DOCSLIB.ORG

Emotional and Functional Challenge in Core and Avant-Garde Games

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Emotional and Functional Challenge in Core and Avant-Garde Games Emotional and Functional Challenge in Core and Avant-garde Games Tom Cole Paul Cairns Marco Gillies Department of Computing, Department of Department of Computing, Goldsmiths, Computer Science, Goldsmiths, University of London University of York University of London London, UK York, UK London, UK [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] ABSTRACT never been greater or so diverse and the appeal of games Digital games are a wide, diverse and fast developing art has broadened to the extent that some popular critics have form, and it is important to analyse games that are pushing the declared the stereotypical ‘core gamer’ identity (the market medium forward to see what design lessons can be learned. segment defined by video game publishers as being histori- However, there are no established criteria to determine which cally the most committed to the hobby and therefore the most games show these more progressive qualities. profitable) as outmoded and defunct [4]. Games are at a point where many (from both academia [21] and journalism [40]) Grounded theory methodology was used to analyse language are calling for them to be taken seriously and come under used in games reviews by critics of both ‘core gamer’ ti- greater aesthetic scrutiny. However, despite the significant tles and those titles with more avant-garde properties. This skill and craft involved in creating games, a number of com- showed there were two kinds of challenge being discussed mentators have also concluded that not all games show artistic — emotional and functional which appear to be, at least merit [38][3] on the basis that many are developed and mar- partially, mutually exclusive. Reviews of ‘core’ and ‘avant- keted primarily as entertainment products (rather than art) to garde’ games had different measures of purchase value, pri- the traditional ‘core gamer’ market. Which titles then, in the mary emotions, and modalities of language used to discuss words of the quote above, are non-core and therefore ‘weird the role of audiovisual qualities. Emotional challenge, ambi- and unconventional’? Definitions of avant-garde works in guity and solitude are suggested as useful devices for elicit- other media, such as film [29][7] are useful in part, but are ing emotion from the player and for use in developing more unable to account for all the possibilities afforded by the in- ’avant-garde’ games, as well as providing a basis for further teractive qualities of video-games. There are recent attempts lines of inquiry. to define avant-garde videogames [37][36], but little work is available on what criteria should be used to identify a title that Author Keywords is more avant-garde and how it would feel to play one. Are Emotional; functional; challenge; ambiguity; solitude; there any patterns to be discerned in how these more avant- grounded theory; digital games; art; avant-garde garde titles differ to those for more the traditional core gamer demographic? ACM Classification Keywords H.5.m. Information Interfaces and Presentation (e.g. HCI): The popular games press sometimes tends to cast this as Miscellaneous a difference between the ‘triple-A’ sector (where budgets and production values are very high) and the ‘indie’ sector INTRODUCTION (where budgets are lower and financial risk much less, often “Our expectations of what a game should be have resulting in more creative and novel designs). However, changed a lot over the years, and at this point, a game many indie games still follow established conventions in the where you aren’t near-constantly killing or at least phys- medium and are no more avant-garde than triple-A titles. It ically fighting things has become weird or unconven- is suggested here it would be more productive to focus on the tional.” [9] kind of experience that a game attempts to offer and examine first-hand accounts of the gameplay experience — in this Largely thanks to the advent of digital distribution and new case, video game reviews. If common motifs across core mobile platforms, the range of digital games available has and/or avant-garde titles can be found they can be highlighted for further investigation for both game development and academic study. It should be noted that the designation of a Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed game as ‘core’ in this investigation is not a quality judgement for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full cita- and does not infer that it lacks artistic merit or skill — tion on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than ACM must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or re- just that it is less experimental in ideas, methods or subject publish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission matter. and/or a fee. Request permissions from [email protected]. CHI PLAY 2015, October 03-07, 2015, London, United Kingdom c 2015 ACM. ISBN 978-1-4503-3466-2/15/10$15.00 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/2793107.2793147 be grouped via selective coding into core and sub-categories for discussion. METHOD RESULTS The approach taken was to analyse what video-games critics Contrary to what many commentators (or major industry fig- had written about a selection of titles. Previous analysis of ures[23])may think, the premise, background story and de- video-games reviews has focused on elucidating the core user scription of the player character(s) for each game took up experience of playing video-games [11], but doesn’t offer any significant parts of the word count of every review. Story clues as to how core and