SENIOR RESEARCH PAPER
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Beyond the Books:
The Virtues and Controversies of Video Game Technology
Celeste M. Roberts
Nicholls State University
Abstract
This research paper explores and explains the dimensions of the video game world. It introduces the creative writing aspects of the production of video games and what prospective workers need to consider and do if they are interested in pursuing this field. The paper discusses the benefits of playing video games, such as helping foster cognitive thinking skills and social connections, and then investigates the gender studies involved in marketing and using video games. This paper finishes with the controversies pertaining to video games, such as addiction and violent actions in which players may engage. The conclusion summarizes and revisits the subtopics while emphasizing the indelibility the gaming world has left.
Introduction
Children are introduced to stories and make-believe at an early age. Their storybooks that their parents read to them from infancy until a little past their toddler years send them on adventures with Winnie the Pooh, knights and princesses, talking animals, and numerous other fruits of the imagination. As people grow and their tastes change, they still cannot escape from the omnipresent force of creative writing, including—but far from limited to—fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. A more recent and growing field of creative thought is found in the realm of video games. Those complex plots do not just write themselves, after all; a creative script writer must invent a world that oftentimes must create the possibility of lucrative sequels that will keep the games’ fans satisfied. Video game writing, though, is similar to its writing predecessors: It is a difficult field to enter and requires constant use of writing techniques. Anyone who wishes to work for or who currently works for video game companies will face challenges such as developing new stories and characters, marketing certain games for educational and literacy purposes, attempting to close the space between stereotypical gamers and lesser-known audiences, and warding off dismal publicity that strives to expose video games as an unnecessary pastime or even a propagator of violent behavior.
Starting the Game: The Creative Writing Aspect
Video games have become one of the most popular forms of recreation, especially for adults who grew up with the first entertainment systems. The storylines and action, though, have progressed from simple eight-bit one-dimensional ping-pong games to interactive storybooks. According to Carolyn Miller (2008), video games have “an increased emphasis on compelling plots and dimensional characters”; players seem to demand virtually endless possibilities in their games, turning a simple plot about a plumber trying to save a princess into a globally-recognized series with multiple storylines. Video game script writing is similar—if not identical to—screenplay writing. Writers must create the cut-scenes in the games, write the dialogue exchanged between characters, create worlds and mythologies, and even write the entire history of the characters (Carolyn Miller, 2008). The same methods used to market oneself as a creative writer of books or poetry are incorporated in seeking out a career in writing for video games: creating a portfolio that reveals one’s ability to create plots and scripts, networking with official game writing organizations, exploring the different types of employers and companies, and integrating previous writing careers and skills into the field (Carolyn Miller, 2008). Retaining the interest—and wallets—of fans of games certainly can be a daunting goal, especially with the amount of competition among different companies (Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft, for example, are the main production companies).
Benefits of Video Games
With all the work involved in even attempting to earn a spot in the video game industry, one may question the longevity and usefulness of the virtual world; after all, many stigmas have surrounded the group of people who refer to themselves as “gamers,” casual, competitive, or otherwise. Fortunately, as technology advances and enters new domains, so do video games and their applications. For example, video games are no longer just for one player who chooses to isolate himself or herself from others:
Video games are not solitary and, in fact, even when they physically do only involve one player, they can incorporate many people in different geographic areas when massively multiplayer online games (MMOG) and other online games are considered. The fact that many games involve or allow the use of a microphone headset is further evidence that a high level of social interaction is involved in playing games (Corinne Miller, 2008, p. 462).
One can only imagine the level of discipline and creative thought processes a writer must have to keep up with the constantly changing and updating video game world. A well-written plot with engaging characters helps foster a sense of unity among gamers who play similar or multi-player video games; players are able to negotiate, plan, and mingle while working towards accomplishing a task (p. 462-463). At Teen Tech Week at the public library in Mouth Vernon in 2008, teenagers were invited to get together and play popular multi-player games such as Super Smash Bros. Melee, Dance Dance Revolution, and Guitar Hero III. A Mini Grant made Teen Tech Week a reality for the community; because of this event, teenagers were able to use the latest entertainment technology and also able to meet and socialize with other young adults. One teenager informed the librarian that his favorite aspect of the event was “the opportunity to hang out with friends and play games” (as cited in Hoeffgen, 2008, p. 9).
Enhancing social interactions is not the only benefit of video games. In the realm of education, video games are beginning to dominate as well. In 2007, the MacArthur Foundation donated a $1.1 million grant to the Institute of Play, which is a middle and high school with a central interest in video games, because “the foundation has found that games are an effective tool to teach information management and other critical skills” (Perry, 2007). Further proof of their educational functions is evident in the anecdote of a six-year-old girl whom the assistant professor of entertainment technology at Carnegie Mellon University recorded; in the video, she recounts her use of a medieval bludgeon known as a trebuchet, a weapon she brandished in a video game (Perry, 2007). As useful as books are in explaining such topics, Perry argues, they still could not have helped engage the young girl in a virtually first-hand experience with the object. Apparently, the creative writing that creates the storylines and characters for video games can also help convey history lessons as well as cognitive skill-based puzzle and thinking methods to players. Augmenting literacy capabilities is another essential consequence of playing video games; in a sense, video games are a combination of movies and books. According to Steinkuehler (2006, 2008),
[u]nlike television, books, or any other media that came
before them, video games are about a back and forth between reading the game’s
meanings and writing back into them. In effect, games are narrative spaces that
the player inscribes with his or her own intent. From a more contemporary
vantage point on literacy, then, games are digital literacy practice through and
through (p. 61).
