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Author: William Sims Bainbridge
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262288370
Category : Games & Activities
Languages : en
Pages : 255
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Book Description
An exploration of the popular online role-playing game World of Warcraft as a virtual prototype of the real human future. World of Warcraft is more than a game. There is no ultimate goal, no winning hand, no princess to be rescued. WoW is an immersive virtual world in which characters must cope in a dangerous environment, assume identities, struggle to understand and communicate, learn to use technology, and compete for dwindling resources. Beyond the fantasy and science fiction details, as many have noted, it’s not entirely unlike today’s world. In The Warcraft Civilization, sociologist William Sims Bainbridge goes further, arguing that WoW can be seen not only as an allegory of today but also as a virtual prototype of tomorrow, of a real human future in which tribe-like groups will engage in combat over declining natural resources, build temporary alliances on the basis of mutual self-interest, and seek a set of values that transcend the need for war. What makes WoW an especially good place to look for insights about Western civilization, Bainbridge says, is that it bridges past and future. It is founded on Western cultural tradition, yet aimed toward the virtual worlds we could create in times to come.
Author: William Sims Bainbridge
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262288370
Category : Games & Activities
Languages : en
Pages : 255
Get Book Here
Book Description
An exploration of the popular online role-playing game World of Warcraft as a virtual prototype of the real human future. World of Warcraft is more than a game. There is no ultimate goal, no winning hand, no princess to be rescued. WoW is an immersive virtual world in which characters must cope in a dangerous environment, assume identities, struggle to understand and communicate, learn to use technology, and compete for dwindling resources. Beyond the fantasy and science fiction details, as many have noted, it’s not entirely unlike today’s world. In The Warcraft Civilization, sociologist William Sims Bainbridge goes further, arguing that WoW can be seen not only as an allegory of today but also as a virtual prototype of tomorrow, of a real human future in which tribe-like groups will engage in combat over declining natural resources, build temporary alliances on the basis of mutual self-interest, and seek a set of values that transcend the need for war. What makes WoW an especially good place to look for insights about Western civilization, Bainbridge says, is that it bridges past and future. It is founded on Western cultural tradition, yet aimed toward the virtual worlds we could create in times to come.
Author: Bonnie Nardi
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472026712
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 250
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Book Description
"Ever since the creators of the animated television show South Park turned their lovingly sardonic gaze on the massively multiplayer online game World of Warcraft for an entire episode, WoW's status as an icon of digital culture has been secure. My Life as a Night Elf Priest digs deep beneath the surface of that icon to explore the rich particulars of the World of Warcraft player's experience." —Julian Dibbell, Wired "World of Warcraft is the best representative of a significant new technology, art form, and sector of society: the theme-oriented virtual world. Bonnie Nardi's pioneering transnational ethnography explores this game both sensitively and systematically using the methods of cultural anthropology and aesthetics with intensive personal experience as a guild member, media teacher, and magical quest Elf." —William Sims Bainbridge, author of The Warcraft Civilization and editor of Online Worlds “Nardi skillfully covers all of the hot button issues that come to mind when people think of video games like World of Warcraft such as game addiction, sexism, and violence. What gives this book its value are its unexpected gems of rare and beautifully detailed research on less sensationalized topics of interest such as the World of Warcraft player community in China, game modding, the increasingly blurred line between play and work, and the rich and fascinating lives of players and player cultures. Nardi brings World of Warcraft down to earth for non-players and ties it to social and cultural theory for scholars. . . . the best ethnography of a single virtual world produced so far.” —Lisa Nakamura, University of Illinois World of Warcraft rapidly became one of the most popular online world games on the planet, amassing 11.5 million subscribers—officially making it an online community of gamers that had more inhabitants than the state of Ohio and was almost twice as populous as Scotland. It's a massively multiplayer online game, or MMO in gamer jargon, where each person controls a single character inside a virtual world, interacting with other people's characters and computer-controlled monsters, quest-givers, and merchants. In My Life as a Night Elf Priest, Bonnie Nardi, a well-known ethnographer who has published extensively on how theories of what we do intersect with how we adopt and use technology, compiles more than three years of participatory research in Warcraft play and culture in the United States and China into this field study of player behavior and activity. She introduces us to her research strategy and the history, structure, and culture of Warcraft; argues for applying activity theory and theories of aesthetic experience to the study of gaming and play; and educates us on issues of gender, culture, and addiction as part of the play experience. Nardi paints a compelling portrait of what drives online gamers both in this country and in China, where she spent a month studying players in Internet cafes. Bonnie Nardi has given us a fresh look not only at World of Warcraft but at the field of game studies as a whole. One of the first in-depth studies of a game that has become an icon of digital culture, My Life as a Night Elf Priest will capture the interest of both the gamer and the ethnographer. Bonnie A. Nardi is an anthropologist by training and a professor in the Department of Informatics in the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences at the University of California, Irvine. Her research focus is the social implications of digital technologies. She is the author of A Small Matter of Programming: Perspectives on End User Computing and the coauthor of Information Ecologies: Using Technology with Heart and Acting with Technology: Activity Theory and Interaction Design. Cover art by Jessica Damsky
