The duo at Abnormal Mapping, Jackson Tyler and Matthew Marko, recently posted a podcast with guest, Lana Polansky (“Lana From the Block.” Jan 30 2015.). It’s a good long conversation and I encourage you to listen to the whole thing. About an hour into the cast, they turn briefly to the ways games (specifically what they call … Continue reading Politics, Bodies and Videogames
For those new to the series, plural protagonism is based on this article I wrote for PopMatters. Plural protagonism occurs in a game when there is no individual main protagonist leading a group: the group itself becomes the hero. Each individual maintains their identity while contributing to the narrative in equal measure. Moreover, they are all … Continue reading Plural Protagonism Part 9: Fire Emblem: Awakening
2014’s final Moving Pixels podcast at PopMatters covers the ever-divisive Spec-Ops: the Line (Williams, G. Christopher, Nick Dinicola, Eric Swain. “The Moving Pixels Podcast Steps Over ‘The Line’.” PopMatters. Dec 8 2014.). It was a good discussion and it inspired me to review a some of the writing about the game which, in turn, inspired … Continue reading The Great Expectations of Spec-Ops: The Line
*Spoiler warning for The Hunger Games trilogy, including the latest film, Mockingjay Part 1* Oh, the tears. There are probably reasons why these novels and films hit me so hard. I just finished a class about happiness (or the lack thereof) in Romantic literature led by a professor who feels so acutely that many members … Continue reading Some Thoughts on Katniss Everdeen and Female Emotion
Post-apocalyptic fiction continually attempts to project itself into the future by resisting endings; each ending becomes instead an opportunity for continuation. Storytelling is the main method by which post-apocalyptic fiction attempts to resist closure, and this method can be traced back to the roots of the genre itself. Mary Shelley’s The Last Man, published in … Continue reading “If you can read this, LEAVE!!!” Storytelling in Left 4 Dead and Zone One
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