PROGRAMMING THEATRES of WAR: GAMEMAKERS AS SOLDIERS Distributed Networks: SIMNET
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Now We Are All Sons of Bitches
Now We Are All Sons of Bitches MICHAEL BONTATIBUS “Wake up, Mr. Freeman. Wake up and smell the ashes,” the enigmat- ic G-Man murmurs as he leers into the camera, finishing an eerie opening monologue—and so begins Half-Life 2, Valve Corporation’s flagship game. The last time we saw Gordon Freeman, the protagonist, the same rigid and mysterious (though more poorly animated, since the prequel was released six years earlier) G-Man was handing him a job offer after witnessing the former scientist transform into a warrior, bent on escaping from the besieged Black Mesa Research Facility alive. Now, suddenly, Freeman finds himself on a train. No context.1 Is it a prison train? The three other individuals on it wear uniforms like those the inmates wore in Cool Hand Luke. The train soon stops at its destination, and we realize that it is a prison train, in a way—Freeman has arrived at the Orwellian “City 17,” where the ironically named Civil Protection abuses and oppresses, where antagonist Dr. Breen preaches poet- ic propaganda from large monitors hung high above the town. In the years since scientists at the facility accidentally opened a gateway between dimen- sions and allowed a bevy of grotesque creatures to spill into our universe, Earth has been taken over by the Combine, an alien multiplanetary empire. Breen is merely Earth’s administrator—and we realize that the ashes the G- Man spoke of were the ashes of the prelapsarian world. It’s classic dystopia, complete with a Resistance, of which Freeman soon finds himself the “mes- sianic” leader (HL2). -
Peter Kraska and Steven Chapman
Peter Kraska and Steven Chapman Militarization and Contemporary Video Gaming This project examines the influence of militarism, and the involvement of the U.S. military itself, in contemporary video gaming. The military’s involvement includes developing its own, free of charge, video game title used as a recruitment tool, employing a host of training games many of which are used to desensitize new soldiers to the war environment and the act of killing, and participating in numerous consulting and marketing activities associated with the most popular war-oriented games for mass consumption. Surrounding this direct involvement by the military is a massive and increasingly lucrative gaming industry that markets war and killing in a “realistic” yet intensely glorified manner. Aside from documenting and describing in detail this phenomenon, we examine the macro-cultural and societal implications of this phenomenon. Figure 1.1 – One Day Sales -- 2011 Context and Concepts For three years in a row, the number one selling entertainment product during its release period has been a video-game – surpassing even block-buster movies such as Harry Potter and Star Wars. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 recently made $775 million in its first five days in stores, and the Modern Warfare franchise has grossed more than $6 billion. Its central and apparently successful marketing slogan is: “There’s a soldier in all of us” (Snider, 2011). Of course what’s noteworthy to criminologists, is the type of game: extremely violent, highly realistic war environment, and one that glorifies killing and warfare. It takes only a superficial critical analysis to recognize that this game genre has tapped into an enduring and deep-rooted aspect of American culture – militarism; defined as an ideology that sees the use of militaristic force, or threat of force, as a desired means to solve problems, gain political power, or administer retributive justice. -
Falcon 3.0 Manual
