tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4486641877026778105.post6776133793370648279..comments2024-03-29T09:14:53.583+00:00Comments on All That Is Solid ...: Killzone: Shadow Fall for the Playstation 4Philhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06298147857234479278noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4486641877026778105.post-60611496221962555422013-12-12T16:35:54.359+00:002013-12-12T16:35:54.359+00:00"the heightened sense of responsibility for w..."the heightened sense of responsibility for what plays out on the screen." so it's essentially training for middle management. or i guess if you're in your 40s and still playing computer games, you're just polishing up a skill set you've already acquired.<br /><br />but i have two more questions.<br /><br />1. to what extent is this kind of immersive role-playing activity itself a kind of performance? and if it is, what are the criteria by which its judged? is it more athletic or is there an emerging esthetic here? and is this too undergoing a kind of professionalization?<br /><br />2. so what happened 30 years ago? the main thing i can think of is the destruction of a fordist strategy of accumulation with the subsequent breakup of mass culture and its replacement by neo-liberalism and the rise of niche markets and a fundamental change in the work environment. i don't think one can ascribe the growing obsession with gaming merely to the sudden accessibility of a new technology, i.e. the home computer. by the way, 40 years ago, let's say in the late 60s or early 70s, i don't think a lot of men would have been caught dead playing games, unless it was gambling. so what does that say?<br /><br />p.s. anon one and anon two are the same person: lesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4486641877026778105.post-66919608074452663332013-12-12T09:33:48.060+00:002013-12-12T09:33:48.060+00:00First anon - I think video games for the last 30 y...First anon - I think video games for the last 30 years have been creating a certain set of dispositions that are particularly suited for 'hegemonic' forms of work - object-oriented activity; patient, sedentary work in front of displays; the heightened sense of responsibility for what plays out on the screen (providing the controls are tight enough!), and so on. Tbh this needs a lot more working through - these are just some sketchy thoughts.Philhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06298147857234479278noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4486641877026778105.post-68992198995234146372013-12-12T09:29:41.957+00:002013-12-12T09:29:41.957+00:00I quite fancy a PS4 for the sake of having one. Bu...I quite fancy a PS4 for the sake of having one. But modern 3D games make me feel woozy, so I might stick with my old Nintendos and Segas after all.Philhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06298147857234479278noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4486641877026778105.post-35713393924735458202013-12-11T22:00:00.057+00:002013-12-11T22:00:00.057+00:00according to your description of the situation in ...according to your description of the situation in this particular game, you can't help organize a rebellion among the downtrodden helghastians against their fascist overlords. too bad, because that would actually give a more political solution to the whole thing. but that seems to be the problem with video games in general--you can't change the rules of the game and still continue to play. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4486641877026778105.post-79032743494908334512013-12-11T15:48:42.660+00:002013-12-11T15:48:42.660+00:00actually, it might be a much more interesting expe...actually, it might be a much more interesting experience if, right at the beginning of the game, a character in the game asked those "big" questions about why are you here and what do you think you're going to accomplish, and then, at the end of the game, another character could ask you if it was all worth it, and whether the experience has changed you and just who do you think you are anyway? but then, how could you go about structuring the game so that it kept changing according to whatever (provisional) answer you came up with.<br /><br />i don't disagree with you that video games on some level entail a kind of training and some "psycho-physical" or "subject-creating" discipline, but, at this point in time, is that necessarily connected to say, the world of work? if it is, then what does that say about our education system? or are we just being "trained" to keep on playing the game?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4486641877026778105.post-8846667986764386592013-12-11T07:47:05.912+00:002013-12-11T07:47:05.912+00:00I'm looking forward to my post-crimbo ps4 but ...I'm looking forward to my post-crimbo ps4 but not convinced as yet by the games... thinking of BF4 for multiplayer but i suspect we will have to wait a year or so before we see what the PS4 can really do... I'm not convinced by FPS without multiplayer because there is always something a bit too AI about the AI... However seen good reviews for the new Fifa, which I've never played before...Speedynoreply@blogger.com