Playing Bioshock for college credit

[kestrell]

Kes: And the word of the day is "gamic text."

from
http://depts.washington.edu/chid/node/98

block quote start
CHID 496F
Title: CLOSE PLAYING, OR, BIOSHOCK AS PRACTICUM

As part of a continuing series on video games generated by the Critical Gaming Project at UW, will discuss, develop, and do close playing.  Like close reading, close playing requires careful and critical attention to how the game is played (or not played), to what kind of game it is, to what the game looks like or sounds like, to what the game world is like, to what choices are offered (or not offered) to the player, to what the goals of the game are, to how the game interacts with and addresses the player, to how the game fits into the real world, and so on.  To engage all of this, we will take 2K's critically-acclaimed
first-person shooter Bioshock (Xbox360, PS3, PC) as our central gamic text (though other supplemental games will be included as needed).  block quote end 

Comments

[jesse_the_k]

When did you first imagine that "gamic text" would be a possible reality?

[kestrell]

To a large degree, this is a bit of media studies love for Alexx, who is one of the designers of Bioshock. We also tend to have these long media studies conversations where we throw in media studies phrases such as "diegetic" and such, so I thoght this would be a good term to spread about a bit so we could assimilate it into our vocabulary.

[kestrell]

Although, upon further consideration, I probably began thinking about gamic texts while reading a book, Cory Doctorow's _Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom_, which had people constantly using what amounts to an iPhone to plan and collaborate. I'm planning on getting a Mac in the autumn, and possibly even an iPhone and, looking at iPhone apps such as the VisWiz which allows blind people to interact with sighted people real-time, through a computer interface, that sounds kind of gamic to me. Gamic texts remain one fo the best ways to discuss how real people adopt, adapt, and someitmes reject technological interfaces.

[jesse_the_k]

ZOMG. I would so love to collaborate on a game which affords folks with high-functioning body systems the opportunity to experience the joys and weaknesses of assistive tech. (But the most complicated game I've ever played is Daleks, a B&W doodle.)

[kestrell]

Speaking of collaborative efforts, how was your WisCon? Also, what is your favorite color?