1. Social Play
Robin Burke
GAM 224

2. Outline
Admin
Rules paper
Design project
Social Play

3. Rules paper
Grades
AA-----
BBB+++-
CC++--
DDD+
RWRW

4. Rewrites Must May Rewrite due date Grading RW grade or C- or below
anybody
but grade is not guaranteed to go up
Rewrite due date
2/27
Must submit original graded assignment
and new hard copy
As well as to turnitin.com
Grading
(2 * rewrite_grade + original_grade) / 3
example: Rewrite = A, Original = C-
(2* ) / 3 = 3.22 = B / B+

5. Problems Citation 2nd citation Unsupported assertions Correct
Grand Theft Auto III Rockstar Games, 2001, Playstation 2.
Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman, Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2004), 390.
Incorrect
anything else
2nd citation
none necessary for the game
Salen and Zimmerman, 232.
Unsupported assertions
"World of Warcraft is the most popular MMORPG ever."
Might be true
needs to be supported with a citation – according to whom?

6. Thesis More specific is better In many cases Blah Better
"Halo 2 shows a lot of emergence."
Better
"The weapons systems in Halo 2 are tightly coupled with many aspects of the game generating emergent gameplay at both the strategic and tactical levels."
In many cases
the conclusion of the paper contained a good thesis statement
grab this and put it in front

7. Focus Do not "brain dump" Example Warning sign
the description of the game's premise
should be just enough to get the reader started
should focus on those areas that matter for your argument
Example
Unfocused
"Madden has rules about .... [2 pages of description]"
Focused
"The main conflicts in Madden are set up by the standard rules of NFL football and the operational rules for controlling the game.... [2 or 3 paragraphs about these rules]"
Warning sign
Your paragraphs are too long
10 lines maximum
otherwise you probably don't know what your point is

8. Focus cont'd A 5-page paper is very short
You cannot argue persuasively for more than one or two points
Many papers tried to do too much
every conflict in a game
every game theoretic decision
Pick the most significant points that support your case
argue them in depth with concrete examples from the game
Don't slavishly follow my outlines
if it doesn't apply, don't mention it

9. Proofreading The spellchecker is no substitute for human judgment
loose (happens to shoelaces)
lose (happens in a game)
their (belonging to them)
there (location reference)
intact (together)
in tacked (?)

10. #1 Tip Read your paper out loud You will learn
if your overall argument holds together
if your syntax is garbled
if you are rambling on and on
if your transitions are abrupt

11. Schemas Emergence Game theory Conflict
≠ finding two object coupled together
the start button is coupled to the beginning of the game
you are looking for a system in which one object / behavior / variable is highly coupled to many other things
Game theory
≠ finding decisions that balance risk / reward
what is the larger system of such decisions?
how does the player learn about the risks and rewards?
Conflict
≠ identifying one or two types of conflict that are present
what is the system of conflict?
how do different types of conflict interact?

12. Halo

13. Social Play What is going on here? The play is not just on the screen
it is in the room
between the players
between the audience and the players

14. Social Play This is the foundation of most pre-computer games
the only way to have an opponent
Important factor in play experience
how else to explain "Thunderstorm"?

15. Social organization Internally-derived Externally-derived
the game assign social roles to players
or game roles with social consequences
Externally-derived
the players bring their own relationships to the game

16. Play community We talk about the community that forms around a game
an instance of a game
(a game in play)
Can be large
Players + spectators + referees + hot dog vendors
bounded game community
Different from the community that forms around a game
in order to promote it and share experiences
unbounded game community

17. Roles Roles are sets of characteristic behaviors Example
enabled or required by the game rules
taking a role often requires other players to assume opposing roles
Example
"it" vs the rest in a game of tag
offensive vs defensive team in football

18. Roles cont'd Games let players assume many social roles Sometimes
very different from their normal ones
thug
cyborg warrior
king
But with distance
with low risk
"it's only a game"
Some people (usually non-gamers) find social role experimentation disturbing
but this is not different from informal play

