Special Issue Twentee-Candles, Tarot & Joysticks

Sesh#1

Kick-off for rituals. Sage tea :)

Sesh#2

pad: https://pad.xpub.nl/p/16012023

Ritual and games mapping

-Characteristics of rituals

-Aglaia's coffee ritual. (Coffee was discovered by chance in Yemen in the 8th century. The lethargic goats that a shepherd took to graze began to come to life after they ate the red and small fruits on the tree.)

-cultural rituals:

Ritual - getting rid of the "evil eye"

Oil and water

Molten metal in water lead cast for evil eye🧿

-Talking about non-competitive games.

Games as stories and rituals as stories

games mentioned: journey, florence & abzu(the going underwater one), beyond blue, stela, gris (beautiful example of emotions in games), limbo, unfinished swan, mutazione

-Whats up with rituals and games? https://excalidraw.com/#room=7d7ab60fb62fe73f28d7,dDiXQk6BtADXBOTxdFK0pw

Sesh#3

pad:https://pad.xpub.nl/p/23012023

-Base and Superstructure- Where does media stand?

I really enjoyed talking about social reproduction and trying to tie this to past and present. Did some further reading:

https://www.rs21.org.uk/2019/05/27/a-gamers-guide-to-social-reproduction/

https://solidarity.net.au/long-reads/social-reproduction-theory-and-fighting-oppression/

Sesh#4

What is grief?

-Dissecting ideology in games

Papa Louis

PROMPTS for dissecting ideology in Papa Louie

1. What are the win conditions?

You need to fight the pizza monster, get enough pizza to free people from a cage

2. If the game is quest based, what types of quest are you asked to complete?

The pizza quest to save your clients

3. What is the game play?

You kill tomatoes and onions and mini sandwiches collect coins and lives(hearts), you can buy pepper shakers which are bombs

4. What is the narrative?

Papa louie has a pizzeria and his employee delivers monster pizzas that lead you to a different world, you are papa and you have to go to people’s houses, enter the haunted pizza and go save them from their cages and the pizza monster.

5. What is the mythology?

6. How much space is there for alternative ways of playing this game?

Not many, you can not collect coins and not buy pepper and just use your hammer. But it is linear cannot go forward or back.

7. What is missing?

Nothing this is perfect, why is he papa if he has no children, is he papa of pizza? Is the delivery

guy his child?

8. What type of relationships are you allowed to form?

None, only business

9. What is the role of non-player characters?

Passive, thanking you for saving them

10. What are the requirements for surviving the game?

Fightin

11. Which behaviors are rewarded?

Fighting and escaping, pizza eating

From Steve:

12. What real world values are reproduced in the game you are playing?

fighting to survive; facing enemies and trying to win the fight; you exchange money to get goods (in this case bombs);

13. How are you situated in the hierarchy of the game?

n/a

14. What change in status is promised?

no physical/status change is visible but you are the hero

15. What are you being trained for?

fighting; killing pizza monsters, onions, and tomatoes; freeing people; practical (strategic) thinking, practical skills typing, working with a keyboard (tactile)

16. What fantasies are lived out or explored?

being able to save people;

being the hero;

being stronger then something (someone) else;

you level up; advancing the more time and effort you put forth

sense of accomplishment.

Sesh#5

pad:https://pad.xpub.nl/p/6022023

Individual Tutorials with Artemis and Lidia.

"Gaming is a crucial part of contemporary culture: If the truly dedicated fascists could be rooted out of gaming communities, it would be a huge blow to the current wave of far-right organizing. Yet Twitter, YouTube, Discord, Twitch, and the other gaming-related platforms where fascists thrive have been infamously slow to respond to this threat."

Sesh#6

pad:https://pad.xpub.nl/p/13022023

Introduction to witches: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6zZOpR77bQ

Who are witches?

