Publicação
"Escaping isn`t always something bad": exploring the ludonarrative relationship between Campo Santo`s Firewatch and Philip Connor`s Fire Season
| Resumo: | This dissertation analyzes Campo Santo’s Firewatch (2016) as a cultural object, a videogame broadly inspired by a framework of themes and myths prevalent in Philip Connors’ novel Fire Season (2011). More precisely, the goal is to determine the relationship between both works through a ludonarrative methodology, a combination of ludic and narrative perspectives, and determine how Fire Season’s influence impacts Firewatch’s narrative aspects, gameplay mechanics and design. The importance of narrative for play progression and sense-making is imperative in Firewatch, influencing design techniques and environments. Much of Firewatch’s design approach can be directly traced to Fire Season’s detailed descriptions of lookout life in American wilderness. Firewatch culminates in an experience that reflects on the escapist nature of videogames, the shaping power of wilderness in American identity and the effects of purposefully deceptive and subversive game design. When appropriate, other works of literature or videogames relevant to the analysis will be used to illustrate specific aspects. |
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| Autores principais: | Lemos, Rui Gonçalo Relíquias de |
| Assunto: | Literatura Norte-Americana Narratologia Campo Santo Philip Connor Firewatch Fire Season Videogame American literature Ludonarrative Game studies Escapism Wilderness Videojogo Literatura Americana Ludonarrativa Estudos de jogos Escapismo |
| Ano: | 2021 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | dissertação de mestrado |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso aberto |
| Instituição associada: | Universidade Nova de Lisboa |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | Repositório Institucional da UNL |
| Resumo: | This dissertation analyzes Campo Santo’s Firewatch (2016) as a cultural object, a videogame broadly inspired by a framework of themes and myths prevalent in Philip Connors’ novel Fire Season (2011). More precisely, the goal is to determine the relationship between both works through a ludonarrative methodology, a combination of ludic and narrative perspectives, and determine how Fire Season’s influence impacts Firewatch’s narrative aspects, gameplay mechanics and design. The importance of narrative for play progression and sense-making is imperative in Firewatch, influencing design techniques and environments. Much of Firewatch’s design approach can be directly traced to Fire Season’s detailed descriptions of lookout life in American wilderness. Firewatch culminates in an experience that reflects on the escapist nature of videogames, the shaping power of wilderness in American identity and the effects of purposefully deceptive and subversive game design. When appropriate, other works of literature or videogames relevant to the analysis will be used to illustrate specific aspects. |
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