In the Games Industry, over the years genres have been modified for games to help broaden target audiences and attract new customers to different franchises. As gaming has evolved so too have the elements we can come expect from them, an example of what I mean would be: how this generation's sport games like Fifa are starting to introduce RPG elements where players can improve their characters or teams. Another example could like how Adventure games like the Legend of Zelda incorporate Action, RPG and Puzzle genres into them allowing for quite a versatile experience.
The latest Grand Theft Auto (or GTA) games have all come under the free roam and shoot 'em up genre. Games like GTA are generally known as Open world/ Sandbox games because they allow the player the freedom to roam wherever they please within the boarders.
Ninja Gaiden is considered to be a very challenging and fast paced hack 'n' slash game (possibly one of the most difficult of its genre). The later generation Ninja Gaiden's narrative varies quite differently from its predeccessing games on the SNES console.
Semiotics
Semiotics is the study of signs and the meaning behind them. Below are examples of how different signs can be perceived in multiple ways. These images are named signifiers as they convey meaning to a reader.
.jpg) |
| This image depicts a single red rose; a flower that is renown worldwide as a symbol of romance and passion, in relation to its crimson red petals. Pink representing gratitude and dark crimson would convey the mourning of the dead. This association is an example of connotation (an aspect of semiotics) because a rose is initially just a plant however people give further meaning to its existence. |
 |
Oppose to the rose above, this image holds meaning in
multiple colours together. The alignment of colours in this image depicts a
rainbow; an arch of colours formed in the sky by
refracted sun light, usually during rainfall. This is the textbook
definition of a rainbow (otherwise known as a denotation) however these colours
are used to signify many different things. A recent one being the Gay Pride
parade on June 8th, where flags were rose with these colours to
represent: Life (red), Healing (orange), Sunlight (yellow), Nature (green),
Serenity (indigo), Spirit (violet).
|
 |
| The literal meaning of this image is that it is an upward facing hand, extending its index and middle fingers while tucking the others. This hand gesture however is more iconic with the meaning of peace and/ or victory (with the exception of a few cultures that deem it disrespectful). During the years surrounding World War II, this gesture became the signifier of victory against a enemy forces, and in later years contrasted greatly as a symbol to represent peace between men (and women). |
 |
| This is a promotional poster for the game Alan Wake. Although I personally haven't played Alan Wake, I can tell from this image what the game is meant to feel like. This poster alone conveys the feeling of isolation and mystery; a lone man wandering through a cold and dark forest. The silhouettes being the focus in this poster tell me this, I can also gather from the interesting font choice that the character you play as probably relies heavily on his flashlight to travel around, as the world is dark and the light is his only solace. |
 |
| Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures. As the name states this is a game meant to set a sense of adventure into the player as he explores the world, besides the name I can assume this because of the sepia toned world map in the background. I believe this map is an indication of the travelling and exploration the player will soon enjoy. To go a bit more in-depth I believe the sepia tone was used on purpose as a means of conveying age and history to the reader (as in Indiana Jones, he's an archaeologist that explores ancient ruins and civilizations). On top of everything else, the Lego avatar representing Indiana Jones is in the center of the poster as a focus point, fortifying the sense of adventure (his outfit, satchel and whip). |
 |
| Denotation of this image is that it displays an arm reaching downward to a larger hard hand also reaching out. From what I can tell (as Bioshock is another game I haven't played), these arms are reaching out to help one another, the lower one having a dark/mysterious background (possibly evil) and the above hand attempting to help by pulling the other out of the darkness that envelops it. In-between both hands is what appears to be a clock, clocks literally representing time but perhaps metaphorically representing death or eternity (hinting at the player's experience being a race against the clock?). |
Narrative
The game cutscene I am going to use as an example of narrative will be one from the original Xbox, it is entitled Ninja Gaiden Black and this cutscene concludes the second chapter of the game. Personally I believe that the purpose of this scene is to be enigmatic as the entirety of it is filled with suspense.
The moment this scene starts Ryu is walking through a burning building, when suddenly the camera cuts to an unknown female being threatened by an large shadowy figure, already these two characters leave the gamer to question their identity and how do they fit into this game's plot. Sensing an omnious presence, Ryu rushes to this female's aide, only to realise that he is too late. As
Whilst first watching this scene I felt so anxious because this scene is suspenseful as it starts
Is this a whole narrative, a section or an enigma?
If you are looking at a section of a narrative, what function does this section have for the narrative?
Who/what are the main narrative agents for this text? How do we know?
Does it conform to a formula?
Once you have identified the form of the narrative, you might want to look at the structure in more detail. You might consider the following questions and ask yourself why the narrative is structured in this way.
Is it linear or is the narrative being presented in some other way, such as flashbacks, flash forwards or episodically?
Is it being presented in segments, separated by changes in location or time?
• Is it being broken up or linked by graphics, say?
Is there a single narrative (even if different aspects are being shown) or are multiple narratives being used?
• Is a clear narrative context being established? Many documentaries use a voice of God voiceover to structure the documentary, for example, defining the text’s ideology by giving this perspective on the action being presented.
• Are there clear character roles and functions being established such as the hero or the villain?
In what ways is the narrative constructing the ideology of the text?
• Is this overt, as in many adverts or covert, as in an action/adventure movie?
No comments:
Post a Comment