-women who are poor and ask for help\marginalized women

-Depending on the country and time period. They werent killed because they were few people. They were punished for practicing older religions. Interesting how we talk about this fron the hunters perspective

-This is the matter of how history is constructed.

-most of the writing is done by men so what these witches did is a mystery also.

-there is one alchemy book written by women at these times but these spells are like how to make toothpaste or shampoo etc.

-healing

Sesh#7

pad:https://pad.xpub.nl/p/20022023

Active Listening

Suzan (by Ada)

Ada agrees with everything that Suzan said. You cannot yet talk about very clear ideas.

you did find digging into tarot interesting. how tarot are connecting to healing and the sense of beloning.

would like to deal with the public space. the symbolism, the person the culture. how people can bond and heal together than one to one. wants to focus on the collective aspect. why do people want clarity in their future? more interested in tarot cards than games

? how do you think the collective work on what we did (prototype ada + suzan)

- huge community that was in need to move on.

in my culture dont do personal work this intensely. so it was nice to see that this was also something we can do. about not understanding the need to know the future. can you expand on that?

- there are different things that pull you in the tarot reading. you cant control the future. knowing about these choices is more stressful than not knowing.

where does this need come from? how it became from card games to this? to use this as an oracle?

Common keywords in the end for everyone:

Collective healing

Feedback loops

How can it be used collectively? Instead of personally.

Performance

Grounded to reality

Hybrid publication, no workshop.

Sesh#8

HOLİDACE

Sesh#9

pad: https://pad.xpub.nl/p/6032023

I really wanted to make a witch boardgame (because divination board was very fun to make and I had some other ideas as well) with modern life witches. Using social reproduction theory as a starting point, I wanted to research how the title of "witch" changed throughout the centuries.

~*~* Ultimate interactive 1001 Items of Agony - Collectors edition *~*~

What should be in the box?

- (several) board(s)

- Cards

- stories based on tetris

- escape the witchhunter-choose your witch wisely (hybrid)x

-little witch board game? collect little objects and choose your own way to die

- oracle cards

- documentation writing

-coloring page

- content page

- essay about papa louie

- sims (costum content) sticker downloadable content

- pacifist fortnite

- essays: including (essay on the history of card games and tarot decks)

- and with CD included(soundtrack)

- how to deal with grief? papa louie's story

- stories - text adventure games (how to put digital things in a box? maybe if PNF is the box)

- youtube comment readings?

- hologram poems? energy - crystals

- worry doll

- base and superstructure jump game

- descriptive list off all the items in the list

material objects:

-little bags

-cardboard

-plasticky thing

-magnet?for?fun

In the end of this class, I was pretty sure about what I wanted to include.

Sesh#10

Pad: https://pad.xpub.nl/p/13032023

Prototyping and the making of cards and board for the box. Aglaia and my ideas were quite similiar so we decided to join forces.

Collage cards prototype

storytelling board/cards with 4 categories (the character, the object, the place and the enemy). Max 10 characters from both past & present. 10 different places (either real or fantastic). 3 players. You choose character, place and object. witchunting today - what would it look like? tool to introduce what is happening. connected to own experience, culture, etc.

We begin prototyping this game with Aglaia but it became too complicated and imposiible to fit in this timeline. So we decided to leave the board behind and go with the card game.

Sesh#11

pad:https://pad.xpub.nl/p/20032023

Lunch ritual

Aglaia and I prepared our cards as a prototype but still had to figure out a tecnique to play.

Began writing on the history of tarot , gossip, worry dolls, youtube tarot and coffee ritual.

Also, the delicious lunh ritual!

Sesh#12

Lasercutting prototypes

big plans coming along:

https://excalidraw.com/#room=f6da38a5f9da91690d6e,1Ki94OUqGDPgqK_HU53Y7g

Prototyping

Sesh#2

Watched at home: http://www.getlamp.com/ Text based LAN party, played text based games LOVED IT! While loops else if

Tried my own, based on the strikes and women strike leaders named Rose and Clara.

