Game Changers: Everyday Gamemakers and the Development of the Video Game Industry

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Game Changers: Everyday Gamemakers and the Development of the Video Game Industry GAME CHANGERS: EVERYDAY GAMEMAKERS AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE VIDEO GAME INDUSTRY by Christopher James Young A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of PhiLosophy FacuLty of Information University of Toronto © Copyright by Christopher James Young 2018 Game Changers: Everyday Gamemakers and the DeveLopment of the Video Game Industry Christopher James Young Doctor of Philosophy Faculty of Information University of Toronto 2018 Abstract This dissertation examines the emergence of everyday gamemakers and their roles in transforming the cultural norms and practices of the global video game industry. Everyday gamemakers are digital game creators who share multiple professional and leisure-based gamemaking identities, including developers, “indies,” modders, user-generated content creators, and writers of interactive fiction. Since the Apple App Store opened in 2008, game engines and digital venues have developed and enabled widespread production and distribution of digital games. Game engines such as Unity3D, GameMaker Studio, and Construct 2, which simplify the process of making a digital game using “drag-and-drop” tools and editors, have enabled a range of gamemakers with no programming or artistic experience and training to create digital games. The simultaneous release of digital platforms such as Google Play, Steam, and itch.io, has also streamlined the process of distributing digital games into new and traditional communities of players. These developments have emerged because the video game industry perceives everyday gamemakers to be innovators in diversifying and producing products, creating jobs, and increasing profits. However, I argue that the inclusion of the everyday gamemaker has simultaneously enabled local and grassroots norms and practices to transform the production process of digital game creation in the global video game industry. To demonstrate how these ii gamemakers are changing norms and practices across the industry, I focus on gamemakers’ work and leisure identities as creators of digital games; the cultural activities of the scenes in which they participate; the game engines and tools of production they use to make their games; the working conditions in which they build their games; and the distribution platforms on which they release their games. I argue that gamemakers wear many labour hats within their craft of gamemaking, which not only diversifies the work and leisure contexts of digital game production, but also enables the mixing and transformation of cultural norms and practices within the mainstream industry and the places of leisure more broadly. iii Dedication I dedicate this dissertation to Paul, Teresa and Adrian Young, my parents and brother, whose endless supply of love and support made this dissertation possible. iv AcknowLedgements This dissertation began with a research methods term paper submitted to Sara Grimes, my supervisor, during the first year of my master’s degree. It is difficult to imagine I would be completing a well-funded dissertation without her countless meetings, phone chats, reference letters, article and dissertation reviews, and words of inspiration and wisdom. It’s been a privilege to have such a strong ally and mentor whose intellectual guidance will shape my future scholarship and career. I am extremely blessed to have had the opportunity to benefit from an incredible network of support, insight, and guidance over my graduate career. I would especially like to thank Nicole Cohen and Leslie Regan Shade for their feedback, questions, and for challenging me to be a better scholar. I would also like to thank my colleagues at the Faculty of Information, University of Toronto Libraries, and other institutions around the world. They include Bardia Bina, Christine Grace Chan, Mia Consalvo, Anne Dondertman, ginger coons, Greig de Peuter, Wendy Duff, Alan Galey, Elysia Guzik, Jenna Hartel, Lynne Howarth, Asen Ivanov, Jenna Jacobson, Jessica Lapp, Ava Lew, Chaya Litvack, Heather MacNeil, Loryl McDonald, Darragh McGee, David Nieborg, Matt Ratto, Gabby Resch, Seamus Ross, Hervé Saint-Louis, Mark Sedore, Rianka Singh, Brian Cantwell Smith, Harrison Smith, Dan Southwick, Siobhan Stevenson, Elisa Tersigni, and many other colleagues whose conversations have influenced and inspired me throughout my graduate career. Thanks to my family, whose unconditional love gave me the support to pursue an education and my dreams. A special thank you to my parents, Teresa and Paul Young, my v brother, Adrian Young, and my partner, Farzaneh Victoria Fard, for their constant intellectual and emotional support. An important thank you to all of my participants, informants, and the organizations that made this research possible, including Dames Making Games, Gamma Space Collaborative Studio, Hand Eye Society, Royal Ontario Museum, TOJam, Torontaru, Toronto Global Game Jam, Toronto Unity Developers Meetup, and the Vector New Media Festival. This project was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). I would like to thank the people at SSHRC for their ongoing support of my research, and acknowledge the vital importance of a federal funding program that supports academic studies focused on critical inquiry, measured analyses of media production, consideration of marginalized groups and social justice issues, as well as public policy research. It is my great hope that SSHRC will not only continue to support these types of projects in the years to come, but expand its mandate to foster theory-driven, critical research aimed above all at the advancement of knowledge. vi Table of Contents Dedication ..................................................................................................................................... iv Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................... v Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................ vii Acronyms and Abbreviations ..................................................................................................... xi List of Tables .............................................................................................................................. xiv List of Figures .............................................................................................................................. xv Chapter 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 1 Everyday Digital Gamemaking ........................................................................................... 1 1.1 A Window Into the Video Game Industry ........................................................................................8 1.2 A Note on Definitions .....................................................................................................................12 1.3 Gamemaking Literature ..................................................................................................................14 1.4 Theoretical Framework ...................................................................................................................18 1.5 Methodology ...................................................................................................................................23 1.5.1 Data Gathering ...........................................................................................................................25 1.5.2 Data Analysis .............................................................................................................................33 1.6 Chapter Overview ...........................................................................................................................35 Chapter 2 Concept ...................................................................................................................... 41 Gamemakers ........................................................................................................................ 41 2.1 Everyday Gamemakers ...................................................................................................................44 2.1.1 Cody ............................................................................................................................................46 2.1.2 Benjamin .....................................................................................................................................48 2.1.3 Christine .....................................................................................................................................50 2.1.4 Margot ........................................................................................................................................52 2.1.5 Cameron .....................................................................................................................................55 2.1.6 Michael .......................................................................................................................................57 2.1.7 Lisa .............................................................................................................................................60 2.1.8 Clay ............................................................................................................................................62 2.1.9
Recommended publications
  • Exploration in a Reverse-RPG
    Exploration in a Reverse-RPG Robogeddon, a Casual Real-Time Strategy Game A Major Qualifying Project Report submitted to the Faculty of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Degree of Bachelor of Science On April 28th, 2010 Submitted By: Riley Brown, Sean Crepeau, Karl Gibson, Adam Pastorello, Philip Tang, and Ian Williams Advised By: Professor Joseph Farbrook, Professor Jennifer deWinter and Professor Joseph Beck Exploration in a Reverse RPG – Robogeddon, a Casual Real-Time Strategy Game Abstract This report discusses the design, implementation, and analysis of Robogeddon, a casual real-time- strategy game for the PC, and was created as a WPI MQP for the computer science, interactive media and game development, and professional writing majors. Players in Robogeddon have the unique experience of taking on the role of an overwhelming agent of destruction, in contrast to the typical heroic archetype of many role-playing-games. Robogeddon incorporates “tried and true” elements from classic RTS games, as well as unique new features to attract more casual gamers. This report details the designers’ vision, in terms of artistic style and theme, as well as gameplay and the player experience. Additionally, the report will describe the approach to implementation and the challenges therein. Finally, the creators of Robogeddon describe the lessons learned from the process, and advice to future teams at WPI and beyond. 2 Exploration in a Reverse RPG – Robogeddon, a Casual Real-Time Strategy Game Acknowledgements We would like to extend our deepest gratitude to Professors Farbrook, deWinter, and Beck for their continual guidance in bringing our vision to life.
