Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Design Journal 09292010
Design Journal notes 09252010-09292010
Learning from Educational Games
Ferdig (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Effective Electronic Gaming in Education, 989–1009. New York: IGI Global.
This article highlights a number of my design passions – and will be important moving towards dissertation decisions. The article stresses the importance of conceptual play spaces over game vs. simulation through two primary examples:
Black Rhino in Tanzania and Anytown
Quest Atlantis
“While it is possible to develop game rules or even a rich narrative, and while it is possible to design a space to support academic learning or even legitimate participation, it is quite challenging to develop a conceptual play space that both fosters Gee’s notion of empathetic embodiment and supports the learning of discipline-relevant practices. The goal of this manuscript is to both communicate the value of such curriculum and to provide an illuminative
set of cases such that others might create their own conceptual play spaces.
Abstract
In this chapter we provide a framework for designing play spaces to support learning academic content. Reflecting on our four years of design experience around developing conceptual play spaces, we provide guidelines for educators to think through what it would mean to design a game for supporting learning. Conceptual play is a state of engagement that involves (a) projection into the role of a character who, (b) engaged in a partly fictional problem context, (c) must apply conceptual understandings to make sense of and, ultimately, transform the context. We provide four elements that one must balance when designing a conceptual play space to support the learning of disciplinary content; more specifically, ensuring the learning of academic content and supporting legitimate participation while, concurrently ensuring interaction with gaming rules and engagement with the framing narratives through which the play takes on meaning. Our goal is to communicate the potential value of play spaces and to provide an illuminative set of cases for others.
Gee, J.P. (2006). Learning and Games. In K. Salen (Ed.), The Ecology of Games, pp. 21–40. Cambridge, MIT Press.
This, as Barab will be an important article approaching my dissertation decisions, as I have written “YES!” in the margins on my print out. I must make sure to check on a game Okami regarding applications to teaching aspects of Jewish Civilization:
“One can take note here as well of the beautiful video game Okami that models, in a myriad of ways, Japanese spiritual, cultural, and historical perspectives on the relationship between drawing (e.g., in writing in characters) and the world (31).”
In this article, Gee points out a number of important intersections between good learning and good games/Games (capital G for the larger social system) – from motivational aspects, emotional connections to memory and problem solving to connections between World of Warcraft demonstrating cross functional teams and”distributed intelligence” – crowd sourcing. Tool usage, immediate in-game feedback (transforming “failure” signals from punishment to motivation). I have noted the connections also to NLP techniches such as the failure to feedback transformation. This provides a scholarly/academic approach to such ideas. Experience is at the core of this article – Gee discusses how experience and situated learning and problems provide more ideal learning environments to cognition – learner’s investment in the problem solving is key. Gee also touches on scaffolding concepts, though he doesn’t use that word here. I noticed connections to D and D – such as cross functional teaming – I am interested in the pursuits of the Gifted and Talented in the 1970s and 80s as they apply to the techniques we now champion in gaming – is the primary force in being able to make this shift the ubiquitous nature of digital gaming paired with support from foundations such as ADM and MacArthur? Regardless, it seems we now seek to bring all learners into the imaginative landscape –here I hope to find my dissertation work…
Squire, K. (2008). Open-Ended Video Games: A Model for Developing Learning for the Interactive Age. In K. Salen (Ed.), The Ecology of Games, pp. 167–198. Cambridge, MIT Press.
Analysis of studies of Civ III and Grand Theft Auto: SA for the purpose of understanding open sandbox games—two key quotes:
“The idea is to develop worlds that are worth understanding, which support multiple readings mediated by interpretive communities of practice, developing multiple compelling trajectories through the space, and supporting students in identifying new kinds of experiences in which to take part (see figure 1). As educators, we can nurture, develop, and extend students’ participation within the game environment beyond the specific context of play. (192-193).”
