethanaGame:TheComputerGameasFictionalForm. Manchester;NewYork:ManchesterUniversityPress Barker, Martin and Julian Petley (eds.), (2001) Ill Effects:The Media/Violence Debate.London:Routledge.2ndEdition Barthes,Roland(1975)S/Z.NewYork:HillandWang Bartle Richard (1996) ‘Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds, Spades: PlayersWho Suit Muds’,accessedatmud.co.uk/Richard/hcds.htm Bartle,Richard(2004)DesigningVirtualWorlds.Indianapolis:NewRiders Bateson,Gregory(2000)‘ATheoryofPlayandFantasy’,inStepstoanEcology
SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY of Mind: Collected Essays in Anthropology, Psychiatry, Evolution, and Epistemology.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress Bettelheim, Bruno (1987)‘The Importance of Play’, Atlantic Monthly, March, accessedviawww2.roguecc.edu/earlychild/pfarster/HDFS226/assignments/assign6.html Bolter, Jay David and Richard Grusin (2000) Remediation: Understanding New Media.Cambridge:MITPress Brunner,Cornelia,DorothyBennettandMargaretHoney(1998)‘GirlGames andTechnologicalDesire’,inJustineCassellandJenkins(eds.), From BarbietoMortalKombat:GenderandComputerGames.Cambridge:MIT Press Caillois, Roger (2001) Man, Play and Games. Urbana, Chicago: University of IllinoisPress Campbell,Joseph(1968)TheHerowithaThousandFaces.Princeton:Princeton UniversityPress,2ndEdition Carr,Diane(2002)‘PlayingLara’,inGeoffKingandTanyaKrzywinska(eds.), ScreenPlay:Cinema/Videogames/Interfaces.London;NewYork:Wallflower Press Carr, Diane (2003)‘Play Dead: Genre andAffect in Silent Hill and Planescape Torment’,GameStudies,vol.3,1,availableathttp:/www.gamestudies. org/0301/carr/ Carson,Don(2000)‘EnvironmentalStorytelling:CreatingImmersive3DWorlds UsingLessonsLearnedfromtheThemeParkIndustry’,Gamasutra,1 March,availableatwww.Gamasutra.com/features/20000301/Carson_ pfv.htm,2 Cassell,JustineandHenryJenkins(eds.),(1998)FromBarbietoMortalKombat: GenderandComputerGames.Cambridge:MITPress Cassell, Justine and Henry Jenkins (1998) ‘Chess for Girls? Feminism and ComputerGames’,inCassellandJenkins(eds.),FromBarbietoMortal Kombat:GenderandComputerGames.Cambridge:MITPress Copier, Marinka, and Joost Raessens (eds.), (2003), Level Up: Digital Games ResearchConference,UtrechtUniversityPress Craig, Lindley (2002) ‘The Gameplay Gestalt, Narrative, and Interactive Storytelling’,inFransMäyrä(ed.),ComputerGamesandDigitalCultures ConferenceProceedings.Tampere:TampereUniversityPress Crawford, Chris (2003) Chris Crawford on Game Design. Indianapolis: New RidersPublishing
251
252
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Crogan,Patrick(2003)‘TheExperienceofInformationinComputerGames’, DigitalArtsandCultureconference,Melbourne,availableathypertext. rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/ Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly (2002) Flow: The Classic Work on How to Achieve Happiness.London;Sydney;Auckland;Johannesburg:Rider Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly and Isabella Selega Csikszentmihalyi (eds.), (1988) Optimal Experience: Psychological Studies of Flow in Consciousness. Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress Der Derian, James (2001)VirtuousWar: Mapping the Military-Industrial-MediaEntertainmentNetwork.Boulder:WestviewPress Dodsworth,Clark(ed.),(1998)DigitalIllusion:EntertainingtheFuturewithHigh Technology.NewYork:ACMPress Dunniway,Troy (2000)‘Using the Hero’s Journey in Games’, Gamasutra, 27 November,availableatwww/gamasutra.com/features/20001127/htm /dunniway_01.htm Eskilinen,Markku(2001)‘TheGamingSituation’,GameStudies,vol.1,1,section 8,availableatwww.gamestudies.org/0101/eskilinen Fine, Gary Alan (1983) Shared Fantasy: Role-Playing Games as SocialWorlds. Chicago:ChicagoUniversityPress Flynn,Bernadette(2003)‘LanguagesofNavigationWithinComputerGames’, DigitalArtsandCultureconference,Melbourne,availableathypertext. rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/ Frasca, Gonzalo (2000) ‘Videogames of the Oppressed: Videogames as a Means for Critical Thinking and Debate’, Master’s thesis, Georgia InstituteofTechnology,availableatwww.jacaranda.org/frasca/thesis/ FrascaThesisVideogames.pdf Friedman, Ted (undated) ‘Civilization and Its Discontents: Simulation, Subjectivity,andSpace’,availableatwww.duke.edu/~tlove/civ.htm Fuller, Mary and Henry Jenkins (1994) ‘Nintendo and New World Travel Writing: A Dialogue’, in Steven Jones (ed.), Cybersociety: ComputerMediatedCommunicationandCommunity.London:Sage Gee,JamesPaul(2003)WhatVideoGamesHavetoTeachUsAboutLearningand Literacy.NewYork:Palgrave Grossman,Austin(ed.),(2003)PostmortemsfromGameDeveloper.SanFrancisco; NewYork;Lawrence:CMPBooks Grossman,Dave(1995)OnKilling,Boston:Little,Brown Grossman, Dave and Gloria DeGaetano (1999) StopTeaching our Kids to Kill:
SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY ACalltoActionagainstTV,MovieandVideoGameViolence.NewYork: Crown Hodge, Robert and David Tripp (1986) Children and Television: A Semiotic Approach.Cambridge:PolityPress Holland,Walter,HenryJenkins,KurtSquire(2003)‘TheorybyDesign’,inMark WolfandBernardPerron(eds.),TheVideoGameTheoryReader.New York;London:Routledge Huizinga,Johan(1955)HomoLudens:Astudyoftheplayelementinculture.Boston: TheBeaconPress Järvinen, Aki, Satu Heliö and Frans Mäyrä (2002) ‘Communication and Community in Digital Entertainment Services: Prestudy Research Report’,HypermediaLaboratoryNetSeries,2,UniversityofTampere HypermediaLaboratory,availableattampub.uta.fi/tup/951-44-54324.pdf Jenkins, Henry (1998)‘“Complete Freedom of Movement”:Video Games as GenderedPlaySpaces’,inJustineCassellandJenkins(eds.),FromBarbie toMortalKombat:GenderandComputerGames.Cambridge:MITPress Jenkins,Henry(undated)‘GameDesignasNarrativeArchitecture’,availableat web.mit.edu/21fms/www/faculty/henry3/games&narrative.html Jenkins,Henry(1999)‘TestimonybeforetheU.S.SenateCommerceCommittee’, availableatwww.senate.gov/~commerce/hearings/0504jen.pdf Jenkins,Henry(2001)‘TheGameasObjectofStudy’,GameCulturesconference, Bristol,question-and-answersession Jones,Gerard(2002)KillingMonsters:WhyChildrenNeedFantasy,Super-Heroes, andMake-BelieveViolence.NewYork:BasicBooks Juul, Jesper (2001) ‘GamesTelling Stories? – A Brief Note on Games and Narratives’,GameStudies,vol.1,1,accessedatgamestudies.org/0101/ juul-gts/ Juul,Jesper(2002)‘TheOpenandtheClosed:GamesofEmergenceandGames of Progression’, in Frans Mäyrä (ed.), Computer Games and Digital CulturesConferenceProceedings.Tampere:TampereUniversityPress Juul,Jesper(2003)‘TheGame,ThePlayer,TheWorld:LookingfortheHeart ofGameness’,inCopierandRaessens(eds.),LevelUp:DigitalGames ResearchConference.UtrechtUniversity Kennedy, Helen (2002)‘Lara Croft: Feminist Icon or Cyberbimbo?: On the LimitsofTextualAnalysis’,inGameStudies,vol.2,2,availableatwww. gamestudies.org/0202/kennedy
253
254
