The Doc Gets Busy

Ok ok. Not *that* kind of busy. :)

Last week was a bit of a whirlwind for me. So here is a round-up of things I did with some awesome people around the internet. 

First, I live streamed some Left 4 Dead 2 with Grethade from Newbcast Gaming. You can check that out on his YouTube channel here but the best part, for me at least, was using the graffti art setting in L4D2 to spray paint GiGi all over the place. Here is a screen shot of that:

We had a long run - the map took us almost two hours to finish - but Grethade got the accomplishment for finishing that campaign so that made it all worthwhile. :)

Second, I had a guest appearance on N3rdg4sm Lulscast.

What a great group of guys! I truly had a blast chatting with them about games and the research I did for Game on Girl. They were genuinely interested in what I've discovered talking to women about gaming and about game culture in general. Exactly how a strong gaming community should behave. Give them a listen and subscribe for some seriously awesome and humorous conversations. They are available on iTunes and Stitcher or subscribe to the RSS feed.

Lastly, one of my former students at WSU Vancouver - where I currently teach and where I finished my Ph.D. - interviewed me for the student newspaper, The VanCougar. (Get it?) I'm honored to be included in a student publication because it means at least one of my students listened to me. Who knew? 

Thanks to our listeners, readers, and especially to Grethade, N3rdG4sm, and The VanCougar for their support of Game on Girl. 

Until next time, game on!
Regina 

GoG Short #5 - Contrasting Female Images at E3

This week our short episode takes on the game industry and its marketing tactics. Specifically, Rhonda and I discuss the E3 trailers for these two games: Tomb Raider Crossroads and Far Cry 3.

As many of you who have followed the site and my research already know, I am generally very celebratory about game culture. I think that gaming is a wonderful way people can learn about themselves, how to solve problems, and explore their identity. However, I often take issue with how games are marketed. This year's E3 pressers leave me cold looking at how female characters are displayed and the uneven reactions these images produce in game news.

Rhonda and I discuss the controversies these two video clips generated, specifically the issue many male game journalists took with the attempted rape of Lara Croft. I guess it hasn't been easy for many fans of Lara Croft to see her origin story begin gritty, violent, and dangerous. Oh and less boobtastic. She looks and acts like a fully developed character in this trailer, something that I cannot help but applaud. I am left wondering if the male reaction to this character development has something to do with the guilt they might experience now that they cannot openly and freely sexualize her character without some sensation of guilt. 

The trend of game design towards more cinematic, complex, and deep stroy telling is exciting and wonderful. I sincerely wish the marketing executives would avoid such blatant stunts as the one seen in the Far Cry 3 trailer. It is apparent that the opening scene, which few have called pornography (a term used to describe the Tomb Raider video), was purely for shock value. Unfortunately, attention getting stunts like these only diminish what might be a beatiful, intriguing, and engaging game. I'll never know because after this trailer, I'll likely never pick up a copy of the game. 

One of the themes that emerged from my dissertation research is that gamers consider themselves to be very savvy, intelligent consumers mainly because they choose to game over say a more passive media like watching tv shows or other, less engaging hobbies. I hope that at some point in the not too distant future the marketing mavricks at the major game companies will figure this out. 

As always, and perhaps even more so with the controversial nature of this topic, we would love to hear what you think. Drop us a Tweet @game_on_girl or leave a comment here.

Game on Girl is on Stitcher so you can stream our show to your mobile device or subscribe to iTunes or the RSS Feed.

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Until next time, Game On!
Regina and Rhonda

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Episode 5 - From The Guys: Secret Geek Shame

Hello Everyone and Welcome to Episode Five of Game on Girl!

This week marks the first for us on multiple fronts. First, we are interviewing LIVE gamers instead of going back through the dissertation interviews. And second, those gamers are GUYS!  

I know!  So exciting!

A warm welcome and huge thanks to Mark and Ryan for being on the show! We truly enjoyed it and hope they'll come back again!

Here are some of the links we talk about during this episode:

NewbCast Gaming Podcast - Check Regina out on Episode 9!

30 Rock - St. Patrick's Day - Season Six, Episode 12

Regina's Star Wars: The Old Republc Avatar

What do you think? Is Regina a Self Player?

We would love to hear what you think about our first live interview episode and our comments about 30 Rock. Drop us a Tweet: Regina @doclizz and Rhonda @rhorhoom and comment on any aspect of the show, or let us know an example of gaming in pop culture you'd like us to talk about.

Like us on Facebook!

Subscribe to iTunes or the RSS Feed

Until next time, Game On!
Regina and Rhonda

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