"This book advances alternative approaches to understanding media, culture and technology in two vibrant regions of the Global South. Bringing together scholars from Africa and the Caribbean, it traverses the domains of communication theory, digital technology strategy, media practice reforms, and c
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orporate and cultural renewal. The first section tackles research and technology with new conceptual thinking from the South. The book then looks at emerging approaches to community digital networks, online diaspora entertainment, and video gaming strategies. The volume then explores reforms in policy and professional practice, including in broadcast television, online newspapers, media philanthropy, and business news reporting. Its final section examines the role of village-based folk media, the power of popular music in political opposition, and new approaches to overcoming neo-colonial propaganda and external corporate hegemony." (Publisher description)
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"The ubiquitous presence of digital games has resulted in an expansion of the applications of these games from mere entertainment purposes to a great variety of serious purposes. In this edited volume, we narrow the scope of attention by focusing on what game theorist Ian Bogost has called 'persuasi
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ve games', that is, gaming practices that combine the dissemination of information with attempts to engage players in particular attitudes and behaviors. This volume offers a multifaceted reflection on persuasive gaming, that is, on the process of these particular games being played by players. The purpose is to better understand when and how digital games can be used for persuasion by further exploring persuasive games and some other kinds of persuasive playful interaction as well. The book critically integrates what has been accomplished in separate research traditions to offer a multidisciplinary approach to understanding persuasive gaming that is closely linked to developments in the industry by including the exploration of relevant case studies." (Publisher description)
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"Com a emergência dos estudos acadêmicos sobre a interface entre religião e jogos digitais, o presente trabalho procura explorar a relação entre a Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia (IASD) e os jogos analógicos e digitais, de forma a compreender o pensamento e a visão adventista acerca dos game
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s. A partir de elementos de análise de conteúdo, investiga-se as menções aos games no Manual da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia, documento que reúne normas e regras a serem seguidas por suas igrejas e seus afiliados, e analisa também as atas oficiais de comissões da sede mundial da denominação, de forma a identificar a evolução das deliberações e normativas adventistas oficiais sobre jogos. Por fim, o presente estudo lista as menções a jogos digitais e videogames na revista Adventist Review, periódico oficial da IASD em língua inglesa, a fim de relacionar o discurso adventista sobre jogos nos escritos de Ellen White, cofundadora e profetisa da denominação, e nos documentos eclesiásticos com o discurso recente sobre o universo dos videogames e jogos digitais. Entre os resultados obtidos destaca-se a manutenção dos pressupostos e visão de Ellen White sobre os jogos no discurso adventista contemporâneo, que se concentra em uma visão moral-utilitarista do uso do lazer e do tempo livre e na exposição de diretrizes majoritariamente restritivas e proibitivas, geralmente sob o viés de associação dos jogos às práticas mundanas que oferecem perigo à saúde física, mental e, especialmente, espiritual." (Abstract)
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"A tese parte da constatação de que existem componentes do sagrado que podem determinar ou não as narrativas dos jogos eletrônicos, para investigar os elementos religiosos presentes nos operadores audiovisuais dos games, a partir dos referenciais teóricos da transdiciplinaridade-complexidade e
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dos arquétipos da psicologia analítica. A metodologia de pesquisa consiste na análise formal dos games, uma abordagem qualitativa na perspectiva ingame intitulada “gametnografia”, na qual o pesquisador/jogador realiza a pesquisa e análise dos componentes religiosos no próprio ato de jogar com o referencial de amostragem dos jogos digitais. Tais componentes são recorrentes, especialmente nos jogos de RPG, e despertam energias arquetípicas do sagrado no jogador. Esta tese doutoral, portanto, procura revisar o conceito de “sagrado” nos videogames, propor uma criteriologia para o estudo do fenômeno religioso nos jogos digitais e apontar caminhos para o Ensino Religioso na cultura digital." (Resumo)
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"With rapidly changing digital platforms and the impact of globalization on cultural diplomacy that has provoked the increasing mediatization of the field, non-state actors are now able to expand networks and gain legitimacy by addressing new publics using digital spaces. While the research about th