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Kent,StevenL.(2001)TheUltimateHistoryofVideoGames.California:Prima King,BradandJohnBorland(2003)DungeonsandDreamers:TheRiseofComputer GameCulturefromGeektoChic.Emeryville,California:McGrawHill/ Osbourne King,GeoffandTanyaKrzywinska(eds.),(2002)ScreenPlay:Cinema/Videogames/ Interfaces.London:WallflowerPress King, Lucien (ed.), (2002) Game On:The History and Culture ofVideogames. London:LaurenceKing. Klastrup, Lisbeth (2003)‘A Poetics ofVirtualWorlds’, DigitalArts and Culture conference,Melbourne,availableathypertext.rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/ Klevjer,Rune(2002)‘InDefenseofCutscenes’,inFransMäyrä(ed.),Computer Games and Digital Cultures Conference Proceedings. Tampere:Tampere UniversityPress Kline,Stephen,NickDyer-WithefordandGreigDePeuter(2003)DigitalPlay: TheInteractionofTechnology,CultureandMarketing.Montreal:McGillQueen’sUniversityPress Kücklich,Julian(undated)‘TheRoadLessTraveled–TheCaseforComputer GamePhilology’,availableatplayability.de/en/txt/cgpabs.html Kurtz,Andrew(2002)‘IdeologyandInterpellationintheFirst-PersonShooter’, inRonaldStrickland(ed.),GrowingUpPostmodern:Neoliberalismandthe WarontheYoung.Lanham:Rowman&Littlefield Landow,GeorgeP.(1997)Hypertext2.0:TheConvergenceofContemporaryCritical TheoryandTechnology.Baltimore:JohnsHopkinsUniversityPress Lange,Andreas(2002)‘ReportfromthePALZone:EuropeanGamesCulture’, inLucienKing(ed.),GameOn:TheHistoryandCultureofVideogames. London:LaurenceKing Laramée, François (ed.), (2002) Game Design Perspectives. Hingham: Charles River Littlejohn,Randy(2003)‘AgitatingforDramaticChange’,Gamasutra,29October, availableatwww.gamasutra.com/features/20031029/littlejohn_pfv.htm Littleton, Karen, P. Light, R. Joiner, D. Messer and P. Barnes (1998)‘Gender Task Scenarios and Children’s Computer-Based Problem Solving’, EducationalPsychology,vol.18,3 Lombard, Matthew andTheresa Ditton (1999)‘At the Heart of ItAll:The ConceptofPresence’,availableatwww.ascusc.org/gcmc/vol3/issue2/ Lombard.html Mactavish, Andrew (2002) ‘Technological Pleasure: The Performance and
SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY NarrativeofTechnologyinHalf-LifeandotherHigh-TechComputer Games’,inKingandKrzywinska(eds.),ScreenPlay:Cinema/Videogames/ Interfaces,London:WallflowerPress Mactavish, Andrew (2003) ‘Game Mod(ifying) Theory: The Cultural Contradictions of Computer Game Modding’, Power-Up: Computer Games,IdeologyandPlayconference,Bristol Mäyrä, Frans (ed.), (2002) Computer Games and Digital Cultures Conference Proceedings.Tampere:TampereUniversityPress McHoul, Alec (undated) ‘Cyberbeing and ~space’, available at wwwmcc. murdoch.edu.au/ReadingRoom/VID/cybersein.html McMahan,Alison(2003)‘Immersion,Engagement,andPresence:AMethodfor Analyzing3-DVideoGames’,inMarkWolfandBernardPerron(eds.), TheVideoGameTheoryReader.NewYork;London:Routledge Miklaucic, Shawn (2002) ‘Virtual Real(i)ty: SimCity and the Production of Urban Cyberspace’, Game Research, July, available at www.gameresearch.com/art_simcity.asp Molyneux,Peter(2003)‘LionheadStudios:BlackandWhite’,inAustinGrossman (ed.),PostmortemsfromGameDeveloper.SanFrancisco:CMPBooks Morris,Sue(2002)‘First-PersonShooters–AGameApparatus’,inGeoffKing andTanyaKrzywinska(eds.),ScreenPlay:Cinema/Videogames/Interfaces. London:WallflowerPress Morris-Suzuki, Tessa (1988) Beyond Computopia: Information, Automation and DemocracyinJapan.London:Routledge Murray,Janet(2001)HamletontheHolodeck:TheFutureofNarrativeinCyberspace. Cambridge:MITPress Murray,Janet(2003)‘WhatareGamesMadeof?’,inCopierandRaessens(eds.), LevelUp:DigitalGamesResearchConference,UtrechtUniversity Myers,David(2003)TheNatureofComputerGames:PlayasSemiosis.NewYork: PeterLang Oliver,Julian(2003)‘DevelopersinExile:WhyIndependentGameDevelopment Needs an Island’, Digital Arts and Culture conference, Melbourne, availableathypertext.rmit.edu.au/dac/papers/ Piaget,Jean(1962)Play,DreamsandImitationinChildhood.London:Routledge Poole,Steven(2000)TriggerHappy:TheInnerLifeofVideogames.London:Fourth Estate Provenzo,E.F.