The Art of Computer Games

Course unit code:

373UPH

Course unit title:

Mode of delivery:

zkouška

Range:

2/T

Type of course unit:

Study plan Animovaná tvorba - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Dokumentární tvorba - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Dokumentární tvorba - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Animovaná tvorba - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Scenáristika a dramaturgie - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Scenáristika a dramaturgie - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Režie - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Režie - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Kamera - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Kamera - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Produkce - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Produkce - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Audiovizuální studia - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Střihová skladba - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Střihová skladba - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Zvuková tvorba - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Zvuková tvorba - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Fotografie CZ - bakalář – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Fotografie CZ - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Audiovizuální studia - magistr – compulsory optional subject
Study plan Fotografie CZ - magistr: restaurování – compulsory optional subject

Level of course unit:

Year of study

předmět nemá určen ročník studia

Semester when the course unit is delivered

letní

Number of ECTS credits allocated:

Garant předmětu:

Helena BENDOVÁ

Name of lecturer(s):

Helena BENDOVÁ

Study Objectives:

The aim of the lectures is to introduce students to the history and theory of the relationship between art and computer games. Students, upon completion of the course, should better understand the influence of games on visual art, the influence on computer games and finally how much computer games use art elements, becoming a media containing artistic manifestations.

Mode of delivery:

Lectures supplemented by example screenings of plays and images.

Prerequisites and co-requisites:

No requirements.

Recommended optional programme components

No requirements

Course contents:

Computer and video games have become not only the most massive kultural industry but also a new artistic media including and transforming film, visual and other art elements, In the course „The Art of Computer Games“ we focus generally on the aesthetic aspect of computer games: the active position and the immersion of the player, working with time, space, narration, interface, etc. In this we will cover mainstream games and creators (Will Wright, Robert Williams, Peter Molyneux, and others), as well as the independent and experimental (from Jason Rohrer, Cactus, Molleindustria, jmbt2, and others). Also will be covered are various intercessions of contemporary artists into the area of games (through fashion, installations, etc.). The game topics and innovation are placed in a wider context of art working with games (primarily Dadaism, Surrealism, The Fluxus movement.)

Tentative lecture plan:

1. Art influenced by games - Rokoko, Dada, Surrealism, Situationists, Fluxus

2. Game theory / Art theory

3. The aesthetics of computer games - artistic use of pc game elements (narration, avatar, immersion....)

4. Artistic games - independent, arthouse, political games.

5. Game art - contemporary art using game elements.

6. Mainstream games and creative approaches (Will Wright, Robert Williams, and the like).

7. Presentation of student projects.

Study materials:

BOGOST, Ian: Persuasive Games: The Expressive Power of Videogames. The MIT press 2007.

BOGOST, Ian: Unit Operations. An approach to videogame criticism. The MIT Press 2006.

CAILLOIS, Roger: Hry a lidé. Maska a závrať. Praha 1998.

CARR, Diane, BUCKINGHAM, David, BURN, Andrew, SCHOTT, Garreth (eds.): Computer Games. Text, narrative and play. Polity press : Chicago, Malden, 2006.

CASSEL, Justine, JENKINS, Henry: From Barbie to Mortal Combat. Gender and Computer Games. The MIT Press : Cambridge, London 2000.

CASTRONOVA, Edward: Synthetic Works. The business and culture of online games. The University of Chicago Press : Chicago, London 2006.

DONOVAN, Tristan: Replay. The History of Video Games. Yellow Ant : Lewes, 2010.

FLANAGAN, Mary: Critical Play. Radical Game Design. The MIT Press : Cambridge, London, 2009.

FINK, Eugen: Hra jako symbol světa. Praha 1993.

GOFFMAN, Erving: Všichni hrajeme divadlo. Nakladatelství Studia Ypsilon : Praha 1999.

HUIZINGA, Johan: Homo ludens: o původu kultuře ve hře. Mladá fronta : Praha 1971.

JAHN-SUDMANN, Andreas; STOCKMANNS, Ralf: Computer Games as a sociocultural phenomenon. Games without Frontiers, Wars without Tears. Palgrave Macmillan, 2008.

JUUL, Jesper: Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds. The MIT press 2005.

KAFAI, Yasmine B., HEETER, Carrie, SUN, Jennifer Y.: Beyond Barbie and Mortal Combat. New Perspectives on Gender and Gaming. The MIT Press : Cambridge, London 2008.

McALLISTER, Ken S.: Game Work. Language, Power, and Computer Game Culture. The University of Alabama Press : Tuscaloosa, 2004.

