Interactive Gaming 2009

Our good friend in GS9-1 is loaded in SmallWorlds. How? Ask him! But in the meantime, have a look at this piece of quality and unsurprising news:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8425623.stm

Mmmm, this appeared to be quite a tough gig for some of you. There are only a handful (possibly 4) distinctions offered from 44 submissions. Oh dear! How did that happen? Well, let's have a look:

Criteria 1 - what you need to do here is look at a variety of games developers and explain how they work. How are they financed? How does one become a managing director? Who looks after the well being of a company? How is a company forged? Do you need good ideas, or money to succeed?

Can any of you, hand on heart, tell me that you ticked all of these boxes? Even though some people got distinctions, no one answered every question above. Most of you fail to answer a single question above and pretty much all of you completely forgot to even bother with this part of the assignment. How come?

Criteria 2 - It's great that everyone mentioned different jobs in the industry but who actually mentioned what these jobs do, and who does them? Also, how many of you compared the jobs and job roles across the indsutry (because each job and employer is different).

My main area of disappointment was despite standing in front of you for 2 hours a week for 12 weeks, some of you still managed to copy and paste big old sections from wikipedia, bungie.net and others. If you are one of those people, you might want to rethink your options because this course may not be for you.

I want individuals like Bobby L (Distinction), Bobby W (Distinction), Cam (Distinction) and others who are prepared to go away, think about the question and deliver a sterling piece of work.

Some people tried really hard (and some a little too hard). Relax! You have 2 years to work, and work hard, but shirking out and copying from websites is a bit low.

Some people have yet to submit assignment 1.1! Gasp! Oh, and just one person failed to submit the work in the required format; so their work was marked last!

I feel a little like Marlon Brando in the Island of Doctor Moreau as I write this blog to you today. You see, I am sat in a comfy chair in front of a microphone marking your work. But why Marlon Brando? Well, I'm lazy! So rather than type this blog, I am using a speech recognition tool to talk type this entry. Exciting stuff eh?

You might be interested to learn that I am marking assignments 1.1 and 1.2 in the same way! For me this makes my job very easy and it almost sanitises my feedback to you, however I do get to add the odd funny!

On the whole, I have seen a good standard of work from you and promise to provide you with the break down of stats throughout the holidays. I must tell you though, there is an element to GS9 that does not work as hard as the others. they know who they are and will be smoked out during the course of the next two years.

I am very encouraged by the standard of work I have seen because I know that those who have made a real effort will succeed in the industry. Take heed slackers!

Look in your in box over the next week for assignment 1.1 feedback at the very least.

Who said digital communications is dead?

Hey, as an intro to next year/next term: we went through this on Monday.... Also, click here for pics from last night's partay! http://nathangoredema.blogspot.com/2009/12/crazy-hey-but-thats-how-it-goes.html

This time, from a GS8 student -

http://nathangoredema.blogspot.com/2009/12/shaun-of-dead-assignment-gs8-style.html

I really don't want to do this but I feel I must. Some of you are really struggling and that ain't cool.

Here's some hints and tips for writing the Shaun of the Dead assignment...

I'd start by writing a few sentences, or one paragraph on what you actually want to say. So you could start by saying "I will be discussng the various implications on creating a Shaun of the Dead game".

Then, kick off the essay/report with an overview of the game, stating key copyright and licensing issues with say, a reference to Dead Rising and Romero if you really want to. Thius should take 2 or 3 paragraphs.

Generally follow the criteria as it comes up, so, the first criteria reflects ethics and law, so you can talk heavily about case studies affecting ethics and law in these paragraphs. The second criteria is a bout regulating bodies.

You must, must, must talk in detail about all of the regulating bodies and regulations affecting games. Look back in the past at around the time of the Slasher genre and you'll note that games were governed by the exact same body as the Slasher genre. Scratch the surface and you will find all manner of similarities in terms of shock value and controversy.

Like all reports, you should be in a position to conclude your work - so how about looking for some correlations between then and now. How have games developed? Are they gorier now than then? Why do people go crazy after playing games? All of these things separate the pass from the distinction.