(1991)VideoKids:MakingSenseofNintendo.Cambridge:University ofHarvardPress
255
256
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Ray,SheriGraner(2004)GenderInclusiveGameDesign:ExpandingtheMarket. Hingham:CharlesRiver Rollings,AndrewandErnestAdams(2003)AndrewRollingsandErnestAdamson GameDesign.Indianapolis:NewRiders Rouse,Richard(2001)GameDesign:TheoryandPractice.Texas:Wordware Rubin,Jason(2003)‘GreatGameGraphics…WhoCares?’,GameDeveloper Conference (GDC), video available at www.gamasutra.com/ features/20030409/rubin_01.shtml Ryan,Marie-Laure(2001)NarrativeasVirtualReality:ImmersionandInteractivity inLiteratureandElectronicMedia.Baltimore:JohnsHopkinsUniversity Press Ryan,Marie-Laure(2001)‘BeyondMythandMetaphor–TheCaseofNarrative inDigitalMedia’,GameStudies,vol.1,1,availableatwww.gamestudies. org/0101/ryan/ Salen,KatieandEricZimmerman(2003)RulesofPlay:GameDesignFundamentals. Cambridge:MITPress Schroeder, Ralph (1996) PossibleWorlds:The Social Dynamic ofVirtual Reality Technology.Boulder:WestviewPress Sheff,David(1993)GameOver:Nintendo’sBattletoDominateVideogames.London: Hodder&Stoughton,abridgededition,1999 Sikora, Drew (2002)‘Storytelling in Computer Games’, in François Laramée (ed)GameDesignPerspectives.Hingham:CharlesRiver Stephenson, William (1999) ‘The Microserfs are Revolting: Sid Meier’s Civilization II’, Bad Subjects, 45, October, available at eserver.org/ bs/45/stephenson.html Suits,Bernard(1978)TheGrasshopper:Games,LifeandUtopia.Toronto:University ofTorontoPress/Boston:Nonpareil,1990 Sutton-Smith,Brian(1986)ToysasCulture.NewYork:GardnerPress Sutton-Smith, Brian (1997) The Ambiguity of Play. Cambridge: Harvard UniversityPress Takahashi,Dean(2002)OpeningtheXbox.Roseville:Prima Tanguay, Daniel and Brent Boylen (2002)‘Adapting Licensed Properties’, in François Laramée (ed.), Game Design Perspectives. Hingham: Charles River Thompson, Clive (2002)‘Violence and the Political Life ofVideogames’, in Lucien King (ed.), Game On:The History and Culture ofVideogames. London:LaurenceKing
SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY Vince,John(1998)EssentialVirtualRealityFast.London:Springer-Verlag Walker,Jill(2003)‘PerformingFictions:InteractionandDepiction’,DigitalArts and Culture conference, Melbourne, available at hypertext.rmit.edu. au/dac/papers/ Walton, Kendall (1993) Mimesis as Make-Believe: On the Foundations of the RepresentationalArts.Cambridge:HarvardUniversityPress Wolf, Mark (2002)‘Space in theVideo Game’, in Mark J. P. Wolf (ed.), The MediumoftheVideoGame.Austin:UniversityofTexasPress Wolf,MarkandBernardPerron(2003)(ed.)TheVideoGameTheoryReader.New York:Routledge Yates, Simeon and Karen Littleton (2001)‘Understanding Computer Game Culture: A Situated Approach’, in Eileen Green and Alison Adam (eds.), Virtual Gender:Technology, consumption and identity. NewYork: Routledge Zimmerman,Eric(2002)‘DoIndependentGamesExist?’,inLucienKing(ed.), Game On:The History and Culture ofVideogames. London: Laurence King.
