tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7199547993315378252024-02-08T08:32:44.440-05:00Don't Stand in FiresDon't stand in fires is a term used in gaming. In a general sense, it means to have situational awareness and understand your role in terms of the community. Awareness can be difficult at times, especially in a world where multi-tasking seems to be the norm.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125truetag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-50985443088999465472009-09-24T12:36:00.000-04:002009-09-24T12:36:15.791-04:00This is my poster for the Allan Collins talk =)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Buo2t8KJO3A/Sruf9y3Hn4I/AAAAAAAAACc/WVQgUdOYslo/s1600-h/AllanCollins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Buo2t8KJO3A/Sruf9y3Hn4I/AAAAAAAAACc/WVQgUdOYslo/s320/AllanCollins.jpg" /></a><br />
</div>Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-58471603204193135172009-09-23T10:27:00.000-04:002009-09-23T10:27:00.017-04:00Not standing in firesIn class today, we were talking about awareness. I can be aware of something but once I become aware of it, I am becoming aware of my awareness. I can switch back and forth but I can never be just aware again.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-18301599957338347312009-09-15T23:00:00.000-04:002009-09-15T23:00:48.454-04:00Room 525In my Critical Qualitative Inquiry course, I needed to include a picture of site for my study. =)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Buo2t8KJO3A/SrBUvteua0I/AAAAAAAAACU/uuwHYuHEk0o/s1600-h/apprenticeship.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Buo2t8KJO3A/SrBUvteua0I/AAAAAAAAACU/uuwHYuHEk0o/s320/apprenticeship.jpg" /></a></div>Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-4315083258252921792009-09-14T19:44:00.007-04:002009-09-14T21:33:28.564-04:00New Media is the A-TeamI know I should not do this but I must brag. I loved doing my homework this week and I had no problem spending as much time as I did on the <a href="http://scratch.mit.edu/">Scratch</a> project. Scratch is recommended for students at least 8 years old. I would not normally note the age consideration except for the fact that I was really frustrated that an 8-year old was doing incredible work and all I could make was my cat move 10 steps. I tried to take a systemic approach at creating a music video at first. I would add sprites and attempt to make them do something cute. There was so much fail that I am not sure how to even address it.<br />
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<a href="http://dontstandinfires.blogspot.com/2009/09/new-media-is-a-team.html">More after the cut!</a><br />
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I must admit that using Scratch was a bit easier after a few glasses of wine. Rather than make something complicated and frustrating myself with the logic, I just played. While I was playing, I remembered part of my reading assignments from this week. Basically...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Buo2t8KJO3A/Sq7Rj_PK6BI/AAAAAAAAACM/w-xH5nEw5_w/s1600-h/ateam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Buo2t8KJO3A/Sq7Rj_PK6BI/AAAAAAAAACM/w-xH5nEw5_w/s200/ateam.jpg" /></a></div>Bricoleur = <br />
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The A-Team would not always have the solution but at the end of the show, everything worked out. While I did not construct a tank out of toilet paper tubes, duct tape, and bust through the warehouse to kill all of the bad guys, I did look at my project, tweaked it a bit, and then started to work on the problem again from a different angle. I checked out the other creator projects (yes, the 8 year olds!) and read through a few tutorials available on the site. I finally felt satisfied with the project and felt that it was something I could be proud of. (Clicky the red button to stop the music)<br />
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<a href="http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/Ardente/682434"><applet archive="ScratchApplet.jar" code="ScratchApplet" codebase="http://scratch.mit.edu/static/misc" height="387" id="ProjectApplet" style="display: block;" width="482"><param name="project" value="../../static/projects/Ardente/682434.sb" /></applet> </a><a href="http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/Ardente/682434"> </a><br />
<a href="http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/Ardente/682434">Click here if you cannot see it!</a><br />
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What did I actually learn?<br />
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<ol><li>I enjoyed failing at Scratch. Every time I failed, I was still interested enough to try and figure out why it went wrong and what I could do to fix it. I loved designing, creating, and inventing. <br />
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<li> Projects need to be engaging. I think part of the reason one of my current projects bombed recently was due to the fact I was unable to keep the students interested in the task for a long period of time. It does not matter if it was a design flaw, programming, or narrative issue...it just means that I need to find a way to make it interesting for the students. </li>
<li>The community really makes this project. If I was just designing for myself, I would not have put as much effort in it. I know that is a terrible reflection about myself. The only way I could justify it is that there would always be a reason that I could not have spent more time on the project (orchestra, work, school, etc.)</li>
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All in all, it was a good day of play =)Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-10945038148882348962009-05-28T02:45:00.000-04:002009-05-28T02:49:03.271-04:00ImmersionIf I acted IRL like I did in game, I would need to punch my coworkers, professors, and classmates before they would talk to me. They would not really help me, though. The quest givers would blabber at me about a quest, have me fed-ex an object back to them, but never really know what I want.<br /><br />I would basically run around mindlessly through the world, bumping into objects, have information fed to me, and move to the next task. *sigh* This has been one of those months. I cannot wait to stop and smell the Lichbloom again.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-21281738534154257382009-02-25T18:18:00.001-05:002009-09-14T17:14:43.849-04:00Videogames and EducationSchools emphasize the memorizing of acts, concepts, and <a href="">ideas</a> . The context is removed from the world and placed into an abstract, formal concept that can be applied generally to various situations. Learners who memorize a concept are only taking on a piece of the <a href="">world</a>. By limiting what a student can learn, educators are actually doing the opposite of what they meant to do. Instead of creating critically-thinking students, they have supported an environment that encourages students to accept facts as they are stated without an understanding of the contexts that they would be used within. Rather than enabling students, schools treat students as vessels ready to accept abstract <a href="">concepts</a>.<br />