“Part of what makes open-ended games intriguing for educators is their ability to nurture, sustain, and develop participants’ interests for years (much like a spiraling curriculum might). At the time of this writing, we see participants periodically “checking out” and coming back to our program, as they develop new academic interests. Monroe, for example, renewed his interest in Civilization III while reading about European colonization in school. (193)”
This article is important for historical reconstructions – raises issues of ideology that are built into game mechanics. Design issue: how to provide ideology (in my research case, positive, ethical, Jewish) into game mechanics
Rieber, L.R. (2005). Multimedia Learnign in Games, Simulations, and Microworlds. In Mayer, R.E. (Ed.), Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning, pp. 549–567. New York: Cambridge.
Reviewing and critiquing scientific eveidence and research methods regarding using games, simulations, and microworlds as multimedia learning tools. Makes distinction between explanation and experience for design opportunities in interactive media. Finds that there is strong evidence in simulations research regarding feedback in the interface.
Some conclusions: informational support needed for hypothesis creation post-simulation – benefit of simulations that grow in difficulty and complexity. Microworlds – for exploring complex systems. Recommends mixed methods when studying interactive media. Regarding cognitive theory: worth exploring dual coding and mental models theoretical framework is particularly useful for explaning learning in simulations and microworlds. Experience and timing of explanations is key – short explanations and during the simulation.
Review
Kirriemuir, J. & McFarlane, A. (2004). Literature review in games and learning. FutureLab Report.
Kirriemuir, J. & McFarlane, A. (2004). Literature review in games and learning. FutureLab Report.
Provides a wide swath of research through 2004 – pointing out the various challenges and potential opportunties – interesting to note that Zimmerman, Salen, Squire and Jenkins have yet to appear on the radar of Futurelab at this moment in time – Here are raised the concerns regarding violence, attention, lost-time as well as opportunties for fun to flow shifting, engagement at a deep level and a variety of used skills. I find this piece most interesting in terms of historiography of the emerging field/discipline.
Drawing on the Civ III research that we’ve seen in the other study and a program using Mad City Myster, a mobile based game, Squire argues for the future of education through gaming using ethnographic/qualitative interviews. He stresses the aspects of simulation – seen as possibility spaces and cultures of participation. Visual culture and media worlds are suggested as the oncoming if not present vernacular. The possibilities of shifting media consumers to producers (though, I think, Jenkins has shown that this has already happened – Jenkins does ask for guidance from educators here) is mentioned as well as development of expertise. The primary benefit of this article is the writing on Mad City Mystery absent from the other Squire reading this week.
Steinkuehler, C. A. (2006). Massively multiplayer online videogaming as participation in a Discourse. Mind, Culture & Activity, 13(1), 38-52.
A functional linguistics approach to unpacking the meaning/power in MMOGs
Steinhuehler’s page gives her perspective as “from a learning sciences & new literacy studies perspective.” Here she uses “cognitive ethnographies” (what course can I take here? Goldman?) Later she states: The analysis presented here is based on functional linguistics (Halliday, 1978) and big-D Discourse analysis—“the analysis of language as it is used to enact activities, perspectives, and identities”
(Gee, 1999, pp. 4–5). (42)”
“Briefly, such analyses focus on the collocational patterns of linguistic
cues such as word choice, foregrounding/backgrounding syntactic and prosodic markers, cohesion
devices, discourse organization, contextualization signals, and thematic organization used in
spoken or written utterances to invite particular interpretive practices. Configurations of such devices
signal how the language of the particular utterance is being used to construe various aspects
of reality such as which aspects of the (virtual) material world are relevant and in what way, the
implied identity of the speaker/writer and who the audience is construed to be, and what specific
social activities the speaker and his or her interlocutors are taken to be engaged in (Gee, 1999).” (42)
She seems to be a direct protégé of Gee – curious that her PhD was done at Madison and now she is part of the faculty. My impression was that was uncommon in academia – though perhaps less so at Madison and MIT due to the small pool of specialize professors? The article features Gee’s Discourse Theory, and applies it to Lineage:
“Through participation in a Discourse community, an individual comes to understand the
world (and themselves) from the perspective of that community. Thus, semantic interpretation is taken as part of what people do in the lived-in world; it arises through interaction with social and material resources in the context of a community with its own participant structures, values,
and goals (40).”