257
Index
Aarseth,Espen,10,26,76–7 action-adventuregames(general),7, 14,24,26,30,35,40,43,49, 52,57,62,138,172,177, 188,212 ActuaGolf2,133,136 Adams,Ernest,80,82 ADog’sLife,157 Adventure,157 AgeofEmpires,25–6,96,146,187, 192 AgeofMythologies,154 Alienvs.Predator2,204 Althusser,Louis,197,206 AmericanMcGee’sAlice,31,78,81, 102,108,153,159 America’sArmy,199,217 Amplitude,149 AnarchyOnline,91 AnimalCrossing,32 AnimeNoir,218 arcadegames,2,7 Asheron’sCall,91,93,174 Asteroids,29 Atari,222
Atkins,Barry,39,114,174 Backlash,218 BalanceofthePlanet,190,194 Baldur’sGate,98,195 BarbieFashionDesigner,211 Barker,Martin,andKateBrooks,160 Barthes,Roland,57 Bartle,Richard,12,83,116–117,120, 121,144 Bateson,Gregory,19 Battlefield1942,199 Battlezone,199 Baudrillard,Jean,200 beat-‘em-upgames,16,32,77 BeyondGoodandEvil,165 BlackandWhite,24,41,87,98,195 BloodOmen2,58,176 BMXXXX,179–180,181 Bogle,Donald,184 Botfighters,152 BuffytheVampireSlayer,31,50,52–3, 58,72,85,138,180,181– 183,212–214,216 BuffytheVampireSlayer:ChaosBleeds,
INDEX 27,31,53,138,157,212– 213 BuffytheVampireSlayer:Wrathofthe DarkhulKing,52–3 Burnout2:PointofImpact,167
Crawford,Chris,33,42,65,124,128, 162,163,190 Crogan,Patrick,205,206 Csikszentmihalyi,Mihaly28–9,31–4, 37,68
Caillois,Roger9,10,11,19,28,48, 64,161,162,188 CallofDuty,165 Campbell,Joseph,49–50 Carmack,John,128 Carmageddon,59 Carr,Diane,181 Carson,Don,54,57 Catechumen,171 Centipede,127 cheats/cheating,17–18,35,65,68,90 Civilization,25,26,27,41,83,96,97, 98,189–190,191–192,193, 217 CivilizationII,191 CivilizationIII,12–3,218 CliveBarker’sUndying,57,80,108 CloseCombat,59 Clover,Carol,216 ColinMcRaeRallyseries,77,126 ColinMcRaeRally3,15 ColinMcRaeRally4,166 CommandandConquer,25–6,83 CommandandConquer:Generals,13–4, 27,60–65,68–71,73,97, 110,146,216 ComputerSpace,83 Conan,184 Consalvo,Mia,202 CoolBoarders,167 Cowie,Elizabeth,122
DeadorAlive:XtremeBeachVolleyball, 16,181,185,211 Defender,77,98 DeltaForce:BlackHawkDown,35,60– 1,66–73,83,184,198–199 DerDerian,James,200 Descent,164 DeusEx,17–8,174,186,189 DeusEx:InvisibleWar,185,186, 196–197 Dietrich,Sim,18 Dig,156,185 DinoCrisis,99–100 DonkeyKong,179 Doom,18,20–1,22,35,36,42,55–5, 90,142,161,166,173,177, 213,216 driving/racinggames,16,77,110, 137,146,147,150–151 Dragon’sLair,179 DukeNukem,178 DukeNukem:LandoftheBabes, 178–179 DungeonsandDragons,207 Dunniway,Troy,49 Dyer,Richard,184,185 Eco,Umberto,176–177 ‘effects’approaches,20,201 ElderScrollsIII,The:Morrowind,40,41, 86,92,103–6,118,122
259
260