I really want to see good use of functional skills English (spelling/grammar etc) and Maths (statistics/figures) to really set you apart from the rest of Confetti. You already have high standards that you have set yourselves, lets see whether you police them, eh?

Good luck people!

Long, but fascinating! Thanks again to Digital Spy for this insight into game addiction.

The debate over the addictive nature of games has raged since the days of Pong, but it has risen to a new level of prevalence since the advent of the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG). There are several schools of thought on the matter. While there are those who scoff at the concept of game dependency as a legitimate medical condition, others perceive it as a growing problem for the industry in the age of online gaming.

Theorists on video game overuse can be divided into two separate camps - those who believe it to be a social problem, and those who propose it is a psychological disorder.

The American Psychological Association certainly takes the issue seriously. Last year the organisation considered the idea that gaming addiction may be comparable with other psychological disorders such as compulsive gambling. It was even discussed whether the proposed condition warranted inclusion in the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Disorders, but a lack of evidence and research meant the notion was dismissed.

Doctor Maressa Orzack of the McLean Hospital in Massachusetts sparked controversy in 2005 when she suggested that 40% of the ten million World Of Warcraft subscribers might be clinically addicted. Orzack - herself a former computer Solitaire addict - has been treating compulsive computer users for over a decade. She firmly believes that gaming addiction is a psychological condition that should be treated in the same way as compulsive gambling or eating disorders.

"Computer misuse is so complex and its ever-increasing prevalence so challenging that a comparison with eating disorders is necessary," said Orzack via her website. "The basic approach in treatment is to teach people how to normalise their behaviour. Normalising eating behaviour is a key goal in treatment of eating disorders.

"Normalising computer uses is more and more a requirement in our modern society. The challenges that face the therapist are manifold. The lines between work and home, work and play, are unclear and vague. Therapists must help individuals conflicted by the many demands of society to learn effective coping skills that will allow them to normalise their behaviour."Orzack's treatment programme involves a combination of behavioural therapy, anti-depressants and Zyban, a drug given to smokers to help them off nicotine.

Evidence backing Orzack’s claim comes from numerous sources. In July 2007 a case came to light involving a 15-year-old boy from Perth, Australia. The boy abandoned all other activities to play the MMORPG RuneScape, leading his father to liken the obsession to heroin addiction.From a more empirical standpoint, Dr. Karen Pierce, a Seattle-based child psychiatrist, treats at least two compulsive gamers per week, and approaches each case "like any other addiction".

Dr. Michael Brody, head of the media committee at the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, believes that gaming addiction is often an indication of deeper psychological problems such as depression and antisocial personality disorder.

In June 2006, The Smith and Jones Centre in Amsterdam became the first clinic in Europe to offer treatment to young people with obsessive gaming tendencies. Its founder, Keith Bakker, believes that compulsive gaming is a social problem rather than a psychological one.

"The more we work with these kids the less I believe we can call this addiction," Bakker told the BBC. "What many of these kids need is their parents and their school teachers - this is a social problem."

In response to this, the clinic has altered its treatment programme to focus on the development of communication and social skills to help patients to rejoin society.Bakker believes that referring to compulsive gaming as an addiction is counterproductive. "If I continue to call gaming an addiction it takes away the element of choice these people have," he explained. "It's a complete shift in my thinking and also a shift in the thinking of my clinic and the way it treats these people."

Naturally, the juxtaposition of games with narcotics has been met with fierce opposition within the industry. Many designers, developers and programmers object to games being labelled as addictive, claiming that the term's negative connotations have brought unjust criticism to the industry and handed ammunition to its opponents.

Developer Ernest Adams claims that seeing games as addictive is a misconception. In an article written for Gamasutra in 2002, Adams pointed out that addiction is comprised of two intertwined mechanisms: physical dependence and psychological addiction. "Physical dependence is a state in which it becomes necessary to have the desired stimulus in order to feel normal. It's also characterised by withdrawal symptoms in the absence of the stimulus," he wrote. "Nobody stops feeling human if they stop playing Tetris. Nobody becomes physically unwell if they don't play Solitaire for a while. Clearly games don't involve physical addiction to a substance."