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Becoming embedded into a game allows students to understand tools and perform the acts of a professional within different fields. Students are not only sitting in class, they are making decisions and understanding the consequences. <a href="">Students are able to internalize what it is they are learning because they become a part of that world and learn the different types of skills from each profession, what they can do, and how they can work together</a>. This deep, value-laden learning transfers well to school-based skills and understandings. From Gee's (2004) perspective, there is a difference between engaging someone in a complex system meaning and simply telling them, as facts, about that system–a person that is engaged is actively participating in a system. If teachers are just giving facts to students, the students are receiving those facts in pieces but may not be able to make a whole concept. Students will not feel engaged with the system and are quite separate from it<a href="">. If a student understands how words are applied in a situation, they potentially understand the circumstances. Participating in a complex system allows the user to feel as if it is real and what they are doing is contributing to the goals of that system. </a>Students become more motivated to become active participants in their learning.<br />
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<a href="">Digital simulations of worlds that are “played” – students could act within a simulation and find a win state (a state that can be found through learning and, ultimately, be won). </a>“Players must carefully consider the design of the world and consider how it will or will not facilitate specific actions they want to accomplish their goals”. (Gee, 2003) When understanding the game, a student understands the rules upon which the game is based. For example, … Gee references situated actions and situated meaning, referring to the fact that words have different meanings, and, at times, very specific meanings, based on the situations that are used in. While playing a game, people acquire situated meaning for words – meanings that they can apply in actual context for action and problem solving. Gee and other scholars see this as something that highlights the problem of traditional schools. Schools present abstract concepts without regard to where the concepts were important. They over-generalize (and simplify) them in to facts that are supposed to be easily digested and understood by all students.<br />
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<a href="">Students understand the concept within the situations presented in games</a>. They can also learn how to use it in other applications. This situative perspective considers learning environments as an activity (Barab & Plucker, 2002; Brown, Collins, & Duguid, 1989; Greeno, 1997). Learners interact with other learners, the material, the information, and resources available within the environment. Words are not just the facts or isolated ideas pulled from the meaningful context that they originated. Gaming worlds become something greater – they allow students to become part of a community of practice. <a href="">The activities that take place within the learning environment are important because they not only teach the content but allow the student to practice what the</a>y are learning and they are constantly rethinking and designing new ways of understanding it. With practice comes the motivation of success and failure - the opportunity to revise and try different outcomes. Students will be able to make sense of the content that they are learning and apply the learning in different ways that go beyond learning a single concept.<br />
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Students have the opportunity to participate in a new world, that when properly created, allows them to try on new identities and roles that would not be available because of financial reasons or time constraints (Barab, Ingram-Goble, & Gresalfi, in press; Gee, 2003; Turkle, 1994). There is no way that any one person has the time to go out and experience every job, visit museums, and tour the world and discover the different cultures and types of people. Games can give students these experiences at a much lower cost while being time-efficient. Games also have the potential to manipulate the environment of these virtual places such that they highlight and make pedagogically useful experiences more likely (Barab & Dede, 2007). Students understand and experience the concepts within the context, so that they find meaning without losing the connection between the world and the abstract ideas that are being presented to them.<br />
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Students can grapple with learning issues together and are supported by the environment, their teachers, the community, and the tools that they are given. Students learn to think as professionals rather than individuals working with an abstract concept (Steinkuehler). The problems that occur with a student learner can often be solved in different ways by utilizing the various skills that comes from working within a gaming environment. The problems presented in an educational format are ill-defined, context bound, and real-world qualities. The relationship between the solver and the environment can create different solutions and opportunities. Games allow more opportunities for feedback to students and allow them to see various outcomes to their decisions. Students can be accountable for their ways of thinking and are pushed to think outside their realm of comfort. They can even adopt new ways of addressing old problems as they learn new tools.<br />
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As a student has a greater understanding of her skills, she is able to transfer that knowledge to the next set of problems, using the experience that she gained as a tool. Transfer is an "advantageous effect of learning in one situation upon learning in a later situation" (Greeno, 1989). Educational gaming allows people to engage in other professions or lifestyles, get experience, and understand the ways and thinking. People become the system that they are engaging and act within a system while seeing and thinking of it as a system, not just random events. Students develop an understanding that has a foundation in meaningful activity.<br />