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS empiricalstudyofgame-players,6 Enclave,175 EntertheMatrix,24,47,86,135 EroticaIsland,180 EscapefromWoomera,219 Eskelinen,Markku,39,64 EternalWars:ShadowofLight,171 EverQuest,7,11–12,14–5,17,28, 30,31,36,40,41,42,48, 49,56,81,84,87,91–4,96, 102,103,107,108,109,118, 120–121,122,139,140,153, 156,157,159,165,174,176, 183,186–187,189,192–193, 195–196,218,220,221–222 EverQuest2,139 exploration,2,3,4,14,24,40,76–97, 115–116,124,129,191,229 EyeToy:Play,113 Fanon,Frantz,184 fantasy,54,55,57,72,132,156,158, 202–203,219 FarCry,82,213 film/cinema,5,39,40,52,131,153, 159,165,183,212,223,226 FinalFantasy,135 Fine,GaryAlan,219,220,221 first-personperspectiveingames,4, 97,103–9,121–2,185,186 first-personshooter(general),8,14, 16,23–4,25,26,30,35, 42–3,57,60,66,71,78,162, 170–171,172,177,198–204 flightsimulation,13 Foucault,Michel,93 Frasca,Gonzalo,11,13,169
Freud,Sigmund,122 Friedman,Ted,205 FullSpectrumWarrior,199 gamecontrols/controllers,32–3, 110–112,114–115 gameplay,coredynamics/processes, 2–3,4,5,9–37,73–5,128, 130,143,168,172,187–219, 229 Garite,Matt,206 genderandgames/gameplay,74,108, 163,168,177–184,186,194, 207–217,227 genre,4,38,54–9,62,63,68,71,73, 76,117,124,129,168,229 Getaway,The,36,43,50,57,58,62–3, 64,68,83,85,88,89,94–5, 99,117,131,145,158,160– 161,162,173 golfgames,131–134,136,137, 147–149 GrandTheftAutoIII,15,57,84,85,89, 94–5,131,166,180,202 GrandTheftAuto:ViceCity,15–6,84, 85,89,95,100,102–3,106, 131,166 Grossman,Dave,200–201 GroundControl,24 Half-Life,14,43–4,45,55–6,62–3,64, 68,78,81,82,96,109,119, 159,166,173–174,186,219 Half-Life:BlueShift,48 Half-Life:Counterstrike,18–9,218 Halo,35,59,85,89,109,135,153, 156,177,183
INDEX hapticfeedback,109–111,210 Heidegger,Martin,114 horror,54,55,57,58,79,80,90–1, 156,158,164,215–216 HouseoftheDead,The,78 HouseoftheDeadIII,166,216 Howland,Geoff,23,31 Huizinga,Johan,9,19,26,28,33, 219 Hulk,The,113 Ico,179 immersivequalitiesofgames(seealso ‘presenceingame-worlds’), 24–37,118–122,161,167 independentor‘indie’games,226–227 industry,3,6,126–127,128,207–209, 222–228 InMemoriam,152 interpellation,197–198,205–206 isometricperspective,97–8 Järvinen,Aki,SatuHeliöandFrans Mäyrä,11 Jeffords,Susan,178 Jenkins,Henry,39,41,51–2,54,96 Joiner,David,41 Jones,Gerard,203–4 Juul,Jesper,17,40,51,79,114
andGreigDePeuter,207– 209,219,223–224 Konzack,Lars,74 Kücklich,Julian,45,46,54,57 Kuma\Wargames,70–1 Kurtz,Andew,205 Lacan,Jacques,197 Lankoski,Petri,andSatuHeliö,57 Landow,George,38 Laramée,François,28,36 Laurel,Brenda,211 LegacyofKain:SoulReaver,80,89 LegendsofZelda:OcarinaofTime,144 Lindley,Craig,23,46–7,73 linearperspective,97,101–2 Links2003,147 Links2004,131,133–134,136,148, 150,185–186 Littlejohn,Randy,39 Lombard,Matthew,andTheresa Ditton,118 LordoftheRings,The:TheTwoTowers, 12,78–9,135,175,176,178 LosDisneys,218 ludus,10,13–4,16,29,31,81,166, 206,216
