I denna studie undersöks hur de grafiska aspekterna av karaktärsskapande påverkar spelare och deras engagemang i singleplayerspel. Syftet med studien är att undersöka vilken betydelse utseendet på spelarskapade karaktärer har för spelares engagemang och ifall det påverkar deras spelande. Semi-strukturerade intervjuer utfördes med sex deltagare där teman som bl.a. inspiration, motivation, form vs funktion och rollspelande uppkom. Slutsatsen var att det visuella utseendet har stor betydelse för spelare och bidrar till deras engagemang i spelet. Studien kan hjälpa spelutvecklare med att skapa spel med character creation som är uppskattade av spelare och ger dem en meningsfull upplevelse. / This study examines how the graphical aspects of character creation affects players and their involvement in single-player games. The purpose of the study is to investigate what significance the appearance of player created characters has to player commitment and whether it affects their gaming. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six participants where themes such as inspiration, motivation, form vs function and role playing arose. The conclusion was that the appearance of the player created character had a big significance for players and that it contributed to player involvement in the game. The study can help game developers create games with character creation which are appreciated by players and give them a meaningful experience.

Postmodernism is a complex concept to grasp, and although artists frequently create postmodernist work, a cognitive approach to it is difficult. This study is therefore unique in its aim to support creative writers in the formation (creation and representation) of postmodernist characters. Thus, this study contributes to the theory of creative writing, within the current zeitgeist and associated writing styles. A zeitgeist is the collective universal subconscious of the world within a specific epoch and is recognisable in the identity of the people that live during that zeitgeist, as well as in the art of the time. Postmodernism, as the contemporary zeitgeist, implies a postmodernist identity (or identities), which can creatively be represented in the artwork (literary text - prose). Through an integrated threefold study of Postmodernism (and postmodernist identity), "character" as covered in literary theory and the "creation and representation" of character as covered in the theory of creative writing, a paradigm is postulated to support the creative writer in the creation and representation of postmodernist characters. The paradigm manages postmodernist characters within three overlapping categories that approach characters as (1) icons that represent postmodernist people, as (2) literary motives that illustrate postmodernist themes and, as (3) containers of postmodernist discourses. Such a paradigm is not to be considered a model or recipe, but is instead to be viewed as an angle of approaching postmodernist characters and as a launch pad from where the creative writer must further rely on his or her own creativity, talent and dexterity. The paradigm therefore keeps in mind both the limitlessness of Postmodernism and the dynamism of the creative process. / Thesis (M.A. (Afrikaans and Dutch))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006

Thesis (M.A. (Afrikaans and Dutch))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

Postmodernism is a complex concept to grasp, and although artists frequently create postmodernist work, a cognitive approach to it is difficult. This study is therefore unique in its aim to support creative writers in the formation (creation and representation) of postmodernist characters. Thus, this study contributes to the theory of creative writing, within the current zeitgeist and associated writing styles. A zeitgeist is the collective universal subconscious of the world within a specific epoch and is recognisable in the identity of the people that live during that zeitgeist, as well as in the art of the time. Postmodernism, as the contemporary zeitgeist, implies a postmodernist identity (or identities), which can creatively be represented in the artwork (literary text - prose). Through an integrated threefold study of Postmodernism (and postmodernist identity), "character" as covered in literary theory and the "creation and representation" of character as covered in the theory of creative writing, a paradigm is postulated to support the creative writer in the creation and representation of postmodernist characters. The paradigm manages postmodernist characters within three overlapping categories that approach characters as (1) icons that represent postmodernist people, as (2) literary motives that illustrate postmodernist themes and, as (3) containers of postmodernist discourses. Such a paradigm is not to be considered a model or recipe, but is instead to be viewed as an angle of approaching postmodernist characters and as a launch pad from where the creative writer must further rely on his or her own creativity, talent and dexterity. The paradigm therefore keeps in mind both the limitlessness of Postmodernism and the dynamism of the creative process. / Thesis (M.A. (Afrikaans and Dutch))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006

No description available.

This paper studies the use of violations of conversation principles in the written dialogue of Tyrion Lannister in Game of Thrones. The aim is to establish if and how these violations aid in making him seem clever. The character's dialogues are matched against three theoretical principles: Politeness Theory, The Cooperative Principle and Turn-taking Principles. The findings suggest that by breaking basic principles of conversation, Tyrion provides entertaining dialogue and manages to create unexpected solutions to different threatening situations. Results show an even distribution of strategic violations, among the three theoretical approaches, which could suggest that the dialogue is consciously written to help make the audience feel impressed by the character's features. Tyrion's violations of conversation principles is a contribution in what makes him seem witty. This ability in the character seems to be closely linked to a lack of fear for any negative social consequences. The character's ability to act free from rules of social behavior could be considered one of the reasons behind his popularity among fans of the show.

Digital game developers often struggle with creating games that are challenging but inviting towards new audiences. One of these challenges revolves around the complexity of character creation, specifically in Role-Playing Games. Presenting and utilizing statistics that a player can alter is done at a critical moment of play, often before a player has begun playing the main portion of the game. A risk therefore exists of confusing or alienating those who have adopted the game with too much information that has a significant effect on later experiences with said game. This paper sought to determine which player demographics seek or may avoid specific numerical complexity within digital games and suggests which range of decisions they would accept when presented with a new gaming experience, focusing specifically on character attributes (also known as statistics). / Digitala spelutvecklare måste ofta kämpa med att skapa spel som både lockar nya spelare men samtidigt är svåra nog att klara för att vara utmanande. En utmaning kopplad till detta är skapandet av karaktärer, specifikt i rollspel. Presentationen av karaktärsattribut som spelare kan ändra sker vid ett kritiskt moment av spelande (dess början), oftast innan en spelare har börjat spela huvuddelen av ett spel. Det existerar därför en risk av att förvirra eller skrämma bort de som införskaffat spelet, då de överväldigas av för mycket information om spelelement som har markant effekt, speciellt senare i det nämnda spelets delar. Denna uppsats hade därför som uppgift att bedöma vilka grupper av spelare som söker eller undviker viss numerisk komplexitet inom digitala spel. Uppsatsen föreslog även en skala av det antal val som spelare skulle acceptera när de får en ny spelupplevelse presenterad för sig, med fokus specifikt på karaktärsattribut.

