RIB Introduction Response (Alex S.)

Let me preface this blog by saying that I am not an “active gamer”as Jane McGonigal describes. I have played video games with friends and siblings but have never spent hours at a time just playing. I know a very narrow scope of video games and tend to associate gaming with someone sitting alone playing some variant of the same “shoot ’em up” style game. I am a tad embarrassed to admit that I did begin this assignment with somewhat of a closed mind towards video games; all her points about gaming fostering “stronger connections– and bigger contributions– to the world around us” seemed contradictory because staring at a screen for an extended period of time pulls attention from the world around us. Even her Herodotus anecdote bothered me because while it does show the power of games, the game in the given example involves direct, face-to-face human interaction, a characteristic that the majority of video games lack.

It wasn’t until the shift on page 13 that I began to see the validity of her argument and my own ignorance towards the game industry. McGonigal seems to advocate for a new era of games, different from the typical “shot ’em ups” that I associate with video games. The types of games that she describes strike me as less time-consumptive and more accessible and unifying. I especially liked how she emphasized learning which games to play and when to play them because it sets her ideas apart from the game industry as a whole; this implies that McGonigal does not simply lump all video games into one category. After this reading, I am significantly more excited for this class because this reading highlighted how little I actually know about games, game design, and game theory.

After this lovely learning moment, I played Pokemon Go. While not a “shoot ’em up” game, it clearly captivates the player’s attention to a dangerous degree, evident through warnings such as “Remain alert of your surroundings!” or “Do not play while driving!”. I played this game when it became super popular a couple summers ago and had to delete the app and erase my account because it began to take large quantities of my time. While I joke about it now, interactions such as this one with the gaming universe clearly shaped my perceptions of who a gamer is and what video games entail. I do not believe that this is a game McGonigal would advocate for because of the worldly detachment is requires and its lack of a social message to convey to players.

Posted on by Alexandra Smith
Categories: Uncategorized

6 Responses

  1. Josephine Bossidy says:
    September 2, 2018 at 4:51 pm

    Similarly to Alex, I’ve always envisioned gaming as an activity that requires you to isolate yourself. With little to no experience in the gaming world, I was part of the large population that assumed it was just a large consumption of peoples time spent staring at a screen. Not until I read this book did I consider the purpose behind every game. The interactions, relationships, and rewards that people gained from partaking in these games.

  2. Rachel Helbling says:
    September 2, 2018 at 6:06 pm

    I can relate to what Alex is saying and how just the beginning of this book has already opened my mind significantly. I also have very little video gaming experience and was finding it difficult to relate to this book and how video games could have such an impact. But this book has already showed me some of the ways. I like how Alex pointed out what McGonigal said regarding the different types of games to play, and finding the right ones because I found that very important as well. I am also very excited to learn more about what this class has to offer.

  3. James Bachmann says:
    September 2, 2018 at 8:36 pm

    Alex does bring up a good point in how games can cause too much detachment from reality and can actually cause less unification and communication, but as Alex said herself, games are also super useful in unifying people. So, like most good things, moderation seems to be the best path to tread. Also, with how games are evolving, the definition of what is beneficial and whats harmful will keep adapting with the games.

  4. Hyewon Hong says:
    September 3, 2018 at 10:59 am

    While games can certainly bring about a detachment from reality, and many people do use it as a means of escaping to a world, I think it is important to focus on the communities that form, and the friendships that are strengthened from these games. In the popular anime “No Game No Life”, the two main characters are trapped in the real world, proclaiming that they live within a “kuso game”, or “shi**y game. Then they are magically whisked away to another dimension whose laws and physics are literally governed by gaming, and games have become such an integral part of life to the world’s citizens. This is fantastic to our main characters as they positively love this change, after all they essentially are living within a game now, but throughout their journey they start to grow as people, building relationships, helping others, and thinking of a future greater than themselves. While obviously a little over simplified, I think that the plot of NGNL shows the good within games, that they can cause growth, create friendships, and promote communities.

  5. Shanay Amin says:
    September 3, 2018 at 1:04 pm

    For me personally gaming has never been something I used to do in isolation, I started really gaming in 2011 when a bunch of my friends and I used to get together and just play fifa against each other of hours. From then on I always used gaming as a way to keep in touch with friends or play with other people online. I personally never got into any campaign modes or stories, just played online to fuel my competitive nature. It’s a great way to connect with people, even if you got randomly paired up in a game and got to talking. I do agree with Alex that a game like Pokemon go is not something McGonigal would advocate because even though you’re out in the world it introduces to your own bubble without anything around you.

  6. Charles Mosse says:
    September 3, 2018 at 2:04 pm

    Your point about games becoming more “unifying” is true, however you believe that “shoot-em ups” or games of the bast were not able to unite. I was a very active kid growing up, always playing multiple sports, but I would still have time for video games. I could sit down for multiple hours at once, alone, playing some CoD game that was probably the exact same as the last game, but I would still be making meaningful connections. I made very good friends online, spending hours online with them just talking about anything and everything, and sharing experiences. Some of these friends lasted about 3 or 4 years (how long i played xbox), and some I still even talk to today. We all still follow each other on twitter and will talk often on that. I made friends with anyone from New England, to California, to Canada, England, Italy, Australia and Asia. It’s actually cool because it removes a lot of bias when you meet someone, because whether or not you like them is solely if you don’t like talking to someone, it has nothing to do with what race, gender, or ethnicity they are. Online gaming in any form in my opinion is one of the most unifying parts about games.