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Games help students start to integrate “knowing, ways of doing, ways of being, and ways of caring” (Shaffer, Squire, Halverson, Gee). Students are no longer vessels that we stuff information. Students become active learners and experts. They learn by playing the game – they are learning by working together. The community of learners work together to find what questions are important to the students and ways to try and answer them. They come to understand the value of knowledge rather than trying to complete a task for a grade. From this community emerges a culture in which an individual’s skills and identities are important.<br />
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Gamers should no longer be stereotyped as single players living in the mom’s dark basement (Citing the Pew Report would be good here). Gamers today are social creatures that have learned to interact on many levels. In game, they can socialize through chat and emails. Some gamers will help others learn new skills and theory-crafters will participate online through fan-sites, discussion forums, and guild sites. Students are able to engage the information together as a class, with their teacher, and with the larger, learning community. They can work cooperatively on projects and have the ability to work with students outside of their normal classroom. This type of interaction fosters a feeling of community and students can develop shared values about their education. The Pew Research <a href="">Center (Roberts 2006</a> ) recently reported that students see gaming as a beneficial social activity and “a major component of their overall social experience.” The study found that while many students had encountered negative social experiences, they felt that they were able to stand up to the other players and ask them to stop the inappropriate behaviors. Furthermore, most students felt that gamers were more often helpful and generous players rather than the stereotypical aggressive, bullying type.<br />
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Gaming also helps students try on new and powerful identities. Understanding critical features and the conditions that enable or disable a student from fully participating in mathematics may help us move toward equality. For example, in a non-gaming environment, Gutstein created a series of mathematic projects that related to social equality and positive, social identities. By helping children gain a sense of agency, they were able to take up the math problems as their own and propose creative solutions to solving them. “Educators working toward an equitable and just society can help students develop not only a sophisticated understanding of power relations in society but also the belief in themselves as conscious actors in the world” (Gutstein, 2003). One student, after understanding data based arguments, went to his city councilman to discuss why there was a larger amount of liquor stores in impoverished neighborhoods, like his own, in comparison to more affluent neighborhoods, who had lesser liquor stores. As students come to understand their power within mathematics, they can use this power and feel like they can make changes in the world. Students could “use their real-world race, class, culture, and gender as strategic resources if and when they please…but in ways that do not force anyone into pre-set racial, gender, cultural, or class categories.” (Gee, 2004) People can share around a common goal and use their cultural or social differences as strengths. Both Gee and Gutstein share similar attitudes that learning within situations that students can relate to make the student more powerful, beyond gender and racial restraints, and games can make this possible in a classroom context.<br />
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Videogames have the potential to change education and it should be embraced as a new model of learning. Games can level the social and cultural differences by realizing that which makes individuals unique is strength rather than a weakness. Learning is more powerful when students find meaning in their experiences. Games allow students to experiment with their identities and explore the world in many different ways that are safe and accepted. They become part of the culture and the community of learning. Games create a greater motivation to learn. Students become a part of developing the ways that the community practices through meaningful activity.<br />
<a href="" name="_msocom_1"></a>Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-5690615456564417542009-02-25T18:15:00.000-05:002009-02-25T18:16:14.710-05:00Thank you, RoshYou made my blog so pretty...Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-22979049170236946522009-02-25T10:57:00.000-05:002009-02-25T11:02:47.177-05:00NSFW - Slightly inappropriate<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Buo2t8KJO3A/SaVqwdxn7ZI/AAAAAAAAAAw/_6OttsroOOk/s1600-h/dildo.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 288px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Buo2t8KJO3A/SaVqwdxn7ZI/AAAAAAAAAAw/_6OttsroOOk/s320/dildo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306765116785028498" border="0" /></a><br />The Hasbro site's Scrabble Anniversary Edition broadcasts a new word of the day. You can also use the word builder or access the official Scrabble Dictionary. I am not sure that teachers will scramble to get this version but I am amused, very amused...Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-69173218419294800102009-02-22T18:08:00.001-05:002009-09-14T17:15:19.123-04:00Warhammer: My experiencesI chose to be a Bright Wizard and my husband picked a Warrior Priest of the Order faction. This combination has worked well for us in the past. I will do damage while my husband protects and heals me. Again, this was no surprise and the combination did work well for us. Our starting zone was a safe area that new players could explore without too much trouble. The townsfolk that we spoke to were very long-winded and kind. We grouped with a few people, wandered around town, and killed the vermin to please the innkeeper. Up until this point, it was the same game like all the other games I have played.<br />
