Progress Wars: Idle Games and the Demarcation of "Real Games"
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Transcript of Progress Wars: Idle Games and the Demarcation of "Real Games"
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Sebastian Deterding (@dingstweets) Digital Creativity Labs, University of York DiGRA/FDG 2016, August 3, 2016
progress wars
Idle Games and the Demarcation of “Real Games”
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we live in a time where some reject existing notions of “games” or “gamers” …
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… while others fiercly defend the boundaries of “Real Gamestm”
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consalvo and paul presciently observed this process with facebook games.
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as did bateman with game scholars & designers: “ontology entails value theory.”
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notably, they don’t talk about “them.”
#GG
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they talk about “us.”
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to social constructivists, this is neither new nor game-specific.
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to social constructivists, this is neither new nor game-specific.
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How – through what practical and rhetorical work – do game makers and scholars maintain or extend
the boundary of “games”?
research question
How – through what practical and rhetorical boundary work – do
game makers maintain or extend the boundary of “games”?
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case study: idle games
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rpg progress mechanics, compound interest, grinding, and “virtual skill”
resource (xp, loot, …)
source (skill, buff,
production, …)
“mindless” clicking/time
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the three stages of idle games.
1. Boundary-drawing parody 2. Boundary-blurring experiment 3. Boundary-extending genre
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<1> boundary-drawing
parody
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not games: metagames
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progress quest, eric fredricksen, 2002: against mmoprg progress/autocombat
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progress quest, eric fredricksen, 2002: against mmoprg progress/autocombat
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progress quest, eric fredricksen, 2002: against mmoprg progress/autocombat
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statbuilder (classic), 2008/9: against rpg progress mechanics
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statbuilder (classic), 2008/9: against rpg progress mechanics
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statbuilder (classic), 2008/9: against rpg progress mechanics
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achievement unlocked, john cooney, 2008: against achievement systems
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achievement unlocked, john cooney, 2008: against achievement systems
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progress wars, jacob skjerning, 2010: against facebook games
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progress wars, jacob skjerning, 2010: against facebook games
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progress wars, jacob skjerning, 2010: against facebook games
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cow clicker, ian bogost, 2010: against facebook games & gamification
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cow clicker, ian bogost, 2010: against facebook games & gamification
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cow clicker, ian bogost, 2010: against facebook games & gamification
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the obdurate audience
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cow clicker, 2010: ironic, meta-ironic, and … serious play
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cow clicker, 2010: ironic, meta-ironic, and … serious play
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progress wars, 2010: distancing derision
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<2> boundary-blurring
experiment
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candy box, aniwey, 2013
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candy box, aniwey, 2013
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candy box, 2013: baffled enjoyment
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candy box, 2013: differentiated appreciation
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candy box, 2013: differentiated appreciation
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candy box, 2013: differentiated appreciation
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candy box: unironic theorycrafting
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cookie clicker, julien thiennot, 2013
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“pointless experiments”
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non-derisive, curious exploration
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strategy guides
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optimiser tools
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speedruns
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autoclickers
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twitch streamers, complete with fundraisers
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a game, not a game parody
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<3> boundary-extending
genre
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clicker heroes, playsaurus, 2014
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clicker heroes, playsaurus, 2014
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optimisation as new/old form of gameplay
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clicker heroes, playsaurus, 2014
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a game, not a game parody
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genre category gets implemented/institutionalised
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industry appreciation talk
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industry appreciation talk
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industry design talk
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industry analysis talk
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summary
1. Idle games began as ironic boundary-drawing parodies that defended a challenge aesthetic against mmorpgs, achievement systems, facebook games, and gamification (2002-10).
2. They morphed into boundary-blurring experiments that curiously explored the appeal of incremental mechanics (2013).
3. They solidified into a boundary-extending genre with game makers talking normally about their business opportunities, audiences, and design, and used an institutionalised genre label (2014+).