So..

Hi all,

Unfortunately I was unable to make the tutorials this week so I'm feeling a bit behind; so apologies if my post makes absolutely no sense, and it might sound a bit rushed as I start work in an hour! :D

As many others have mentioned, one of the key things I took away from the lecture was Kevins comments about 'what makes a gamer?'
I am a gamer. I am also female. I play games like Sims 3, AOE, Age of Mythology, DemiGod etc (I even have a FarmVille), and compared to some other 'gamers', the games, I enjoy are probably considered pretty pussy-ass female games, and some might call me a ‘casual’ gamer. But, I don't really care. As far as I'm concerned, being a 'gamer' is something only you identify with individually.

Yet I still do notice differences between my gameplay, and other gamers...for example, my partner is also a gamer. He plays maybe, 8 hours a week, more if he could. When he's playing, he's totally immersed, and unable to communicate with. Takes it very seriously. Yet I can play whilst holding a conversation, playing a board game, cooking dinner, can pause and stop without freaking out (perhaps this is more a difference between males and females :P)...does this mean there are different types of gamers? Amateur > Casual > Hardcore > Addicted? I found this point very interesting, and by chance has raised a lot of conversations(/arguments) in the past few days!

I also liked ConalT's post, where he mentioned "the agency you have as a player of the game allows you to create your own narrative within it", depending on your style of play...very true. I'm a methodical planner; I can't stand watching people who rush in and complete games by killing everyone in sight...however as a result I also tend to CHOOSE games which are more strategical in their approach in the first place.


I am a Psychology and Education double major, and just happened to take Film in my first year, leading me to be able to do this paper (I need 15 more pts to finish my degree :/), so many things in the first lecture interested me from an Educational Psych point of view.

The idea that video games can have an international effect on culture was striking; I had never thought of the gaming industry to be as influential as film for some reason before now.

From a Psychology perspective, I find the idea of Gaming Addiction hugely interesting, and I am looking forward to learning more about this in coming lectures.
From an Educational perspective, the term ‘Digital Natives’ (Marc Prensky) IS something I’ve studied before....I might go have a look at some of my old notes, but I find it interesting how the technological context these children are growing up in is now shaping their social context; in the way they interact, and in the way they learn.

The place of gaming within our society is one I often look at with my child development research, and I’m sure you can imagine why. Gaming is unfortunately often negatively associated with violence in children. However, most studies also show that certain children who DO play videogames are predisposed to a certain level of violence based on temperament, traits, or environmental factors. It is also my own personal opinion that parenting and management of gaming plays a HUGE role.

Umm so that was a bit all over the place! Apologies once again :) Perhaps I will review tomorrow