Video game Play-Field note Exercise

References:

Egenfeldt-Nielsen, S., Smith, J. H., & Tosca, S. P. (2020;2019;). Understanding video games: The essential introduction (4th ed.). Milton: Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780429431791

Fullerton, T. (2014). Game Design Workshop: A Playcentric Approach to Creating Innovative Games, NY: Taylor & Francis (CRS Press)

Gee, E., & Gee, J. P. (2017). Games as distributed teaching and learning systems. Teachers College Record, 119(11).

Huizinga, J., & Eco, U. (2002). Homo ludens. Piccola biblioteca Einaudi.

Park, G. (2022, March 12). 5 reasons ‘Elden Ring’ is the easiest souls game to get into. The Washington Post. Retrieved March 7, 2023, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2022/02/23/elden-ring-difficulty-souls/

Wildgoose, D. (2022, March 7). Painfully difficult: From Software’s 30+ year journey from PS1 to Elden Ring. IGN. Retrieved March 2, 2023, from https://www.ign.com/articles/painfully-difficult-from-softwares-30-year-journey-from-ps1-to-elden-ring

https://docs.google.com/document/d/11prrG5Cbb0FkJ7MxwstbrdNZKoEN8B2547OGoRCuLvM/edit

References:

Choi, Y., Slaker, J. S., & Ahmad, N. (2020). Deep strike: Playing gender in the world of overwatch and the case of geguri.Links to an external site. Feminist Media Studies, 20(8), 1128-1143. doi:10.1080/14680777.2019.1643388

Fullerton, T. (2014). Game Design Workshop: A Playcentric Approach to Creating Innovative Games, NY: Taylor & Francis (CRS Press)/ Chapters 1, 2, 3.

Stewart, J. (2021, June 4). God of war dev harassed with abusive message after Ragnarok Delay. Game Rant. Retrieved February 26, 2023, from https://gamerant.com/god-of-war-2-del…

Tassi, P. (2020, July 5). The last us part 2’s Laura Bailey getting death threats over Abby role. Forbes. Retrieved February 26, 2023, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/paultass…

Ubisoft employees have ‘grave concerns’ over Toronto studio’s misconduct allegations. Kotaku. (2020, July 6). Retrieved February 26, 2023, from https://kotaku.com/ubisoft-employees-…

Witkowski, E. (2018). Doing/Undoing gender with the girl gamer in high-performance playLinks to an external site.. (pp. 185-203). Cham: Springer International Publishing. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-90539-6_11

https://miro.com/welcomeonboard/cGFHZmtscnJFNXE3Y1NOQ1MwUWpUbDFVbmFOVXVDUTNtV21acVV1OUxYcGhuSWx2Um1LaUpmUlNQNjdxNXF6MXwzNDU4NzY0NTIyMDk0MTMwNDQxfDI=?share_link_id=810779220681

References

Ars Technica. (2019, September 23). How Sid Meier Almost Made Civilization a Real-Time Strategy Game | War Stories | Ars Technica [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwUM33VJRbY

CrashCourse. (2016, April 1). What is a Game?: Crash Course Games #1. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPqR2wOs8WI

Crawford, C. (2003). On game design. New Riders.

Egenfeldt-Nielsen, S., Smith, J. H., & Tosca, S. P. (2020;2019;). Understanding video games: The essential introduction (4th ed.). Milton: Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780429431791

Fortnite: Battle royale (PC version) [Video game]. (2017) . Epic Games.

Lawrie, L. (2022, March 23). Elden Ring Review: FromSoftware’s newest triumph. Stevivor. https://stevivor.com/reviews/elden-ring-review-fromsoftwares-next-triumph/

Nintendo of America. (2017, June 13). Super Mario Odyssey – Game Trailer – Nintendo E3 2017 [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGQHQc_3ycE

Hey there! Here is my submission for IP8.

Gee explored the relationship between video games, play, and learning. Gee’s (2008) article “Cats and portals: Video games, learning, and play” examined how good video games such as Portal or Yu-Gi-Oh with explicit rules to follow (i.e., the laws of physics and the law of conservation of momentum) can incite inquiry among its users. Gee argued that much like a cat’s curiosity when playing with its environment, learners could use video games to spark curiosity with play that could lead to skills being developed, passions being created, or careers being pursued. However, while Gee examined how players could use Portal to learn about the laws of physics, does the same idea of games and learning apply to games that focus more on narrative and themes (i.e., Papers Please or Life is Strange)? 

Gee and Gee (2017) continued analyzing how games could deepen learning and promote engagement in “Games as distributed teaching and learning systems.” Gee and Gee sought to provide a theoretical framework for students to use digital games to create and engage in new forms of conversation. They concluded that DTAL systems offer those opportunities to experience learning in the virtual world, and what students learn in the virtual world could be brought into the real world. For example, does the popularity boom of Twitch promote positive or negative conversations amongst players, and how would Gee and Gee view its use? 

The most prominent similarity between the two articles is that both argue that video games are an untapped source of teaching tools that can promote student engagement and teach skills needed in the 21st century (i.e., creating dialogues with others and AI in video games). The theoretical disparities between the articles are that Gee (2008) focused more on students playing good video games and taking their skills into real-world applications. Gee and Gee (2017) concluded that using DTAL systems promoted the development of linguistic skills in “turn-taking” conversations. These differences focus more on which aspect of learning occurs when playing video games. However, Gee and Gee’s (2017) findings are a natural progression from Gee’s (2008) in the educational use of video games.

References

Gee, J. P. (2008). Cats and portals: Video games, learning, and play. American Journal of Play, 1(2), 229.

Gee, E., & Gee, J. P. (2017). Games as distributed teaching and learning systems. Teachers College Record, 119(11).

For the final project on creating a learning tool that promotes usability, my group and I created a unit for grade 10 students to learn and develop mental health literacy using the web based Classcraft. Classcraft is an online tool that educators can use to create lessons and units to promote engagement and learning with students using theories of gamification and game based learning. We developed the unit to allow for multiple ways to complete assignments, can complete any lesson in any order, and allows for groups or teams to be made for collaborative work. My role in the group was to create the lesson on “Eating Well” and assembling the Classcraft page for student use. Classcraft did not allow for multiple editors of a quest so I was in charge of putting in all the lessons, ensuring that the settings were set to the parameters we wanted and sending out invites to my colleagues and professor to have access as a student.

Some things I really liked about Classcraft and the process of building the unit on mental health literacy were its easy navigation of the website and creation process, and its ability to allow for multiple avenues to complete assignments and promote engagement via gamification. When creating a unit and crafting the quests/lessons for students to create, you can customize it for your classroom needs. By having the ability to ensure the needs or your students are met when creating quests, it encourages educators to explore other methods of delivery of a given curriculum. 

An aspect of Classcraft that did not work was how it only let one “creator” exist and prevented multiple educators from editing or adding content to the quest. With this issue at play, we resorted to having my role be the “creator” who built the quest and added all the content that my colleagues created, and built it so that any lesson could be completed in any order. 

What I learned from this project was that when creating lessons, it is important to keep usability as a top priority. Without usability in mind when developing lessons, students will be asked to complete assignments in a single way without providing an opportunity to be assessed in ways that students would succeed in. Ensuring that students have equal and equitable access to technology and lessons ensures that all students have a chance to succeed and develop. Educational and technological usability continue to change and it is the responsibility of the teacher and government to ensure students have the ability to grow their understanding of curriculum.