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Category Archives: Games

Tale of Tales have done it again: The Observational Immersionist Style

By Mike Treanor | Published: October 9, 2009

Tale of Tales just released a new game or rather “experimental play experience” (a phrase surely concocted to appease those who don’t accept their repurposing of the word game).  Anyhow, it’s called Fatale and it is awesome. Starting with The Endless Forest, Tale of Tale’s have consistently created environments that exist for the purpose of […]

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Using StarCraft as a Game AI Testbed

By Ben Weber | Published: October 4, 2009

I’ve been interested in developing AI for StarCraft for several years now. I recently came across the Broodwar API project, which provides hooks into StarCraft. It enables developers to query game state as well as issue orders to units. The Broodwar API makes it possible to write custom AI bots for StarCraft.

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The Magic of Magic

By Teale Fristoe | Published: September 18, 2009

I started playing Magic: The Gathering when I was in 5th grade.  Like all things from that age, it was a fad, and quickly faded behind the next hot toy.  However, I have been amazed with the frequent resurgence of the game in my life.  Multiple times, I have witnessed people with little in common […]

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“The Most Important Video Game Yet Made” – The Beatles: Rock Band, Debated

By Sherol Chen | Published: September 8, 2009

First, if you haven’t heard about it, come tomorrow (9-9-09), The Beatles: Rock Band is released.  In preparation for its receptions, the game has instigated a lively inter-generational debate.  The lines are not so clearly drawn as to which communities or generations rest on which side, which makes it quite a unique situation. Many people, […]

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It’s The Bat!

By Chris Lewis | Published: September 5, 2009

We can talk about the production values, the voice actors, the longevity, the setting, maybe we could talk about some procedural logic or game studies du jour operational logic, but all there really is to say is that Batman: Arkham Asylum is a fantastic game. The reason why: you get to be Batman. Crazy, no?

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Nonlinear Storytelling in Games: Deconstructing the Varieties of Nonlinear Experiences

By Sherol Chen | Published: August 27, 2009

What is “the mark of the narrative”? In chapter 1 of her book, Marie-Laure Ryan, discusses the transmedial nature of narrative and gives a broad definition provided by H. Porter Abbott:  Narrative is the combination of story and discourse.  I believe the distinction of story and discourse is quite novel and under-appreciated in the area […]

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