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e use of social media as a vehicle for cultural diplomacy continues to increase, little work has been done reflecting on the potential of another digital medium: video games. This study intends to fill that gap by assessing video games’ potential to serve as tools for cultural engagement in cultural diplomacy programming. Using the video game Never Alone as a case study, this dissertation explores the opportunity to provide a digital third space where imagined contact can occur to foster cultural understanding. Never Alone is a puzzle platformer video game developed in collaboration with the Iñupiaq Alaska Natives to showcase their culture. The game’s inclusive development process also works to examine virtual third spaces as a site for decolonial action at the microlevel regarding the Iñupiaq and the video game industry and at the macrolevel regarding Inuit diplomacies. This research attempts to critically explore the possibility for non-state cultural diplomacy initiatives using video games as tools to shape perceptions about the world." (Abstract)
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"In this new edition of the pioneering text, students learn to assess the major theories used to analyze games, such as ludology and narratology, and gain familiarity with the commercial and organizational aspects of the game industry. Drawing from historical and contemporary examples, the student-f
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riendly text also explores the aesthetics of games, evaluates the cultural position of video games, and considers the potential effects of both violent and "serious" games." (Publisher description)
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"Where do we end up when we enter the time machine that is the digital game? One axiomatic truth of historical research is that the past is the time-space that eludes human intervention. Every account made of the past is therefore only an approximation. But how is it that strolling through ancient A
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lexandria can feel so real in the virtual world? Claims of authenticity are prominent in discussions surrounding the digital games of our time. What is historical authenticity and does it even matter? When does authenticity or the lack thereof become political? By answering these questions, the book illuminates the ubiquitous category of authenticity from the perspective of historical game studies." (Publisher description)
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"Jeder, der sich in irgendeiner Form mit digitalen Medien beschäftigt, lebt in einer paradoxen Welt: Denn zu keinem Feld existieren mehr Daten, Informationen und Statistiken. Aber zugleich handelt es sich stets um isolierte, winzige Partikel und Fragmente, die sich nicht integrieren lassen. Das Pro
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blem ist: Wir verstehen die Zusammenhänge nicht. Wir sehen den Wald vor lauter Bäumen nicht mehr. Es existiert bis heute keine zusammenhängende, ganzheitliche Darstellung digitaler Medien auf Grundlage ein und derselben Datenbasis – geschweige denn über die Nutzungszusammenhänge der verschiedenen Endgerätekategorien (Desk- bzw Laptop, Smartphone, Tablet). Der Atlas der digitalen Welt liefert erstmals einen allgemeinen Referenzrahmen, der alle unterschiedlichen digitalen Angebote (z. B. Facebook, WhatsApp, Google etc.), Aktivitäten (z. B. Konsum von Content, Shopping, Search, Social Media, etc.), die verschiedenen Endgerätekategorien (Desktop, Smartphone, Tablet) und die unterschiedlichen Nutzerprofile in einer 360° Darstellung abbildet. Diese Darstellung wurde ermöglicht durch die Auswertung des GfK CrossMedia Link Panels, welches die reale Mediennutzung von 16.000 Personen in Deutschland erfasst (es handelt sich hier also nicht um Ergebnisse von Befragungen, sondern um echtes Nutzungsverhalten). Diese Daten werden der Öffentlichkeit hier erstmals zugänglich gemacht. Die Zusammenhänge werden übersichtlich aufbereitet und durch anschauliche Infografiken illustriert, so dass die Inhalte für jedermann verständlich und zugänglich sind." (https://atlasderdigitalenwelt.de)
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"There are still opposing and restraining forces to globalization processes taking place in media, and the global mediascape comprises international, regional and local markets, and global and local players, which in recent years have evolved at an uneven pace. By analyzing similarities and differen
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ces in a landscape where driving forces of globalization meet locally situated audiences and institutions, this volume unveils a complex, contested space comprising global and local players, whose success is determined by both their national and international dimensions. It guides its readers to the geographical and intellectual exploration of the international media landscape, analyzing the global and local media players and their modus operandi." (Publisher description)
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"Der vorliegende Band begründet ein kompetenz- und lerngruppenorientiertes Modell, mit dem ethische Lernprozesse anhand fiktiver Jugendfiguren aus narrativen TV- und Videospielserien sowie Let’s Plays konzipiert und initiiert werden können. Dabei werden die Begebenheiten des Lernorts, die Hetero