avant-garde games may be identified. is clearly important to players, if only to establish context for Using Grounded Theory as initially outlined by Strauss and the actions taken in game — even if it not highlighted as a Corbin [39] and further refined by Adams, Lunt and Cairns primary feature of the experience. Reviewers also wrote at [2] the aim was to investigate what differentiated core games length about the quality, depth and complexity of the world from avant-garde games by looking at how reviewers reported the game took place in. Across all titles story and world- their gaming experiences. Analysis focused on the style of building were key features of the gaming experience — even language used, what aspects of the gaming experience were though the quality and centrality of the narrative to the game- mentioned and how much was written about those aspects. play experience varied. Despite it’s universal importance here, the complexities of storytelling in interactive games is Reviews of a range of 14 games (from 3 categories) were se- both well discussed elsewhere (e.g. [26], [30], [25]) and is lected for analysis. Due to lack of academic discourse this outside the scope of this review. selection is based upon general understanding in the popu- lar press and media discussion around these games. To The Beyond this it became clear that two distinct sets of standards Moon (TTM), Gone Home, Dear Esther, The Vanishing of and style of language were being used to describe the gam- Ethan Carter (VoEC) and Papers Please are all critically ac- ing experience of the reviewer. The clearest trend seen was claimed for pushing the boundaries of the medium and having the difference between aspects linked to the ‘functional chal- more avant-garde aspirations. Gears of War 3 (GOW3), Call lenge’ offered by some titles and those linked to the ‘emo- of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (COD:MW2), Grand Theft Auto tional challenge’ offered by others. These aspects included V (GTAV), Far Cry 4 and Destiny are all highly successful differing notions of what constitutes value in a game pur- blockbuster or ‘triple-A’ titles. Bioshock, Journey, Spec Ops: chase, the primary emotion(s) experienced and the way the The Line (SO:TL) and The Last of Us (TLoU) are all inno- audiovisual components were described. Due to space con- vative triple-A titles which, each in their own way, experi- straints, quotes are representative of data and are not intended menting with what big-budget games can achieve. One of the to be comprehensive. aims of grounded theory is to choose a sample that stretches and tests the theoretical boundaries of interpretation of the Challenge: Functional vs. Emotional data. For this reason the selection of games was intentionally Challenge, in some form, is central to the gaming experience. diverse and broad. Yet until recently, the majority of challenges presented by games to their players are of the functional type — where The reviews were gathered from www.metacritic.com (a dexterity and skill with the controls or strategy is used to website that aggregates user and critic media reviews) filter- overcome challenges thrown at the player (e.g. environmen- ing for critics reviews and ranked in order of ‘most active’ tal traversal, combat, logical puzzles etc.) and to resolve emo- (the number of reviews submitted by the contributing web- tions of frustration to fiero (an Italian word that literally trans- site/magazine). Critics’ reviews (rather than User reviews) lates as ‘proud’, here used to mean personal triumph as per were selected on the basis that, since they are writing in a Lazarro’s usage [24]). It is this concept of functional chal- professional capacity, they are more likely to have played lenge that is still presented to, and desired by, players of tra- the game for longer before passing judgement, show greater ditional core games such as Destiny and COD:MW2.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Resurrection of Permadeath: an Analysis of the Sustainability of Permadeath Use in Video Games
    The Resurrection of Permadeath: An analysis of the sustainability of Permadeath use in Video Games. Hugh Ruddy A research paper submitted to the University of Dublin, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Interactive Digital Media 2014 Declaration I declare that the work described in this research paper is, except where otherwise stated, entirely my own work and has not been submitted as an exercise for a degree at this or any other university. Signed: ___________________ Hugh Ruddy 28th February 2014 Permission to lend and/or copy I agree that Trinity College Library may lend or copy this research Paper upon request. Signed: ___________________ Hugh Ruddy 28th February 2014 Abstract The purpose of this research paper is to study the the past, present and future use of Permadeath in video games. The emergence of Permadeath games in recent months has exposed the mainstream gaming population to the concept of the permanent death of the game avatar, a notion that has been vehemently avoided by game developers in the past. The paper discusses the many incarnations of Permadeath that have been implemented since the dawn of video games, and uses examples to illustrate how gamers are crying out for games to challenge them in a unique way. The aims of this are to highlight the potential that Permadeath has in the gaming world to become a genre by itself, as well as to give insights into the ways in which gamers play Permadeath games at the present. To carry out this research, the paper examines the motivation players have to play games from a theoretical standpoint, and investigates how the possibilty of failure in video games should not be something gamers stay away from.