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After leveling around town, our group moved to the forests. We stepped into a Public Quest. I had no idea what was going on and started to use my area-of-effect magic on the mobs. While this had worked while killing rats for the innkeeper, using it on undead-brain-eating zombies was not the best of ideas. I was swiftly killed, and one by one, my group was dispatched. I could not understand why this did not work like it had before. A kind person in my group explained that Public Quests continue through the day, resetting after the final boss is dead or after a set period of time. What I was AOEing was not the easy, weak zombies. I was attempting to kill the final boss, which would be fought with many groups of people, not just myself. We waited for the quest to restart. After quietly attacking the zombies, we defeated the boss and moved on to train. Most of us had leveled on that fight.<br />
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The most amusing part of the game for me has been the many ways you can gain experience. You can gain experience from killing rats, talking to people, walking into a new area, killing people, or adding friends to your friends list. Yes, adding….friends…to….your…friends….list. Warhammer Online really strives to make this a social game. Working together in Public Quests gains you more experience. Clicking on yourself gains you experience. I think that if I could sneeze in the game, I would gain experience. Just because I was gaining experience did not mean I was a better player. I think that the experience gained serves as a small incentive to continue and explore all aspects of the game in every city, forest, or bog. It all seemed very random and you do not always discover these titles until they happen. They are hidden from you. This can be frustrating at times.<br />
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Warhammer Online also appeals to the killer side of my personality. There are so many types of player vs. player encounters. It is killing with purpose and the townsfolk want you to succeed. They will reward you with experience, potions, and equipment to make your killing easier. With this type of encouragement, it makes it easier to justify slaughtering the other players. I am killing for a good cause. I am saving the town from the plague. I am a hero! It is nice to not feel like I am just griefing players. I am contributing to the good of our people.<br />
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From Warhammer Online, I have gained a new insight in how to engage players in many ways that do not involve killing the same dragon over and over again. Warhammer Online offers players so many ways to engage the game on an individual and group level. It requires players to become involved in many parts of the game, from gaining mastery over their character, understanding the vast amounts of lore, and learning to work as a group to accomplish small and epic level goals. I feel like this game makes players feel like they are important, active participants in the storyline. They become part of the game rather than being just a player. I love the fact that the game is not limiting the player. If anything, the player would limit himself and choose to not be engaged.<br />
Warhammer Online could have possibly been one of the best MMORPGs I have ever played. I started this game with low expectations. The first release of any massively played game online has been lukewarm. Most of the time, developers have been releasing close to beta versions instead of a finished product. Because of this, I did not want to get overly excited. Warhammer Online really surprised me. The game quickly downloaded, patched, and was playable within 1 hour.<br />
The second surprise came to me as I logged into the game. I asked myself, did I press World of Warcraft on accident? The graphics feel the same. It is the same, cartoony feel that will be familiar to World of Warcraft. While the graphics are admittedly darker, it still was a bit too close for me. Because everything looked the same, I figured that I did not need to read the manual. I would drop myself into the world and start questing.<br />
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At the same time, there was a lot of confusion on my part. There are not obvious reasons of why I can level the way I do or how certain spells affect each other. It is a difficult game to understand. When I was leveling talisman-making, a skill, there is no rhyme or reason why what I did affected my learning in game. Objects that could be combined together did not state whether I would gain a learning point or if I would fail. This was very frustrating to my husband. We both believe there should be points in the game that are very obvious and allow for learning opportunities. This game did not explain the mechanics well enough. World of Warcraft, while similar in game play, is very different in the sense that you can theory-craft the game. You can sit down, figure out the numbers, and explain why your damage is so high or how many fish you need to level. This information is made available online through gaming sites, like Wowwiki.com. At the same time, if you want to be surprised, you can leave it be. You always know, however, what you need to level, how you need to level that skill, and basic information on how to obtain those items. In Warhammer, there is not distinct path that would help us make those choices. If I could choose to do so, I would make parts of the game more obvious. Overall, it is a beautiful game. It has a nice storyline and allows players to explore. It feeds the achiever aspect through titles, allows you to socialize in game through faction and guild activities. It gives killers the blood that they crave and at the same time, makes it a meaningful experience.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-52735752699890438072009-02-22T18:06:00.002-05:002009-09-14T17:15:31.119-04:00Warhammer: Of leveling and experienceWarhammer Online is like many MMORPGs in the sense that players must accumulate rewards and experience by completing quests, tasks, killing monsters, and enemies. There are a few differences in the way that this is presented to the player. There are direct and indirect ways to advance your character in Warhammer Online. Player rank is like the age or level of the character. Increases in rank are a general way of raising the level of the character’s stats, like hit points. As the ranks increase, more abilities, like spells or attacks, open up to the player so that they can obtain mastery over a particular skill set that they choose. The following are explanations of ways to level. All are necessary to be successful in the game. A player cannot focus on just one part of the game.<br />