Seventh- grader Julio, an alias Steinkuehler (2010) created for a young boy who struggled in English and literary studies, was actually a prolific fan-fiction writer and reader at home. He joined Steinkuehler’s research project that aimed “to create a quasi-natural lab space in which [the researchers] could study [the] disconnect between the in-school versus in-game literacies of teenage boys (and generate ideas for bridging them)” (p. 62). Because of Julio’s interest in writing and reading about his favorite video games, he gained the respect and friendship of several peers, all of whom dabbled in the same activities. Julio disliked his English classes and eventually had to attend a special education program. Steinkuehler’s group experimented with different types of literature and discovered that Julio read at a much higher level—four grades above—whenever he read about a topic that interested him (p. 62). People who would like to work for the video game industry have high chances of obtaining and retaining a job if the population views the following as true: “Video games are a legitimate medium of expression. They recruit important digital literacy practices” (p. 63). Parents and teaching professionals are often encouraged to consider such studies so that they, too, may broaden their teaching tools for students.
Marketing to Both Genders
Another aspect of the video game industry that workers want to remember is gender roles. Boys and girls approach video games differently, and they often select genres that may not appeal to the opposite sex. In a study by Ching, Kafai, and Marshall (2000), the researchers discovered that girls prefer to use cooperation with other players, and they also feel more comfortable with instructions. Boys, though, thrive on competition and independence (as cited in Blumberg and Sokol, p. 152). For a long time, too, boys dominated the gaming market, leaving girl gamers as nothing more than an anomaly. According to the Entertainment Software Association in 2008, girls made up forty-percent of the entire spectrum of gamers; more surprisingly, eighteen-year-old and older women surpassed the amount of minor male gamers (McCann, 2008, p. 51). Most girl gamers prefer casual games, such as Bejeweled, Tetris, Rock Band, and The Sims (p. 51). These statistics should not cause people to believe female gamers do not like different game genres, though. Sarah Hodge-Wetherbe, a youth paralibrarian at Springfield City Library in Massachusetts, reports that "it seems to [her] that there's an equal number of females who like the run-around-and-shoot-'em-up types [of games] as there are the ones who like long, complicated, story-type games” (as cited in McCann, 2008, p. 51). With such a wide variety of players, video game careers should remain in high demand to satisfy the gamers’ wants.
In a book review by Latoya Peterson (Gamer Girls Rising, 2009) of Beyond Barbie and Mortal Kombat: New Perspectives on Gender and Gaming (edited by Kafai, Heeter, Denner, & Sun, 2008), Peterson writes, “Games give players the chance to reinvent themselves. Through the worlds they chose, the games they select, the avatars they create, and the online identities they adopt, they can step out of their physical selves and become completely different people, with new skills, challenges, and missions” (p. 6). This feature is especially attractive to female gamers because some cultures create a sense of segregation between females and males. A daunting trend among massive multi-player online games’ players is sexual discrimination, even in the most seemingly innocuous sense, such as teasing. Though male players with male avatars often try to help and direct female avatar players, female avatars often endure vocal harassment and even flirtatious advances (as cited in Peterson, 2009, p. 6). The gaming industry has, of course, been striving to create games that are targeted more towards females, but according to Sheri Graner Ray, “Girls are not a genre; they are a market that’s just as broad and diverse as any market anywhere” (as cited in Peterson, p. 7). Fortunately, the stereotype for gamers seems to be languishing as more types of people—not just middle-aged men or children—discover how entertaining and widespread the virtual world is; perhaps the variance in the genders will disappear, too.
Video Game Controversies
Despite the positive outlook on the video game business’s endurance in the constantly updating technological area, the industry has faced numerous setbacks, namely due to the addictiveness of video games and their sometimes violent and sexual content. In a study conducted by King, Delfabbro, and Griffiths (2010), the researchers reference Selnow (1984), who believed certain aspects of video games may help craft them as appealing “social companions” (p. 2). Selnow surveyed adolescents who claimed they preferred solitude over human interaction; the members of the group studied reported that playing video games proved “to be more fun and exciting than being with friends, easier than managing interpersonal relationships [,] and helped to forget feelings of social loneliness” (p. 2). What could be the culprit for making some people lose interest in face-to-face interaction with other people? Griffiths, Davies, and Chappell (2004) surveyed 540 Everquest players to see what about the massive multi-player online (MMO) game appealed to them. Surprisingly, the social aspects of the game made it popular among the players (twenty-four percent said “the game is a social game”), along with the ability to “group together with others” (ten percent), and “[to be] part of a Guild” (ten percent) (as cited in King, Delfabbro, & Griffiths, p. 2). The findings appear rather ironic, especially since the group surveyed preferred to remain behind a computer screen to socialize than actually meeting fellow human beings. Based on the results, the players may have grown too comfortable with communicating behind the safety of a screen to want to engage in actual personal interactions.