Textbased game on strikes

"Bread and Roses

As we come marching, marching, in the beauty of the day, A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill-lofts gray Are touched with all the radiance that a sudden sun discloses, For the people hear us singing, "Bread and Roses, Bread and Roses."

As we come marching, marching, we battle, too, for men For they are women's children and we mother them again. Our days shall not be sweated from birth until life closes Hearts starve as well as bodies: Give us Bread, but give us Roses.

As we come marching, marching, unnumbered women dead Go crying through our singing their ancient song of Bread; Small art and love and beauty their trudging spirits knew Yes, it is Bread we fight for but we fight for Roses, too.

As we come marching, marching, we bring the Greater Days The rising of the women means the rising of the race. No more the drudge and idler ten that toil where one reposes But a sharing of life's glories: Bread and Roses, Bread and Roses.

James Oppenheim, 1911."

Sesh#3

Talked about mud servers and improved our games with navigations and rooms. Used JSON files. Taking items and making inventories

Sesh#4

turning a list into a string (spliti)

Sesh#5

Improved our modded games.

Sesh#6

Intro to JS. Was very intense to be honest. Generating Tarot cards with Python. Made clicker games!

Sesh#7

HOLIDACE

Sesh#8

HOLIDACE

html snapshot of the web to print cards

The python code to print the cards

Sesh#9

Generated a web to print page on python for our collage cards to go to the box with Joseph.

Sesh#10

jason file becoming handy

Tested out prints and made css for our cards. Scanned and uploaded images, resized.

Sesh#11

Production mode

Production mode on

Did screenprinting for the book cover and the box with Cara.

Research Methods

Sesh#2

pad:https://pad.xpub.nl/p/MarxMethods18-1 Discussed Base and Superstructure Ruling class and ruling ideas Ideology Contemporary forms of Marxist analysis (such as 'social reproduction theory' which asks "how does society reproduce itself?) draw on the key ideas established in this paper. (see Well Played)

Ideology is not just someone imposing ideas on us (which we may or may not disagree with) ideology is invisible; disguised in plain sight; it is that which we take to be 'normal'

Made me think further on hegemony and multipolar world theory. Analized a tradition from our culture: WEDDINGS Traditional Wedding State Wedding Where? Marriage department of the state or municipality. The couple takes an appointment and is given a date and time for the marriage. They go and sign the papers with two witnesses. The wedding happens afterwards and people are invited to celebrate. So the wedding is a just a celebration for what happens at the municipality. You have to give a health report, criminal record, fingerprints and photos.

When? Anytime after the state recognizes the request.

How? Couple of days before the wedding, the groom’s family visits the bride’s family and asks the fathers permission. During this visit, the bride makes Turkish coffee for everyone, serves first to her father then to the other father and then to the groom… The bride puts salt in groom’s coffee and serves it like that. He needs to drink this without saying anything to show his devotion and “understanding” to his wife. Then the father asks for the other fathers’ permission by saying “By the command of my god with the words of our prophet I ask your permission to have your daughter for our son” The rings are given at this point not at the wedding. and both fathers cut the ribbon that ties the two rings together.

Then they depart. Before the wedding day, the groom’s family and friends come to the bride’s family house with a traditional music band. The groom goes up the stairs and knocks the door to take the bride out from her “father’s house”. The closest relative (sister or brother to the bride) answers the door and it takes a while and an amount of money for them to open the door and let the bride out, which symbolizes that she is hard to get. Then the bride comes out and they dance on the street wıth everyone else who is present, which usually is the whole neighborhood. Usually at this point the bride cries and hugs her father and mother, representing her depart from the family household. Then they take the bride to a henna and the groom to get ready. During the henna, some traditional songs are sang and dances are performed which results in the bride and mother crying again. Its considered out of tradition if the bride doesn’t cry. Then women help her get ready for the wedding. Her hands are marked with henna and has her veil in front of her face. She wears a red ribbon around her waist, representing her virginity. Then they proceed with the wedding.