Rev 3: 12/95–js F A L C O N 3 . 0 i FLIGHT MANUAL Rev 3: 12/95–js ii F A L C O N 3 . 0 Program Credits Original Design Concept: Digital Actors: Gilman “Chopstick” Louie “Smokin’ Joe” Ward Scot “Woof” Bayless Simulation Team: Russel “Blue Jay” Reiss Erick “Jetbuster” Jap Matt “Mack Daddy” Carlström Gary “RC” Stottlemyer Zachary “Defiant” Fuller Kuswara “Porkchop” Pranawahadi Tony Beccia Les “Vulture” Watts Daniel “Bullfrog” Deremiah Marisa “No. 19” Ong Interface Team: Bill Hall Scot “Woof” Bayless Elizabeth Chambers Michael “Papa Bear” Mancuso Shannon Lee Ian “Blue Macaw” Falicov Daniel “Bullfrog” Deremiah Stunt Effects: Matt “Mack Daddy” Carlström Additional Programming: Elizabeth Chambers Farah “Stinger” Soebrata Don “Blaster” Harlow World Building: Rebecca “Stormtrooper” Ang Anthony “KnötHead” Chiang Donald “Cal” Tsang Daniel “Bullfrog” Deremiah Lee “Vaporizer” Powell “Smokin’ Joe” Ward Peter “Bandit” Ward Product Manager: Eric “Violator” Grotke Scot “Woof” Bayless Bradd “Bluto” Huddle Art: Sound and Music: Matt “Mack Daddy” Carlström Paul “Moggy” Mogg Dan “Dolphin” Guerra Chuck “Bunhead” Butler Quality Assurance: Louis “Cantoni” Sremac Kurt “Goat Killer” Boutin Zachary “Defiant” Fuller Brett “Flying Crip” Amick Steve “Scorpion” Blankenship Animation Direction, Special Effects Stephen “Buster” Keith and Camera: Lawrence “Hairball” Kevin Matt “Mack Daddy” Carlström Mike “Mad Mongoose” Nebeker Zachary “Defiant” Fuller Russel “Blue Jay” Reiss Rev 3: 12/95–js F A L C O N 3 . 0 iii Additional Quality Assurance: Manual Credits Evan “Baron” Birkby Eric “Cerebus” Chin Writing: William “T-Square” Chin Robert “Spaceman” Giedt Mike “Izzy” Isgur Howard “Whiplash” Bornstein Douglas “Opus” Lin Pete “Boomer” Bonanni David “Wotan” Wessman Kyle “Bulldog” Brink “Smokin’ Joe” Ward Beta Testers: Steve “White Knight” Perrin Frank “Turk” Bartolotta Tom “KC” Basham Editing: Terry “Pinecone” Carraway Robert “Spaceman” Giedt James “Hawk” Cook Marisa “No. -
Retrocomputing As Preservation and Remix
Retrocomputing as Preservation and Remix Yuri Takhteyev Quinn DuPont University of Toronto University of Toronto [email protected] [email protected] Abstract This paper looks at the world of retrocomputing, a constellation of largely non-professional practices involving old computing technology. Retrocomputing includes many activities that can be seen as constituting “preservation.” At the same time, it is often transformative, producing assemblages that “remix” fragments from the past with newer elements or joining together historic components that were never combined before. While such “remix” may seem to undermine preservation, it allows for fragments of computing history to be reintegrated into a living, ongoing practice, contributing to preservation in a broader sense. The seemingly unorganized nature of retrocomputing assemblages also provides space for alternative “situated knowledges” and histories of computing, which can sometimes be quite sophisticated. Recognizing such alternative epistemologies paves the way for alternative approaches to preservation. Keywords: retrocomputing, software preservation, remix Recovering #popsource In late March of 2012 Jordan Mechner received a shipment from his father, a box full of old floppies. Among them was a 3.5 inch disk labelled: “Prince of Persia / Source Code (Apple) / ©1989 Jordan Mechner (Original).” Mechner’s announcement of this find on his blog the next day took the world of nerds by storm.1 Prince of Persia, a game that Mechner single-handedly developed in the late 1980s, revolutionized computer games when it came out due to its surprisingly realistic representation of human movement. After being ported to DOS and Apple’s Mac OS in the early 1990s the game sold 2 million copies (Pham, 2001). -
Norn Attacks and Marine Doom Darging the Commu- “Modelling Reality to Get Reality” (Tony SIMP SON)^ :Al World Politics
MICHAELGEVER ly become problems BIRGIT RICHARD Incan leadership and S the occupation of vorld. But it calls for .S its prerequisite, the f “US global respon- onal focus in imple- Norn Attacks and Marine Doom darging the commu- “Modelling reality to get reality” (Tony SIMP SON)^ :al world politics. In domain. This paper examines two forms of death in virtual worlds. In light of the possi- bility of creating artificial life in a computer processor, the question arises as to say, an impossible whether a phenomenon like death is even a matter of significance in a binary is tolerating a great worldthat appears to be infinite and eternal, and what relationship exists in is what “informa- between these death phenomenaand thereal thing. We can differentiate between ategy means. Infor- two forms of immaterial death: artificial death as a programmed parameter, and ccupation. Rather it self-emergent death in accordance with the biological model. information-sphe- On the Net, there is no art of this kind (yet): it