The potential for advertising bias forming a conflict of interest with editorial content is a problem for any publication, and those with a gaming focus are no exception. Reviews in these publications can make or break a game and in some cases — a developer. The purpose of this content analysis of three gaming magazines is to examine whether publications in which developers purchase advertising are biased in favor of those developers’ games. The magazines chosen were: Game Informer, GamesTM, and Edge. The working definition of bias used is the financial pressure that advertisers exert on the editorial content of publications through the purchasing of advertising space. Video game magazines were chosen for this study due to readers’ reliance on reviews to make purchase decisions. No overt advertising bias was found. There was no significant link between the coverage of games and ads for those games in the same issue. A more subtle case for bias was found, however, when the entire sample of each magazine was looked at. For example, games reviewed anywhere in the sample in a given magazine tended to more often have an advertisement and for it to be larger, and this was especially true if the game received positive coverage. Other interesting results showed that magazines had a largely varying spread in the tone of reviews and that the majority of ads were for non-games, though game ads were larger on average.

Les jeux vidéo qui abordent de manière explicite ou détournée des événements réels transmettentune certaine vision de tels événements à leurs utilisateurs. Que ce soit à travers les éléments de récitsur lesquels ils reposent, les images portées à l’écran ou leurs spécificités ludiques, certains jeuxvidéo s’inspirent ainsi du réel autant qu’ils (re)construisent ce dernier par l’intermédiaire desexpériences de jeu qu’ils proposent.Afin de mieux cerner les rouages et les mécanismes de ces jeux, nous avons pu proposer dans cetravail une méthode d’analyse qui prend en compte l’ensemble des éléments (narratifs, audiovisuels et ludiques) qui les constituent. Nous avons pu ensuite appliquer cette méthode aux trois jeux Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2007-2011). Une fois l’étude de ces éléments formels réalisée, nous avons replacé ces jeux dans leurs contextes de production et de réception.Nous avons ainsi pu mettre en lumière le fait que, à l’exaltation de sentiments militaristes, guerriers, nationalistes et patriotiques, s’ajoute dans ces trois jeux une volonté assez nette de véhiculer une vision positive de l’engagement militaire américain à l’étranger et de l’adoption d’une doctrine de guerre préventive par les États-Unis au lendemain des attentats du 11 septembre 2001.Au-delà du travail réalisé sur les trois jeux Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, la méthode utilisée pour le mener à bien participe à proposer une approche qui prend en compte les multiples facettes de l’objet jeu vidéo pour en appréhender au mieux les possibilités de persuasion. / Video games that directly or indirectly address real events transmit a certain vision of such events to their users. Be it thanks to the narratives on which they are based, the images users interact with, or gameplay and game structure specificities, some video games are inspired by real events as much as they (re)build those through the play experiences that they propose.In order to better understand this dynamic, this dissertation proposes a method of analysis that takes into account the three key components that constitute video games (narrative, audiovisual, game and play). This method is then applied to the three Call of Duty: Modern Warfare games (2007-2011). The contexts of production and reception are also taken into account in this analysis.This dissertation highlights the fact that, in addition to the exaltation of a militaristic, nationalist and patriotic ethos, the three Call of Duty: Modern Warfare games strive to convey a particularly positive image of American military actions abroad and of the adoption of a preventive warfare doctrine in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.The method applied to this corpus of games is also meant to propose an approach to this medium that takes into account its globality and complexity in order to better understand its persuasive possibilities.