Who? At the wedding, there are many people. Most of the neighborhood arrives. An officer from the marriage department of state arrives. This officer is either male or female but they have the authority to declare them married. Depending on the officer, either this part goes very fast or sometimes they choose to give advice to the couple, tell some stories about love and then proceed with the typical ceremony. The speech goes: “According to the states research, there was no exception in your marriage. I have been assigned to marry you with the authority given to me. In good times and bad, in health, in sickness, in wealth, in poverty, do you count forever and accept as your wife without any influence?”

Yes or no

Then the officer proceeds with asking the witness if they are in favor of this marriage. If they say yes the officer gets their signatures and says: “I now pronounce you men and wife, you may kiss the bride.” Then the groom opens the veil and kisses the bride usually on the forehead. Then they give the marriage document to the bride. Gold and money is given to bride and groom. Traditional dances are made depending on the place they are at. After the ceremony, the family usually checks if the bride was a virgin. This is a part of the traditional ritual. The groom leaves the stained sheet by the door. This is less common nowadays, at least in modern cities as we know of. Authority? The officer and the witnesses. Who is excluded? Women and religious representatives.

Imam Wedding Imam is present. He is the authority and is representing god. The ceremony is in Arabic or translated in Turkish and takes 10 minutes. There is one witness and usually no audience. There are different rules of marriage regarding the age and relativeness to the bride as long as it is not considered as a sin in Kuran. To divorce after a imam wedding, the men needs to say “divorce” three times and that is it. This type of marriage is accepted ethically and is quite common. But it is not supported by many people in big cities.

where is the game in these rituals?

roles rules fun agreement emotionally driven semiotic points or levels you have in a game, compared to the wealt and equity of the people who are to be married. hierarchy

Sesh#3

pad:https://pad.xpub.nl/p/25012023Methods We played online games we used to play when we were kids and analized how the consumerism or gender roles are a part of these and how it affected our development.

A little dig to Gramsci: what does Chat Open AI say about Gramsci on ideology?

Antonio Gramsci was an Italian Marxist philosopher and political theorist who developed the concept of "ideology" in a unique way. He argued that ideology is not just a set of beliefs or ideas, but is also deeply embedded in social and cultural practices. He also argued that ideology is not just imposed from above by ruling classes, but is also produced and reproduced by the actions and practices of individuals and groups in society. Gramsci developed the concept of "hegemony" to describe how ruling classes maintain their dominance over society. Hegemony refers to the way in which the ruling class imposes its ideas and values on society through various means such as the media, education, and culture. According to Gramsci, the ruling class uses its control over these institutions to create a "common sense" or a shared understanding of the world that supports its interests. Gramsci also argued that the working class can also develop its own counter-hegemony or its own ideas, values, and practices that challenge the dominant ideology. This counter-hegemony can be developed through a process of "cultural mobilization" which involves the working class creating its own cultural and intellectual institutions that promote its own ideas and values. In summary, for Gramsci, ideology is not just a set of beliefs but it is a complex system of ideas, values and practices that are deeply embedded in society and it is also a product of the struggle between different groups in society for control over the meaning of the world.

Sesh#4

Papa Louie's Ghosteria and stages of grief

Worked on remaking and dissecting Papa Louie as a fight for grief. The grief of losing identity.

Sesh#5

pad:https://pad.xpub.nl/p/15-02-23Methods Youtube Tarot on production: What?: Tarot decks based on online YouTube Tarot reading channels (and the comments users leave). Board-based tarot reading. Elements: - divination board -three decks of cards (love-luck-work). Total= nine cards and a board. Three archetypes within the Love Luck Work cards. Love (the Best Friend, the Mother, the Widow/er)-Luck(++)-Work (the Nurse, the Farmer and John McClane) cards.

