Elements of a computer game that contribute to that experience are: game design, interface, game play and story (Howland quoted in Newman, 2004, p. 10-11).
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A computer game is fundamentally determined by its game design. Game design refers to “the process of designing the content, background and rules of a game�? (Wikipedia, 2005). This includes two major elements: audio and graphics.
Graphics are “any images that are displayed and any effects performed on them. This includes 3D objects, 2D tiles, 2D full-screen shots, Full Motion Video (FMV), statistics, informational overlays and anything else the player will see�? (Howland quoted in Newman, 2004, p. 11).
Audio, or sound, refers to “any music or sound effects that are played during the game. This includes starting music, CD music, MIDI, MOD tracks, Foley effects, environmental sound�? (Howland quoted in Newman, 2004, p. 11).
When computer games where first released, the graphics, for instance, were relatively simple and abstract. “The actions occurring within the games were iconic and a far cry from the real experiences they attempted to depict�? (Wolf, 2003, p. 64). As the games were not graphically realistic, they were considered harmless. As the graphic and the sound became better, computer games gain in realism. So did the nature of the player’s experience. “Graphics that had been mainly conceptual … became more perceptual and looked more like the things that they were meant to represent�? (Wolf, 2003, p. 64).
Game design varies according to the genre of the game. Genres include problem solving and puzzles, real life situations in simulations, strategy, action and adventure, sports, beat-‘em-ups and first-person shooter (Berens and Howard quoted by Newman, 2004, p. 12). According to the genre, the theme or content of the game varies. These two concepts establish whether or not the game will contain particular content such as violence or sexually related subject matter.
Also, gender representation is part of game design. Stereotypical characters such as the male warrior or “the buxom woman in distress�? (NewMediaWiki, 2004) contribute to a player’s game experience. For a more detailed discussion of gender representation in computer games, see ‘Computer Games – Social Implications.’
Overall, the player’s experience is partly based on the quality of the game design. Particularly “[t]he audio-visual composition of the gameworld has an enormous impact on players�? (Newman, 2004, p. 15).
“The Interface is anything that the player has to use or have direct contact with in order to play the game…it goes beyond simply the mouse/keyboard/joystick [and] includes graphics the player must click on, menu systems that the player must navigate through and game control systems such as how to steer or control pieces in the game.�?
(Howland quoted in Newman, 2004, p. 11)
Game play or player activity, as defined by the English version of the Wikipedia, “includes all player experiences during the interaction with game systems, especially formal games�? (2005). It is primarily concerned with the interactivity of the player with the game and is made up of game mechanics which are a set of rules determining a game's outcome. Marshall (2002, pp. 271-272) notes that interactivity can be broken down into two categories:
• The relationship between the player and the technology
• The relationship with other players
The relationship between the player and technology can be thought of in different ways. A player can either be pressing keys on a controller in particular combinations using their physical surroundings in mixed environment gaming; or he can follow on-screen storylines and instructions.
“The game’s story includes any background before the game starts, all information the player gains during the story or when they win and any information they learn about characters in the game�?
(Howland quoted in Newman, 2004, p. 11).
Computer Games - Ethics
Computer Games - Ethics: Gameplay
Computer Games - Ethics: Audio
Computer Games - Ethics: Graphics
Contributors to this entry
Terence Otto
Ingrid Chan
Matthew Hsu
Sarah Harper
Chang I-Jung
Major Revision by: Caroline Jende