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Ranks can be obtained by killing a certain number of beasts or completing quests given by non-player characters. There are dungeons that can be explored. Dungeons are safe from player vs. player combat but it does not mean that they are easy. Dungeons will generally have a bunch of lower level mobs that will gradually get more difficult. At the end, there is a boss mob to be guild that is greater in strength, health, and attacks than the little mobs. Killing this boss will generally give the player more experience points and better equipment. There are three different types of dungeons in Warhammer. The realm instanced dungeons are specific to either Order or Destruction players only. Warband instanced dungeons are playable by groups that adventure together. Grouped instanced dungeons require six players that will play in separate areas of the dungeons. These players have already completed the regular dungeons.<br />
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Another way that players can receive better equipment and experience is by working on public quests. PQs are always on-going quests in public areas. If a player walks into this zone, the player is automatically included in the quest. Most PQs have three stages and characters will receive experience for each stage completed. Some PQs are timed while others are completion quests, where a certain number of mobs must be killed to move onto the next stage. After the three stages are completed, the loot from the boss will be divided by the game through a contribution and random number system. A player will receive influence points for every PQ completed. Influence rewards are given by a non-player character, called a Rally Master, in the area that the PQ was started. The Rally Master will give you equipment or potions in exchange for the influence. The difference between rank gain and influence gain is simple. Rank gain would be as if the player was to go to school and obtain a college degree. During that time, the player would receive an education and skills to help them in the real world. They would also age. Influence rewards, however, are rewards given to a player for helping someone. It would be similar to shoveling your elderly neighbor’s driveway. The neighbor would thank the individual for their time and offer cookies or hot chocolate. She may even knit a better hat for you to wear.<br />
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In addition to the player rank, characters will, over time, increase their renown rank. Renown ranks will award a player with bonuses to their character’s abilities, titles, and gear. The renown rank measures how far a character has gone into the realm vs. realm area of the game. RVR is a player vs. player and a player vs. environment situation. The character will be engaging in war with other players in a combined effort across the realm (or world that the character is situated). Both experience, gold, and loot can be awarded for successful quests. When killing another character, players will get a chance to loot items from the corpses. The items are not directly from the dead character. This type of loot is generated in the same way mob loot is generated. If the player’s character is a much higher rank than the person that they are attacking, the attacker will become a chicken that is easily killed. This prevents higher level players from griefing, or picking on, lower players.<br />
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There are three types of battles that will increase a renown rank. Skirmishes are considered open-world player vs. player kills. These points are earned by the player taking the initiative to seek out others and attack them. There are also battlefields. In a battlefield, player vs. player takes place in an open space of the world while playing a game of capture the flag. To win in this type of battle, players must work together to capture and defend territories. When a side wins, the realm as well as the player will receive points for the success. Scenarios are instanced matches. In a scenario, the groups are matched as evenly as possible. If a player is lower level, for the time that they are in this instance, they will be bumped up to the average level. In the beginning of each scenario, a set of rules is displayed, explaining the objectives, players, and winning conditions. Winning or losing a scenario will give a player points. The points are based on contribution and achieving the campaign.<br />
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Finally, there are a few indirect ways to advance characters. Most guilds are places of social interaction with play surrounding goals of killing specific bosses. In Warhammer, the dynamic of the guild is a little different. Warhammer Online encourages guild creation and social interaction of players. Guilds will have access to exclusive features not available to single players. The guild that a player joins can affect how the player advances. Increasing the guild rank through quests and player vs. player combat will positively affect the player. Guilds can have a space in one of the capital cities that is instanced specifically to that group.<br />
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Guild Experience is gained much like character experience – through defeating boss mobs, acquiring objects, and completing quests. The game will not allow one guild to rule all of a faction. When guilds are too large, the benefits of a member are less. Smaller guilds will receive more of a benefit from a guild. To support a guild, the leader can enforce a tax (automatic, percentage based income from the player) or a tithe (donations at will). Guilds can use this money to fund player vs. player fights on a much larger scale. As the rank of the guild increases, abilities such as purchasing a guild bank, buying standards to fly in battle to increase damage, or having the ability to make an alliance with other guild will be available. Eventually, the guild can create cities and stores, which will reduce the amount a player has to spend to buy items. The guilds must fight to keep these cities. To fight, a guild must be a solid group of players. There is a power dynamic in joining guilds. The core people will benefit more than the newer players. The newer players must be nice (or at least, tolerant) of respected members. The guild leader must watch over, and make decisions, concerning the use of money. The guild must trust each other or the guild will not be successful.