    [Show full text]
  • Achieve Your Vision
    ACHIEVE YOUR VISION NE XT GEN ready CryENGINE® 3 The Maximum Game Development Solution CryENGINE® 3 is the first Xbox 360™, PlayStation® 3, MMO, DX9 and DX10 all-in-one game development solution that is next-gen ready – with scalable computation and graphics technologies. With CryENGINE® 3 you can start the development of your next generation games today. CryENGINE® 3 is the only solution that provides multi-award winning graphics, physics and AI out of the box. The complete game engine suite includes the famous CryENGINE® 3 Sandbox™ editor, a production-proven, 3rd generation tool suite designed and built by AAA developers. CryENGINE® 3 delivers everything you need to create your AAA games. NEXT GEN ready INTEGRATED CryENGINE® 3 SANDBOX™ EDITOR CryENGINE® 3 Sandbox™ Simultaneous WYSIWYP on all Platforms CryENGINE® 3 SandboxTM now enables real-time editing of multi-platform game environments; simul- The Ultimate Game Creation Toolset taneously making changes across platforms from CryENGINE® 3 SandboxTM running on PC, without loading or baking delays. The ability to edit anything within the integrated CryENGINE® 3 SandboxTM CryENGINE® 3 Sandbox™ gives developers full control over their multi-platform and simultaneously play on multiple platforms vastly reduces the time to build compelling content creations in real-time. It features many improved efficiency tools to enable the for cross-platform products. fastest development of game environments and game-play available on PC, ® ® PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360™. All features of CryENGINE 3 games (without CryENGINE® 3 Sandbox™ exception) can be produced and played immediately with Crytek’s “What You See Is What You Play” (WYSIWYP) system! CryENGINE® 3 Sandbox™ was introduced in 2001 as the world’s first editor featuring WYSIWYP technology.
    [Show full text]
  • Open Thesis Final.Pdf
    The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School College of Communications EVALUATIO OF FOSS VIDEO GAMES I COMPARISO TO THEIR COMMERCIAL COUTERPARTS A Thesis in Media Studies By Jesse A. Clark © 2008 Jesse A. Clark Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts August 2008 ii The thesis of Jesse A. Clark was reviewed and approved* by the following:: John Nichols Professor of Communications Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Research Matt Jackson Associate Professor of Communications Head of Department of Telecommunications Thesis Advisor Robert Frieden Professor; Pioneers Chair in Telecommunications Ronald Bettig Associate Professor of Communications *Signatures are on file in the Graduate School. iii Abstract The topic of copyrights and copyright law is a crucial component in understanding today's media landscape. The purpose for having a copyright system as outlined in the U.S. Constitution is to provide content creators with an incentive to create. The copyright system allows revenue to be generated through sales of copies of works; thus allowing for works to be created which otherwise would not be created. Yet it is entirely possible that not all large creative projects require the same legal framework as an incentive. The so called “copyleft” movement (which will be defined and explained in depth later) offers an alternative to the industrial mode of cultural production. Superficially, “copylefted” works can be divided into two broad categories: artistic/creative works (which are often protected by “Creative Commons” licenses), and Free/Open Source Software. This thesis evaluates how open source video games compare to their commercial counterparts and discusses the reasons for any difference in overall quality.
    [Show full text]
  • Arxiv:2103.14589V2 [Math.GR] 16 Jun 2021
    FINITENESS PROPERTIES FOR RELATIVES OF BRAIDED HIGMAN–THOMPSON GROUPS RACHEL SKIPPER AND XIAOLEI WU Abstract. We study the finiteness properties of the braided Higman–Thompson group bVd,r(H) with labels in H ≤ Bd, and bFd,r(H) and bTd,r(H) with labels in H ≤ P Bd where Bd is the braid group with d strings and P Bd is its pure braid subgroup. We show that for all d ≥ 2 and r ≥ 1, the group bVd,r(H) (resp. bTd,r(H) or bFd,r(H)) is of type Fn if and only if H is. Our result in particular confirms a recent conjecture of Aroca and Cumplido. Introduction The family of Thompson’s groups and the many groups in the extended Thompson family have long been studied for their many interesting properties. Thompson’s group F is the first example of a type F∞, torsion-free group with infinite cohomological dimension [BG84] while Thompson’s groups T and V provided the first examples of finitely presented simple groups. More recently the braided and labeled braided Higman–Thompson groups have garnered attention in part due their connections with big mapping class groups. The braided version of Thompson’s group V , which we refer to here as bV , was first intro- duced independently by Brin and Dehornoy [Bri07], [Deh06]. Brady, Burillo, Cleary, and Stein introduced braided F , or bF . The groups bV and bF were shown to be finitely presented in [Bro06] and [BBCS08], respectively, and this was extended to show that both of these groups + + are of type F∞ in [BFM 16].