I am left asking what is the larger environmental benefit of the parsing of argot? Is it “Robust online communities are… complex social spaces of affiliations and disaffiliation” (50) How can the parsing be deployed politically, economically? She argues: “such communities are indeed rich spaces for social interaction and enculturation, requiring complex cognitive and cultural knowledge and skills, how is it that they are so often dismissed if not vilified by the media? (50)s Here is the hook – validation of the community through the argot into the complexity of knowledge and skills. Very very interesting.
Would like to follow up with Dr. Plass on this approach and determine others at NYU with similar methodologies.
Game:
Plants versus Zombies
Remarkably designed – highly engaging, highly “addictive” – two of my gamer friends turned me onto this game which pits you as a homeowner planting a garden of friendly and not-so-friendly combat flowers and plants to stave off invading zombie forces. Stimulating sound and graphics – cute plants, creepy zombies that murmur: “Brains… brains” as they approach to eat your plants and destroy your house. Most interesting is the aspect of reinforcement here, which matches the change in failure signals that Jim Gee points out in this week’s articles – failure is a signal to try harder. What is most interesting here is that during the sample – the game provides 60 minutes of free game play before charging $19.95 – I can only speak to the free part of the game, which I immediately used up – there was never a “die” state – but there is the constant threat of “dying” – so I never received a full “failure” signal from the game – only the fear of a failure signal and the excitement and sense of empowerment in avoiding fail signals. The closest that the zombies ever got to my house was that a couple reached the lawnmowers – the safeguard last defense line. But they never got to my house – this I believe was incredibly compelling/could induce addictive behavior – regular reinforcement while withholding “punishment” signals, but hovering just over them. The actions of the zombies eating up plants was punishment enough – they never needed to reach my house. From a Skinerian perspective, this is very interesting – how to modulate the threat of punishment or use minipunishment but allow the player to keep larger punishment at bay in order to spiral them deeper into game play. Could be a highly useful design tool in educational gaming.
For fun aspect and extra-game culture: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0N1_0SUGlDQ
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Week 2: Student Presentations
Week 2: Student Presentations
Salen, K., & Zimmerman, E.(2004). ROP, chapters 4, 5, 6.
4 Design
Each different definition of design has a different emphasis. S and Z emphasize meaing:
Design is the process by which a designer creates a context to be encountered by a participant, from which meaning emerges. Semiotics deals with signs and their meanings. A sign represents something other than the sign itself – the representation is the meaning of the sign. Pierces four semiotic concepts:
-A sign represents something other than itself
- tap=fire weapon, duck,etc
-Signs are interpreted
meaning emerges as players take on roles as interpreters of these signs
-Meaning results when a sign is interpreted
signs are relative – the sign stands for somebody or something in some aspect or capacity. Meaning emerges for that sign based on relationships within the system
-Context shapes interpretation.
Context and structure affect interpretation. Context is environment. Structure are the rules and guidelines that structure how signs can be combined.
Much cinema studies work in structuralism and semiotics can be applied to games through this bridge concept. In the second sample Game in ROP – by Frank Lantz, he experiments with a dual semiotics system and is a good illustration of a sign in different contexts having different meaning.
5 Systems
A system is a set of parts that interrelate to form a complex whole. Systems types include: mathematical, social, representational, etc.
Systems share these four elements:
Objects – parts, elements, or variables,
Attributes – characteristics of the system and objects
Internal relationships – relations among and between objects
Environment – context around the system
The frame of the system alters the way the elements are identified. A cultural system will have different elements than a mathematical system. Formal, experiential, and cultural systems frames interact in the following ways: formal is embedded in experiential and experiential and formal elements are both within in cultural frame. Formal systems are closed, Experiential systems can be open or closed, Cultural systems are open (open is effected by and effects outside – data and relationships move beyond the system)
6 Interactivity
Note for future design work: anatomy of a choice maps to stage actor/stage director systems of choice in beats – use for mapping narrative decision trees. Page 65 chart.
