AVATAR & Possible worlds

AVATAR has multitude meanings & usage. The term when used in computing means the graphic representation of a user, when used in television (mainly soaps & serials) it takes the shape of fictional race of creatures (in soap Carnivale), group of people in television (in serials Charmed) while the term is constantly used in Games & in concept of religion.

In Hindu mythology, AVATAR is the manifestation or appearance of Hindu deity. Vishnu, the protector of Earth has been considered as an AVATAR figure. A figure having enormous power under his belt & can CONTROL the destiny of human mankind.

In games, AVATAR has its own way of representation. Most video games have their GAMEPLAY centered on a specific being. It might be human being or it can be machines, but it is ‘’characterised by a clear marking of its individuality and of its physical presence in space.’’ The avatar functions as the protagonist of the game play and also becomes the mediator of the fiction to the player.

Avatar as an individual being is satisfactory as linguistic categorisation but it is too abstract 2 be applied to video games. AVATAR is a game unit, that is under the player’s control. By Control, avatar has to be causally aligned to the player and act under the player’s operation within the game system. Control of the AVATAR is shaped in accordance with the game rules.

AVATAR always gets the biased favour of the game player. In fictional world, the possible worlds are the mentally constructed outcomes of different actions. Say, in marriage, there is a preconceived notion that it will end in happiness. But, it can also end in pathetic divorce. Thereby, fictional world gives the reader a scope to judge a character as either sympathetic or antipathetic.

For example, Marie Laure Ryan noticed that in Cinderella, by locking the doors her step mother creates 2 possible worlds, one where, the Cinderella gets to the ball, and marries the prince, and another where the Cinderella is hindered & her step sister instead marries the prince. The step mother’s action is judged as malign as our sympathy is directed to Cinderella.

Game theory is meant for non-interactive fictions. An uncritical use of the theory will provide meager results as the player is connected to the avatar & thus will be biased in the AVATAR’s favour. In ludological paradigm, the game needs the possibility of player interaction for better gaming experience & categorizing / highlighting the role of AVATARS.

Bibliography

1) steven conway class lectures & slides
2) http://www.digra.org/dl/db/07311.16435.pdf
3) http://www.ludology.org/articles/ludology.htm

Incoherence

A fact that always persists while playing/enjoying a video game is the texture of the game remains defiantly unreal. For instance in a racing game, in spite of having the best driver in a perfectly modeled racing car, the chances of car getting crashed is very high. This is due to the gulf between controllability & visual feedback. For an ordinary player, it will be utter boring & frustrating. The moral lesson that comes out is even with high whiz-bang math programming & software designs the game are never totally ''realistic''.

Steven Poole says:-'' Videogames' somewhat paradoxical fate is the ever more accurate modeling of things that don't, and couldn't exist; a car that grips the road like Superglue, which bounces un crumpled of road side barriers......a human being who can survive, bones intact, a 300 foot fall into water.'' The fact is the game player enjoys this lapse of fast & loose laws of nature, but critical requirement in the game's system remains consistent, that it is internally coherent.

This lack of coherence is destroying the game-playing experience. Video game Incoherence can be placed under 3 categories- Incoherence of causality, incoherence of function & incoherence of space.

Incoherence of Causality occurs when the same action produces conflicting results under different situations.For example, in V-Rally games, where driving at a full speed into another car causes a slight slowing down, while hitting the edge at times results in somersault.

Incoherence of function is a common error made by many designers. Many games contain objects that are used only once, and in a particular location or a particular time in the game. Poole considers this a lazy approach to game design. The player is prevented from making a sensible action. For instance, the use of ''single use'' objects like magic books that works only in particular location or say cigarettes that can only be used to illuminate a certain room.

Spatial incoherence is another ghastly error. In Tom Raider3, heroine Lara Croft finds herself at the end of the tunnel but couldn't exit into the corridor because the tunnel exist was at the wrong height.

Thus, we don't usually notice this incoherence while playing a game, everyone expects it to be so. Instead we always rave for how realistic the game looks like, or how accurately the physics are simulated. We don't notice any problem until we run smack into a glaring inconsistency.

Bibliography

1) Steven conway : class notes & slides

2)http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~geksiong/papers/cs378/cs378paper.htm

3)Google books (Steven Poole: Trigger happy: Videogames & entertainment revolution, Pg-50-52)

MAIL ART as networking

Mail Art is a cultural movement originated in 1960's and gained its peak popularity in the late 80's & 90's. This movement involves sending visual art (music, poetry etc) through international postal system. This is one of the ''crude'' forms of ''networking'' as it is based on the principles of peer-to-peer communication or one-to-one collaboration.


''Mail Art becomes art when anyone who sends or receive it in the mail decides to call it art''- Thomas Cassidy. The Mail art network is an open empowering world. It thrives not to become part of the mainstream art scene, it has been acknowledged by museums & galleries.


An out-an-out post modern art, mail art encompasses intertextuality (portrayal of feminism, historical importance, festivity), subjects drawing from various genres like religion, art, architecture, travel, festivity, bondage etc with the subtle use of irony (well behaved woman fighting) & parody (Female practicing male-art) but not in the grand narrative form but rather in a bri-collage form.



The disappearance of real, is evident at times, which Baudrillard describes as ''simulacrum''. Today, we live in the media-centric world of social networking, a world deluded by virtual reality. The existence of Irony( Even when our media appear to exponentially increase communication, this is predicated, as Baudrillard suggests, on a separation from one's proximate environment and finds fulfillment only in so far as it simulates or promises that symbolic relationship they claim to promote but which their use actually replaces. Phone calls, for example, act not just as a means of communication but also as a means to avoid communication.’’ (Steven Conway, ppt slides, class lecture), the use of simulcra (chats, messengering ), the use of accumulating various inputs at one place (IM, Chat, video conferencing, comments) are just the upgraded technological versions of ''growth of technology''.




Started as rudimentary forms of networking Mail-art is still prevalent today as pure form of art, however Networking rather the concept & progress of it has evolved in leaps & bounds.


Bibliography:-

1) Steven Conway lectures
2) http://www.dragonflydream.com/MailArt.html
3) http://saikatmandal.blogspot.com/2010/10/cyber-space.html