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This article examines the symbolic and discursive effects of the "final boss" trope in speculative and fantasy games. In contrast to our own world, the rulers, kings, and presidents of speculative games are often the most powerful individuals personally or physically, not just systemically. I employ political theorists Claude Lefort and Eric Santner to argue that the utilization of this trope allows audiences to safely engage with tensions and uncomfortable affects which are inherent to life in a democracy. Fighting bosses which are both monarch and the most powerful of their faction allows audiences to smooth frustrations with the symbolic and discursive chaos which often pervades democratic life. I examine one boss, Godrick the Grafted of Elden Ring, as a particularly fascinating example of this dynamic. I employ close readings of character dialogue and design to argue that such games serve a more concretized political function than scholars have identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some media forms we primarily take in with our senses, like movies, music or text. Other media forms are more like activities that we have to carry out with our body such as digital games on the PC, console, smart phone or tablet. Here, we are not allowed to sit still and take media in with our senses. In order to grasp this otherness and uniqueness of digital games it is not sufficient to re-use adapted media theories, concepts, methods and ways of writing. This article is written on the realization that the theories and methods we approach a research area, activity or experience with will set the boundaries of our understanding. And the ways we represent our understanding in writing to others will subsequently set the boundaries of their understanding. In this way, the article is an attempt of erecting boundaries in new ways and placing them in unfamiliar places through the use of alternative and alien methods, theories and styles of writing. This is done in order to let new formations of studying, thinking and talking about activities and experiences in highly interactive media emerge.

This paper shows the educational aspects of video game Minecraft in primary education. It is based on a systematic review and interviews conducted with fourteen players of the aforementioned game as well as an analysis of interviews with the creator of Young Programmer Academy and an educator of an IT class. The statements of users (players) and educators point to the potential uses of the game in learning and acquiring social skills. In the game, students create their own worlds, develop their imagination and spatial thinking, gain knowledge about the basics of technology, physics and chemistry, as well as enrich their knowledge about nature. Probably for those reasons the game is popular in Norwegian and Swedish schools, where units based on Minecraft are often incorporated by teachers into their lessons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Taking Klabbers’ call for a coherent game science as a starting point, we argue for an alternative way to approach the multidisciplinarity of research into games.Aim. Building on game studies and design research, this article reviews the history and forecasts the future of studying games.Application. All scholars of games could benefit from an awareness of the works of other game scholars in different traditions. The plurality of approaches towards games is an intellectual strength, even if it is difficult for a single scholar to maintain a holistic grasp on research relating to ‘games’. The multitude not only describes the disciplinary traditions reflecting the wider phenomenon of games and play, but also games as creative practice.Demonstration. While the article is theoretical in nature, we use real-world examples to illustrate and ground the argumentation. For example, a key challenge identified here is that the realm of games and their influence, the ludosphere, is expanding too rapidly for any single researcher to keep up with it.Conclusions. We invite game scholars to cultivate a stronger awareness of the multitude of research into games to better position their own work in a larger context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although game studies are widely viewed as an interdisciplinary field, it is unclear how interdisciplinary they actually are. In response, this article reads scientometric data and game studies editorials, handbooks, and introductions through the lens of interdisciplinarity studies to assess game studies' status as an interdiscipline. It argues that game studies show drivers and hurdles typical for interdisciplines. Yet instead of establishing themselves as the broad umbrella interdiscipline of digital game research, they are becoming one narrow cultural studies multidiscipline within the growing and diversifying field of game research and education. Researchers from fields like human-computer interaction or communication are abandoning game studies venues in favor of disciplinary ones--ironically thanks to game studies legitimizing game research. This article suggests that a design orientation and cross-disciplinary boundary objects such as middle range theories could help to broaden, deepen, and secure future interdisciplinary game research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kania undertakes a close playing of Sunset (Tale of Tales, 2015), focusing on the relationship between the player, who perceives the avatar as herself, and the soliloquizing protagonist. Drawing on Heidegger's notions of the ‘They' and ‘distantiality', Kania demonstrates in what way the player's perceptual situatedness with regard to the avatar determines her aesthetic experience of the gameworld. The distantiality that emerges between the player and the protagonist becomes visible in two areas, namely when the player experiences the avatar to be a protagonist, soliloquizing and defining herself through her own gaze, and when the player experiences the avatar as the ‘They,' with the protagonist's behaviour determining the player's position and becoming an expression of a depersonalized opinion and a form of pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A game can be described as a static set of rules and mechanics. However, it is not enough to capture the emergent properties of the interaction between individual elements of the system. Interacting mechanics form an interaction loop called ‘game dynamic'. Even though this concept is recognized, it is rarely used in game studies - partly due to the lack of a clear definition. Petrowicz proposes a clarified definition of the term game dynamic, based on its current use in the fields of game design (MDA framework - Hunicke, LeBlanc, Zubek) and game studies (Games without frontiers - Aki Järvinen). He then uses it to analyse the time dynamics of Fallout Shelter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Krawczyk and Garda present the history of digital game research in Poland. Drawing on existing as well as newly generated data, they present early studies and later processes of institutionalization and internationalization. This, along with a discussion of the terminology, leads them to conclude that over the last few years Polish game research has given rise to the field of game studies, which is in many respects analogous to the respective fields in English-language academia. Additional arguments to support this thesis come from a quantitative analysis of articles published in Polish academic journals from 1995 to 2015. The discussion bears on the history of game research in Poland, the Nordic states and the USA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of games for behavioral change has seen a surge in popularity but evidence on the efficacy of these games is contradictory. Anecdotal findings seem to confirm their motivational value whereas most quantitative findings from randomized controlled trials (RCT) are negative or difficult to interpret. One cause for the contradictory evidence could be that the standard RCT validation methods are not sensitive to serious games’ effects. To be able to adapt validation methods to the properties of serious games we need a framework that can connect properties of serious game design to the factors that influence the quality of quantitative research outcomes. The Persuasive Game Design model [1] is particularly suitable for this aim as it encompasses the full circle from game design to behavioral change effects on the user. We therefore use this model to connect game design features, such as the gamification method and the intended transfer effect, to factors that determine the conclusion validity of an RCT. In this paper we will apply this model to develop guidelines for setting up validation methods for serious games. This way, we offer game designers and researchers handles on how to develop tailor-made validation methods.

