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Latest Topics

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How Arcane Changed the Game

Video game adaptations have been in a slow but steady trend. It’s produced under a variety of important factors such as storyline and fanbase that can make or break the adaptation. League of Legends’ Arcane, produced by Netflix, not only succeeds the expectations of longtime LoL and Runeterra fans but also captivates the interests of the non-gaming audience. Its release reignited both adaptations and animated media into what video game lore can achieve.

Analyze the thematic aspects of Arcane that contributed to its engagement and how it relates to the lore of Runeterra, especially since LoL is not an action-adventure game. Take into consideration that Riot Games also has a history of well-made cinematics for promotion of game updates, events, etc.

You can also explore the relevance (and perhaps, risk) of the fanbase in adapting Arcane. Riot Games is known for its heavy fanservice and focus on its community. Is Arcane a gift to the LoL fans? And of course, how has Arcane effectively introduced LoL to a new market? Has it affected the toxic reputation of the game, or has it enticed new players to join?

  • Castlevania is the other great video game adaption, but both Arcane and Castlevania debuted on Netflix. – Sean Gadus 2 years ago
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Published

Is Depression An Over-Explored Concept In Indie Games?

It’s literally become a meme at this point; top text saying "oh this indie RPG uses pixel art and is really an allegory for depression-", accompanied with a gif or short video of somebody leaving a room or closing a door. It’s certainly not an idea that spawned from nowhere; LISA The Painful, OMORI, Yume Nikki, Celeste, just to name a few, all have strong themes of depression or mental anguish of some sort as their main focus. And there seems to be a consensus amongst some gamers that it’s beginning to become unoriginal. Just two days ago my recommendation of LISA was shot down by a close gaming buddy, on the grounds that it’s "just another indie game about depression". But is this negative reputation deserved? Are these games just treading old ground, or do they still have more to say about mental health, a topic that is becoming all the more relevant in an age dedicated to squashing the stigma? And even if they don’t, do they still have value in our modern gaming landscape?

  • I would argue that there are so many indie games, with such diverse such matter, that the amount of games listed above would not rise to the level of "over-explored". – Sean Gadus 2 years ago
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  • I've seen memes about 'indie pixel rpgs about depression/mental illness' myself, and personally I think it's an overstated connection. Yes, there are a number of indie games about mental illness, but I've seen a few comments making this statement about games that don't really fit these categories. After all, even the meme you mentioned doesn't apply to all your examples (Celeste is pixel art, but not an rpg). Also, while there are a number of games about depression and mental illness, they are not the only well-tread topic in indie games. – AnnieEM 2 years ago
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  • In an interesting parallel, I find that many Twitch streamers are tagging their streams with "anxiety", "depression" and other words associated with mental health. While this *could* be seen as trying to capitalize on the stigma, or to be "edgy", I feel that this possibly means that consumers are looking to have honest conversations surrounding these topics and are seeking safe spaces. I think that the past few years have really pushed the need for this initiative. In response to this, I feel that indie game developers want to produce and share their own versions of lived experiences with these conditions, in order to further encourage the dialogue. This is most likely much easier to accomplish in the indie scene, for sure. That could be wishful thinking, but regardless, I feel that indie games with these themes haven't unbearably oversaturated the market yet. – MadamNarwhal 2 years ago
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The Love of Farming Games

With most games filled with action and strong storylines, popular video games such as Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley have created a large fanbase for games highlighting slow living and farm life. What is the appeal to these types of games compared to action-packed games such as Grand Theft Auto? Is the audience different?

  • I think the audience is very markedly different but at the same time, that extends itself to a critique of the term gamer. Isn't someone who plays AC for 500 hours a hardcore gamer? In the popular conscious games like AC and Stardew, can be massive time sinks but are rarely viewed in the same ways as games like Doom, COD, and other games that are more readily seen as hardcore gamer games. Look at the motivations and understanding of the audiences of the genres could be interesting. – SunnyAgo 2 years ago
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Do Gamers Today Complain Too Much?

Analyze how gamers today condemn and criticize games solely based on limited information and trailers. Specifically prior to the launch of some of the most critically acclaimed games of this year Horizon: Forbidden West and Elden Ring gamers criticized reused animations and lackluster gameplay elements before getting their hands on them. This trend has been increasing over the years with developers being bombarded by complaints and criticism for rather minor transgressions in otherwise fantastic games.

  • Something worth noting about modern criticism is that outlets like Facebook and Twitter make it easier to track public opinion. Similarly before YouTube decided to hide the down vote button it was also a good source of public opinion. I think what is more likely going on is getting peoples opinions is easier, then say twenty years ago. Not only that but game reviewers often have to/will put out day one reviews with out properly analyzing the game, and may overly focus on one negative aspect of a game. Or they may intentionally misrepresent some aspects to try and make their review more entertaining. Tim Rogers in his review of Kingdom Hearts 3 admitted to being intentionally negative about some aspects when he reviewed Kingdom hearts 2 many years ago. And he simply did it to just to get more clicks on his review. (This led to fan backlash towards him and calling him out for his poorly constructed review of Kingdom hearts 2.) I would like to point out games like Cyber Punk 2077, Skyrim, and Battle Field 2042 also launched in unplayable states with frequent crashes. So, are gamer's complaints completely unwarranted or justified. ( I know you were focusing on Elden Ring and Horizon, but I think this is an interesting topic and can lead to many interesting discussions about the discourse surrounding video game critics.) – Blackcat130 2 years ago
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  • I think an interesting avenue to explore in this topic would be the nature of fandoms, the ever-increasing expectations for the next blockbuster game to blow people away (resulting in gamers critiquing and nitpicking small details such as reused animations). Fandoms have a tendency to breed extremely passionate people who will both go at ends to protect their respective franchise, or criticize aspects and expect to be completely shocked by the next entry of an artist's work, as they have been before. When gamers criticized Elden Ring for example, their judgment could have stemmed from their initial experience of game creator Miyazaki's games such as Dark Souls 1 to 3, where the same animations are used, but are part of that game and therefore part of that gamer's experience. When they notice these returning aspects, they automatically assume laziness and cop-out to try and 'impress' the player with things they have already seen and done, when those are but small features. A negative comment will always seem louder and leave a bigger impression than a positive one. – AlGrater 2 years ago
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Assassin’s Creed and Feminine Freedom