McKENZIE, Wark: Gamer Theory. Harvard University Press : Cambridge, London 2007.

NEWMAN, James: Videogames. Routledge : London, New York, 2004.

PEARCE, Celia: Games as Art: The Aesthetics of Play. In Friedman, Ken; Smith, Owen (eds.): Fluxus and Legacy. Visible Culture, 2006.

PIEPER, Josef: Základní formy sociálních pravidel hry. Praha 1994.

RAESSENS, Joost, GOLDSTEIN, Jeffrey: Handbook of Computer Game Studies. THE MIT press 2005.

SMUTS, Aaron: Are Videogames Art? Contemporary Aesthetics, 2005, http://www.contempaesthetics.org/newvolume/pages/article.php?articleID=299.

TAYLOR, T. L.: Play Between Worlds: Exploring Online Game Culture. The MIT Press 2006.

TAVINOR, Grant: The Art of Videogames. Wiley-Blackwell : Malden, Oxford, 2009.

VORDERER, Peter, BRYANT, Jennings: Playing video games: motives, responses and consequences. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates : Mahwah, 2006.

WOLF, Mark: The Medium of the Video Game. University of Texas Press, 2002.

WOLF, Mark J. P.; PERRON, Bernard (eds.): The Video Game Theory Reader. Routledge: New York, 2003.

WOLF, Mark J. P.; PERRON, Bernard (eds.): The Video Game Theory Reader 2. Routledge : New York, 2009.

časopisy a webové stránky:

Eludamos (Journal for Computer Games Culture) - http://www.eludamos.org/index.php/eludamos

Game Journal - http://www.gamejournal.org/

Game Studies (The International Journal of Computer Game Research) - http://gamestudies.org/

Gameology - http://www.gameology.org/

Games Research Bibliography - http://www.digiplay.info/bibliography

Loading? - http://journals.sfu.ca/loading/index.php/loading

Gamasutra - http://www.gamasutra.com/

Indie Games - http://indiegames.com/

Game Set Watch - http://www.gamesetwatch.com/

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

lectures

Assessment methods and criteria

Acquisition of credit for these lectures is possible in two manners:

1) Writing a text of at least 4 standard pages (a general analysis of an individual creator/movement/work investigating the relationship between art and computer games based on lecture topics).

2) Creation (proposal) of a computer game art project (ex: a proposed arthouse computer game, political computer game or an installation using computer game elements; this need not bee a completed work, a proposal text commentary of at least 2 standard pages showing the form and function of the work is sufficient)

Condition for credit is, also, minimal 75% attendance at lectures.

Language of instruction:

Czech

Work placement(s):

Pracovní stáž není u tohoto předmětu zavedena.

Course web page:

Note:

Further information:

This course is an elective for all AMU students

Schedule for winter semester 2010/2011:

The schedule has not yet been prepared

Schedule for summer semester 2010/2011:

	06:00–08:0008:00–10:0010:00–12:0012:00–14:0014:00–16:0016:00–18:0018:00–20:0020:00–22:0022:00–24:00
Mon	místnost 124 Projekce FAMU (Lažanský palác) BENDOVÁ H. 13:10–14:45 (přednášková par. 1)
Tue
Fri
Thu
Fri

The subject is a part of the following study plans:

Animovaná tvorba - bakalář (faculty subject, optional subject)
Dokumentární tvorba - magistr (faculty subject, optional subject)
Dokumentární tvorba - bakalář (faculty subject, optional subject)
Animovaná tvorba - magistr (faculty subject, optional subject)
Scenáristika a dramaturgie - bakalář (faculty subject, optional subject)
Scenáristika a dramaturgie - magistr (faculty subject, optional subject)
Režie - bakalář (faculty subject, optional subject)
Režie - magistr (faculty subject, optional subject)
Kamera - bakalář (faculty subject, optional subject)
Kamera - magistr (faculty subject, optional subject)
Produkce - bakalář (faculty subject, optional subject)
Produkce - magistr (faculty subject, optional subject)
Audiovizuální studia - bakalář (qualification subject, faculty subject, optional subject)
Střihová skladba - bakalář (faculty subject, optional subject)
Střihová skladba - magistr (faculty subject, optional subject)
Zvuková tvorba - bakalář (faculty subject, optional subject)
Zvuková tvorba - magistr (faculty subject, optional subject)
Fotografie CZ - bakalář (faculty subject, optional subject)
Fotografie CZ - magistr (faculty subject, optional subject)
Audiovizuální studia - magistr (qualification subject, faculty subject, optional subject)
Fotografie CZ - magistr: restaurování (faculty subject, optional subject)