Video games: news, theory & analysis.
Video games: news, theory & analysis.
According to data from my dissertation research, user-created content (maps) extends a title's shelf life by approximately two years before it sharply declines. A subsequent release of a new installment reinvigorates the franchise. What follows is a brief summary of some preliminary numbers. One of the happy observations that both academics and analysts like to make is that user-created content for a video game extends the title's shelf life. But not nearly often enough is this accompanied by any type of empirically derived argument. Enter data. — read on
At the G4C festival last week I realized how many people we have here in NYC that do one thing or another with games. So, just now I sent off a proposal to start up DiGRA NY. — read on
Reporting live from 12th street, I'm slowly coming to the conclusion that serious games and I can date for a while, but I don't see a long term relationship. — read on
As part of my preparation for the imminent Games for Change festival here in NYC, I've compiled a list of serious games. — read on
As part of a report on casual games and browser-based MMOGs, I just completed a table of one company's available online payment methods. Organized by country, it lists how gamers all over the place can pay for their virtual currency and in-game items. — read on
So it looks like I'll be headed to Barcelona this November. My proposal for ECREA 2008 got accepted and now I will go shoulder-to-shoulder with communication "specialists studying the role of communications and media in society, with a special emphasis on European challenges." C'est le w00t, bonhomme. — read on
After Locating Play & Politics, I read Flanagan's earlier Next Level (.pdf). Generally, in order to fully understand a writer's present argument it helps to read some of their earlier ideas. So too with Ms. Flanagan. — read on
So here's a question. Suppose, in an entirely fictional reality, M$ was looking to increase their share of "women" and "lapsed" gamers. What would you recommend they do? There are, obviously, no financial boundaries.
First, women gamers love casual games. You know, Diner Dash or Bejeweled type of stuff. What a company like M$ could do is a) make the downloadable ones more user-friendly (no bs with buying credits or spyware), and b) make their MSN games available on browser other than IE. This type of game is generally played at work (where people have computers that are up to par), so approaching it from that angle would be one venue. — read on
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