has had no time lo develop a notion of the Other, the vanishing point of which would be itt declared this to Death. The model for Net Culture is life. 2 ms at thecontrol of Not onlythe Internet but also the other digital media present themselves as eter- nstitution-building, nal phenomena that know no end. The apologists for new media worlds all too e new global sover- readily put forth themyth of the permanent retrievability of all information once of the informati- it has been put into digital form. Inherent in this is the danger that information that is only a few years old will become unreadable due to the rapid revision of t into an endless systems. -
Gabe Newell Announced As Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences’ Hall of Fame Inductee and Keynote
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE GABE NEWELL ANNOUNCED AS ACADEMY OF INTERACTIVE ARTS & SCIENCES’ HALL OF FAME INDUCTEE AND KEYNOTE Valve President Headlines Thursday D.I.C.E. Summit Conference Calabasas, Calif. – Nov. 15, 2012 – The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences is pleased to announce that Gabe Newell, president and co-founder of Valve Corporation, will be the 17th inductee into the AIAS Hall of Fame, and will be taking the 2013 D.I.C.E. Summit stage as its Thursday conference keynote. Gabe’s leadership in founding and managing Valve, creator of SourceTM game engine, Steam, and award- winning game franchises like Half-Life®, Counter StrikeTM, Left 4 DeadTM, PortalTM, and Team FortressTM have done much to push the interactive entertainment industry forward. The AIAS Hall of Fame honor is bestowed on game creators who have been instrumental in the development of highly influential games and moving a particular genre forward. These individuals demonstrate the highest level of creativity and innovation, resulting in significant product influence on a scale that expands the scope of the industry. The 2013 Hall of Fame Award will be presented to Gabe by Epic Games President Dr. Michael Capps, who serves on the AIAS board of directors and the AIAS awards committee, at the 16th D.I.C.E. Awards on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2013 at The Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas. Past AIAS Hall of Fame recipients include: Tim Sweeney (2012), Dr. Greg Zeschuk (2011), Dr. Ray Muzyka (2011), Mark Cerny (2010), and Bruce Shelley (2009). “Gabe is one of the most cherished and respected figures in the industry not only for his technological innovations in advancing many of today’s highly successful video games, but also for his unique stance towards leadership and management,” said Martin Rae, president, Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. -
How the U.S. Army Got Game Seemingly Trivial Innovations Can Have a Major Effect on Even Large Markets
How the U.S. Army Got Game Seemingly trivial innovations can have a major effect on even large markets BY MICHAEL URLOCKER & ROGER SMITH Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs is famous for his flashy, headline-making introductions of innovative new products. While the iPod, and more recently the iPhone, generated a great deal of publicity right from the outset, many innovations are hardly noticed at first. In fact, often seemingly trivial developments can be harbingers of big change. When a small, regional airline began operating out of Dallas’s Love Air Field, no one foresaw that Southwest Airlines would fundamentally alter air travel. And when a guy started selling Pez candy dispensers on an obscure website, few imagined the impact eBay would come to have on a variety of industries. These stories of course are well-known to most everyone now, but few people are aware of an apparently insignificant event in 1995 that fits the disruptive pattern we’ve seen before. Working on a shoestring budget, a U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant and a sergeant had a radical idea: To try to alter the popular “Doom” video game, in which players use a variety of weapons to fight electronic foes, for use as a military training tool. The result was “Marine Doom,” a (by today’s standards) rather simple video game that could be used to teach soldiers certain skills at a low cost. The developers were hoping to find a way to boost training in an era of significant budget cuts and came up with a cheap, simple, and convenient—in other words disruptive—solution. -