19. Roles in MMORPGs Achievers Explorers Socializers Killers / Griefers
want to achieve the highest levels and best gear
will explore in order to do so
will socialize to learn more
Explorers
want to see more of the game
know the most about the map
know all of the spells and abilities
Socializers
want to make friends and engage in group activities
will accumulate levels as necessary to keep up with group
Killers / Griefers
want to exercise power over others
will accumulate levels / gear in order to be able to cause more harm

20. Designing for roles Game design can enhance or inhibit roles
Turn off / allow player vs player combat
= discourage / encourage the "killer" role
Enhance player to player communication
= encourage "socializer" role
Release constant geographic expansions
= keep "explorer" types busy
Make some quests unachievable by single individual
= require socializing by "achievers"
Some games do all of these things
to try to satisfy all of the audiences

21. Emergent social phenomena
Rules have social consequences
Not always predictable how they will be realized
May result in unexpected gameplay scenarios
Some games try to eliminate this
Bridge
partners are screened from each other to prevent signals
other than standard bidding conventions

22. Assassin (Fall 2005) individual vs individual Consequences Explanation
one target per person
randomly assigned
restrictions on kill locations
Consequences
after an initial burst of kills
nothing
no movement for weeks
numerous rule changes to speed things up
ultimately dropped players with no kills
left active players
Explanation
"lying low" was very successful
social networks too sparse

23. Assassin (Winter 2006) team vs team Consequences Explanation
assimilation rule
zombie rule
no location restrictions
Consequences
faster paced game
(may be over by next week)
students skipping class
Explanation
social networks larger
possibilities for teamwork

24. Emergence Couplings occur not just with in-game objects and behaviors
But also with external individuals and relationships
Can be hard to predict

25. Rules as social contract
Remember that play exists as a safe space for conflict
Rules
mutually-agreed upon
binding
repeatable
Play requires agreement
agreement generates a social relationship
social relationships require "negotiation" to maintain

26. Rule negotiation
The game becomes a place where social relationships are expressed
"House rules"
Players agree to follow their own rules
may allow violations of standard rules
may enforce normally implicit rules
Social tensions in the play community
may be expressed as conflict over rules
Book's example
Foursquare
"Rooie Rules"

27. Rule negotiation cont'd
Not available (yet) in single-player games
But always possible in multi-player games
limiting factor: tools for communication
Example
WoW
communication with opposite faction very, very limited
gameplay reason
sense of distance and hostility to opposing side

28. Rule breaking Unsportsmanlike Cheater Spoil-sport
follows the rules but doesn't acknowledge the play community
violates the spirit of the game
Cheater
violates the rules in order to win
wants unfair advantage but is still playing
Spoil-sport
violates the magic circle
denies the game its space

29. Forbidden play Play with social relationships
can turn into play that explores taboo areas of behavior
The game creates distance
in which (otherwise) unacceptable acts
are contained and removed
Example
"I killed my professor today"

30. "Spin the Bottle" Rules What does the kiss mean?
1 player in the middle, the rest in a circle
center player spins a bottle
kisses the player pointed to
What does the kiss mean?
execution of an operational rule
play relationship
satisfaction of a desire for intimacy
romantic relationship
The game generates deliberate ambiguity

31. "Spin the Bottle" cont'd Play with social roles
allows "trying on" social possibilities
with lower risk
without all of the normal consequences

32. Cybering using the socialization mechanics of an on-line game
to create forbidden romantic / sexual play

33. Unbounded community How wide does the social network of a game spread?
can be very large
5 million World of Warcraft subscribers (1/6)
Not all on-line together
or in the same realm
But there are other means of connection
blogs
fan sites
guilds

34. Guilds social organizations mutual support in-game group activities
specifically for ORPG players
mutual support
in-game group activities
might have tens or hundreds of members

35. Design questions
What kinds of social relationships do you want the game to support / discourage?
What tools do players need to enable these relations?
Can social networks help market the game and draw in new players?

36. Monday
Presentations
submit the powerpoint slides by Sunday night