GAMES, GAMERS .....

Happy Bday Queen Victoria! Today no class but we have work to do and one is to blog... yeah! Another session it is starting ........riiiiiiiiiiiight now!

Ok! so i was suppose to read 3 amazing essays about gamers and their relation with the games. All, three readings, present the idea of participatory culture. Which i understood as the gamers become producers of texts instead of only be consumers. Somehow like what Henry Jenkins and fans and poaching of texts. For instance, Halverson, E. & R. Halverson. (2008). Fantasy Baseball, the Case for Competitive Fandom”; In the article the authors discuss the fans and when they create a fantasy baseball team based on real statistics. I think this game is a cool way for fans to demonstrate how much do they know about the game. In addition, that the gamers at some extent have control of what is happening because is not as a “control” environment like other games. Having in consideration that in videogames, gamers rely to whatever the programmer decided to be the way to be played and not having other option of what to do, fantasy games allow to aficionados to show their knowledge and the fact that is based on statistics it provides some “control” for the player. Second reading, Sotamaa, O. (2003). “Computer Game Modding, Intermediality and Participatory Culture”; and the third reading, Postigo, H. (2007). “Of Mods and Modders: Chasing Down the Value of Fan-Based Digital Game Modifications”; discuss another perspective of gamers and their relation with games. Both readings point out to the term mod or modding, which i understood that is when a gamer will hack a game and alter it, it can be done by improving the aesthetic, the game rules, narration or other elements of the game in order to fulfill the gamers goals. Both readings, indicate that this is like hacking and at some players will use this in order to cheat because at some extent they do have the control of the game. The modifications done in the game will make it better and somehow can evolve in another game or it can use other popular text, for instance in one of the readings indicate that modders use barney in one game... I consider that this allow the games to experience the game as they wish to experience it. Also it will show how this gamers will see the world based on the games. Really interesting.

Part 2... find another game ... are you serious? Took me forever to pick one and now that i find one that i like that Im suppose to learn another game... Well so i went back to the site and i found this amazing game. Real Lives 2010 (http://www.gamesforchange.org/main/gameprof/730) which is really similar to the SEAT AT THE TABLE. A role play game where people experience the life of poor societies. However, Im suppose to give my credit card in order to play... and hell no! I will not spend money in this game. So i move one, and i did not find another game that appeal me because of the fact that the other one has cartoon characters which, for me, less the importance of the game and the message get lost in the ridiculous drawings. So i decide to indicate the other one that i like, the name is Free Rice (http://freerice.com/index.php) and is dictionary game. Players need to select definition of words, this words are related to themes such as poverty, hunger, and third world issues. I think this game as my other selection, targets the age of children between 7 years old, which i think is so important because i can play with my niece and she can understand issues and learn new things that i know she wont learn in this country.