Adams did acknowledge that games could have a psychologically addictive aspect, but only in the same way any other kind of behaviour that offers rewards and reinforcements does. He argued that in most cases, the compulsive behaviour involved in excessive gaming is relatively harmless compared to the likes of gambling addiction.Central to the industry's defence is a lack of reliable evidence and research on gaming and addiction. Writer and researcher Neils Clark has written about the subject at great length. He believes that researchers often lack a fundamental understanding of the nature of games, which renders their studies unreliable.

"The researchers themselves too often seem distanced from any real understanding of gaming, creating data that serves to label gamers, misrepresent games and further mislead the public," he wrote in a Gamasutra article. "Worst of all, some gamers clearly have problems. Until we explore this topic cogently, we're not in a position to help them.

"Without doubt there are health issues in gaming, as with any activity, many of which often go unaddressed. Earlier this year, however, the Game Development Corporation sponsored two roundtable events to discuss the matter. Neils Clark reported on the events.

"The most interesting voice in the roundtable was a programmer from Blizzard Entertainment, who discussed some of the company's design discussions prior to theBurning Crusade expansion for World Of Warcraft," he wrote.

"He said that they wanted to distinguish between gameplay elements that might encourage all players to go overboard, versus those that caused problems for a select few. The idea was to keep the pieces that make the game enjoyable for everybody, but make sure that everyone's enjoyment wasn't punctuated by a design that required too much maintenance."

Design is certainly something that can influence healthy play and it wouldn't hurt the industry if other developers took a page from Blizzard's book and addressed this.Terming excessive gaming as an addiction can be detrimental to the industry and those prone to the compulsion. As Keith Bakker has found from his work at the Smith and Jones Centre, labelling gamers as addicts is unlikely to aid their recovery, if such a thing is necessary. Furthermore, the term's negative connotations have brought the industry much undeserved bad press. It is important to acknowledge the health issues in gaming and keep an open mind where each case is concerned, but until more reliable research on the subject exists, let's keep the narcotics comparisons to a minimum.

Yes I know it's very cryptic, but I don't care! I love Gackt!
The last one didn't work - but this one is in HD biiiiiitches!

A reminder of Bully



An informative and slightly (maybe) biased report on Manhunt 2:

A bit of web fun to back up the Dreamweaver stuff and any digi comms leftovers...

Here's some stuff that I posted for the guys in GS8 as they trawled through web authoring last year. It may or may not be relevant to you:





Let me know if any of this stuff helps - I always like a bit of feedback....

Enjoy - and don't forget that tickets for Xmas are on sale now!

This presentation from Monday's lesson could help you with Shaun of the Dead because it kind of shows you why we have regulation in games and gaming...

Hikkikomori - as discussed briefly this morning, this film describes some of the thoughts, feelings and actions of hikkikomori. This may have scenes that some find offensive.



Let me know your thoughts....

Well, I finally found some time to see 'The Men Who Stare At Goats'.
Matt and I argued to and from the cinema, well I say argued, I meant bicker; 'cos that's what old married farts do.




The film was brilliant! It was a little bit like the book, but in some ways much more in terms of comedy. I'd recommend it to anyone who thinks that the whole 'war' issue is a both important and a waste of time.



What was strangely alluring was George Clooney (yeah, right! I hear you cry) but guess what, he looks good with long hair. Mind you I really have the hots for Mark Alpiger from King of Kong. What I thought was a bit strange was that even in the thick of being shot in Iraq, Clooney still had perfect white teeth..... Mmmmm. Three days without food, drink or hygiene and Clooney looks great! Ha!


Post script: Jeff Bridges is hot for an old guy. That is all.

I may or may not return to GS9 business.

It's healthy living week...

Voila!

Power-up douchebags!

More here ------> Thanks Kotaku!

Ethics and law, what a tricky area for game designers...

40-odd presentations later... Just finished another 3 taking my total to 31!

That means that there's still 13 to go. The delay is down to a couple of things:

• Failed uploads on to CD/DVD
• Late submissions
• Scripts received, but no presentations
• Presentations received, but no scripts

To avoid this in the future, please save everything to you statler file clearly marked. One of my students on GS8 called Lee Dennis saves his work as GS8/Lee Dennis/Vero's Lessons/ and then "Assignment 1.1" etc.