Author: Gregory David Weisman
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781338160970
Category : JUVENILE FICTION
Languages : en
Pages :
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Book Description
An epic action-adventure series set in Blizzard's popular World of Warcraft game franchise. Features a young cast of characters discovering the mysteries and majesty of the world around them. It's been years since twelve-year-old Aramar Thorne, a clever boy who is never without his precious sketch book, has seen his father. So when Captain Greydon Thorne comes ashore and asks his son to join him at sea, it feels as if someone has redrawn Aram's entire world. At sea, Aram struggles to get along with the Wavestider's crew -- especially second mate Makasa, a tough teenaged girl who has been reluctantly placed in charge of him. Just as Aram starts to get his head above water, a band of vicious pirates attack the Wavestrider, turning his world upside down once again. As Aram and Makasa try to find their way home, they encounter creatures both terrible and wondrous, and Aram will seek to understand Azeroth's denizens as he draws them in his sketchbook, forming unlikely friendships along the way. But the journey is hindered by Greydon's compass, which never points north. If the compass isn't leading Aram and Makasa home -- to safety -- to what destiny is it leading?
Author: Daniel Wallace
Publisher: Harper Design
ISBN: 9780062466792
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
A stunning behind-the-scenes look at the making of Legendary Pictures’ and Universal Pictures’ Warcraft: Behind the Dark Portal, and based on Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft, the highest grossing role-playing video game series of all time. The peaceful realm of Azeroth stands on the brink of war as its civilization faces a fearsome race of invaders: Orc warriors fleeing their dying home to colonize another. As a portal opens to connect the two worlds, one army faces destruction and the other faces extinction. From opposing sides, two heroes are set on a collision course that will decide the fate of their family, their people, and their home. So begins a spectacular saga of power and sacrifice in which war has many faces and everyone fights for something. World of Warcraft holds the Guinness World Record for most popular MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) ever and has grossed more than 11.5 billion dollars since it was released. Warcraft: Behind the Dark Portal tells the full story of the incredible creative journey that brought Blizzard Entertainment’s beloved epic adventure of world-colliding conflict to the big screen. Filled with stunning concept art, unit photography, and visual effects breakdowns, this book also features insightful interviews with the incredible cast and crew, as they share the secrets behind bringing war-torn Azeroth to life. Directed by Duncan Jones (Moon, Source Code) and written by Charles Leavitt and Jones, the film—starring Travis Fimmel, Paula Patton, Ben Foster, Dominic Cooper, Toby Kebbell, Ben Schnetzer, Rob Kazinsky, and Daniel Wu—is a Legendary Pictures, Blizzard Entertainment, and Atlas Entertainment production. The movie premieres June 10, 2016.
Author: William Sims Bainbridge
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199323712
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 336
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Book Description
What is the relationship between religion and multi-player online roleplaying games? Are such games simply a secular distraction from traditional religious practices, or do they in fact offer a different route to the sacred? In eGods, a leading scholar in the study of virtual gameworlds takes an in-depth look at the fantasy religions of 41 games and arrives at some surprising conclusions. William Sims Bainbridge investigates all aspects of the gameworlds' religious dimensions: the focus on sacred spaces; the prevalence of magic; the fostering of a tribal morality by both religion and rules programmed into the game; the rise of cults and belief systems within the gameworlds (and how this relates to cults in the real world); the predominance of polytheism; and, of course, how gameworld religions depict death. As avatars are multiple and immortal, death is merely a minor setback in most games. Nevertheless, much of the action in some gameworlds centers on the issue of mortality and the problematic nature of resurrection. Examining EverQuest II, Lord of the Rings Online, Rift, World of Warcraft, Star Wars: The Old Republic, and many others, Bainbridge contends that gameworlds offer a new perspective on the human quest, one that combines the arts, simulates many aspects of real life, and provides meaningful narratives about achieving goals by overcoming obstacles. Indeed, Bainbridge suggests that such games take us back to those ancient nights around the fire, when shadows flickered and it was easy to imagine the monsters conjured by the storyteller lurking in the forest. Arguing that gameworlds reintroduce a curvilinear model of early religion, where today as in ancient times faith is inseparable from fantasy, eGods shows how the newest secular technology returns us to the very origins of religion so that we might "arrive where we started and know the place for the first time."