    [Show full text]
  • K-12 Workforce Development in Transportation Engineering at FIU (2012- Task Order # 005)
    K-12 Workforce Development in Transportation Engineering at FIU (2012- Task Order # 005) 2016 Final Report K-12 Workforce Development in Transportation Engineering at FIU (2012- Task Order # 005) Berrin Tansel, Ph.D., P.E., Florida International University August 2016 1 K-12 Workforce Development in Transportation Engineering at FIU (2012- Task Order # 005) This page is intentionally left blank. i K-12 Workforce Development in Transportation Engineering at FIU (2012- Task Order # 005) U.S. DOT DISCLAIMER The contents of this report reflect the views of the authors, who are responsible for the facts, and the accuracy of the information presented herein. This document is disseminated under the sponsorship of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s University Transportation Centers Program, in the interest of information exchange. The U.S. Government assumes no liability for the contents or use thereof. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF SPONSORSHIP This work was sponsored by a grant from the Southeastern Transportation Research, Innovation, Development and Education Center (STRIDE) at the University of Florida. The STRIDE Center is funded through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s University Transportation Centers Program. ii K-12 Workforce Development in Transportation Engineering at FIU (2012- Task Order # 005) TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................................................... v CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Download Download
    JOURNAL FOR TRANSCULTURAL PRESENCES & DIACHRONIC IDENTITIES FROM ANTIQUITY TO DATE THERSITES 7/2018 www.thersites.uni-mainz.de CHRISTIAN ROLLINGER (Universität Trier) Battling the Gods An Interview with the Creators of “Apotheon” (2015): Jesse McGibney (Creative Director), Maciej Paprocki (Classical Scholar), Marios Aristopoulos (Composer) in: thersites 7 (2018), 11-29. KEYWORDS Game Studies, Game design, Ancient Mythology, Music design Christian Rollinger Introduction In 2015, Alientrap Games, a small, independent game studio based in To- ronto, released the video game Apotheon for Windows/PC, Mac OS X, Linux, and PlayStation 4. Apotheon is a visually striking side-scrolling ac- tion-adventure game, in which the player takes on the role of an ancient Greek hero fighting against Olympian deities.1 As Nikandreos, his mission is to wrest divine powers from the Gods, in the process becoming a deity himself. The game has received generally favourable reviews and holds an aggregated Metacritic score of 78/100.2 Reviews have lauded the game for its ‘old school’ appeal, being a classic scrolling action title in a time that almost exclusively focuses on 3D action games in the God of War vein.3 While reviews of the game were not universally favourable, with some crit- icising the game’s inventory system and combat modes,4 the distinctive graphics, inspired by Greek vase paintings, and soundtrack have garnered widespread applause, and reviewers praise the game’s “stunning look and feel”5, stating that playing Apotheon “is like being an archaeologist explor- ing and unearthing the mysteries of an unknown world. […] Like the ochre- stained walls of an Athenian temple circa 500 BC, Apotheon’s characters are little more than black silhouettes.”6 1 http://www.alientrap.com/presskit/sheet.php?p=apotheon (accessed 18.09.2018).