Also, it's a nightmare when I ask for files to be submitted as .ppt or .pptx and I get .odp; why? Because I ask specifically for PowerPoint as a presentation. You can save your work for PowerPoint or MS Office in OpenOffice, I'm niot sure why you don't do it. If you do that, you'll find that you can work on it at home and at Confetti.

This week, you present your work. Ooooh! I'm dead excited and, as well as wanting a hard copy, I will be marking your work right there and then (hopefully my typing will be quick enough!)

Good luck everyone and well done so far.

Stay tuned.

'Nuff said...


Thanks kotaku!

I had such a great time! You lot were awesome and I couldn't wish for a better GS9 to be honest!
But I feel I must embarrass some of you, so here's some pics:

Wow! Lots of you are having mayjah problemos this time, eh? Let's look at the assignment bit by bit.

You are required to design a PowerPoint presentation lasting at least 10-minutes that identifies and investigates a minimum of three different digital communication technologies. You will need to describe protocols, devices and methods used in those technological systems. You will also need to identify one web service that offers digital communication opportunities and describe the service offered and the software and HTML required to enable that service to function appropriately. During your presentation you should use examples of the technologies you are describing and investigating to help support your work.

Mmmm, interesting. What does it mean? It means this (and this is a great strategy for what to do when you receive an assignment):

• Design a presentation lasting 10 mins (but no more than 20 mins, as you tend to ramble otherwise)
• Name 3 different digi comms (so email, sms and IM are three different types of digi comms)
• Give 3 examples of your digi comms (ergo: Microsoft Outlook, Orange Network and MSN - see above)
• Explain those digi comms in depth (email is a time sensitive messaging device; as in electronic mail using virtual mail servers, sms is a time sensitive messaging device utilising gprs or gps technologies, and IM stands for instant messaging meaning just that and uses browser/html technologies to send an instant message from point a to point b)
• Show diagrams of how each digi comm works, I drew some gubbins on the board last week. You could SWOT each technology - that could get you some higer grades! ^_^
• Make comparisons between other brand names or services under the digi comms banner (Outlook vs Lotus; Virgin vs Vodafone; MSN vs GoogleTalk)
• Name and explain how one internet service works (for instance, Facebook is a comms website powered by an internet browser containing databases, video conferencing technology and instant messaging. It also provides a forum and allows for a blog-style opportunity to post comments. You could at this point use SWOT to raise your grade ^_^
• Make comparisons between other brand names or services under the Internet Services banner (MySpace vs Facebook, Skype vs Apple iChat, Internet Exploder vs Google Chrome vs Firefox!)

The criteria is fairly clear about what you need to do. How you put these things together is YOUR choice, not mine! Here's the distinction criteria for digi comms and internet services:

o Fully explain at least three different digital communication technologies identifying advantages and disadvantages in their application.
o Show at least three examples of a digital communications technologies.
o Fully explain the protocols and methods in order to enable those devices to function.
o Fully explain at least one Internet service that offers digital communication opportunities and compare the service to other similar services available and describe the advantages and disadvantages of that service.
o Fully explain the software and HTML coding that enable that service to function.
o Use subject terminology fluently.

Any questions? Post them here and I'll try my darndest to post some comprehensive answers over the weekend.

NOTE: I cannot look at every single presentation. But what I can do is have a look at snippets where you feel that you need some help.

I've seen most of your work in class and it all looks good to me. What I'll be looking for on this occasion is your actual skills in this area. Can you explain what things mean? Can you describe technology and it's development?

Your presentation will be filmed. You will be marked on your presentation, so you must supply a hard copy - and I'll give you a front page to hand work in with.

I think I've covered everything..............................................

Nate did a lovely post on yesterday clickety-click! His blog is awesomes, add him and follow his blog!

As you know, we are going to London on Saturday - YAY! Since some of us may or may not Cosplay, I thought it might be nice to show some Cosplay FAIL:

CLICK ME PLEASE!

ROFL and comment as applicable....

Thanks Chris Williams! Confetti points are on the way....

