Duration
30h Th
Number of credits
Lecturer
Language(s) of instruction
French language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the second semester
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
The course aims to provide an introduction to the field of game studies as well as an overview of different cultural approaches of video games. After a presentation of the main theories of play and of the different ways of defining this object (what is a game? what is playing? what is the place of this activity among other cultural practices?), the course thus addresses several themes related to the cultural dimension of the medium, such as: video game narration, the player-avatar relationship, the history of video games (and the different ways of constructing this history), the relationship between video games and others. media (literature, cinema), the players' creative practices (remixes of video games, amateur game creation), the political uses of games, or even the discourses on and around video games (the video game press, the translation and localization of games, etc.).
In order to anchor these different studies in a deep understanding of video game works and of the multiple practices that play can cover, the theories presented are articulated to the analysis of games from various genres, which are made available to the students during and after the course (in the local of the Digital Lab).
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
Learning how to constitute video game as an object of study and research with different disciplinary approaches
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
In-class sessions are divided into two parts: a theoretical part (presenting game studies research on defined topics: video game narration, amateur game creation, the video game press, the relationship between games and literature, etc.) and a practical part of commented play in class.
In case of lockdown, the sessions will be given on the the Liège Game Lab's Twitch channel : https://www.twitch.tv/liegegamelab or on Collaborate.
The course is given collegially by the following teaching staff: Fanny Barnabé, Björn-Olav Dozo, Bruno Dupont, Pierre-Yves Hurel, Boris Krywicki, Hamza Bashandy, Pierre-Yves Houlmont, Damien Hansen and Colin Sidre.
Guest speakers are also invited each year.
Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)
Face to face or distance learning depending on sanitary conditions.
Organisational adjustments related to the current health context
Recommended or required readings
Although it is not a mandatory reading, the Liège Game Lab's book, Culture videoludique! (2019, Liège, PULg) synthesizes a good part of the course content and is therefore an ideal support for note-taking.
More detailed references on each topic of the course are given during the sessions, and the Powerpoint presentations are systematically made available to students on MyULg.
Assessment methods and criteria
Below you will find information on the evaluation methods planned for in-person and remote exams as well as those planned for hybrid sessions. Depending on how the health crisis evolves, the chosen method will be communicated to you no later than one month before the start of the exam session.
Any session :
- In-person
written exam ( open-ended questions )
- Remote
written work
- If evaluation in "hybrid"
preferred remote
Additional information:
For 80% of the grade, students must submit a 3000 word paper (excluding bibliography) answering two general questions which will be sent to them by e-mail at the end of April (the answers must therefore be about 1500 words per question). The paper is due by May 31, in digital format at fanny.barnabe@uliege.be
For 20% of the grade, students must produce a 5-minute let's play video (commented gameplay). In this video, they must show a passage from a game of their choice (that has not already been analyzed in class) and present how it illustrates a question addressed in class. This assignment is due May 31 on ECampus.
Work placement(s)
Organizational remarks
The course takes place in the second quadrimester, every Thursday from 16:30 to 18:30 either on Collalorate, or on Twitch (twitch.tv/liegegamelab).
All sessions will be recorded and made available as podcasts on MyULiège.
Contacts
Coordinator : Fanny Barnabé (fanny.barnabe@uliege.be)