Video Games as Literature

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Did That Just Happen? Game Mechanics That Make Your Head Turn

There are certain game mechanics that are normal occurrences, most of which do not provoke a reaction out of a player. However, there are some mechanics that cause you to scratch your head and ask yourself "what the hell just happened?" I am going to discuss the game that first ever made me feel this way. While it has become more common among open world role-playing games, the idea of killing someone and them staying dead no matter what, was a shock to me when I first played The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Most of the games that I played, if you killed someone that held any importance or dictation of the story, they would respond the next time you visited their location. With Skyrim, I was flabbergasted when I realized this was not the case. When playing the game, I was screwing around and accidentally stole money from the blacksmith in Riverwood. After I stole the money from him, he attacked me, so like any logical person I defended myself and killed him. I left the city an...

Mechanics To Create the Perfect Literary Game

As we have progressed throughout this blogging journey, my English class has dove into the depths of video games as literature. There have been numerous discussions about what makes a game literature, and if there are specific elements that create a literary game. During one class, we made a list of what mechanics or elements we would use to create the perfect literary game. Out of the list of thirty or so items, we managed to cut the list down to a final four that we felt were necessary for a successful literary game. Those four mechanics are characters that are actually interesting and you care about, an immersive story-line that allows for personalization and engagement, an established theme or message, and clear causes for character development or improvement. I agree with this list of mechanics that the class decided upon, but I am going to look to add two more mechanics that I feel would help ensure a perfect literary game. The first mechanic that I feel would aid in the perfec...

Columbia: The Immersive World of Bioshock Infinite

Recently I began playing the third installment in the Bioshock trilogy, Bioshock Infinite. I am about half-way through the game and there is quite a few aspects I want to touch on that have stood out to me. Bioshock Infinite has continued what the first Bioshock introduced, which a beautiful, immersive world that is one of the central focuses of the game. A second mechanic is the use of similar gameplay and tropes as the original Bioshock. Thirdly, a mechanic that stood out to me is the character development that is more noticeable than the original Bioshock. The first aspect I am diving into is the emphasis on world and setting. Bioshock Infinite does exactly what Bioshock does, which is make the story-line take place in a uniquely located city that was developed by a man trying to create his own society; Comstock, the main antagonist in Infinite, created Columbia, and Andrew Ryan created Rapture in Bioshock. In Infinite, Comstock built Columbia, which is a religious-based city tha...

Reviews and Potential Inspiration

This blog I have created is for an English class that focuses solely on video games as literature. With that said, there are other students who have been up-keeping similar blogs that I am going to review today and potentially use their success for future inspiration. The first blog I am going to discuss is written by David Eyring. David's blog has some strengths that I enjoyed. One thing specifically that I like is the simplicity and the ease of navigating. The blog utilizes a format which is a vertical column of his posts with the titles standing out. To go along with this, I liked David's effort to make his titles stand out by using a different, fancy font that is different from the rest of each individual post. With that said, I think he may want to re-think which font he chooses. I think the idea to use a different font is good, but maybe one that is not as difficult to read. Another aspect of his blog I enjoy is the personality he has been able to generate thro...

Life Ended Rather Strangely

Last post I dove into the first three episodes of Life is Strange, and explained what I liked and disliked about the those episodes. I have now finished the game, and I am happy to say that the ending was about as good as I expected. I was neither underwhelmed nor overwhelmed with the conclusion of the game, which was an unexpected surprise because games with complex plots and lots of twists in turns typically end in cliche fashion. I believe this ending was superior to those games because you were forced to make one final decision that would either kill the person you sought to save throughout the game, or allow Arcadia Bay to be demolished by a massive tornado. Regardless of the choice you make, there will be that little bit of guilt in the back of your mind. I was happy to save my best friend Chloe because every time you screw with time, it's to help Chloe or to keep Chloe alive. To kill her at the conclusion of the game would make the entire game seem pointless, and everything ...

Life is Stupidly Strange

Everyone wishes they could have super powers, but I believe people never think about the potential consequences of having such power. In Life is Strange, Max has the ability to turn back time, which leads to an intense dynamic created for the player because you can redo your decisions. Sometimes guilt may settle in, or perhaps the annoying commentary from Max saying she feels horrible for the decision will make you go back and change what you did. Throughout the first three episodes, the realization that her power has consequences, finally sets in for Max. This game is something else. An experience you would not traditionally expect with a video game, where all the action is created by personal choice and tension created by those choices. Every decision has a direct consequence, but while playing, you are not sure what that consequence will be, all you are given is a little butterfly in the top left corner; this little hint keeps you on the edge of your seat, wanting to know wh...