Monday's session was tough, right? So if you need to have another read, please find the attached presentation.

You should have received an email asking your to partake in our annual search for a course rep quest. If you haven't had an email from me about it you need to get in touch asap!

I want to see every group represented and will be providing a course rep and a deputy following this online vote cast....

If you haven't a clue what I'm on about, get in touch or read your EMAILS!

Hey Allz - I wanted to introduce you to our brilliant Library at Confetti. This year it's bigger and better than before with a real good slecetion of Games related titles. What I've done for you is compile a list of books that you can take out of Confetti right away! The only drawback is that you have to be a member first, so I'm going to attach a private link for you to downbload and complete a library application form. You can bring it back to me completed and signed in the next session! Please feel free to use the LRC to print off the application....




And here's the super link for the library application.

Regardez:

Hey Guys

Hope you enjoyed Monday's lecture on jobs in the industry. Here's the PowerPoint:

Some of you have been watching the amazing Gameswipe on BBC Four:













Don't forget to watch this brilliant drama about the rise and fall of Clive Sinclair and the ZX Spectrum:

Did you enjoy it? Get used to it - it's going to be a regular thing! I'll keep you updated. For us as 2 groups it was a complete and utter success:



Until next time!!

Homework: Take a site and do a SWOT analysis on it looking for accessibility, ergonics, colour use, text use etc...

From Monday's lecture:

I have to say that by 4.30pm last night I was completely exasperated!
Never before have I worked with 44 people who have/have not any grasp of PowerPoint presentations, handing work in BEFORE deadlines or saving hard copiers or printing work out.

Now, I hope that I took on 44 people who were technologically savvy (after all you are hoping to work in a technological world) so, with that in mind, I hope that you can redress the balance, dust yourselves off from this most embarrassing of situations and crack on!

If you can't get through your induction assignment, what hope do we have of getting your through your National Diploma?

When you received an assignment:

a) READ IT!
b) Start working on it immediately, even if it's writing an intro paragraph
c) Breakdown the assignment into readable chunks
d) Attempt the hard stuff first (that way you have loads of time to get help or take notes in lessons)
e) Read the assignment again

When you are close to completion, do this:

a) READ THE ASSIGNMENT AGAIN!
b) Show it to a skills tutor for spellings, grammar and punctuation help
c) Read your work to a family member or friend

When you are about to hand in your work to EST (or me):

a) READ SUBMISSION GUIDELINES VERY CAREFULLY
b) Read the submission guidelines again
c) Hand the work in BEFORE the deadline (as opposed to 3.59pm on a Friday)

Please, please, please DO NOT:

a) Email your work to me unless I have specifically requested it
b) Pester me about how to hand in work
c) Pester EST about handing in work
d) Spend precious time on the day of the deadline working on your assignment/procrastinating about your assignment or other
e) Hand work in after the deadline

Get in the habit of being professional at all times and you will leave Confetti with an exemplary record. Frankly it is tiresome for any teacher looking after 44 students to be constantly bombarded with mindless requests and endless emails about how to hand in work.

I'm trying very hard to treat you all as adults because that's what you are, so let's turn the page and start again from Monday, yes?

You'll get your mark in due course and work will not be discussed prior to that!

Wow, what a weird end to week 2 on the games course. I must tell you that I was hugely disappointed that although I gave you a very fair and just deadlines, some of you still couldn't make it. For you guys who missed the deadline without letting me know beforehand, you will be meeting with me on Monday.

The second huge disappointment of the day for me, was without question, the GS9 attendance to the film at the Broadway. With the notable exception of GS9-1 (you guys are awesome!), the only faces I saw and really appreciated were:
Joe Straw - GS9-2 REPRAZENT
Jacob Henry - GS9-2 REPRAZENT
David Correia - GS9-3 REPRAZENT
William Larcombe - GS9-3 REPRAZENT
Robert Ward - GS9-3 REPRAZENT
I think that there may have been one more, but the great news for you lot is that you all got Confetti points.

Those that couldn't (/be bothered to) make it, that's a shame, but it has somehow shaped how I see you doing over the course of this next year. Putting work first, for me, on deadline day isn't an option, it's a mere oversight/bout of laziness that needs to be capped! More on assignments in my next entry!