    [Show full text]
  • Minecraft Free Download Laptop
    Minecraft Free Download Laptop Minecraft Free Download Laptop CLICK HERE TO ACCESS MINECRAFT GENERATOR Bedrock Dedicated Server Tutorial. Bedrock Dedicated Server (Alpha) is official server software for Windows and Ubuntu Linux to host your own server for Minecraft (Bedrock). This tutorial is intended to supplement the official bedrock_server_how_to.html documentation included with the server software.. Disclaimer: This is an unofficial tutorial. Minecraft Installer 1.0 on 32-bit and 64-bit PCs. This download is licensed as freeware for the Windows (32-bit and 64-bit) operating system on a laptop or desktop PC from rpg games without restrictions. Minecraft Installer 1.0 is available to all software users as a free download for Windows. minecraft pocket edition free download full version 0.4 0 is minecraft free pc Minecraft birthday party food labels free printable menu based on dirt coco sc st pinterest also best minecraft images food labels rh pinterest com and fa fff fb fecea birthday party foods cake birthday. free androind minecraft seever skin maker minecraft download free Ceux-ci servent à mettre des drapeaux ou des flèches si vous êtes éloigné sur la mini-map et même avoir un symbole dans le monde à votre point, afin de vous retrouvez facilement. Comment faire pour en mettre ? Allez dans le menu de la mini-map (donc M si vous n'avez pas changé la touche), puis Waypoints. image des skin hacker minecraft 1. Click on the “Download Game” button. 2. Download “Minecraft Bedrock” Installer (Supports Resumable Downloads). 3. Open the Installer, Click Next and choose the directory where to Install.
    [Show full text]
  • Development of a Finite Runner Mobile Game Bachelor's Thesis | Abstract
    Bachelor's Thesis Information Technology Software Business 2015 Eetu Pitkänen DEVELOPMENT OF A FINITE RUNNER MOBILE GAME BACHELOR'S THESIS | ABSTRACT TURKU UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES Information Technology | Software Business 2015 | 41 Tiina Ferm Eetu Pitkänen DEVELOPMENT OF A FINITE RUNNER MOBILE GAME The purpose of this thesis was to examine the process of developing a finite runner game. The game was developed for an indie game development company called FakeFish to answer their need of a product that can be easily showcased and used as a reference point of what the company is capable of in a limited amount of time. The theoretical section of the thesis focused on the game’s concept, the endless runner genre’s characteristics and history, tools used, potential publishing platforms and the challenges of publishing in the segregated markets of the east and west. The empirical section of the thesis consisted of the game’s main programmed features, ad-based monetization, the interconnectivity of the level design and difficulty as well as building to a platform. Unity was chosen as the development platform due to it having low royalty fees, a big developer community and FakeFish’s previous experience with the Unity game engine. The game’s publishing in the future will happen in the western world only as publishing in Asia is a complicated and expensive process that FakeFish is not yet ready to undergo. The publishing channel for the game is going to be Google Play and the operating system Android as these match the game’s planned monetization model and performance requirements the best.
    [Show full text]
  • Game Engines in Game Education
    Game Engines in Game Education: Thinking Inside the Tool Box? sebastian deterding, university of york casey o’donnell, michigan state university [1] rise of the machines why care about game engines? unity at gdc 2009 unity at gdc 2015 what engines do your students use? Unity 3D 100% Unreal 73% GameMaker 38% Construct2 19% HaxeFlixel 15% Undergraduate Programs with Students Using a Particular Engine (n=30) what engines do programs provide instruction for? Unity 3D 92% Unreal 54% GameMaker 15% Construct2 19% HaxeFlixel, CryEngine 8% undergraduate Programs with Explicit Instruction for an Engine (n=30) make our stats better! http://bit.ly/ hevga_engine_survey [02] machines of loving grace just what is it that makes today’s game engines so different, so appealing? how sought-after is experience with game engines by game companies hiring your graduates? Always 33% Frequently 33% Regularly 26.67% Rarely 6.67% Not at all 0% universities offering an Undergraduate Program (n=30) how will industry demand evolve in the next 5 years? increase strongly 33% increase somewhat 43% stay as it is 20% decrease somewhat 3% decrease strongly 0% universities offering an Undergraduate Program (n=30) advantages of game engines • “Employability!” They fit industry needs, especially for indies • They free up time spent on low-level programming for learning and doing game and level design, polish • Students build a portfolio of more and more polished games • They let everyone prototype quickly • They allow buildup and transfer of a defined skill, learning how disciplines work together along pipelines • One tool for all classes is easier to teach, run, and service “Our Unification of Thoughts is more powerful a weapon than any fleet or army on earth.” [03] the machine stops issues – and solutions 1.