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-11596218206702246152009-02-22T18:06:00.000-05:002009-02-25T18:06:54.817-05:00Warhammer: SkillsCultivating, as a skill, is very interesting to me. Players will find seeds on corpses. If players take on the profession of a cultivator, they can grow these seeds. It is not simply pressing a button and allowing the timer to determine when the seed is a plant. First, the seed must be planted in the correct kind of soil. The seed must be watered, fertilized, and given the correct amount of sunlight. Additives can be given to a seed for certain effects. The additives can reduce the time it takes to grow the plant or increase the desired result. The cultivator must choose the correct time to harvest the plant. If harvested too soon, the plant will be too weak to use in a potion. The amount of detail required is great but these are skills that will be ranked through experience. The more seeds planted the more skill the player will have in growing the items. As the cultivator gains these skills, they can plant more at the same time. Cultivators can grow dyes for clothing, potions, and essences. <br />There are different spell types that I enjoy. There are not only the basic skills that you learn through ranking up the character. The player can also choose different tactical and initiative abilities. Tactical and initiative type spells are only activated during PQs or RVR type fights (which would be war setting). The abilities do not cost anything to cast. Rather, the points are gained through heals or kills for the mission. As the ability charges, the player can use it during that battle. If it is not used, it will decay. All abilities will help the player or group succeed.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-68052416120118783392009-02-22T18:05:00.000-05:002009-02-25T18:11:01.512-05:00Warhammer: Tomes of KnowledgeThere are certain objects in the games that are unique in their presentation. The Tome of Knowledge is the storage for everything that happens to the player in game. Inside the Tome, the player can read the story about Warhammer, the realms, races, creatures, and noteworthy non-player characters. As the player makes way through the game play, more entries are added as the character comes across them in game. It essentially ties together everything in game and tries to make it meaningful to the player. Players can see why the races are at war with each other and learn about the three major areas of conflict<br />The Tome of Knowledge also tracks everything about a player. It lists every single kill, quest, quest completed, items that the player has received, in addition to titles, ranks, achievements, and an armory set. The Tome also lists all of the player’s titles. Titles are notes added to a character as they wander and pillage through the game. Some are very silly, such as “Ow, my eye”. My first character received this after damaging herself for the 100th time. After dying 10 times to the opposing faction or mobs, players can receive the title of “Pincushion”. If a player loots 100 items off of corpses, “The Pirate” title is unlocked. Basically, anything noteworthy and insignificant has a title. Most of them are hilarious.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-80983844480410699692009-02-22T18:04:00.001-05:002009-09-14T17:15:59.702-04:00Warhammer Online: An overview of the gameThe goal in Warhammer Online is to obliterate your enemy. It is not enough to just repeatedly kill him. A player must work through levels where every resource in the land is contested. It is not just mindless killing – it is killing with the purpose of survival and gain of your faction.<br />
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There are two opposing factions in the game – Order and Destruction. The Order is considered the “good guys” but they are not without blood on their hands. They consist of the Empire (humans), Dwarfs, and High Elves. The Empire has suffered a plague that would cause the walking dead. These chaotic creatures would join the forces of Destruction. The Emperor of the Order tried to stifle the spread of the disease through unsuccessful quarantines. Panic spread to every village, causing the occupants to fend for themselves rather than unify as a group against the Destruction.<br />
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While the plague ravished the city, the Destruction forces used this time to gear their armies and prepare for war. The Witch King sees this as an opportune time to attack and planned with the other Destruction races: the Greenskins (orcs and goblins), the Chaos (evil humans), and the Dark Elves. The Witch King devises a plan that will occupy the allies of the Empire. This sends the Order into disarray and it seems that the Destruction forces will overwhelm them. The Order, after many deaths and riots, calmed its people and settled on a plan to kill all of the Destruction.<br />
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Each race in Warhammer Online has its own narrative, which helps those that wish to role play the game to have a stronger sense of their character. The Empire is considered the greatest nation of men. Man is subject to treachery, so there is never a clear sense of who to trust. They are continually being assaulted by the Chaos. Dwarfs are the ancient, proud race with great stamina and strength. They love two things in life: beer and gold. High Elves try to stay removed from the lesser races. They are older than Dwarfs and much more proud of who they are. They try to live in harmony but they repress any emotion.<br />
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Destruction forces are the darker faction. The people of Chaos are considered warrior champions and very powerful in battle. They are so different from their human counterparts that they seem almost alien. The Greenskins love a great battle. They are savage and take a great deal of fun in their destruction. They do not have a homeland. Greenskins would rather take over another settlement than take the time to build their own. The Dark Elves finish this lot. They are the destabilizing influence on what the High Elves try to create in harmony. They are a hedonistic group and embrace their selfishness with pride.<br />
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On top of the faction and character narratives, there is also a looser narrative regarding religion. All of the races have Gods that they worship. In some instances, the Gods will intervene and kill those of the opposing faction. Some of the Chaos Gods will just kill everyone. This is not an area that is well-developed. In the two weeks I have been playing Warhammer Online, I have only found out how to run away quickly when I hear the wrath of the Gods. I do not always understand what I have done – I just know that if I am caught up by the flames they send down on me, I will die and have to run all the way back.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-32210557417003277822009-02-21T10:07:00.001-05:002009-09-14T17:16:12.587-04:00World of GooWorld of Goo is cute, fuzzy game filled with fun. It reminds me of childhood days - picking my nose and seeing just how long a booger could stretch between my fingers, dangling a long strip of spit to see if I could touch my sister’s head, or learning to make bubblegum bubbles (and hoping I would not get it stuck in my hair). This is a low-budget game without the intense cinema-like cut scenes or epic dragon fights. Because it is so simple, it is that much more powerful of a game. The World of Goo allows you to become the savior of innocent creatures, a designer, and a builder.<br />