Oh a weird note though, I really didn't expect to see the ones (outside of GS9-1) to be sat there watching Let The Right One In.

Any thoughts about the film? Put a comment below...

Please click here for the eagerly anticipated trailer of 2009 (next to MW2)

Guys - this is what I want you to have a look at this week. In the absence of a projector in LG20 here's a presentation for you to go through....

See below for the content of todays session and for our weekly notices, with a short explanation of what they mean:


Weekly student notices are there to inform and hopefully guide you in the general direction of stuff to do during your time at Confetti. Please keep checking the blog for each week's notices which could range from excursions to different places to parties to money off bargains and such-like.

It's here!

;)

As promised - see below!

Raiden - don't get mad, but this is to help ALL gamers everywhere!

From Interactive Gaming 2009

Here's some key facts and figures from ESA regarding games and gamers - it could come in handy!

Hey!

Your first sesh was an intro to what we'll be doing over the next 12 weeks. Simply put Creative Media Industries work together seamlessly to create art, commerce and something intrinsically personal to you, them and us.

See below for Monday's presentation, reminding you of what we did:

Wow! What a day! I was in at 8 this morning, I've got a ton of marking to do. At around 10am I went down to our learning resources centre in the basement to get some quiet time and before I knew it, it was like 3pm! Gosh!

Well, it had to happen...
Square Enix has plans to revisit Final Fantasy VII according to producer Tetsuya Nomura.
"The company recently announced that the upcoming Blu-ray release of Advent Children Complete will bring the curtain down on that saga, and is looking to expand on Final Fantasy VII for its next project. A feature length film, PS2 spinoff and a PSP prequel have already been released as tie-in material to the PlayStation original but it appears that Square is not done yet, with Nomura already planning "the next product in the compilation".A FFVII remake has been rumoured for some time, but could be a long way off with Square Enix currently preparing Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy XIII for release."

Zomg! Is this the best news evah? Let's see if it happens... :)

Who knew that a chick could be a pioneer of gaming? Well, it's true. Tomorrow sees the first international day to celebrate Ada Lovelace and I'm really proud to be a part of that movement to ensure that this woman gets some recognition. After all, without her, we wouldn't have Killzone 2!

Who is she, and why should you be bothered? Read on...

Ada Lovelace was one of the world’s first computer programmers, and one of the first people to see computers as more than just a machine for doing sums. She wrote programmes for Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine, a general-purpose computing machine, despite the fact that it was never built. Read more about her here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ada_lovelace

Basically the idea is for her to be a positive role model for anyone (esp. Females) in computer sciences (which includes gaming). This inaugural day has been set up to highlight the need for more female bloggers funnily enough! Let’s see whether we can share the love by promoting something web 2.0 related on this day!

From Confetti Girls Forum

ZOMG! Check it out. No surprise to some of you but hey!

Square Enix producer Yoshinori Yamagishi has claimed that games have the potential to surpass films as a storytelling medium.
Speaking to CVG, the Final Fantasy producer indicated that games have untapped potential as a narrative form, but that interactivity is their biggest hurdle.
"In TV, film and theatre, the creator has control over how he gives the story to the viewer - it's easier to control the emotions," he said.
"If we manage to get over this hurdle, then I regard video games as a greater medium to provide people with deep emotional and exciting experiences."
Square Enix is currently preparing Star Ocean: The Last Hope for its European debut in April.

Guys,

Have a look at this - this is your first foray into the world of gaming. To complete this you will need:

• Pen & Paper


• Your brain!


• This YouTube segment: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ras4E4N1S5E (or see the YouTube below)

This short webcast has been designed for you to press pause regularly and think about your answers. To be honest you should all get this stuff right as it is more of a discussion based webcast than a question-based task. Enjoy it! I'll be dropping in to check your answers over the next month or so. Good luck!

The Rise of the Video Game Part 1

A really warm welcome from us at Confetti to you guys joining us (hopefully) in September. To get you started, here's our latest newsletter for the GS9 intake - have a look and see what you think?