October 24Playing in Public -- Schedule

1. Halloween classi. Need to find a new time!ii. How to install The Ship

2. Playing in publici. The shift from screen to contextii. Group work: virtual fieldwork

3. Portfolio worki. Using Noldusii. Non video ethnographers: work on other portfolio

assignments

Nov. 2 @ 6 pm will not work

Any other times on Nov. 2?

What about later on in the evening on Oct 31 (post trick-or-treat)?

Installing The Ship

1. Install Steam

• Steam is a program that lets you purchase and download games to your computer

• The software is free but requires an account.

• http://store.steampowered.com/about/

• Send me your Steam ID so I can send you a copy of The Ship

2. Install The Ship

• I will give you each a copy of the game, via Steam.

• You will get an email sent to the address linked to your Steam account.

• Following the link in the email message you receive from my Steam account, download and install the game.

3. Play The Ship

• The game has both a single player storyline mode and an online multiplayer. We will be playing the online multiplayer.

• Practice the game for at least 1-2 hours before our class on November 2! Try at least the singe player storyline so you understand the controls.

• More instructions to follow (how to join an online game, etc).

Playing in public

We’ve just spent 4 weeks exploring how online gaming technologies bring people together & act as places for people to meet, socialize, collaborate, bully, exploit, fantasize with/about, and play with each other.

So what’s the point in studying how people play in public?

Tools• Game platform (players’ computer or a rental?)• Communications media (Skype, Steam, IRC)

Community:• Surrounding area• Online players• Offline players• Co-situated

friends/family

Rules• Drinking or no drinking?• Length of stay• Cost of stay

Division of labor (who else is doing what):• Spectators• Players• Maintenance / service staff• Commentators• Tech support

PlayerPlay

The game

The “activity system” of public gaming Adapted from Engestrom (1990)

Group work!

1. In pairs, choose one of the following public gaming contexts:- an American 1980’s video arcade- Insomnia, a regular series of LAN parties in the UK (Insomnia 46 just

happened in August)- a modern-day Korean PC Bang

2. Make a PPT collage of the setting using the headers in the Activity System diagram(Tools, Player, Games, Rules, Community, Division of Labor)

Noldus The Observer XT

• Developed to analyze (“code”) audio-visual data of animal behavior

• PERFECT for studying gamers!

How Noldus works

• Using a coding schema, an audio-visual observation is “coded” in order to describe represent what is happening

Process

1. I build your coding schema in Noldus.

Things to decide, once you have a provisional coding schema (DUE BY THE END OF THE WEEK).

For each code:Does it record a POINT-BASED or DURATION-BASED behavior?

Example of point-based: – avatar death– avatar jumpExamples of duration-based: – avatar running – player head-nodding

For each category:Are the codes in the category MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE? (Only one code in that category can be active at a time)

Example: If you have a category for “Player gaze”, the code for “looking at screen” and the code for “looking at other player” cannot be active at the same time.

If the category IS Mutually Exclusive, is it also EXHAUSTIVE? (The category always has to have an active code in it)

Example: Using “Player gaze” again, a player always has to be looking at SOMETHING. So you have to decide what “default” code will be for this category.

2. You book time to come in and code

• The Noldus software requires a USB key to activate.

• You can install the software on your own machine (or use mine), but the USB keys cannot leave the university.

• Look to spend about 1.5 to 3 hours coding. Don’t try to do everything at once. (E.g. do 1 coding session where you only code player actions, and do a 2nd coding session where you only code on-screen actions)