Shareware Solutions II
SharewareShareware SolutionsSolutions IIII An Exciting Apple II Journey Into The Future Volume 3, Issue 1 Spring, 1996 Heard It Through The Grapevine Hard Drive Give Away following e-mail message: The There was also quite a bit of dis- winner of the HD is Keith Saga- cussion about Brutal Deluxes Everyone whose subscription low. We threw all of the papers System 6.0.2 update, and Oliv- was current at the end of Febru- into the air, then we threw a ier admitted that his program- ary, 1996 was automatically en- dart at one. There were three ming partner suffered from a tered into the Hard Drive Give names hit by the dart, but only hard drive crash and that much Away Contest, and the winner one was legible, so Keith was of the work had been lost. of that contest is Keith Saga- the winner. low, a IIGS owner from Central The freewheeling online chat Valley, New York. Keith is now Thanks to Tony Diaz for do- session was attended by more the proud owner of a 120 Mega- nating the drive. Thanks to Auri than 30 people, and a good time byte Focus Hard Drive. for acting as an intermediary to seemed to be had by all. Steve Wozniak. Thanks to Woz From the time the contest was for choosing the winner. But Upon his return to France, Oliv- announced in the last issue un- most of all, thanks to all of you ier started work on the next Bru- til the time that Keith received for supporting Shareware Solu- tal Deluxe release, a IIGS game his hard drive, several unexpect- tions II. -
Henry Jenkins Convergence Culture Where Old and New Media
Henry Jenkins Convergence Culture Where Old and New Media Collide n New York University Press • NewYork and London Skenovano pro studijni ucely NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS New York and London www.nyupress. org © 2006 by New York University All rights reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Jenkins, Henry, 1958- Convergence culture : where old and new media collide / Henry Jenkins, p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8147-4281-5 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8147-4281-5 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Mass media and culture—United States. 2. Popular culture—United States. I. Title. P94.65.U6J46 2006 302.230973—dc22 2006007358 New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper, and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability. Manufactured in the United States of America c 15 14 13 12 11 p 10 987654321 Skenovano pro studijni ucely Contents Acknowledgments vii Introduction: "Worship at the Altar of Convergence": A New Paradigm for Understanding Media Change 1 1 Spoiling Survivor: The Anatomy of a Knowledge Community 25 2 Buying into American Idol: How We are Being Sold on Reality TV 59 3 Searching for the Origami Unicorn: The Matrix and Transmedia Storytelling 93 4 Quentin Tarantino's Star Wars? Grassroots Creativity Meets the Media Industry 131 5 Why Heather Can Write: Media Literacy and the Harry Potter Wars 169 6 Photoshop for Democracy: The New Relationship between Politics and Popular Culture 206 Conclusion: Democratizing Television? The Politics of Participation 240 Notes 261 Glossary 279 Index 295 About the Author 308 V Skenovano pro studijni ucely Acknowledgments Writing this book has been an epic journey, helped along by many hands. -
The Falcon 3 Tactics Manual
The Falcon 3.0 Manual Tactics Section - Introduction to the Geometry of Air Combat by Ed "Skater" Lynch For those of you that are "old salts" when it comes to flight sims, and for those of you that are new to flight sims, this article should be of some value to you. This is largely a reprint from the manual of one of the best combat flight sims ever released. Spectrum Holobyte's Falcon 3.0 was indeed the father of all modern, "realistic" combat flight sims. The F3 manual was one hell of a paper weight. Weighing in at something like seven pounds, the F3 manual was jam packed with information on flying the sim, and the usage of tactics, and the deployment of weapons and the employment of the aircraft. Here is a little jewel from the tactics section. Enjoy! Credit goes to Microprose / Hasbro Interactive, Spectrum Holobyte, and the