    [Show full text]
  • Sparking a Steam Revolution: Examining the Evolution and Impact of Digital Distribution in Gaming
    Sparking a Steam Revolution: Examining the Evolution and Impact of Digital Distribution in Gaming by Robert C. Hoile At this moment there’s a Renaissance taking place in games, in the breadth of genres and the range of emotional territory they cover. I’d hate to see this wither on the vine because the cultural conversation never caught up to what was going on. We need to be able to talk about art games and ‘indie’ games the ways we do about art and indie film. (Isbister xvii) The thought of a videogame Renaissance, as suggested by Katherine Isbister, is both appealing and reasonable, yet she uses the term Renaissance rather casually in her introduction to How Games Move Us (2016). She is right to assert that there is diversity in the genres being covered and invented and to point out the effectiveness of games to reach substantive emotional levels in players. As a revival of something in the past, a Renaissance signifies change based on revision, revitalization, and rediscovery. For this term to apply to games then, there would need to be a radical change based not necessarily on rediscovery of, but inspired/incited by something perceived to be from a better time. In this regard the videogame industry shows signs of being in a Renaissance. Videogame developers have been attempting to innovate and push the industry forward for years, yet people still widely regard classics, like Nintendo’s Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998), as the best games of all time. As with the infatuation with sequels in contemporary Hollywood cinema, game companies are often perceived as producing content only for the money while neglecting quality.
    [Show full text]
  • The World Economy Today
    THE WORLD ECONOMY TODAY: Major Trends and Developments First Edition 1 2 THE WORLD ECONOMY TODAY: Major Trends and Developments First Edition Joint publication, comprised of selected works of renowned scholars and experts representing: University of Antwerp, Belgium Bond University, Australia Center for Education, Policy Research and Economic Analysis ALTERNATIVE, Armenia Delft University of Technology, Netherlands Zhejiang Gongshang University, China International Monetary Fund, HQ in Washington D.C., USA University of San Francisco, USA Shinawatra International University, Thailand United Nations University, Belgium Yerevan State University, Armenia 3 Liliane Van Hoof, Ph.D., Professor of International Business Evrard Claessens, Professor of Economics L. Cuyvers, Professor of International Economics, Stijn Verherstraeten, Research Assistant Céline Storme, Industry Management Consulting Liesbeth Van de Wiele, Consultant Philippe Van Bets, MBA at University of Antwerp Michel Dumont, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Economics of Innovation at Delft University of Technology P. De Lombaerde, Associate Director at United Nations University Rosita Dellios, PhD, Associate Professor of International Relations at Bond University, Gold Coast, Australia Ararat Gomtsyan, Ph.D., Senior Analyst, Armen Safaryan, Ph.D., Senior Analyst Tamara Grigoryan, MBA, Senior Analyst at Center for Education, Policy Research and Economic Analysis ALTERNATIVE, Armenia 4 Guillermo Tolosa, IMF Resident Representative to Armenia International Monetary Fund, Headquartered
    [Show full text]
  • Criticism of Religion and Child Abuse in the Video Game the Binding of Isaac
    Tilburg University I Have Faith in Thee, Lord Bosman, Frank; van Wieringen, Archibald Published in: Religions DOI: 10.3390/rel9040133 Publication date: 2018 Document Version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Link to publication in Tilburg University Research Portal Citation for published version (APA): Bosman, F., & van Wieringen, A. (2018). I Have Faith in Thee, Lord: Criticism of Religion and Child Abuse in the Video Game the Binding of Isaac. Religions, 9(4), [133]. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel9040133 General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 30. sep. 2021 religions Article I Have Faith in Thee, Lord: Criticism of Religion and Child Abuse in the Video Game the Binding of Isaac Frank G. Bosman 1,* and Archibald L. H. M. van Wieringen 2 1 Department of Systematic Theology and Philosophy, Tilburg University, 5037 AB Tilburg, The Netherlands 2 Department of Biblical Sciences and Church History, Tilburg University, 5037 AB Tilburg, The Netherlands; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected] or [email protected] Received: 26 March 2018; Accepted: 12 April 2018; Published: 16 April 2018 Abstract: The game The Binding of Isaac is an excellent example of a game that incorporates criticism of religion.
    [Show full text]