| Title | : | Values at Play in Digital Games |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 222 |
| Publication | : | First published July 18, 2014 |
All games express and embody human values, providing a compelling arena in which we play out beliefs and ideas. "Big ideas" such as justice, equity, honesty, and cooperation -- as well as other kinds of ideas, including violence, exploitation, and greed -- may emerge in games whether designers intend them or not. In this book, Mary Flanagan and Helen Nissenbaum present Values at Play, a theoretical and practical framework for identifying socially recognized moral and political values in digital games. Values at Play can also serve as a guide to designers who seek to implement values in the conception and design of their games.
After developing a theoretical foundation for their proposal, Flanagan and Nissenbaum provide detailed examinations of selected games, demonstrating the many ways in which values are embedded in them. They introduce the Values at Play heuristic, a systematic approach for incorporating values into the game design process. Interspersed among the book's chapters are texts by designers who have put Values at Play into practice by accepting values as a design constraint like any other, offering a real-world perspective on the design challenges involved.
Values at Play in Digital Games Reviews
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I'm teaching game design this term at Wilfrid Laurier University and a very helpful colleague encouraged me to read this - and I'm glad I did. Countering the notion that what happens in games doesn't matter as "it's only a game" the authors quote Ovid "In our play we reveal what kind of people we are". This book is not a media effects treatise, rather it breaks down the game design components (e.g. goals, actions, visuals, rewards, etc) to offer designers and students tips on how to make sure the values a game projects are what is intended (and hopefully positive). Writen in an much more accessible manner than most academic books and full of examples and practioner quotations, I think this book should be required reading in all Game Design/Studies programs.
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The idea that play holds within its naive exterior a wealth of value judgements and moral statements is a powerful starting point. With the idea that 'all things are political', we can draw the logical conclusion that so too are all games. All games are political. All games have an ideology. They may not be intentional or even perceivable at first glance, but how could anyone argue that a complex system doesn't in some way *say* something? Flanagan and her colleagues work to try and show how much of the iceberg is sitting under the surface. What does an innocent game of Monopoly- a kids game-tell us? How does it influence us? Our thinking, our moral understanding, our ideology or even just how we interact while in its company? Is there anything wrong with playing a first-person shooter? Is it worth it to at least ask?
The boom of game design that seems to have come about in the past 10 years or so has provided a lot of new types of games for us to play and enjoy. But its also led us to repeat unthinkingly a lot of games from before. I liked this book for where it is trying to take the conversation. Passionate people saying things about what they are passionate about. Games. It's good food for thought and a good introduction for designers and players alike on thinking more critically about the things we do in play spaces, and also the things we don't. Sometimes it is in fact not about hating the player, its about hating the game.
Lets explore (play) space together. -
Fairly interesting exploration in how better to consider the values of games at all stages of the creative process and beyond. Slightly falls down towards the end when it comes across as more of a sales pitch.
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Worth a read.
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I love these MIT papers on videogames series. When you read several general game design books you start reading again and again the same concepts in different order with few different approaches on game making. However, the playful thinking series, or this concrete piece, present thoughful ideas with great personal growth opportunities with the material they reflect on. In this case, is about the power videogames hold and how they can change the world, introducing the figure of the concientous designer, a person who not only designs "fun" but also shapes the kind of ideas and values that will get to the players who experience the game. This read will affect for sure how I design games in the future.
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794.8 F583 2014