    [Show full text]
  • The Poetics of Reflection in Digital Games
    © Copyright 2019 Terrence E. Schenold The Poetics of Reflection in Digital Games Terrence E. Schenold A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Washington 2019 Reading Committee: Brian M. Reed, Chair Leroy F. Searle Phillip S. Thurtle Program Authorized to Offer Degree: English University of Washington Abstract The Poetics of Reflection in Digital Games Terrence E. Schenold Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Brian Reed, Professor English The Poetics of Reflection in Digital Games explores the complex relationship between digital games and the activity of reflection in the context of the contemporary media ecology. The general aim of the project is to create a critical perspective on digital games that recovers aesthetic concerns for game studies, thereby enabling new discussions of their significance as mediations of thought and perception. The arguments advanced about digital games draw on philosophical aesthetics, media theory, and game studies to develop a critical perspective on gameplay as an aesthetic experience, enabling analysis of how particular games strategically educe and organize reflective modes of thought and perception by design, and do so for the purposes of generating meaning and supporting expressive or artistic goals beyond amusement. The project also provides critical discussion of two important contexts relevant to understanding the significance of this poetic strategy in the field of digital games: the dynamics of the contemporary media ecology, and the technological and cultural forces informing game design thinking in the ludic century. The project begins with a critique of limiting conceptions of gameplay in game studies grounded in a close reading of Bethesda's Morrowind, arguing for a new a "phaneroscopical perspective" that accounts for the significance of a "noematic" layer in the gameplay experience that accounts for dynamics of player reflection on diegetic information and its integral relation to ergodic activity.
    [Show full text]
  • Preparation of Papers for R-ICT 2007
    Use of Graph Theory in Video Game Artificial Intelligence for Promoting Replay Value Case Study: “AI Director” of Valve’s Left 4 Dead Alvin Natwiguna - 13512030 Program Studi Teknik Informatika Sekolah Teknik Elektro dan Informatika Institut Teknologi Bandung, Jl. Ganesha 10 Bandung 40132, Indonesia [email protected] Abstract—One of the main factors that makes a video game The Infected is split to two types, the Normal Infected – as a product – has a long life cycle is its replay value. Replay and the Special Infected. The Normal Infected are zombies value describes the ‘depth’ of an entertainment medium; in that attack at close range. Each has a low pool of health, this case, a video game. Besides the content of the game, one but they sometimes attack in large mobs. The Special of the main factors that influences a video game’s replay value is the system on which the video game is built upon. This Infected are zombies that have special features which paper will discuss the use of graph theory in explaining makes them quite deadly to the survivors. For example, the Valve’s Left 4 Dead artificial intelligence system – the “AI Tank has a monstrous, large body capable of taking large Director” – that promotes its replay value. amount of damage, punching cars and throwing a large chunk of rock to the survivors. It also has a deadly punch Index Terms—Artificial Intelligence, Graph, Left 4 Dead, that can incapacitate a survivor in one hit. Special Infected Replay Value. is further divided to normal and boss infected, based on how frequently they spawn, i.e.