How?: Aim for end of day= the board + three different cards. Aim to provide proof of concept by Monday. Why?: hope to influence people (on line) Tarot reading services ddress specific needs= safe space, offers understanding, hope, community, structure, time frame (action plan).

(Merch from these sites= cards, private readings, ads, hoodies, crystals elements: cards, reading, comments. reading past; present; future)

Sesh#6

pad: https://pad.xpub.nl/p/Methods15323 Writing an intro for CONSOLE. Material for PNF. Decided on our articles and what goes to the book.

Console is an oracle; an emotional first aid kit that helps you help yourself. Console invites you to: open the box and discover ways of healing; Console provides shelter for your dreams, memories and worries. Face the past and encounter your fortune. Console gives you a new vantage point; a set of rituals and practices that help you cope and care; Console asks everyday questions that give magical answers. Are you ready to play?

Aglaia and I worked on our game idea, tried to materialize it. pad: https://pad.xpub.nl/p/witchgame

What is the aim?

-witch-hunting board-game -Which kind of women would be hunted? -references to political events of the near past (protests&elections&such) -cards about collective memory/trauma, reclaiming, modding the bourgeoisie tarot, maybe spaces (like panopticon, magical objects, enemies and creatures? -story telling game, 4 decks, 20 cards:

1. character (ex. body) 2.object 3.place 4.creature

1. virginia woolf 2. molotov 3. panopticon 4. demon

1. place 2. person 3. object 4. creature

-is it meaningful to make a story? ex. Virginia Woolf in a foreign protest, mix the context to form a tarot story. what are the possibilities and obstacles that she could face today? Are the hunters the police? The state? -5 cards per character, a deck for each, reveal the deck

http://www.jenkruch.com/tarot

Write 5 stories by S and A- in the manual when playing

Rory Story Cubes: https://www.storycubes.com/en/

Collage Cards

Sesh#7

pad: https://pad.xpub.nl/p/22032023 Table of contents and editing time! Yay!

Readings

-https://www.researchgate.net/publication/254006015_A_narrative_theory_of_games • "The Ruling Class and the Ruling Ideas" by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, Chapter 1, p.9-13 • "Well Played" by Vicky Osterweil • 'Notes on Deconstructing The Popular' by Stuart Hall • 'Political Ritual and Social Integration' by Steven Lukes • 'Game Modding: Cross-Over Mutation and Unwelcome Gifts' from "The Player’s Power to Change the Game" by Anne-Marie Schleiner • 'The Culture Industry: Enlightenment as Mass Deception' from "Dialectic of Enlightenment" by Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer • "Base and Superstructure in Marxist Cultural Theory" by Raymond Williams • 'Encoding, Decoding' by Stuart Hall • "Digital play: the interaction of technology, culture, and marketing" by Stephen Kline, Nick Dyer-Witheford, Greig de Peuter -"Witches, Witch-Hunting, and Women" by Silvia Federici ( https://reallifemag.com/well-played-imagined-homeland/

-https://www.liberationschool.org/base-superstructure-introduction/
-https://www.geopolitika.ru/en/article/counter-hegemony-theory-multipolar-world
=https://www.slideshare.net/ana.cascao/cascao-model-hegemony-counter-hegemony-poster-presentation

Console!

Special issue twentee

Contents

Special Issue Twentee-Candles, Tarot & Joysticks

Sesh#1

Sesh#2

Sesh#3

Sesh#4

Sesh#5

Sesh#6

Sesh#7

Sesh#8

Sesh#9

Sesh#10

Sesh#11

Sesh#12

Prototyping

Sesh#2

Sesh#3

Sesh#4

Sesh#5

Sesh#6

Sesh#7

Sesh#8

Sesh#9

Sesh#10

Sesh#11

Research Methods

Sesh#2

Sesh#3

Sesh#4

Sesh#5

Sesh#6

Sesh#7

Readings