What else contributes to such dismal results? According to Wood, Gupta, and Derevensky (1996), some research links video gaming to gambling: “Video games and games of chance often contain very similar features with both providing intermittent rewards and elements of randomness” (as cited in Wood, Gupta, Derevensky, & Griffiths, 2004, p. 78). Of course, instead of a financial positive reinforcement, points encourage players to continue advancing to the next level (p. 78). Video games and gambling, however, rely on different skill bases. The video game script writer’s insertion of puzzles and logical thinking into the plot requires the player to use his or her critical thinking skills to work around the obstacle, whereas gambling is, for the most part, random (p. 80). The researchers claim that this knowledge could harm young gamers, for they may believe that they can ultimately master gambling (p. 80). Such addictive behaviors could sway parents from purchasing games for their children, and, even more discouraging, the media could—as it already has done many times before—advertise negatively against video games, putting all workers involved into financial jeopardy.
One of the most popular arguments against the playing of video games, especially children playing them, is an increase in violent behavior after playing a violent video game. Because the gamer is in control of the game’s character, the player may feel as though he or she is the one who is being rewarded for completing certain tasks; such support, theoretically, could cause the young player to interject that behavior into his or her real life (Polman, de Castro, & van Aken, 2008, p. 256-257). This issue instigated a study by Polman, de Castro, and van Aken (2008) to see whether boys and girls reacted differently to varying levels of violence in video games by both watching and playing them. Boys tended to have more aggressive behavior after playing the video games and less aggressive behavior after simply watching the games. Despite these results, though, the complication arises from the fact that the girls who participated lacked noteworthy effects, and the boys who played non-violent video games did not behave significantly more aggressively than after they played and watched violent video games (p. 262). The researchers agreed on one conclusion: “A question that remains unanswered is which children become more aggressive after playing a violent video game. Future studies should investigate more child and environmental characteristics that could moderate the effect of violent video game play on aggression” (p. 263). Overall, no solid answer has appeared; one can only assume that a child’s background and guidance carry a considerable amount of influence on whether he or she will imitate the violent acts in a game or become more aggressive.
Video Games: To Be Continued?
Video games have become one of the fastest-growing sectors of the business and entertainment world. From gaming consoles and computer games to handheld companions, video games’ systems and usage seem to be growing more than disappearing. For people who enjoy writing scripts and storylines, gaming production is a viable option in the modern world. The benefits of playing video games add up continually as more research surfaces; the educational effects, such as cognitive thinking processes, history and cultural lessons, and logical skills, help to defend the usefulness and progression of video games in the classroom. The typical image of a gamer as an older male who still lives at home is rapidly diminishing as researchers discover the popular social interactions video games create for children and adults alike; however, not all gamers are comfortable with real-life social gatherings, an unfortunate personal condition that is not to be blamed entirely on the isolating effects some video games may cause. Despite the problems with addiction and excessive violence in the virtual realm, video games have not been proven to be complete dissenters or destroyers of society. As technology advances and the population demands more ways to pass the time, one surely will see more video games production in the future.
Works Cited
Blumberg, F., & Sokol, L. (2004). Boys' and Girls' Use of Cognitive Strategy When Learning to Play Video Games. Journal of General Psychology, 131(2), 152.
Hoeffgen, B. (2009). Grants Get Teens Gaming: Teen Tech Week 2008 at the Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County. Young Adult Library Services, 7(2), 9.
King, D., Delfabbrao, P., & Griffiths, M. (2010). The Role of Structural Characteristics in Problem Video Game Playing: A Review. Cyberpsychology, 4(1), 2.
McCann, S.(2008). Not Just for Boys Anymore. Library Journal, 133(19), 51.
Miller, Carolyn (2008). Game on! Writing for video games: An interactive-media writer offers advice for breaking into this exciting market. Writer, 121(12), 47-48.
Miller, Corinne (2008). The Video Game Industry and Video Game Culture Dichotomy: Reconciling Gaming Culture Norms With the Anti-Circumvention Measures of the DMCA. Texas Intellectual Property Law Journal, 16(3), (462-463).
Perry, D. (2007). Video Games Entertain and Educate. BusinessWeek Online, 1.
Peterson, L. (2009). Gamer Girls Rising. Women’s Review of Books, 26(2), 6-7.
Polman, Hanneke, Bram Orobio de Castro, and Marcel A.G. van Aken (2008). Experimental study of the differential effects of playing versus watching violent video games on children's aggressive behavior. Aggressive Behavior, 34(3), 256-257.
Steinkuehler, C. (2010). Digital Literacies. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 54(1), 61-63.
Wood, R., Gupta, R., Derevensky, J., & Griffiths, M. (2004). Video Game Playing and Gambling in Adolescents: Common Risk Factors. Journal of Child & Adolescent Substance Abuse, 14(1), 78, 80.
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