topical media & game development
research directions -- humour in games
For presenting Clima Futura to the jury of the scientific communication contest,
we decided to have three central presenters (anchors) and an expert-panel (choir),
that may comment on detailed scientific or technical issues. The presentation,
stressed the multi-disciplinary approach,
covers the following topics, in the order of listing:
presentation
- philosophy -- pathos, ethos, logos
- trailer -- drama, apocalyptic, appeal to player
- climate star -- scientific issues & game play
- game development -- architecture and project plan
Although it too early to look back, we may on reflection
ask attention for another potential pitfall, that endangers any educational game,
once aptly expressed by Sartre in his criticism of
l'esprit de serieux.
Indeed, we may become too serious!
As a potential line of research that may support the design and development of Clima Futura,
we refer to an
ontology of humour,
[Humour],
that may be taken as a guideline to avoid the common pitfall of
serious games.
In brief,
[Humour] distinguishes between three theories of humour, that each denote
a particular function of humour:
relief theory, which explains humour as a reduction of stress,
superiority theory, which asserts that humour has a social function,
as a means to enforce the norm of a group or culture,
and
incongruity theory, which relates humour to the discovery
of hidden meanings.
We leave it to the imagination of the reader to establish in what way
the various types of humour may be put to effect in the
climate issue,
or for that matter in any
serious game.
(C) Æliens
04/09/2009
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