When a player interacts with the designed system of a game, meaningful play emerges.
Four modes of interactivity:
-Cognitive interactivity/interpretive participation
-Functional interactivity/utilitarian participation
-Explicit interactivity/participation with designed hoices and procedures
-Beyond-the-object interactivity – cultural participation
These modes overlap and occur simultanteously
In a designed interaction, there is an internal structure and a context giving meaning to actions. Participants have choices in interactive systems. Choices in a system can be macro or micro (think on stage of tactic and strategy arcs) – long term, versus short term progress oriented actions. The basic unit of interaction is action > outcome. Again this maps to beats in a stage scene. Beats make scenes, (sequences from scenes in a film), acts, play –
Stages derived from action >outcome interactions
1) what happened prior to the choice opportunity given to player
2) How is this possibility communicated to player?
3) How did player make the choice?
4) Result of choice? How will it affect future choices (ask about this – regarding long term)
5) How is result conveyed (stage is all talk, film ideally picture/action, game is... audio/visual/textual, kino-haptic?)
Internal events is an input to the system – system accepts
External events – choice represented to player
Space of possibility of a game is all possible meanings and actions that can emerge (relate to semiotic fields as well as meaning, design, sytems, and interactivity).
Smith & Ragan (1999). Instructional Design. New York: Wiley. [ Chapters 1, 2 ] -- alternative download site: [ Chapters 1, 2 ]
Chapter 1
The term instructional design refers to the systematic and reflective process of translating principles of learning and instruction into plans for instructional materials, activities, information resources, and evaluation. Instruction is the intentional facilitation of learning towards identified learning goals. Design implies a systematic or intensive planning and the ideation process prior to the develoment of something or the execution of some plan in order to solve a problem. Design implies precision, care, expertise. Design also implies/demands Creativity. An instructional design has a primary structure: Goals, Strategy, Evaluation
Evaluation versus assement: eval is of the instructional design wheras assessment is eval of the learning.
Chapter 2
This chapter delineates and makes distinctions between philosophies of instructional design and theories of instructional design. It gives a rationale for knowing and using philosophy and theory – for communication, for providing rationale, and also implies the imporantance of knowing where thinkers have already travelled on the topic.
Philsophies:
Constructivism/rationalism – reason is the source of knowledge – Empiricism – sensory experience is the source of knowledge – Pragmatism – aquired through experience, interpreted through reason
Note:
many constructivists reject the explanations of learning cognitions offered by information processing theory but have provide no theory themselves
Note: bottom of 18 blocked out on problem solving…
Theory:
An organized set of statements that allows us to explain, predict, or control events
Theories:
Behaviorism: Skinner – influence of the environment
Cognitive learning theories – thinking - constuctivist approach (though constructivists reject information processing theory!?) – more oriented to the learner than the behavior. Discussion of long term/encoding memory versus short term/working memory. Retreival, models (load theory?)
Developmental: Piaget (learn when biologically ready to learn) and Vigotzsky (scaffolding to next level)
Instructional theory – Blooms model of mastery learning
Overall question I have re: instructional design – knowing what outcomes we want versus Stuart Brown and Adele Diamond on the value of Play for learning with a goaless approach - can instructional design be built around a goaless approach – as the design goal itself? my instinct says yes. Also, I believe that if the mechanic is fun, I don't think it matters - here novelty, difficulty, and humor/wish fulfillment are key.
GAME:
Third World Farmer
called both a simulation and a game
(Simulation) – but it can be beaten, I’ve done it once, so I’ll list it as a game.
Premise, make buy and planting and general living decisions as a third world farmer (now should be called “developing world” to stay alive and try to keep your famly alive. This is not easy to do , given plagues, bandits, corrupt politicians, bad weather, and disease.
