CMNS 253 Syllabus - SFU Wiki

2. As a class, compile a list of how your group both consumes and produces ‘participatory’media (e.g., YouTube, Flickr, Facebook) using a show of hands or simple poll. Keep in mindthe following statistics—that the general population typically includes 90 per cent who onlyconsume, 9 per cent who contribute comments or stars or votes, and only one per cent whocontribute content.4 Compare your classes participation with participation more broadly.Chapter 6: Games: Technology, Culture, IndustryQUESTIONS TO CONSIDER1. In what ways are technology, industry, and the culture of games linked?2. What is the significance of marketing and branding practices, immersive play, andinteractive experiences in gaming?3. In what ways do the games industry and game culture have implications for issues such asidentity, the experience of childhood, and intellectual property?4. How do the values encoded into game cultures reflect offline cultural values? Conversely,how do games offer a chance to emphasize alternative or subjugated values in the name offantasy and play?CHAPTER OUTLINEThis chapter offers a rounded and broad examination of games, game play, and the gameindustry as a prime example of new media in the twenty-first century. We examine games as asignificant part of popular culture, extending beyond their notable economic impact. We alsolook at how the immersive nature and rapid pace of change places online and computer games atthe centre of debates relating to gender, cultural impact, childhood experiences, and intellectualproperty. We then consider how the performance of games has ramped up steadily over the pastseveral decades as game platforms compete for higher resolution, speed, and richer, moredemanding game play. We take a look at the economics of the game industry including itsdependence on subcontractors and its rather diffuse economic model—the need for smash ‘hits’to finance the many ‘misses’—followed by a consideration of the value chain and the tensionbetween the creative side of the business and the investment side, as well as the complexrelationship between production and distribution. The last part of the chapter looks at some ofthe most significant gaming developments in the first decade of the twenty-first century, such asthe role of producer-consumers ‘modding’ games, and the issues arising from that, including thequestion of who owns the subsequent content. The chapter concludes with a discussion of thepolitical economy of the game industry, as well as a section on the game industry in Canada.DISCUSSION QUESTIONS1. What are the different roles (and their corresponding communities of professionals) in thegames industry and what are some ways of describing the dynamics among them?