See also: grading rubric
Craft a careful analysis of a video game. You should choose a game
you're familiar with or the game you are playing for this course. Your
argument should explore the game's semiotic domain, examining key
elements and making an argument about the game's place in our cultural
milieu.
In the first few weeks of the course, we have encountered a number
of different approaches to games that focus on 'readings' drawing
mostly from the semiotic domains of gaming and critical theory. Mia
Consalvo's “It's a Queer World After All” examined
elements from The Sims to
craft an argument about how the people-simulator allows for
expressions of non-hetero sexual attractions and perspectives. Mark
Wolf used the notion of "abstraction" to explore how the trend toward
realism has affected games. Finally, Julian Dibbell used a
close-reading of the “Mr.Bungle affair” to examine the
nature of community and violence in electronic environments. Each of
these articles, along with the other articles we have read and will
read before this project is due, gives you insight into how to analyze
games.
Goals of the project:
- Explore the process of game analysis, using semiotic strategies to focus on specific examples from your game.
- Make an argument about the game's relationship to culture or vice versa.
- Craft a careful, thoughtful essay.
Tips for the project (Do these things):
- Think through your argument before you begin. Decide what you're
going to argue (your thesis statement) and plan out a path that will
allow you to prove your argument. (Please note that an outline and a
rough draft are both due as part of this project.)
- Start early—good writing is a time-consuming process.
- Use appropriate academic language and style.
- Use the articles we've read as models for how to conduct game analysis.
- Use citations for any quotes you use (though you shouldn't be using many).
- Go to the Writing Center for extra help on your paper (5% bonus!)
Cautions as you work on the project (Don't do these things):
- Don't do outside research. I want to read your ideas about the game, so you
shouldn't be doing research about what other people have said. If
you draw ideas from course texts or other places, of course, you
must cite them (see below).
- Don't plagiarize. You
should be producing all the ideas and writing for this project. If
you borrow text from anywhere else, indicate that you have done so
with quotes and a works cited page.
- Don't wait until the last minute to work on this project.
- Don't summarize the game. While a short paragraph is okay to
give the reader a sense of what the game is about, you should be
using examples from the game to prove your points, not summarizing
it.
- Don't review the game. I don't care whether it's a good game or not.
Nitty Gritty:
- MLA Format (12 point font, double-spaced, stapled, works cited list)
- 1000-1200 words (4 full pages or so). You may go up to five
full pages (or around 1500 words), but I don't want to see fewer
than 1000 words.
- Outline due 28 February
- Rough Draft due 7 March
- Final Draft due 14 March
Some ideas to get you started:
- Denotation, Connotation, Myth: Remember the exercise we used at
the beginning of the term to think about how images carried symbolic
meanings? Use that exercise with several screenshots to help think of
an argument for your game. For example, the "eastern European"
feeling we found in Half-Life 2 might lead you to write about how HL2
generates a feeling of fascism through its level design.
- Symbol brainstorm: Another key method for developing ideas is to
do a symbol brainstorm. Think about every significant object in the
game you're investigating. What might those symbols tell you about
the relationships between characters? What might the message of the
game be?
- Social analysis: you can examine how the game depicts a group
or an element of our society. The challenge of this analysis is to
avoid becoming stereotypical - be sure you're reading the game
rather than your own biases.
- Think up your own cool idea and run it by me.
Off limits: Due to an
overwhelming number of papers last semester exploring these games, I
am placing Fable and the Grand Theft Auto series off
limits for this assignment.