I first found this game though games for change, and became obsessed with it for a few weeks. I wanted to beat the system – if has intermittent reinforcement which is addictive. I wasn’t sure I could beat the game until one day, I happened to do so. From a design perspective, there was learning built into the system, teaching the plight and struggle of the Third World Farmer, role playing and a variety of choices. Random elements sometimes made the game frustrating because it’s hard to stay alive more than 20 turns. Luck plays a major role. I believe that part of the design that is compelling is the detail and the ability to find more details as I proceeded. For example, I learned about the family the more I played and clicked on them, revealing that I could educate them, give medicine to them.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Week 1 Defining the Field–What makes a Game a Game?
Salen, K., & Zimmerman, E.(2004). ROP, chapters
3 Meaningful Play
Meaningful play is the goal of successful game design. Descriptive definition of meaningful play describes the means by which all games create meaning through play. The evaluative definition is used to help understand why some games provide more meaningful play than others (comparative). The meaning of a game resides in the relationship between action and outcome (compare to a narrative film structural meaning system, and what John Howard Lawson would call “the obligatory scene” which demonstrates the action of the protagonist and how that action relates to outcome in a system). For comparative purposes, meaningful play requires that actions and outcomes are both discernable- perceivable and integrated (woven in to the whole) into the larger context of the game – (compare to David Milch’s notion in narrative story of a “closed” story system and Aristotle’s Poetics).
7 Design Systems
Games can be seen as a subset of Play and Play can also been seen as a subset of games.
Salen and Zimmerman’s definition: A game is a system in which players engage in an artificial conflict, defined by rules, that results in a quantifiable outcome. All puzzles are games, and puzzles are games with a single correct answer or set of answers (think Angry Birds). Multiplayer Role-playing games may or may not fit into Salen and Zimmerman’s definition – they claim it is dependent on framing and that there are emergent quantifiable goals but usually no single overriding outcome. Compare with a screenplay’s scene structure and act structure and sequence structure – this means there are scenes and perhaps sequences and even acts, but no necessary denoument – closest in form to a serialized television series.
8 Defining Digital Games
The system of a game, if understood as such, transcends the physical medium. The digital technology is not an end in itself – is the content, use, larger system in which the physical medium is functioning (also think socio-culture from media-theory as in Gitelman’s Always Already New). The rules are embedded in the hardware, but the game is more than the pulses in the hardware. The special qualities of digital games, more robustly represented in digital games: Immediate but narrow interactivity, Manipulation of information, Automated complex systems, Networked communication. While the medium may change, core game properties can shift from medium to medium.
9 The Magic Circle
Every game exists within a frame (marked time and space). “The magic circle” refers to the frame of a game – because games are formal, the circle is explicit with distinct boundaries. Within the circle, rules create meaning and guide play. Through three lenses, games can be understood to be “open” or “closed” – considering a game as “rules” – the system is closed. As “play” a game is open (players bring expectations, hopes, social relationships, likes and dislikes) and closed (rule based/defined behaviors)- as “culture” – a game is open – ranging from political debates about the game, the culture amassment/accruing around games – culture of football, culture of “dungeons and dragons.” The Lusory attitude refers to the buy-in the state of mind players must adopt to play a game, players accept limitations of the rules becaue of the pleasure they gain through playing the game.
11 Defining Rules
All games have rules – they are a defining quality of games. Rules are not the same as the experience of play – changing names and visual forms is possible witout altering formal systems. Rules are not the same as strategy- rules are principles that aid play but do not define the formal identity of a game. Here, I disagree with Salen and Zimmerman because sound strategy requires understanding the formal system of the game at a deep level and finding an underlying implicit approach that maximizes a change of winning – there are very often formal elements necessary to strategy, which one could argue are inherent to the formal system of the game. Curious what others think on this issue. Games rules are separate from life – different than law, war, social rules. Again, I disagree in my personal definition of games (though I understand this is for Salen and Zimmerman’s definition). Many lawyers and theoreticians look at law as a formal gaming system and view law school as a game and series of games– how is it useful to rule “law” or other systems out for K and Z – is it to protect players from designers moving outside of the games not effecting the outside world? K and Z give the following rules about game rules – Rules – limit player action, are explicit and unambiguous, shared by all players, are fixed (not in Fluxx! Only the rule that rules are not fixed is fixed), are binding, are repeatable. They admit there are exceptions – I guess following the classical structure is important at first before freestyling formal systems.