Denna uppsats undersöker vad spelare vill uppleva i sitt karaktärsskapande iolika spel. Syftet med arbetet har varit att få bättre förståelse för vad enanvändare vill ha ut av sin karaktär och sitt karaktärskapande.Frågeställningen i arbetet löd: ”Vad är för en designer viktigast att tänka pånär man designar en karaktärsskapande del i ett spel?” Förhoppningen varatt få en djupare förståelse för karaktärsskapandets karaktär för att bättrekunna designa den karaktärsskapande delen i ett spel. Undersökningengenomfördes med en kvalitativ metod för att belysa frågorna djupare. Förstskapades en kvalitativ intervju, och efter intervjuerna skapades tre nyafrågor som lades ut på två internetforum med inriktning mot MMORPGs.De spelare som verkade vara mest intresserade av karaktärsskapande ochprocessen kring karaktärsskapandet, var de spelare som ibland ägnade sig åtrollspelande. De spelare som delvis eller helt ägnade sig åt Player versusPlayer verkade ha svårt att se någon mening med att skapa en identitet ellerett unikt utseende överhuvudtaget. Det viktigaste som framkom iundersökningen var att man måste känna sin publik. Som designer behöverman veta för vilka spelstilar man designar spelet. De faktorer som varviktiga för spelarna, för att kunna fördjupa sig i sina karaktärer, var att deraskaraktärer hade möjligheten att bli unika. / This paper is focused on a better understanding of what computer gameplayers want to get out of their character and the character creation. Thequestion addressed in the paper was: "What is most important for a designerto consider when designing a character-creation part of a game?" The aimwas to gain a deeper understanding of the nature of the character creationprocess in order to better design the character creation part of future games.The study has been conducted with a qualitative method to illuminate thequestions in more depth. First, a qualitative interview was made, and afterthe interviews, three new questions were created, which were then postedon two Internet forums focusing on MMORPGs. The players who were themost interested in character creation and the process of this, were theplayers who sometimes engaged in role play. The players who partially orfully engaged in Player versus Player combat, had difficulties seeing anypoint in creating an identity or a unique look at all. The most importantthing that emerged from the investigation was that the designer needs toknow his audience. As a designer, you need to take into account whatplaying styles you design the game for. The important factors for theplayers to immerse themselves in their characters, was that their characterscould be made unique.

Virtual worlds give us the opportunity to explore another self, a virtual character of the real life you. Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs) have become extremely popular over the last decade. It has also grown into a lucrative business. To keep the players, the game needs to be more than just a game. This study aimed at finding out what factors that determine which features of the character creation interface that are most important to players. The following research question was formed; “Which underlying factors affect how important different features of the character creation interface are to experienced MMORPG players? To be able to answer the question an extensive literature review was conducted. A qualitative approach was taken. Long interviews were made with five participants, two female and three male players. The interviews took place while they created a number of avatars in different MMORPGs. The interviews were then followed up. During the follow-ups, the impact the character creation process had for the players, were discussed. The findings indicate that the character creation interface is important for the players to get a good gaming experience. However different types of players require different things. Important features for the users to change were mainly; the head; the name; and adding parts of yourself on your character. The factors that determined the importance of these features were found to be; Player types; Identity types; Immersion levels; and whether or not the game or the gaming experience were new to the player. Another finding showed that the longer you have played a game the less bizarre the different races, classes and gender will seem. The study also indicated that the female participants had a hard time identifying with their male characters.

El presente trabajo nace debido al impacto que tienen los mensajes o representaciones del anime en el público que lo consume. El propósito es analizar la representación de masculinidad en los personajes del género shonen con un enfoque hacia la audiencia. Para ello, se retomarán las discusiones sobre las variaciones de construcción de personaje y masculinidad en diversos ámbitos como el concepto, las características, los medios y los contextos históricos. Como estrategia metodológica, se propone un estudio cualitativo basado en entrevistas profundas a 20 personas de las cuales la mitad serán hombres y la otra, mujeres. Esto con el fin de poder contrastar las percepciones que estos espectadores de diversos géneros tienen sobre la representación de la masculinidad. Adicionalmente el estudio se enfocará en dos obras recientes del anime shonen que son Boku No Hero y Black Clover. Se espera conseguir resultados que ayuden a mostrar cómo percibe la masculinidad el público lo que podrá ayudar a futuras investigaciones sobre permanencias o cambios en la misma. / The present work was born due to the impact that the messages or representations of anime have on the public that consumes it. The purpose is to analyze the representation of masculinity in the characters of the shonen genre with a focus on the audience. To do this, the discussions on the variations in the construction of character and masculinity in various areas such as the concept, characteristics, media and historical contexts will be resumed. As a methodological strategy, a qualitative study based on in-depth interviews with 20 people is proposed, half of which will be men and the other, women. This in order to be able to contrast the perceptions that these viewers of different genders have about the representation of masculinity. Additionally, the study will focus on two recent works of the shonen anime which are Boku No Hero and Black Clover. Results are expected to help show how the public perceives masculinity, which may help future research on permanence or changes in it. / Trabajo de investigación