Orientador : Prof. Dr. André Mendes Capraro / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor de Ciências Biológicas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação Física. Defesa: Curitiba, 24/02/2017 / Inclui referências : f. 101-109 / Resumo: Os games sofreram significativas modificações com o passar dos anos. Em um primeiro momento, tinham como objetivo o entretenimento, mas, dados recentes mostram que esses vêm reconfigurando-se. Isto é, com o surgimento dos e-Sports novas discussões foram formuladas no campo acadêmico, para principalmente tratar desse processo de profissionalização e espetacularização dos games. Contudo, estudos tratando sobre esse fenômeno ainda são escassos em território nacional e considerando que o esporte é uma construção social passível de mutabilidade, problematizamos: de que forma os e-Sports se relacionam com as perspectivas de jogo, esporte, espetáculo/profissionalização e convergência? Tal questão foi pauta de reflexão ao longo dessa pesquisa, pois consideramos que a relação estereotipada de inatividade física em grandes grupamentos musculares, de sedentarismo e, também, de isolamento social nos videogames, não são suficientes para impossibilitar uma prática de ser definida como esporte ou não. No Brasil, os e-Sports já são reconhecidos por muitas mídias como esportes eletrônicos, porém ainda são vistos com olhares críticos por outros meios de difusão da informação. Assim como nos esportes, essas competições eletrônicas eliminam a passividade dos espectadores e proporcionam a mimese. E esse espaço virtual vivenciado pelos gamers faz com que busquem o melhor desempenho, a vitória, o alcance e quebra de recordes e a conquista de medalhas ou mesmo premiações em dinheiro em competições. Desse modo, o estudo trouxe conceitos de jogo, esporte, espetáculo e convergência, de renomados autores das Ciências Humanas, que foram relacionados com o cenário brasileiro e internacional dos e-Sports. O preconceito com os e-Sports se deve principalmente à falta de conhecimento sobre o assunto e o seu surgimento pode ser interpretado como uma consequência lógica e irreversível de uma transição da sociedade industrial para a sociedade da informação. As competições eletrônicas se aproximam do esporte na medida em que se ligam às relações financeiras, às grandes audiências e às redes de televisão, como um jogo intelectual, competitivo e organizado. Os conceitos utilizados nesta pesquisa foram profícuos para apresentar as principais características dos e-Sports e repensar a prática competitiva, demonstrando aproximações e discrepâncias desse fenômeno dos games com os conceitos afluentes da área da Educação Física e afins, pois tanto o Jogo como o Esporte são conteúdos estruturantes da área e nos permitem certa proximidade com focos de estudos diferenciados em relação a outras áreas. Por intermédio dos games é possível experimentar novas vivências sociais e aprimorar habilidades intelectuais que podem ser fundamentais no desenvolvimento e emancipação de indivíduos. Palavras-chave: e-Sports; Esportes eletrônicos; Esporte; Jogo; Games; Profissionalização; Espetacularização; Convergência. / Abstract: The games have suffered significant modifications over the years. At first, they were meant for entertainment, but recent data show that they have been reconfiguring themselves. That is, with the emergence of e-Sports new discussions were formulated in the academic area, mainly to deal with this process of professionalization and spectacularization of the games. However, studies dealing with this phenomenon are still scarce in national territory and considering that sport is a social construction that can be mutated, we problematize: how e-Sports are related to the perspectives of play, sport. spectacle/professionalization and convergence? This question was a point of reflection throughout this research, because we consider that the stereotyped relation of physical inactivity of large muscle groups, sedentary lifestyle and also social isolation with videogames, are not enough to preclude a practice of being defined as sport or not. The emergence of e-Sports can be interpreted as a logical and irreversible consequence of transition from industrial society to today's society, which is based on information and communication. In Brazil, e-Sports are already recognized by many media as electronic sports, but are still seen with mistrust by other means of dissemination of information. Just like in sports, these electronic competitions eliminate the passivity of the spectators and provide mimesis. And this virtual space experienced by gamers makes them seek the best performance, victory, reach and breaking records and the achievement of medals or even cash prizes in competitions. Thus, the study brought concepts of game, sport and spectacle of renowned authors of the Human Sciences, which were related to the Brazilian and international scenario of e- Sports. Prejudice with e-Sports is mainly due to lack of knowledge about the subject and its emergence can be interpreted as a logical and irreversible consequence of a transition from industrial society to the information society. Electronic competitions approach sports insofar as they relate to financial relationships, large audiences and television networks, as an intellectual, competitive and organized game. The concepts used in this research were useful for presenting the main characteristics of e-Sports and rethinking the competitive practice, demonstrating approximations and discrepancies of this phenomenon of games with affluent concepts around Physical Education and related, since both the Game and Sport are Contents of the area and allow us to be closer to centers of differentiated studies in relation to other areas. Through the games, new social experiences are experimented and intellectual skills are improved that can be fundamental in the development and emancipation of individuals. Keywords: e-Sports; Eletronic Sports; Sports; Games; Videogames; Professionalism; Spectacularization; Convergence.