The application of games for behavioral change has seen a surge in popularity but evidence on the efficacy of these games is contradictory. Anecdotal findings seem to confirm their motivational value whereas most quantitative findings from randomized controlled trials (RCT) are negative or difficult to interpret. One cause for the contradictory evidence could be that the standard RCT validation methods are not sensitive to serious games' effects. To be able to adapt validation methods to the properties of serious games we need a framework that can connect properties of serious game design to the factors that influence the quality of quantitative research outcomes. The Persuasive Game Design model [1] is particularly suitable for this aim as it encompasses the full circle from game design to behavioral change effects on the user. We therefore use this model to connect game design features, such as the gamification method and the intended transfer effect, to factors that determine the conclusion validity of an RCT. In this paper we will apply this model to develop guidelines for setting up validation methods for serious games. This way, we offer game designers and researchers handles on how to develop tailor-made validation methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although many studies have considered the outcomes and impacts of serious games, little is known about the factors which affect a user's perception or interpretation in games during the process of decision making from theoretical perspectives. This study aimed to explore the process of user perception from the perspective of construal level theory, and to suggest a theoretical design approach for the development of effective serious games. In the current study, cognitive and affective learning outcomes were articulated through literature review and synthesized into a series of assumptions with persuasive and educational aspects in serious games. Serious games reflect the potential of the game mechanism for changing players' perception, and helping with knowledge acquisition of the users. The potential to use construal level theory for effective serious games interventions was suggested, and a Serious Games Design Framework was proposed via potential outcomes from recent advanced research. Finally, implications of the application of the suggested model with various-related purposes and directions for future research were discussed. The model could be useful not only for game researchers and designers, but also for game marketers in attracting potential consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some media forms we primarily take in with our senses, like movies, music or text. Other media forms are more like activities that we have to carry out with our body such as digital games on the PC, console, smart phone or tablet. Here, we are not allowed to sit still and take media in with our senses. In order to grasp this otherness and uniqueness of digital games it is not sufficient to re-use adapted media theories, concepts, methods and ways of writing. This article is written on the realization that the theories and methods we approach a research area, activity or experience with will set the boundaries of our understanding. And the ways we represent our understanding in writing to others will subsequently set the boundaries of their understanding. In this way, the article is an attempt of erecting boundaries in new ways and placing them in unfamiliar places through the use of alternative and alien methods, theories and styles of writing. This is done in order to let new formations of studying, thinking and talking about activities and experiences in highly interactive media emerge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, the authors examine iterative design methods for experimental game prototype development. They recognize the area of game design as a wicked problem space, that is, an area where attempts at producing solutions change the understanding of the problems. They argue that it is vital in game-design research to build and test designs in order to explore how certain game mechanics can result in different play dynamics and play experiences. Depending on the scope of research questions and available resources, it is important to carefully plan the design process of prototypes, their development, and the testing of them. It is also important to consider what types of data to obtain, and how to treat the data, in order to acquire materials for analysis that can support the exploration of the research questions of a study. The purpose of this article is to provide a navigation aid through this process. Various methods of prototyping and types of prototypes are described, along with considerations regarding the type of game that is developed. Then, various types of play tests are presented along with recommendations, depending on timing within the production cycle and availability of test-players. Also, an overview of potential methods of obtaining data from play tests is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

• Game research and game development have different dissemination practices. • Social sciences research is slow compared to the evolution of the gaming market. • Academic research can be difficult to access for game developers. • As a result, social sciences research in games is often ignored by game developers. • Measures can be taken to increase developers' awareness of social sciences research. Research in the social sciences devotes a great amount of attention to investigating the impact of video games on the individual and on society. However, results generated by this research often fail to inform game development. The present study investigated the outreach of research conducted by the academic community by interviewing 30 game developers and 14 researchers, highlighting critical aspects in the relationship between game research and game industry. Specifically, we found that the difference in priorities, speed cycles, and dissemination practices between these two contexts hinder communication. Subsequently, we carried out a focus group for a set of developers and researchers (N = 6) with the aim of eliciting recommendation for improving communication between academics and developers. Among the recommendations to emerge were calls to diversify dissemination channels, promote joint conferences and develop research-production partnerships. It was felt such measures could strengthen the influence of research results outside the academic community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]