Falcon 3.0 team. Introduction to the Geometry of Air Combat In order to become a great fighter pilot, you must perform great BFM. Now, in order to perform BFM, a fighter pilot must understand his positional relationship to the target from three perspectives: positional geometry, attack geometry and the weapons envelope. Positional Geometry Angle-off, range and aspect angle are terms used in BFM discussions to describe the relative advantage or disadvantage that one aircraft has in relation to another. Angle-Off Angle-Off is the difference, measured in degrees, between your heading and the bandit's. This angle provides information about the relative fuselage alignment between the pilot's jet and the bandit's. -
Video Game Collection MS 17 00 Game This Collection Includes Early Game Systems and Games As Well As Computer Games
Finding Aid Report Video Game Collection MS 17_00 Game This collection includes early game systems and games as well as computer games. Many of these materials were given to the WPI Archives in 2005 and 2006, around the time Gordon Library hosted a Video Game traveling exhibit from Stanford University. As well as MS 17, which is a general video game collection, there are other game collections in the Archives, with other MS numbers. Container List Container Folder Date Title None Series I - Atari Systems & Games MS 17_01 Game This collection includes video game systems, related equipment, and video games. The following games do not work, per IQP group 2009-2010: Asteroids (1 of 2), Battlezone, Berzerk, Big Bird's Egg Catch, Chopper Command, Frogger, Laser Blast, Maze Craze, Missile Command, RealSports Football, Seaquest, Stampede, Video Olympics Container List Container Folder Date Title Box 1 Atari Video Game Console & Controllers 2 Original Atari Video Game Consoles with 4 of the original joystick controllers Box 2 Atari Electronic Ware This box includes miscellaneous electronic equipment for the Atari videogame system. Includes: 2 Original joystick controllers, 2 TAC-2 Totally Accurate controllers, 1 Red Command controller, Atari 5200 Series Controller, 2 Pong Paddle Controllers, a TV/Antenna Converter, and a power converter. Box 3 Atari Video Games This box includes all Atari video games in the WPI collection: Air Sea Battle, Asteroids (2), Backgammon, Battlezone, Berzerk (2), Big Bird's Egg Catch, Breakout, Casino, Cookie Monster Munch, Chopper Command, Combat, Defender, Donkey Kong, E.T., Frogger, Haunted House, Sneak'n Peek, Surround, Street Racer, Video Chess Box 4 AtariVideo Games This box includes the following videogames for Atari: Word Zapper, Towering Inferno, Football, Stampede, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Ms. -
The Foundations of Song Bird
Running head: THE FOUNDATIONS OF SONG BIRD GENDER SPECTRUM NEUTRALITY AND THE EFFECT OF GENDER DICHOTOMY WITHIN VIDEO GAME DESIGN AS CONCEPTUALIZED IN: THE FOUNDATIONS OF SONG BIRD A CREATIVE PROJECT SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE MASTER OF ARTS BY CALEB JOHN NOFFSINGER DR. MICHAEL LEE – ADVISOR BALL STATE UNIVERSITY MUNCIE, INDIANA DECEMBER 2018 THE FOUNDATIONS OF SONG BIRD 2 ABSTRACT Song Bird is an original creative project proposed and designed by Caleb Noffsinger at Ball State University for the fulfillment of a master’s degree in Telecommunication: Digital Storytelling. The world that will be established is a high fantasy world in which humans have risen to a point that they don’t need the protection of their deities and seek to hunt them down as their ultimate test of skill. This thesis focuses more so on the design of the primary character, Val, and the concept of gender neutrality as portrayed by video game culture. This paper will also showcase world building, character designs for the supporting cast, and examples of character models as examples. The hope is to use this as a framework for continued progress and as an example of how the video game industry can further include previously alienated communities. THE FOUNDATIONS OF SONG BIRD 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction . 4 Chapter 1: Literature Review. 8 Chapter 2: Ludology vs. Narratology . .14 Chapter 3: Song Bird, the Narrative, and How I Got Here. 18 Chapter 4: A World of Problems . 24 Chapter 5: The World of Dichotomous Gaming: The Gender-Neutral Character .