Video games are often written off as juvenile or frivolous, but they are actually vehicles of socialization and hegemonic ideologies. Because of this, video games are deserving of research and critique. In video games, women are often underrepresented or hypersexualized, while men can be hypermasculinized. Many times, racial and ethnic portrayals in video games paint the person of color as victims of violence, villains, or sports athletes, while white characters take the role of hero or protagonist. Heterosexuality typically goes unmarked and is considered the default sexuality, and homophobic sentiments and slurs are prevalent in the gaming community. Because game developers still adhere to the belief that gamers are a homogenous group of white, cisgender, heterosexual men, LGBT+ representations generally fall into stereotypes—if they are included in the first place. With the lack of marginalized representation, gamers can queer video games through role-playing, queer readings, and in-game modifications. Furthermore, an intersectional analysis of video games is a missing gap in the literature, and this research aims to fill this gap. Through the deployment of critical discourse analysis, I analyzed the critically acclaimed video game The Last of Us Remastered and its accompanying side story The Last of Us: Left Behind for hegemonic or subversive representations of gender, sexuality, race and ethnicity, and intersectionality. I discovered that although the game may incorporate diverse characters, the story ultimately centers on masculinity, heteronormativity, and whiteness through deployment of hegemony.

Research shows that teens (Generation Z) are not as information literate as required to function effectively in an information society. Yet many teens are gamers and succeed at game-related tasks that require information literacy skills. This thesis examines the potential that the online game Minecraft, and one of its related affinity spaces, may have in the development of information literacy skills in teens. This case study unfolded in three phases: a video game analysis of Minecraft, a discussion forum analysis and an interpretive report of interviews with eight teen gamers. Findings suggest that Minecraft’s design induces players to seek out game related information in affinity spaces, select appropriate sources, evaluate the information shared by fellow gamers and decide what best satisfies their information need. Further research could determine whether the specific information literacy skills in this gaming context can be generalized to other gaming environments and to non-gaming contexts.

It is imperative to know how violent material is perceived when presented over various media platforms and how acceptable these violent acts are in video games with different ESRB ratings. With the current debate surrounding the relationship between video games and violence, it is important to understand perception of violence in different media and acceptability of violent acts in video games of different ratings. This will allow a more accurate discussion on the impact of violent acts in video games as compared to other media which will help determine how to best proceed in eliminating causal factors of violence as well as influencing the production of new video games. It was expected that violent acts would be perceived as most violent in news, followed by movies, and least violent in video games. It was also expected that more violent acts would be seen as acceptable in video games rated mature rather than teen. Participants were gathered at University of Maryland from two classes and SONA. They were administered a survey to determine their video game usage and demographic information. Perception of violence in the news, movies, and video games was measured using a 9-point Likert Scale that ranged from 1-”harmless” to 9“horrifying.” Acceptability was measured by asking if particular violent acts were viewed as acceptable for teen ratings or mature ratings in video games. These acts ranged from mostly harmless to extremely brutal. In general, news was perceived as the most violent followed by movies then video games. The mean perceived violence in Video Games was 4.74 (SD=1.64), in Movies 5.05 (SD=1.68), and in News media 5.77 (SD=1.67). As expected, violent acts were better tolerated in games rated mature than games rated teen. The mean number of acts judged "unacceptable" (not marked as unacceptable) for Teen was 19.31 and for Mature it was only 8.81 (p<.001).