    [Show full text]
  • Games for Communication Final Report
    1 Games for Communication Final Report June 2015 Matthew Barr Humanities Advanced Technology Institute, University of Glasgow [email protected] @hatii_matt 2 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 3 Aims ........................................................................................................................................................ 4 Format ..................................................................................................................................................... 4 Case Study: Minecraft ......................................................................................................................... 5 Case Study: Gone Home ...................................................................................................................... 7 Case Study: Never Alone ..................................................................................................................... 8 Case Study: Portal 2 .......................................................................................................................... 10 Results ................................................................................................................................................... 11 Discussion.............................................................................................................................................. 13 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Folha De Rosto ICS.Cdr
    “For when established identities become outworn or unfinished ones threaten to remain incomplete, special crises compel men to wage holy wars, by the cruellest means, against those who seem to question or threaten their unsafe ideological bases.” Erik Erikson (1956), “The Problem of Ego Identity”, p. 114 “In games it’s very difficult to portray complex human relationships. Likewise, in movies you often flit between action in various scenes. That’s very difficult to do in games, as you generally play a single character: if you switch, it breaks immersion. The fact that most games are first-person shooters today makes that clear. Stories in which the player doesn’t inhabit the main character are difficult for games to handle.” Hideo Kojima Simon Parkin (2014), “Hideo Kojima: ‘Metal Gear questions US dominance of the world”, The Guardian iii AGRADECIMENTOS Por começar quero desde já agradecer o constante e imprescindível apoio, compreensão, atenção e orientação dos Professores Jean Rabot e Clara Simães, sem os quais este trabalho não teria a fruição completa e correta. Um enorme obrigado pelos meses de trabalho, reuniões, telefonemas, emails, conversas e oportunidades. Quero agradecer o apoio de família e amigos, em especial, Tia Bela, João, Teté, Ângela, Verxka, Elma, Silvana, Noëmie, Kalashnikov, Madrinha, Gaivota, Chacal, Rita, Lina, Tri, Bia, Quelinha, Fi, TS, Cinco de Sete, Daniel, Catarina, Professor Albertino, Professora Marques e Professora Abranches, tanto pelas forças de apoio moral e psicológico, pelas recomendações e conselhos de vida, e principalmente pela amizade e memórias ao longo desta batalha. Por último, mas não menos importante, quero agradecer a incessante confiança, companhia e aceitação do bom e do mau pela minha Twin, Safira, que nunca me abandonou em todo o processo desta investigação, do meu caminho académico e da conquista da vida e sonhos.
    [Show full text]
  • On Videogames: Representing Narrative in an Interactive Medium
    September, 2015 On Videogames: Representing Narrative in an Interactive Medium. 'This thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy' Dawn Catherine Hazel Stobbart, Ba (Hons) MA Dawn Stobbart 1 Plagiarism Statement This project was written by me and in my own words, except for quotations from published and unpublished sources which are clearly indicated and acknowledged as such. I am conscious that the incorporation of material from other works or a paraphrase of such material without acknowledgement will be treated as plagiarism, subject to the custom and usage of the subject, according to the University Regulations on Conduct of Examinations. (Name) Dawn Catherine Stobbart (Signature) Dawn Stobbart 2 This thesis is formatted using the Chicago referencing system. Where possible I have collected screenshots from videogames as part of my primary playing experience, and all images should be attributed to the game designers and publishers. Dawn Stobbart 3 Acknowledgements There are a number of people who have been instrumental in the production of this thesis, and without whom I would not have made it to the end. Firstly, I would like to thank my supervisor, Professor Kamilla Elliott, for her continuous and unwavering support of my Ph.D study and related research, for her patience, motivation, and commitment. Her guidance helped me throughout all the time I have been researching and writing of this thesis. When I have faltered, she has been steadfast in my ability. I could not have imagined a better advisor and mentor. I would not be working in English if it were not for the support of my Secondary school teacher Mrs Lishman, who gave me a love of the written word.