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The graphic design of the game is beautiful. It is a whimsical combination of Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride and The Nightmare Before Christmas type of Goth-style drawings. The characters in game have enormous, lop-sided eyes, small heads, and even smaller bodies. They have adorable little outfits, complete with stripes. The girl shoppers in the game are bouncy and fun. The colors of the world are muted and many of the boards are in a simple monochromatic color scheme. The mix of adorable goo balls and surreal landscapes allow users to feel as if they are playing within the frames of a comic book. This feeling is reinforced by the chapters and changes that occur within the game.<br />
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The music is one of my favorite parts of the game. The soundtrack is reminiscent of Danny Elfman, the composer for the soundtracks of many of Tim Burton’s movies. The song – Going Up – is part waltz, part polytonal soundscape. It is like taking a ride on a carousel and then tilting your head back and just watching the colors spin together. Many of the songs in World of Goo are just as intense. The combination of industrial music, electronic, and ballads that tickle your heartstrings give just enough sense of urgency, a sense of empathy to the goo balls, that you need to save them. Being able to listen to the music alone is worth the price of the game.<br />
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The goal of the game is to save the goo. The game is divided into five chapters with each containing about 11 games. Each level has a set of goo, obstacles, and a pipe. The pipe, an onscreen vacuum, will suck the goo to safety. To pass through a level, a certain number of goo must be saved. The proper goo must be used in the correct order. The order depends on the puzzle. Some levels have timers that require goo to be saved. Goo can be used to build structures, towers, and bridges to pass through hazardous terrain. This is a very simplistic view of the game. Until it is played, any amount of description will never give users the same feel as participating the game.<br />
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The story is told in pieces by sarcastic signs placed by the goo puzzles. Some of them are funny and helpful. Some are frustratingly vague in helping users complete a puzzle. The sign painter can be silly and offer a lot of humor to tense situations that the game creates. The cut scenes help piece together what the signs are missing. Little bobble-headed children are running around, trying to go shopping. Your goo helps the Goo Corporation function.<br />
The game cycles through seasons and industrial ages. The first stage is summer and it is a very happy scene. There is fall and the scenery becomes darker. As the user progresses, the changes become more apparent. Chapter Four is the most stunning change. The world changes from an industrial, dark age feel to a green and black grid. There are goo missiles and shooting trajectories that must be maneuvered to proper place goo. It is a huge change that makes you evaluate your current play style and adapt it to the new puzzle. There are achievements to be won, such as the OCD (obsessive Completion Distinction Criteria) for saving all the goo in a puzzle. This will eventually open new puzzles to the user.<br />
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The goo are utterly adorable, sticky blobs that can join together. There are a few main states of being goo. The stuck goo are pieces of goo that have been placed and are no longer useable, like when a child sticks gum to the bottom of a desk. While you can attach items to the gum, you would not want to play with it again. There are goo that are originally in an active state that can go into a stuck state or goo that is just part of the scenery. These are generally black in color. Other goo, such as the green goo, can be used and recycled as part of the game. They can work as anchors and then pulled back into the game to be used again. Green goo will unattach themselves after a period of time. If they are not reattached, there is a potential of losing your entire goo structure.<br />
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Goo structures are also affected by the wind, fire, spikes, and other hazardous items. The wind makes it difficult to anchor items. Some pink goo balloons will float away if not properly attached. The wind will make your creations wobble and sometimes collapse into itself, which at times, can be frustrating. The terrain can make moving goo difficult. There are chasms, hills, spikes, and cliffs that will cause players to lose goo, as well as mechanical cogs that have the potential of squishing your goo.<br />
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The types of goo are most exciting. Goo is not only used for creating structures. It can be used to float, detonate, or traverse across a screen. Pink goo balls will form balloons that can be placed in different areas to help support structures. Skull goo are adorable, bouncing balls that can handle touching sharp objects. They can also be used to float objects from one part of the screen to another. Red goo balls will ignite when used and make giant goo explosions. Clear goo acts like water – it can only bond in one direction. Goo will make noises, depending on what type they are. Some will giggle or cheer the user on. The water ones make dripping noises. The constant, cute chatter causes the users to feel like they are not just saving snot – they are saving cute pets that have their own personalities. Losing a goo ball is not just losing a point to gain a higher score – you are essentially losing a cog in the machine that will help you complete the chapter and move on. Every goo is important.<br />