Author: William Sims Bainbridge
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472053280
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 307
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Book Description
A ground-breaking look at the paradox of technology to both liberate and enslave our current culture by noted scholar William Sims Bainbridge
Author: Edward L. Risden
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1621899012
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 98
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Book Description
The Year's Work in Medievalism includes vetted essays from the Studies in Medievalism--now International Society for the Study of Medievalism--annual conference and from submissions to the editor throughout the year. The current volume includes a range of topics from medievalism in literature and art to the neomedievalism of movies and games. It includes these scholarly contributions: E. L. Risden, Introductory Letter from the Editor Gwendolyn Morgan, Recollections of Medievalism Richard Utz, Them Philologists: Philological Practices and Their Discontents from Nietzsche to Cerquiglini Clare Simmons, Really Ancient Druids in British Medievalist Drama Karl Fugelso, Neomedievalisms in Tom Phillips' Commedia Illustrations Jason Fisher, Some Contributions to Middle-earth Lexicography: Hapax Legomena in The Lord of the Rings Simon Roffey, The World of Warcraft: A Medievalist Perspective William Hodapp, Arthur, Beowulf, Robin Hood, and Hollywood's Desire for Origins M. J. Toswell, The Arthurian Landscapes of Guy Gavriel Kay
Author: Hilde Corneliussen
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262033704
Category : Games & Activities
Languages : en
Pages : 313
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Book Description
"This book examines the complexity of World of Warcraft from a variety of perspectives, exploring the cultural and social implications of the proliferation of ever more complex digital gameworlds.The contributors have immersed themselves in the World of Warcraft universe, spending hundreds of hours as players (leading guilds and raids, exploring moneymaking possibilities in the in-game auction house, playing different factions, races, and classes), conducting interviews, and studying the game design - as created by Blizzard Entertainment, the game's developer, and as modified by player-created user interfaces. The analyses they offer are based on both the firsthand experience of being a resident of Azeroth and the data they have gathered and interpreted.The contributors examine the ways that gameworlds reflect the real world - exploring such topics as World of Warcraft as a "capitalist fairytale" and the game's construction of gender; the cohesiveness of the gameworld in terms of geography, mythology, narrative, and the treatment of death as a temporary state; aspects of play, including "deviant strategies" perhaps not in line with the intentions of the designers; and character - both players' identification with their characters and the game's culture of naming characters." -- BOOK JACKET.
Author: Sid Meier
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 1324005882
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 233
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Book Description
The life and career of the legendary developer celebrated as the “godfather of computer gaming” and creator of Civilization, featuring his rules of good game design. "Sid Meier is a foundation of what gaming is for me today." — Phil Spencer, head of Xbox Over his four-decade career, Sid Meier has produced some of the world’s most popular video games, including Sid Meier’s Civilization, which has sold more than 51 million units worldwide and accumulated more than one billion hours of play. Sid Meier’s Memoir! is the story of an obsessive young computer enthusiast who helped launch a multibillion-dollar industry. Writing with warmth and ironic humor, Meier describes the genesis of his influential studio, MicroProse, founded in 1982 after a trip to a Las Vegas arcade, and recounts the development of landmark games, from vintage classics like Pirates! and Railroad Tycoon, to Civilization and beyond. Articulating his philosophy that a video game should be “a series of interesting decisions,” Meier also shares his perspective on the history of the industry, the psychology of gamers, and fascinating insights into the creative process, including his rules of good game design.
Author: Richard A. Knaak
Publisher: Pocket Star
ISBN: 9780743471190
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
Many months have passed since the cataclysmic Battle of Mount Hyjal, where the demonic Burning Legion was banished from Azeroth forever. But now, a mysterious energy rift within the mountains of Kalimdor propels three former warriors into the distant past -- a time long before orcs, humans or even high elves roamed the land. A time when the Dark Titan Sargeras, and his demon pawns persuaded Queen Azshara and her Highborne to cleanse Azeroth of its lesser races. A time when the Dragon Aspects were at the height of their power -- unaware that one of their own would soon usher in an age of darkness that would engulf the world of...War Craft®. In the first chapter of this epic trilogy, the outcome of the historic War of the Ancients is forever altered by the arrival of three time-lost heroes: Krasus, the dragon mage whose great power and memories of the ancient conflict have inexplicably diminished; the human wizard Rhonin, whose thoughts are divided between his family and the seductive source of his now-growing power; and Broxigar, a weathered orc veteran who seeks a glorious death in combat. But unless these unlikely allies can convince the demigod, Cenarius, and the untrusting night elves of their queen's treachery, the burning Legion's gateway into Azeroth will open anew. And this time -- the struggles of the past may well spill over into the future...