Mactavish,Andrew,18 Manhunt,86,135,165,166 Kaplan,Cora,122 MarathonInfinity,218 Kennedy,Helen,181 MarineDoom,20,199 Kingpin:LifeofCrime,202 massivelymultiplayeronlinerole-playKing’sQuestIV:Rosella’sPeril,179 inggames(MMORPGs), Klastrup,Lisbeth,42,120 7,11–12,17,26,28,30,32, Klevjer,Rune,45,57 34,42,47,56,84,91–9,161, Kline,Stephen,NickDyer-Witheford 217–218,221–222
261
262
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS Masuch,Maic,andNiklasRöber,141 MaxPayne,14,24,43,50,57,58,68, 134–135,139,144–145,153, 158,160,166,173,177 MaxPayne2:TheFallofMaxPayne, 85,102,134,139,142–143, 145 McHoul,Alec,114,117,148 McMahan,Alison,118 MedalofHonorseries,78,165 MedalofHonor:AlliedAssault,21,22, 35,145,146,164 medievalism/neo-medieval,174–177, 195 Merleau-Ponty,Maurice,114 MetroidPrime,109 Microsoft,3,208,222,223,224–225 Miklaucic,Shawn,195 MilitaryBattlezone,199 militarytrainingsimulations,20, 199–201 modality,19–22,61,198 mods(modifications),18,218–219, 227 Molyneux,Peter,39,41 Morris-Suzuki,Tessa,223 MortalKombat,32,166,208 Mosqueira,Joshua,55,56 Ms.Pac-Man,179 Murray,Janet,10,39,48–9,50,54,57, 64,91,190 Myers,David,65,151 Myst,84,98,129,159 narrative,4,5,8,38–54,59,65,68,76, 79,124,128,129,140,168, 210,213,229
NeedforSpeed:HotPursuit2,167 Nintendo,222,223,224,225 OutlawGolf,148–149 Pac-Man,65,74,77,98,209 paidea,10–11,13–4,16,29,81,88, 119,166,206,216 Pearce,Celia,209 Phantasmagoria,98 PhantomMenace,The,72 Piaget,Jean,11,28 play,generaltheoriesof,9–11 Pong,77,149,179 Poole,Steven,144 Postal,202 post-Fordism,224 presenceingame-worlds,4,28,76, 77,97–123 Primal,12,44,45,49,50,53,81,84, 90,111,143,157,158,180, 181–183,212–214,216 PrinceofPersia:SandsofTime,100, 137,140,154–155,161,178 Propp,Vladimir,50 Quake,17,31,42,80,166,173,216– 217,218 QuakeII,81,112 QuakeIII,227 QuakeIIIArena,159 race/ethnicityingames,184–187 Ray,SheriGraner,209–210,211 realism,general,3,4,124–125,125– 152,229 functionalrealism,4,21,
