Power Up

The Play Research Group, UWE, Bristol
studying the technologies and cultures of games and play

John Paul Bichard has an exhibition called The White Room at the Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne from 16th October - 5th December 2004- "a set of photographic prints resulting from an in-game photo shoot that documents a series of constructed disasters".

http://www.hydropia.org/middle04.htm

posted by: sethgiddings at 22:01 | link | comments |

Gaming: Inspired

Sun 31 Oct 1500hrs Waterside 2, Watershed Centre, Bristol.

"This curated programme will focus on the influence of video games on the fundamental language of cinema and music video, highlighting the best short-form work. Presented by PlayStation".

part of Resfest
http://www.watershed.co.uk/exhibition/cinema/films/gaming.html

posted by: sethgiddings at 21:38 | link | comments |

Exhibition of political videogames at the Curzon Cinema in Soho, until Nov 6th.

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.thecorporation.com/videogames.php

posted by: sethgiddings at 21:33 | link | comments |

http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/games/

posted by: sethgiddings at 21:26 | link | comments |

FemPTheoryQueer-aoir.org -- Feminists, Postcolonial Theorists, and Queers Doing Internet Research

http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/femptheoryqueer-aoir.org

"This list is available to all the academics, activists, technologists, and other individuals who are interested in considering how feminist, postcolonial, and queer issues and methods can assist us in understanding the Internet, related cultures, and computer technologies.

Current concerns include the politics of Internet research; continuing to develop Internet research methods and practices; communicating with individuals in related fields; mentoring among women, people of color, and queers in the Internet research areas; developing bibliographies and syllabi; communicating about teaching issues; increasing our visibility in keynotes and other positions of honor; and academic hiring and promotion practices. We intend to address the ways that our research relates to Internet and new media studies scholarship and the significant work in women and gender studies, critical race studies, postcolonial theory, gay and lesbian studies, and queer theory. "

posted by: sethgiddings at 21:24 | link | comments |

In response to Adam's post below I'm going to stomp right into the minefield.

It all depends on what we mean by 'simulation'. Its technical sense -as a particular kind of digital software (though with its origins in non-digital form - e.g. graphs of possible missile trajectories in WWI), ‘a mathematical or algorithmic model, combined with a set of initial conditions, that allows prediction and visualisation as time unfolds’ (Prensky 2001: 211) - can't be ignored in the study of videogames.

What simulation means as a form of popular media of course goes beyond the technical. A number of people have explored the distinction between simulation and representation (Adam - is your term 'theme' analogous to the representational or imitative here?) (Woolley 1992, Lister et al 2003: 112-115, Kennedy and Giddings (forthcoming), Frasca 2001). In visual media, representation (or ‘imitation’) is the ‘attempt at an accurate imitation […] of some real thing that lies outside of the image or picture’ (Lister et al 2003: 390). Simulation in opposition to representation then is ‘a ‘reality’ experienced that does not correspond to any actually existing thing […] A simulation can be experienced as if it were real, even when no corresponding thing exists outside of the simulation itself’ (Lister et al 2003: 391).

So simulation in a digital game is productive of reality (as a media text/object: a gameworld; or as a cultural event: a unique instance of gameplay). The Sims is representational (images of houses and human figures on an electronic screen). But the gameworld, its dynamics, relationships and processes, is mathematically structured and determined and very different from watching people in houses on television.

The questions for me then are not only 'what is the difference between representation (theme?) and simulation?' but also 'can we think of simulation as themed'? On one level chess (or Advance Wars 2) represent war (more or less) but if we change the pieces and icons do we still have an interactive simulation of symbolic conflict? What does it mean to produce a simulated, but real, war with no correspondence to actual war... BOOM!!! (I think I've just been blown up by a postmodernist mine.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

posted by: sethgiddings at 13:21 | link | comments (1) |

Here is my first post, which I hope will at least serve to introduce me, even if it is not a perfect continuation of your chess threads.

Rune's distinction between simulated game worlds and themed game worlds raises an issue of definition for me. It is easy to argue that chess is a good example of a themed world but a poor example of a simulation, but, I feel, the more you would attempt to define a simulation as something other than a themed world, the more the argument would begin the unravel. The problem seems to stem form the specifically visual focus in the term theme's use. In chess, the pieces actions are provided with some narrative coherence by their basic visual theaming (e.g. knight threatens queen). As Rune argues however, this is a bad example of a simulation as this is where the coherence ends (the queen being capable of moving at potentially infinite speed in order to avoid this threat). This is because the themeing is only visual and not carried over (apart from in the vaguest sense) to the game mechanics. In the case of the sniper rifle however the theme of it being a big gun is more then just a visual theme, the physical properties of the object in the game world are also themed in a similar way. However to claim that the queen is merely an overlay whilst the sniper rifle is a simulation is to draw a distinction where there is only a gradual progression of coherence. The themeing in an fps is more coherent, and therefore more intelligible in relation to our understanding of the theme, as it runs through both the visuals and the mechanics of the game (the physics engine is themed on the likely physics of a battle ground etc.). At some point however the theme and the visuals/mechanics inevitably diverge, even in the most obsessive of attempted simulations.
We attempt to create game worlds with real world themes because they make for interesting areas of play, both as narrative and ludic spaces. The degree of coherence that can be provided between the proposed theme and the actual game (both visually and physically) can aid the player’s ability to comprehend the world and its possibilities. To talk of something simulating a world in any way other that themeing is, in my opinion, like trying to get a grip on a 'truth' where none is attainable, or in fact necessary. In fact I think the whole notion if simulation is a post-modern mine field best left alone.

Please don’t take this a firm commitment to any side of any existing debates. It is just an attempt to shoe horn my current ideas in to your ongoing discussion, and as I said above, just to introduce my self. If you want to get in touch my email is adam@illdefined.net.

posted by: AdamPitt at 14:43 | link | comments |

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