12 Rules on Three Levels - operational rules are the “rules of play” they direct player behavior and are usually want would be printed out. Operational rules can have a variety of forms with a same set of Constituative rules. Constituative rules are the abstract, core mathematical rules of the game – the essential game logic. Implicitly rules are just that – implicit, unstated, including etiquette and behavior. The Operational and Constituative rules together are the systems out of which the formal identity of the game emerges. Elegant rules allow for focus on the play experience. Meaning arises out of the interaction and translation in play between the three levels of the rules.
13 The Rules of Digital Games
Rules are the formal rules that define the structure of the game, not necessarily code. The rules that structure player input and the game’s output are the game’s rules. The formal logic rules are also part of the rules of a digital game. Sometimes audio and visuals impact the formal structure of a game. The constiuative rules of a game handle the game’s internal events. The operational rules are concerned with both internal and external events – player input and game output. Implicit Rules - assumptions about the game’s plaform -- of digital games can be the source of innovative design ideas.
Juul, J. (2003). The Game, the Player, the World: Looking for a Heart of Gameness. Keynote presented at the Level Up conference in Utrecht, November 4th-6th 2003.
Juul defines a new proposed taxonomy of games drawing from previous definitions. He uses a grid to evaluate current definitions divided by the following categories:
The game as formal system
The player and the game
The game and the rest of the world
Other
He then provides his new definition based on six features which he also evaluates with the categories above:
The game definition I propose finally has 6 points: 1) Rules: Games are rule-based. 2) Variable, quantifiable outcome: Games have variable, quantifiable outcomes. 3) Value assigned to possible outcomes: That the different potential outcomes of the game are assigned different values, some being positive, some being negative. 4) Player effort: That the player invests effort in order to influence the outcome. (I.e. games are challenging.) 5) Player attached to outcome: That the players are attached to the outcomes of the game in the sense that a player will be the winner and "happy" if a positive outcome happens, and loser and "unhappy" if a negative outcome happens. 6) Negotiable consequences: The same game [set of rules] can be played with or without real-life consequences.
He concludes by using his new definition to provide a diagram of borderline cases with regards to his new taxonomy.
Salen, K., & Zimmerman, E. (2005). What is a Game? GDR, pp. 77–81.
Salen and Zimmerman set the scene for the various essays on GDR on game definition. They raise questions of the authors including the utility of definitions of Games, give a summary of the ideas rangin from Callois through Bjork and Holopainen and Juul. They stress that utilization of a definition is their chief concern while acknowledging the imperfection of definitions and cite Minksy that definitions are “things to work with.”
Huizinga, J. (1955). Nature and Significance of Play as Cultural Phenomenon. GDR, pp. 96–120.
Huizinga’s provocative essay looks at Play in the larger culture and the various ways in which play can be understood – from comics to religious ritual. He is interested in the relation of play to culture. He raises notions of play as freedom and subversion, play’s temporal nature, its spacial constraints (mobile gaming is interesting case here), play community, secrecy. At first glacne, Play for Huizinga is “not serious.” In a section particularly relevant to my studies in religion, ethnography, media and culture, Huizinga deals with a section on ritual and comparative religion, and places play with in the context of the nature and essence of ritual and mystery (109) Through his discussion of ritual, he concludes “We are accustomed to think of play and seriousness as an absolute antithesis. It would seem, however, that this does not go to the heart of the matter. (111).
