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Progress Wars: Idle Games and the Demarcation of "Real Games"
The document discusses the evolution of idle games and their role in redefining the boundaries of what is considered a 'real game.' It outlines three stages of idle games: boundary-drawing parodies, boundary-blurring experiments, and boundary-extending genres, highlighting how these games have transitioned from ironic critiques to accepted forms of gameplay. The analysis includes examples from notable games and emphasizes the impact of social constructs on the gaming community's perceptions.
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Progress Wars: Idle Games and the Demarcation of "Real Games"
- 1. Sebastian Deterding (@dingstweets) DigitalCreativity Labs, University of York DiGRA/FDG 2016, August 3, 2016 progress wars Idle Games and the Demarcation of “Real Games”
- 2. we live ina time where some reject existing notions of “games” or “gamers” …
- 3. … while othersfiercly defend the boundaries of “Real Gamestm”
- 4. consalvo and paulpresciently observed this process with facebook games.
- 5. as did batemanwith game scholars & designers: “ontology entails value theory.”
- 6. notably, they don’ttalk about “them.” #GG
- 7. they talk about“us.”
- 8. to social constructivists,this is neither new nor game-specific.
- 9. to social constructivists,this is neither new nor game-specific.
- 10. How – throughwhat 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”?
- 11. case study: idlegames
- 12. rpg progress mechanics,compound interest, grinding, and “virtual skill” resource (xp, loot, …) source (skill, buff, production, …) “mindless” clicking/time
- 13. the three stagesof idle games. 1. Boundary-drawing parody 2. Boundary-blurring experiment 3. Boundary-extending genre
- 14.
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- 16. progress quest, ericfredricksen, 2002: against mmoprg progress/autocombat
- 17. progress quest, ericfredricksen, 2002: against mmoprg progress/autocombat
- 18. progress quest, ericfredricksen, 2002: against mmoprg progress/autocombat
- 19. statbuilder (classic), 2008/9:against rpg progress mechanics
- 20. statbuilder (classic), 2008/9:against rpg progress mechanics
- 21. statbuilder (classic), 2008/9:against rpg progress mechanics
- 22. achievement unlocked, johncooney, 2008: against achievement systems
- 23. achievement unlocked, johncooney, 2008: against achievement systems
- 24. progress wars, jacobskjerning, 2010: against facebook games
- 25. progress wars, jacobskjerning, 2010: against facebook games
- 26. progress wars, jacobskjerning, 2010: against facebook games
- 27. cow clicker, ianbogost, 2010: against facebook games & gamification
- 28. cow clicker, ianbogost, 2010: against facebook games & gamification
- 29. cow clicker, ianbogost, 2010: against facebook games & gamification
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- 31. cow clicker, 2010:ironic, meta-ironic, and … serious play
- 32. cow clicker, 2010:ironic, meta-ironic, and … serious play
- 33. progress wars, 2010:distancing derision
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- 37. candy box, 2013:baffled enjoyment
- 38. candy box, 2013:differentiated appreciation
- 39. candy box, 2013:differentiated appreciation
- 40. candy box, 2013:differentiated appreciation
- 41. candy box: unironictheorycrafting
- 42. cookie clicker, julienthiennot, 2013
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- 49. twitch streamers, completewith fundraisers
- 50. a game, nota game parody
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- 54. optimisation as new/oldform of gameplay
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- 56. a game, nota game parody
- 57. genre category getsimplemented/institutionalised
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- 62. summary 1. Idle gamesbegan 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+).
- 63.