    [Show full text]
  • Game Review | the Legend of Zelda file:///Users/Denadebry/Desktop/Hpsresearch/Papersfromgreen
    Game Review | The Legend of Zelda file:///Users/denadebry/Desktop/HPSresearch/PapersFromGreen... Matt Waddell STS 145: Game Review Table of Contents: Da Game Story Line & Game-play Technical Stuff Game Design Success Endnotes In 1984 President Hiroshi Yamauchi asked apprentice game designer Sigeru Miyamoto to oversee R&D4, a new research and development team for Nintendo Co., Ltd. Miyamoto's group, Joho Kaihatsu, had one assignment: "to come up with the most imaginative video games ever." 1 On February 21, 1986, Nintendo Co., Ltd. published The Legend of Zelda (hereafter abbreviated LoZ) for the Famicom in Japan. It was Miyamoto's first autonomous attempt at game design. In July 1987, Nintendo of America published LoZ for the Nintendo Entertainment System in the United States, this time with a shiny gold cartridge. Origins: where did LoZ come from? Miyamoto admits that LoZ is partly based on Ridley Scott's movie Legend. Indeed, Miyamoto's video game shares more than just a title with Scott's 1985 production. But Miyamoto's fundamental inspiration for LoZ remains his childhood home, with its maze of rooms, sliding shoji screens, and "hallways, from which there seemed to be a medieval castle's supply of hidden rooms." 2 Story Line: a brief synopsis. In the land of Hyrule, the legend of the "Triforce" was being passed down from generation to generation; golden triangles possessing mystical powers. One day, an evil army attacked Hyrule and stole the Triforce of Power. This army was led by Gannon, the powerful Prince of Darkness. Fearing his wicked rule, Zelda, the princess of Hyrule, split the remaining Triforce of Wisdom into eight fragments and hid them throughout the land.
    [Show full text]
  • GAMING GLOBAL a Report for British Council Nick Webber and Paul Long with Assistance from Oliver Williams and Jerome Turner
    GAMING GLOBAL A report for British Council Nick Webber and Paul Long with assistance from Oliver Williams and Jerome Turner I Executive Summary The Gaming Global report explores the games environment in: five EU countries, • Finland • France • Germany • Poland • UK three non-EU countries, • Brazil • Russia • Republic of Korea and one non-European region. • East Asia It takes a culturally-focused approach, offers examples of innovative work, and makes the case for British Council’s engagement with the games sector, both as an entertainment and leisure sector, and as a culturally-productive contributor to the arts. What does the international landscape for gaming look like? In economic terms, the international video games market was worth approximately $75.5 billion in 2013, and will grow to almost $103 billion by 2017. In the UK video games are the most valuable purchased entertainment market, outstripping cinema, recorded music and DVDs. UK developers make a significant contribution in many formats and spaces, as do developers across the EU. Beyond the EU, there are established industries in a number of countries (notably Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand) who access international markets, with new entrants such as China and Brazil moving in that direction. Video games are almost always categorised as part of the creative economy, situating them within the scope of investment and promotion by a number of governments. Many countries draw on UK models of policy, although different countries take games either more or less seriously in terms of their cultural significance. The games industry tends to receive innovation funding, with money available through focused programmes.
    [Show full text]
  • University of California Santa Cruz Learning from Games
    UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA CRUZ LEARNING FROM GAMES FOR GENERATIVE PURPOSES A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in COMPUTER SCIENCE by Adam J. Summerville June 2018 The Dissertation of Adam J. Summerville is approved: Professor Michael Mateas, Chair Professor Noah Wardrip-Fruin Professor Santiago Ontañón Dean Tyrus Miller Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies Copyright © by Adam J. Summerville 2018 Table of Contents List of Figures vi List of Tables xiv Abstract xvi Dedication xvii Acknowledgments xviii 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Research Contributions ........................... 5 I Learning From Game 7 2 How Humans Understand Games 8 2.1 Human Annotation Tasks .......................... 17 2.2 Entity Persistence .............................. 17 2.3 Camera Motion ................................ 18 2.4 Room Detection ............................... 21 2.4.1 Teleportation ............................. 23 2.4.2 Traversal ............................... 25 2.5 Animation Cycles ............................... 32 2.6 Mode Dynamics ................................ 34 2.7 Conclusion .................................. 36 3 Mappy – A System for Map Extraction and Annotation via Observa- tion 37 3.1 NES Architecture and Emulation ...................... 41 3.2 Operationalizing Entity Persistence ..................... 43 3.3 Inferring Camera Motion .......................... 49 iii 3.4 Determining Room Transitions ....................... 59 3.4.1 Automatic Mapping ........................