INDEX 125,143–152,198–199 graphicalrealism,4,5,21, 125,125–141 RedFaction,143–144 ResidentEvil,36,58,90,91,99–100, 126,215–216 ReturntoCastleWolfenstein,22,24, 59 Rez,78,110,149,153,164–165 Robinett,Warren,156 Robotron,127 Rockett’sNewSchool,211 role-playinggames(general),24,27– 8,40,41–2,49,91–4,177, 186–187,189,219 Rollings,Andrew,andErnestAdams, 127,150,151,191 Rouse,Richard,44 Rubin,Jason,137,141 rulesvs.freedomingames,10–19, 81,90 Ryan,Marie-Laure,31,48,119 Salen,Katie,andEricZimmerman, 10,19,23,137,218 Schilipp,Jonathon,36 sciencefiction,19,20,54,55–6,57, 58,72,132,156,173–174 Sega,208,222 sensation/intensityingames,4,124– 125,159–165,197,229 September12,169 Sicart,Miguel,194 Sikora,Drew,140 SilentHill,35,36,80,90,158,216 SilentHill2,58,82,82,84,85,86, 109,163
SilentHill3,215 SimCity,97,98,120,165,209 SimCity4,98,194–195 Sims,The,41,193–194,209,218,219, 223 social/culturalandpolitical/ ideologicalcontexts,3,4, 5,8,20,37,38,59–75,129, 168–228,229 backgroundcontextual material,5,172–187 ingameplay,5,187–219 SoldierofFortune,145–146,165 Solitaire,12 Sony,3,208,222,223,225 sound,86,107–8,124,141–143, 163–164,229 SpaceChannel5,110,216 SpaceInvaders,1,2,29,65,113,156 Spacewar,151 SpecialForce,170–171,207,218 spectacle,4,124–125,152–159 Spellforce:OrderoftheDawn,154 SpiderMan,113 sportsgames,16,131–134,147–149 SpyrotheDragon,89 StarFox,78 StarTrek,72 StarWars,51,53–4,72 StarWarsGalaxies,53–4,91 StateofEmergency,16,196 Stern,Eddo,93,174–175 strategygames,general,23,24,25,27, 28,30,32,41,162,187 real-time,8,25–6,60 turn-based,26,27 Stephenson,William,191
263
264
TOMB RAIDERS AND SPACE INVADERS sub-culture,220–222,226 Subrahmanyam,Kaveri,andPatricia Greenfield,211 Suits,Bernard,10,19 Supercharged!,171 SuperGloveBall,112 SuperMarioBrothers,77 SuperMonkeyBall,78,79 Sutton-Smith,Brian,20,22,29,37, 205 Tanguay,Daniel,andBrentBoylen, 52 Tekken,32 television,52,136,149,153,183,212 Tempest,218 Tetris,39,64–5,77,209 Thief,137 Thing,The,43,45,54,55,82,91,99, 166,188–189 third-personperspectiveingames,4, 97,98–107,108–9,121–122 Thompson,Clive,202 TigerWoods,148 TimeSplitters2,108 TombRaiderseries,2–3,27,30,31,47, 49,80,81–2,83,85,89,100, 126,138,153,174,181,191 TombRaiderIII,89,144 TombRaider:AngelofDarkness,2,84, 127,182 TomClancy’sSplinterCell,101–2, 107–8,110–111
TonyHawk’sProSkater,167 Topspin,147,149 Tron2.0,157 Tropico,195 UltimaOnline,93,174 UnderAsh,170,207,218 Unreal,159 UnrealII,58,80–1,82,83,85,87,107, 108,139,156,163–164,185 UnrealTournament,159 Uplink,115,152 Uru:AgesBeyondMyst,183 Vietcong,24,86,88,109,184 violenceingames,141,169,189, 197–204,207–209 virtualreality(VR),111–114 VirtualValerie,180 Vogler,Christopher,50 war/militarygames,21–2,59,60–73, 145,146,151,165 WaroftheRing,78,195 Watson,Kendall,121 WhereintheWorldisCarmenSan Diego,179 Wolfenstein3D,22,103,161 Wolf,Mark,129 WorldClassLeaderboard,131,132 Zimmerman,Eric,226