Great Games and What Makes Them Great.

To bring the semester to a close, I have decided to do a custom blog that correlates to my work on the final group project game.

1.      Mario Kart – Nintendo 64      

Mario Kart is successful for many reasons. The game has very few buttons and anyone can pick up a controller and successfully navigate through a course. The courses are grouped by category from easiest to hardest. This allows users to select the difficulty of the game. If that’s not enough, users can select different handicap levels to even out the game. The game allows up to four people to engage in the game at once, and the face-to-face competition is extremely fun. The game’s pace is very fast so if there are more than four people, players can swap in and out quickly. My group’s final project game will also be fast-paced and face-to-face which will encourage lots of people to engage.

2.      Capture the Flag – Real Life and in tons of video games.

Call of Duty - CTF

Capture the flag, or CTF, can be played in real life or in video games like Call of Duty and Halo. The rules of the game do not change from platform to platform; everyone knows how to play capture the flag, and that simplicity allows all sorts of people to engage. Though the rules are simple, CTF can involve a great deal of strategy and split-second decisions. Routes can be mapped out, hiding spots discovered, and quick adjustments and quick thinking always are useful when either capturing or defending the flag. Our game, Directioner, will force players to think quickly as rounds are timed and points are at stake.

3.      2048 – Smartphone or Tablet App

2048 only has three rules that anyone can pick up, even if they ignore the game’s first instructions. The game’s pace is dictated by the user. One can play slowly and calculate every move, or one can play impulsively and still reach success. I prefer to play quickly, only making extremely calculated moves in the game’s later stages. The game entices players to keep trying to reach the number 2048 by recording their high score. Even if one isn’t close to winning, if they are about to set a personal record, they will be inspired to keep trying. 2048’s pace is similar to our game because with speed comes risk: quickly rushing through Directioner cards may result in someone uttering a banned word and losing points. If the Directioner decides to take their time in order to avoid error, they will not be able to read as many cards as desired. The choice 2048 forces users to make will also be at play in our final project game, Directioner.

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Blog Post 9 - Photography = Art?

In class, we have discussed whether photographs are considered art. Some of my classmates stated they believe for something to be art, it simply must evoke emotion. That definition does not make complete sense to me, though emotion is a key element in determining art. If I get socked in the face, I'll have an emotional response, likely embarrassment, anger, or sadness, but the jab isn't a piece of art. Different emotions would arise from different contexts; if the punch came from a stranger, I'd likely be mad, if I knew I deserved it, I'd probably be sad, and if it were to occur in public, I'd be embarrassed. The consideration of photography as art applies to the same rule of context. If one takes family photos, they're not going to be considered art, unless possibly effects were added such as blurring the image or changing color tones. If a picture of a sailor kissing his lady is taken (and you all know what image I'm referring to), it's going to be considered art. But was it at the time? It's all about the context when determining whether a photograph is art. Likely any photo created by a disposable camera is not going to be art. This type of image would be defined by Ian Bogost as a snapshot, a term which he reminds us is derived from hunting and shooting at the hip (Bogost 70). Context is everything in any type of medium. For example, I'd provide a works cited at the end of this post if not for the context of our class, in which we all know who Bogost is and what book I am referring to. What is interesting about photos is that when and where they're viewed, in part and in coordination with the viewer, determines the context. Bogost reminds us, "Photography doesn't make such a distinction; a camera can just as easily take a landscape as a portrait" (Bogost 72). If a photo is of a landscape, and your friend is showing it to you in a slide show of their vacation, you will view it differently than if it's on the wall of a museum. Context is everything in determining whether a photograph is art or just a photo.

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