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There is a two-player option that is as irritating as it is fun. Two people trying to position goo and reattach them properly is nearly impossible if players do not talk about their goals. At times, it seems better if one person plays instead of two. It can get very complicated when balls are being moved and structures are on the verge of imploding. Watching people play the game is as much fun as playing it. By standing back, you can see the potential of proper placement. While playing, it is easy to lose yourself inside the structure of goo, especially when pieces are floating off or your goo is being squished by cogs. By watching, many things can be noticed. If I was unable to complete a puzzle, I could watch another user attempt it. Even if the user did not complete the puzzle, I often had a better sense of the level.<br />
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Puzzles can be repeated. After become more proficient, I found that we could redo puzzles to receive a better score (and possibly receive the OCD title, which was not possible before). At times during my observation, I realized that the intent of the user is complicated by the game design. It caused some frustration. When the goo balls were wandering, sometimes on top of each other, the user may pick the wrong goo for placement. Even if the good intent was there, the structure could be compromised. I would recommend using darker colors that for anchors and lighter colors for unattached goo balls. It would be much easier for users to see the difference.<br />
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What did I learn from this game? Patience - this is not a game that can be rushed through and quickly won. It is a game that requires users to think about the path that they are taking and the means that will get them to the goal. Attaching balls together and hoping that the structure will work will not win the game.<br />
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It is obvious to me that a good amount of time was spent making sure that the artwork, music, and puzzles related to each other in some way. It made me think about why I place things in game or even in my papers. Sometimes the most elegant way is the simplest design. Every game design does not need to be fancy. It does need to have a consistent feeling of challenge and worth to the user. The challenge and frustration in the World of Goo keeps users trying to complete puzzles. Saving the balls of goo are just as fun as creating the structures to move them to safety. There are many clues in the game that will help a user along the correct path – it is the balance of making something obvious to the user but just on the tip of their brain. The World of Goo does a fantastic job of indirectly helping players work through the puzzles. Each skill builds on another as users work through the puzzles. It is not just making the puzzles harder – the best part is that the puzzles offer new ways for looking at solutions. The same solution will never be used more than once and the skills that you have learned help you get through the harder levels.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-719954799331537825.post-8297187975255621892009-02-20T11:39:00.001-05:002009-09-14T17:16:37.493-04:00Standing in fires...This is in response to an article by a fellow gamer. You can check it out at:<br />
<a href="http://gambit.mit.edu/updates/2009/02/lern_2_play.php">http://gambit.mit.edu/updates/2009/02/lern_2_play.php</a><br />
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Fear not, little shaman. I am not here to kick you from our group again. =) I read the papers that your blog referenced and I need to add my two gold pieces. My guild is seriously casual - so casual that it does not fit the typical definition of a guild would be in World of Warcraft. We have 3-5 major raid groups and from that, multiple 10-man core groups that consistently run all of the available end-game raids available to us as of February '09. We do not recruit - you must know a friend who will vouch for you. You are not required to show up to raid. You do not need to do anything except log in once a month to save your spot in the guild roster.<br />
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What is status in such a casual guild? Is it the raid leaders that can consistently bring out the good players? Is it the gear? The players?<br />
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I agree that wearing powerful items was a way to tell a how progressed an avatar is in the game. I also agree that there is more to gaming than just showing up to raids and getting your shinies.<br />
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I would argue that the difference between good and bad players is motivation. People that are motivated will learn the fight and understand the roles of other players in the raid. They will be motivated to take time, do the math, or at least look up on a forum that explains why their actions and choices in game make a difference. Motivated players understand that their character could make a difference in whether there is loot or player corpses on the ground.<br />
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You are not just analyzing yourself - you are making sure that everyone around you is doing their job. You are taking the time to help the new guy so that the group does not fail. You take the time to not just loot but understand why that fight worked or what could be improved.<br />
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If you do not have this type of drive, you become the lazy player. Lazy players can just show up to fights. They have their gear, flasks, and know the fights. These types are reactive players. They may not stand in fires but they are not looking behind them to see what is happening. They are unmotivated to do more than simply loot and log.<br />
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The people that will stand out are those that can be named as good players, despite their gear and their levels. There is a switch in game that is quietly happening where you know who you can count on and who should be avoided. It is almost impossible to not have nice gear in World of Warcraft - the field has been leveled with the relative ease of the end-game instances and the quick, no-brainer boss fights. When we kicked you - it was not because of your lack of gear. I did not recognize your name. We had no idea who you were. Even if you were part of a large, well-known guild, we still did not feel that you were up to par.<br />
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You are now making a name for yourself. You are consistently showing up to raids. You have taken up a voice in the community. You are doing your job as a raider and taking the time to learn how all aspects of the gamer relate.<br />
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You are becoming your character. It makes a world of difference.Charlenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14343788964909204865noreply@blogger.com0