    [Show full text]
  • Music, Time and Technology in Bioshock Infinite 52 the Player May Get a Feeling That This Is Something She Does Frequently
    The Music of Tomorrow, Yesterday! Music, Time and Technology in BioShock Infinite ANDRA IVĂNESCU, Anglia Ruskin University ABSTRACT Filmmakers such as Kenneth Anger, David Lynch and Quentin Tarantino have taken full advantage of the disconcerting effect that pop music can have on an audience. Recently, video games have followed their example, with franchises such as Grand Theft Auto, Fallout and BioShock using appropriated music as an almost integral part of their stories and player experiences. BioShock Infinite takes it one step further, weaving popular music of the past and pop music of the present into a compelling tale of time travel, multiverses, and free will. The third installment in the BioShock series has as its setting the floating city of Columbia. Decidedly steampunk, this vision of 1912 makes considerable use of popular music of the past alongside a small number of anachronistic covers of more modern pop music (largely from the 1980s) at crucial moments in the narrative. Music becomes an integral part of Columbia but also an integral part of the player experience. Although the soundscape matches the rest of the environment, the anachronistic covers seem to be directed at the player, the only one who would recognise them as out of place. The player is the time traveller here, even more so than the character they are playing, making BioShock Infinite one of the most literal representations of time travel and the tourist experience which video games can represent. KEYWORDS Video game music, film music, intertextuality, time travel. Introduction For every choice there is an echo. With each act we change the world […] If the world were reborn in your image, Would it be paradise or perdition? (BioShock 2 launch trailer, 2010) Elizabeth hugs a postcard of the Eiffel Tower.
    [Show full text]
  • PROCEDURAL CONTENT GENERATION for GAME DESIGNERS a Dissertation
    UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA CRUZ EXPRESSIVE DESIGN TOOLS: PROCEDURAL CONTENT GENERATION FOR GAME DESIGNERS A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in COMPUTER SCIENCE by Gillian Margaret Smith June 2012 The Dissertation of Gillian Margaret Smith is approved: ________________________________ Professor Jim Whitehead, Chair ________________________________ Associate Professor Michael Mateas ________________________________ Associate Professor Noah Wardrip-Fruin ________________________________ Professor R. Michael Young ________________________________ Tyrus Miller Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies Copyright © by Gillian Margaret Smith 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures .................................................................................................................. ix List of Tables ................................................................................................................ xvii Abstract ...................................................................................................................... xviii Acknowledgments ......................................................................................................... xx Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................................................................................1 1 Procedural Content Generation ................................................................................. 6 1.1 Game Design...................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • The Heroic Journey of a Villain
    Háskóli Íslands Hugvísindasvið Enska The Heroic Journey of a Villain The Lost and Found Humanity of an Artificial Intelligence Ritgerð til MA-prófs í Ensku Ásta Karen Ólafsdóttir Kt.: 150390-2499 Leiðbeinandi: Guðrún B. Guðsteinsdóttir Maí 2017 Abstract In this essay, we will look at the villain of the Portal franchise, the artificial intelligence GLaDOS, in context with Maureen Murdock’s theory of the “Heroine’s Journey,” from her book The Heroine’s Journey: Woman’s Quest for Wholeness. The essay argues that although GLaDOS is not a heroine in the conventional sense, she is just as important of a figure in the franchise as its protagonist, Chell. GLaDOS acts both as the first game’s narrator and villain, as she runs the Aperture Science Enrichment Center where the games take place. Unlike Chell, GLaDOS is a speaking character with a complex backstory and goes through real character development as the franchise’s story progresses. The essay is divided into four chapters, a short history of women’s part as characters in video games, an introduction to Murdock’s “The Heroine’s Journey,” and its context to John Campbell’s “The Hero’s Journey,” a chapter on the Portal franchises, and then we go through “The Heroine’s Journey,” in regards to GLaDOS, and each step in its own subchapter. Our main focus will be on the second installment in the series, Portal 2. Since, in that game, GLaDOS goes through most of her heroine’s journey. In the first game, Portal, GLaDOS separates from her femininity and embraces the masculine, causing her fractured psyche, and as the player goes through Portal 2 along with her, she reclaims her femininity, finds her inner masculinity, and regains wholeness.
    [Show full text]