Preliminary Essay Research

09:01 Research 0 Comments

During a lecture we were re-briefed on our piece of Academic Writing, in which we compare games of today to entertainment of the past, with the following categories to look into:

-Books and Comics

-Art, Animation and Film

-Fairgrounds, Amusement Parks or Themeparks

-Arcades and Parlour Games

-Board games and Cards

-Circus and Arenas

-Mazes and Labyrinths

-War Games and Sport

But I'm also going to add Theatre to this (we theatre students die hard, Ibsen, Artaud and Brecht still course through my veins)

We were tasked to swiftly venture up to the library, to hunt down two quotes from two books on one of the duos above, and how the context or history of that subject affects contemporary game culture. Having picked bourd games and cards, I discovered the book "The Right Way to Teach Chess to Kids" by Richard James (2013) which housed the interesting passage...

"...whether your main priority is just to teach them a game they can play for a couple of years at school, to use chess to make your kids smarter, to develop beneficial character traits, or to give them a long term interest."

I thought this an applicable comment on when to introduce kids to games, complex rules of the game engaging kids, much like complex worlds and stories could expand a child's mind. Childhood and the affects games can have could be an interesting thread to follow.

I also found "The Card Games Bible" by Hamlyn which discusses playing cards, the games to be played with them and how these card games bring people together socially...

"Women and men from all walks of life were soon playing card games at home and in taverns. New games - and different decks of cards - were rapidly invented in every region as the popularity of playing cards spread across Europe and went on to cross the Atlantic."

I feel a connection could be made here with how card games brought together a whole host of different people and how mobile games appeal to a wide range of people, from all walks of life. Online MMOs bring together a grand spectrum of people from all over the world - games unite us. This could also be something to further explore in different modes of play, how arenas, sports and films unite people, the social aspect of play. There was a mode in Super Smash Bros Brawl where you could choose to bet on who would win an online match for example, rather like arena fights.

Another point I'll note doubt, I'm rather interested in virtual spaces of games. The map layout and digital landscape of Majora's Mask's Clock Town is something I used to love exploring as a kid, and still do and can as an adult! This could be compared to a digital doll's house of sorts, your interactions however being played out before you, feedback being more meaningful as actual events are taking place, not merely being imagined. Games in comparison to older, perhaps archaic toys could also be an interesting topic to delve into. Further, broader research is needed however!