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genität der Lerngruppe und die Eigenschaften des gewählten Medien-Produkts berücksichtigt. Das Modell liefert Hilfestellung bei der Serienrecherche und markiert die zentralen didaktische Entscheidungen, sodass sich auch serienunerfahrene Lehrpersonen an die Serienthematik herantrauen und dabei ihren eigenen didaktischen Stil beibehalten und weiterentwickeln können." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
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"Esta guía está dirigida a todas las personas interesadas en profundizar y conocer un poco más la exposición 'Videojuegos. Los dos lados de la pantalla'. Con este documento hemos planteado diversas cuestiones, seleccionado algunas piezas y proponemos actividades para poder realizar antes o despu
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és de tu visita, por lo que se convierte en una herramienta didáctica tanto para familias, jóvenes, docentes o público general." (Página 2)
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"The innovative research in Video Games and the Global South focuses on a range of topics including art games and serious games from the global south, postcolonialism and cultural representation, player communities, software modification (modding), intercultural communication online, racism and sexi
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sm in game culture, the global growth of eSports, social media use in relation to gaming and the use of games to connect users and communities across the globe. Some fifteen years ago, Uruguayan theorist and game developer Gonzalo Frasca spoke of the possibility of creating “video games of the oppressed,” using the medium as a tool for education, socio-political awareness and consciousness-raising. In short, Frasca advocated for the appropriation of the means of game production by actors in the global south, and the repurposing of these technologies in ways that would benefit the region’s inhabitants. A decade and a half later, we can see that many gamers and game developers from across the global south have taken up this challenge, contributing to game cultures and creating games that respond to the obstacles and affordances of their particular geographical, socioeconomic, political and cultural contexts. Video Games and the Global South brings together perspectives from a range of disciplines, critical methodologies and theoretical approaches. Together, the 20 contributing essays advance the critical methodology for analyzing the relationship between games and culture, as well as historically contextualized insight into the cultural impact of video games and the development of games and game cultures across Africa, the Middle East, Central and South America, the Indian subcontinent, Oceania and Asia." (Publisher description)
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"In chapters examining a broad range of issues - including sexuality, politics, education, race, gender relations, the environment and social protest movements - Digitized Lives argues that making sense of digitized culture means looking past the glossy surface of techno gear to ask deeper questions
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about how we can utilize technology to create a more socially, politically and economically just world. This second edition includes important updates on mobile and social media, examining how new platforms and devices have altered how we interact with digital technologies in an allegedly 'post-truth' era." (Publisher description)
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"Digital Middle East sheds a critical light on continuing changes that are closely intertwined with the adoption of information and communication technologies in the MENA region. Drawing on case studies from throughout the Middle East, the contributors explore how these digital transformations are p
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laying out in the social, cultural, political, and economic spheres, exposing the various disjunctions and discordances that have marked the advent of the digital Middle East." (Publisher description)
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"In this review essay, I will chart the history of video game technology, the emergence of game studies as a field, provide an overview of the key aspects of gender and video game research, and highlight key debates in gender and video games research." (Page 5)
"How can videogames portray love and loss? Games and Bereavement answers this question by looking at five videogames and carrying out a participatory design study with grievers. Sabine Harrer highlights possible connections between grief and videogames, arguing that game design may help make difficu
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lt personal feelings tangible. After a brief literary review of grief concepts and videogame theory, the book deep-dives into examples of tragic inter-character relationships from videogame history. Building on these examples, the book presents a case study on pregnancy loss as a potential grief experience that can be validated through game design dialogue." (Publisher description)
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