This dissertation investigates archival work concerning the history and preservation of queer games and play experiences. Current scholarship in archival practice, queer history, and game studies focus on archival methods, the history of games in general, or the queerness of games in the present, without a specific focus on the intersection of archives and preservation of games and play experiences. This study therefore asks the following questions: What efforts are being made in game studies to preserve the history of games and those who play them? What do those methods look like in comparison to an archive of queer games constructed by and concerning the experiences of queer people? What can game studies do to more accurately preserve and lift up the voices of marginalized groups in gaming culture? To answer these questions I developed a six move methodology that interweaves interdisciplinary areas, including archival practice, queer theory, games history, and the lived experience of the author as a queer and transgender individual: 1) Weaving methodological strands together; 2) Defining a transparent method for insider research; 3) Decolonizing and redefining axes of marginalization; 4) Integrating queerness, game studies, and interdisciplinarity; 5) Turning to the archives; and 6) Enacting and maintaining activism, advocacy, and community. The study conducts two case studies examining efforts in archiving and preservation to lift up the voices of marginalized people, taking place at the Strong Museum of Play in Rochester, New York, and the all-digital LGBTQ+ Video Game Archive, respectively. The cases find that both archives engage in efforts to preserve queer gaming history to not only preserve history but look to the future and how to best serve marginalized populations. This occurs through collaboration between communities and sharing resources between archives and examining the interaction between the Strong and the LGBTQ+ Video Game Archive provides insight into practical methods for preserving and lifting up marginalized voices in gaming history, including larger archives providing resources to assist smaller archives with access and long-term storage. Collaborative efforts to preserve specific queer video games such as <i>Caper in the Castro</i> provide specific examples of the two archives working together towards ensuring queer game history is preserved and accessible to scholars and gamers in the future. Highlighting the collaborative work and connections between the case studies demonstrates that the methods in use to preserve queer history rely on queer archival practices like community interaction and collaboration to best serve marginalized communities in the preservation of their histories and experiences

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With The Fabulist, I hope to provide many of the pleasures of popular narrative�"addictive plot, compelling characters, immersive setting�"while also conducting an earnest interrogation of the value of fantasy in all its forms, as well as the moral vacuity of the lonely fiefdom the protagonist constructs for himself out of pop cultural detritus and his various nostalgic and artistic whims. The book straddles two major settings and timelines: the suburban creep of Pooter Valentine�[BULLET]s hometown, a world where strip malls and big box stores and fast food chains are being augmented in quiet magical realist fashion by something more sinister; and an ambiguously virtual game-world of Pooter�[BULLET]s design, an RPG and DND-indebted land of endless quests and haunting vistas which may not have an exit. While the novel is grounded in the subjectivity of Pooter�[BULLET]s anhedonia and egotism, it also aims to puncture his interiority by also becoming a story about his parents and the real people who begin to intrude (to Pooter�[BULLET]s surprise and chagrin) upon the video-game world he is allegedly the master of. Ultimately, it intends to tell a story both of the everyday ways in which we escape (and in so doing, undermine) our reality, and of a grandly supernatural departure; of escapism as an act of abandonment, but also (at its best) a catalyst for new communities and connections. This novel draft aspires to all these goals, and may perhaps achieve some of them one day. / MFA

Work stress can have a negative impact for both individuals and organizations, warranting research on how to recover from it. This research analyzes how the relationship between video games and work recovery differs depending on the genre of the video game played. In addition, these relationships are compared against the relationships between the recovery experiences and other leisure activities. Participants were asked to provide information on how often they play video games and engage in other leisure activities. In addition, two different measures of the four components of work recovery (psychological detachment from work, relaxation, mastery experiences, and control) were included. The data was analyzed using a multivariate regression framework. Based on the literature review, it was predicted that different genres of video games will relate differently with the different recovery experiences, and video games will relate differently with the different recovery experiences compared to the other leisure activities. Results showed that the different video game genres did relate differently to the experiences of work recovery, but not in the predicted directions. The overarching goal of this study is to further the literature on the possible benefits of video game use and to provide a basis for further research on video games and work recovery.