Callois, R. (1962). The Definition of Play and The Classification of Games. GDR, pp. 122–155.
Callois moves from Huizinga into primarily a a more taxonomical classification along the following lines:
Play is Free, separate, uncertain, unproductive, governed by rules, make-believe (outside of the reading, it becomes evident quickly that “unproductive” knocks out many games and types of play often included – especially gambling). After this basic structure, Callois uses a categorization system to places various games on a spectrum. The system has the following components: Agon - Competition, Alea - Chance, Mimicry- Simulation or “copying”, Ilinx – Vertigo – embodied sensation, in his examples from spinning. These four categories are places on a spectrum of PAIDA to LUDUS – which is a level of structure - how structured is the play? Paida describes the more improvisatory part of the spectrum, with ludus describing the more gratuitously difficult and structured system.
Optional (obligatory for doctoral students):
Sutton-Smith, B. (1997). Play and Ambiguity. In GDR, pp. 297–313.
Sutton-Smith, B. (1997). Play and Ambiguity. In GDR, pp. 297–313.
Sutton surveys and organizes tropes in a variety of play theories. In the search for definitional clarity, he shows that games display all of Empson’s Seven Types of Ambiguity: ambiguity of reference, referent, intent, sense (nonsense), transition, contradiction, and meaning. Sutton then delineates types of play, acknowledging the limitations of listing - from private to public, mind or subjective play, solitary play, playful behaviors, informal social play, vicarious audience play, performance play, celebrations and festivals, contests, and risk or deep play. He notes ambiguity around “play” given the wide variety of scholarship across disciplines regarding play (his mention of psychology reminded me of Eric Berne’s classic work, particularly relevant for Talmud Study: Games People Play). Sutton uses an approach of cultural rhetorics to clarify the ambiguities he finds, establishing play rhetorics of: progress, fate, power, identity, imaginary, self, and frivolous. Then he provides validation steps for proving the existence of these rhetorics with the goal of scholarly cogency – including that particular rhetorical frames have their backers and disciplines.
GAME
FLUXX by Looney Labs
http://www.wunderland.com/LooneyLabs/Fluxx/
This card game in which the cards consistently alter the rules as play proceeds is a particularly fun example to consider when theorizing on the definitions of play and games, for this game is in a way paida and ludus together – structured, but constantly shifting in structure – a structured kind of improvisation in which humor sometimes trumps a direct win, and in which there is seldom a direct “win” because the goals are constantly changing as players supplant the game’s goals with new goals. Fluxx both follows and contradicts definition as play proceeds. Each player wishes to win, but the unpredictability of rule-shifting pushes the game into quickly shifting short term strategizing. Expansion packs and alternative versions such as Monty Python FLUXX also lead to placing humor above “seriousness.” Certain aspects of the game design to hold fast – conflict remains because there is always a goal in play, though the goal shifts and splits quickly. The operational rules and constituative rules change constantly, yet there is a second level of rules about how to make, change, and follow rules which remains as a kind of operating system underneath the current operational and constituative rules (these are found on the paper insert that comes with the cards including answers to “what ifs”). I think this would be an excellent game to teach operational and constitutive rules as there are simultaneously two systems of each, and they necessarily interact.
Designer's Journal
Owen Gottlieb
PhD Candidate in Education and Jewish Studies
Course E19.2176 Simulations & Games for Education
Designers Journal
Professor Jan Plass
Assignment: Designer's Journal. Due: 4:00pm before each class; Completed journal with all entries: December 9
Summarize the most important ideas and questions for each paper and book chapter you have read in approximately one third to one half of a page. This is not a reaction paper or an excerpt, but rather your synthesis of the main ideas and related questions. Use these summaries to create a journal (blog or wiki) that is the basis for your discussions in class, for your design document, and, later, a summary of the topics covered in this course. You are expected to find at least one game per class meeting on your own and include a discussion of this game, and how it reflects the topics of the reading for that meeting, in this journal.
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