As the Assassin’s Creed franchise continues to grow and explore more of the world, so too has its options for players expanded… Sort of.
More recent assassin’s creed games have allowed players to choose which gender they want their player character to be; such as choosing between Kassandra and Alexios in Odyssey, or choosing how they want Eivor to present in Valhalla. These characters’ stories, however, are frequently defined by their womanhood and their importance severely limited by production decisions.

For example, Kassandra has a male lover and a child in the ‘canon’ of Odyssey (Legacy of the First Blade), no matter if the player turns down male lovers and plays her as a solely sapphic character. In Valhalla, there are certain times during the game where a female Eivor will be presented as male. In earlier games, the female playable characters received even less recognition; Evie is only playable for ~30% of Syndicate, and Elise was initially designed to be a playable character in Unity, but that was scrapped by Paris Editorial.

Why do the Assassins Creed games have such a hard time allowing the player to play as females, and to then not have their gender be a limitation or a core aspect of their narrative? The company needs to have a linear narrative, thus the character has to do certain things so the desired story can exist. However, particularly when it comes to female characters, this often contradicts the player’s desired narrative choices for their character.
This topic would examine the roles of RPG companies vs players in determining the female characters’ narratives and ‘playability’ in Assassin’s Creed. Should players just accept that their character’s decisions are always limited by the company’s desired storylines, or should companies be working harder to have inclusive storylines that honour the players and their choices?

  • I've never played Assassin's Creed myself, but I think this is an interesting topic, and one I've seen discussed in regards to different games. There are a number that have male and female character options, but the game assumes the player will be male (sometimes leading to dialogue or scenes having funny implications). I do think that a player's character decisions will always be limited to some extent by the framework of the story and gameplay mechanics around them, since you can't have everything. But that doesn't mean that companies shouldn't have more inclusive storylines, especially if you're trying to give players options that are ultimately unsatisfying. – AnnieEM 2 years ago
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Horizon Zero Dawn and the End of the/our World

The narrative of Horizon Zero Dawn is fascinating, and while there are many potential themes to be examined, I keep coming back to how it handles apocalypse and the end of the/our world. In the game’s past, the Earth faces annellation. When all seems lost, the solution is not to cling to some far-fetch hope for salvation, but instead to for pave the way for something new. Obviously, the crises facing Elisabet Sobeck, Aloy, and today’s humans are all very different. Nonetheless, I think this game offers some food for thought as we face our own climate crises: do we accept coming devastation and focus our energies on creating the conditions for a new, better world to emerge? Or do we cling to what we have and try to save the world we know? Where do we locate hope for the future? Do we have to chose between what we have and what might be? Is it possible to have hope for the emergence of something new without total destruction (as happens in the game)?

  • This could be a great topic, though I think HZD is a bit too rosy in terms of imagining alternatives for humans. I think a post-human or even anti-humanistic reading on HZD might provide nuance. – ProfRichards 2 years ago
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  • This could a great topic to explore especially with the optimistic way HZD looks at the future. – SunnyAgo 2 years ago
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Published

Alternatives to Microtransactions in Games and Apps

Cell phones are ubiquitous these days, as are phone-based games and apps. These activities are colorful, fun, and addictive–if you have the money for an addiction, that is.

Most if not all cell phone games, as well as some apps such as Lumosity or adult coloring books, are free but have in-app purchases. The in-app purchases are usually tied to premium content or the ability to play the "full" game. For instance, in Jeopardy World Tour, you can play rounds for "free," as long as you have virtual cash. To increase virtual cash, you can wait more than 24 hours for your bank to build, or you can purchase virtual premium currency with actual money.

Even the best-intentioned game/app users end up engaging in microtransactions more than they mean to. In many online worlds, people who spend a lot of real money actually have a nickname; they’re called "whales." Whales or not, most players complain about microtransactions, but admit they don’t know an alternative.

Could there, or should there, be alternatives to microtransactions? If yes, what might those be? Are there currently apps or games that don’t depend on microtransactions, and if yes, what makes them successful? How are these games or apps able to "survive" without monetary microtransactions? Examine and discuss.

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    Mario, Link, and Scott Pilgrim: Relationships in Video Games

    Scott Pilgrim vs The World uses a video-game-like series of boss battles as a thinly veiled metaphor for relationship drama. It has been compared to Mario’s video game series, in which the hero fights giant gorillas and dragon turtles in order to win back his lady love. The Legend of Zelda is another famous example of this trope. What other video games and game-related movies portray relationships with this kind of drama? What are the pros and cons of the different portrayals? Are these relationships healthy? If not, is that made clear enough to dissuade people from following their example?

    • Examples include Legend of Zelda, Mario, Scott Pilgrim, Dragon Age, Mass Effect, and Edge of Tomorrow (Live Die Repeat). – noahspud 2 years ago
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    • I'd recommend tackling Scott Pilgrims source material the graphic novels and what it has to say about video games and romance. Especially since the video game is based on the movie which is rushed and lacks a proper payoff that the comics have. – Roneish 2 years ago
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