Take Home

When I first signed up for this course, I knew there was a lot I could learn but I also knew that the content was not one that I was particularly keen. Here is what I knew about videogames:

• trivial
• child's play
• pass-time
• not for me

16 weeks later, there is so much more that I know I will take away from this course. I am mortified by by ignorance early on.

For one thing, I was happy with the text, The Procedural Power of Videogames. It was intriguing to learn that there is a rhetorical dimension to videogames. Who knew? And why not given the persuasive nature of videogames, right? 

I wasn't certain there was such a thing as the rhetoric of videogames. I was therefore surprised that I learned to form associations between games and the experiences created for gamers. That aspect certainly allows me now to understand my son's enthusiasm for videogames. I can talk with him intelligently about his greatest passion--videogames. I can interrogate the games he asks me to buy him based on such design decisions that include:

• for whom is the game designed 
  
• what was the intent, 
  
• how does it relate to other trends in the media, 

I can also interrogate the rhetorical triangle: ethos (designers' credibility), pathos (how does it appeal to audience emotions and their reaction), logos,(technical implementation and game mechanics). This rhetoric, straight from the mouth of Aristotle ceases to be a foreign-outdated concept. Who knows, I can introduce my children to the concept of rhetoric early on. As Aristotle put it, rhetoric is useful in making decisions where true knowledge is not available. Rhetoric is also about discovery and is particular to any given case. As we can tell from the array of videogames, game creators employ a lot of inventiveness in order to discover the means through which they can convey the experiences they wish to share. They also have to think through the specific moves, the tasks and challenges, and, perhaps the end result. They'd then write the code and infuse it with procedurality.

It's always amazing to me when theory and practice come together, and if it is demonstrated in this manner, it's solidified all the more for me.

One thing that stands out for me is the day we read about Advergames and product placement. That same day the media carried the story that  the Obama campaign was placing political ads in videogames. While I was familiar with the concept of product placement in movies, in reality shows, etc, I was not aware that it took place in videogames. Apparently, this marked the first time such a feat had been accomplished.

I learned that what happens in virtual worlds mirrors real-life; that's where the attraction to gaming is.