Methods
1st Trimester
Anotating the Intro of Queer Phenomenology
with Carmen, Chae and Miriam
Discussing the text with chae in an experiental approach, having just arrived in Rotterdam and trying to orientate in a very different context.
Trying to read the text through our experiences
"...this is interesting approach, because as a person who just moved here, I feel like I am disoriented in many ways, my habits, my interest, and also how I navigate within this world."
From text
"...A direction is also something one gives. When you tell someone who is lost how to find their way, you give them directions to help them on their way. When you give an order or an instruction (especially a set of instructions guiding the use of equipment) you give directions. Directions are instructions about ‘‘where,’’ but they are also about ‘‘how’’ and ‘‘what’’: directions take us somewhere by the very requirement that we follow a line that is drawn in advance. A direction is thus produced over time; a direction is what we are asked to follow. The etymology of ‘‘direct’’ relates to ‘‘being straight’’ or getting ‘‘straight to the point.’’ To go directly is to follow a line without a detour, without mediation. Within the concept of direction is a concept of ‘‘straightness.’’ To follow a line might be a way of becoming straight, by not deviating at any point..."
queer phenomenology annotation pad
Glossary of Interconnected Keywords
with Chae, Kimberley and Jian
Collective experiment on giving our definitions to keywords that are inteconnected to each other.
glossary of interconnected keywords
SYNOPSIS
trans*re*lationality inter-relation several different "definitions" for the same notion use the lexicon to help navigation through the reader
multiple orders and entry points a "definition" can be an image, a text to complete, a performance, a piece of code, a personal anecdote, a manipulated text etc the different "definitions" have the power to change the story
"definitions" of political notions that also change in time https://www.politicalconcepts.org/ https://www.politicalconcepts.org/occupation-jacques-ranciere/ -----> Definition of occupation by Ranciere use the house of dust code to create a malleable definition
Ways of "defining" a notion:
1. house of dust 2. personal anecdote 3. image? visual thinking/ association of images / linking between different images 4. body languages sensory definitions? sound> sing bowl > share a sensory experience to define a notion 5. translation language (vernacular, academic, english, phonetics etc) sound of words that one can't understand could sometimes be self-explanatory 6. write a poem 7. … 8. … 9. …
This reader has no form yet. It could be a book, a website, an exhibition, a map etc. Keep that in mind! This reader is a lexicon that can be seen as a map. It can be accessed from any entry point, there is not start, no end, the reader can create their own path by using the links to jump between the definitions (or not). In this reader, each notion is being defined several times by the readers following different methods (house of dust, personal anecdote, excerpts from the text itself, image, translation, etc.) The various definitions offer our perspectives on those texts.
Keywords/ lexicon:
1. Navigation 2. Orientation 3. Structure 4. Book 5. Darkness 6.Destination
Aside (these are notes for a general overview): [this reader (title)] presents different ways of reading and writing which are approached from different directions. It is a performative, navigable text. The readers and the text changes as we use them. The reader includes transformations, translations and re-mediations of existing texts. It is accesible from many points of departure and ever-evolving.
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1. Navigation <moving towards a destination inside a defined space. Navigation is different than the words wandering ( derive in french), which are connected with the desire to create spaces by moving. derives from the latin word navigare, "to sail, sail over, go by sea, steer a ship," (this may imply that navigation derives from and is connected to a maritime economy) <in greek : πλοηγώ which means "to be a navigator and to drive a ship with knowledge into unknown and dangerous waters <https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=navigation
the word 'navigation' is a cousin of the word 'orientation', you have an intention when you navigate, it involves moving(conceptually or physically)
https://hub.xpub.nl/soupboat/~kimberley/Untitled.html Use the 'house of dust' model to make a collage of several texts
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2. Orientation
the word 'orientation' don't necessarily involve moving, one might have no intention when orient
"objects and spaces are orientated"
Queer Phenomenology, Sara Ahmed
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3. Structure
1) Stand in position 2) Jump 3) Stand still 4) (If there is a ground) Lie down 5) (If there is a wall) Put your body onto the wall 1) Come back where you started
Deleuze and Guattari introduce A Thousand Plateaus by outlining the concept of the rhizome (quoted from A Thousand Plateaus):
1 and 2. Principles of connection and heterogeneity: "...any point of a rhizome can be connected to any other, and must be"; 3. Principle of multiplicity: it is only when the multiple is effectively treated as a substantive, "multiplicity", that it ceases to have any relation to the One; 4. Principle of asignifying rupture: a rhizome may be broken, but it will start up again on one of its old lines, or on new lines; 5 and 6. Principles of cartography and decalcomania: a rhizome is not amenable to any structural or generative model; it is a "map and not a tracing". They elaborate in the same section, "What distinguishes the map from the tracing is that it is entirely oriented toward an experimentation in contact with the real."
Eros in the Library, Melissa Adler
<the word structure creates a certain image of my mind. An unfinished building - "under construction", loud and annoying sounds of machines, metal and concrete. That way I can witness the structure of an object before it reach its final form-destination. When something is finished, proper and whole can hide its structure.
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4. BOOK
A BOOK IS THE PHYSICAL SUPPORT OF TEXT
USING A RECOMBINANT STRUCTURE
TO PROVIDE SEQUENTIAL
NAVIGATION
A BOOK IS AN ARCHIVE
USING WORDS
TO PROVIDE ISOLATED
KNOWLEDGE
A BOOK IS A PORTABLE DATA STORAGE
USING NODES AND LINKS
TO PROVIDE PERFORMATIVE
TRUTH
A BOOK IS A SEQUENCE OF MOMENTS
USING NODES AND LINKS
TO PROVIDE PERFORMATIVE
MEANING
A BOOK IS A SEQUENCE OF MOMENTS
USING LAYERS
TO PROVIDE CERTAIN
NAVIGATION
A BOOK IS AN INTIMATE SPACE
USING JUXTAPOSITIONS
TO PROVIDE RANDOM
INFORMATION
A BOOK IS AN ARTIFACT
USING A SYSTEM OF KNOTTED STRINGS
TO PROVIDE NAVIGATIONAL
NEGOTIATION
A BOOK IS AN INTIMATE SPACE
USING A RECOMBINANT STRUCTURE
TO PROVIDE PRECISE
THOUGHTS
A BOOK IS AN EVENT
USING NODES AND LINKS
TO PROVIDE SEQUENTIAL
ACCESS
A BOOK IS AN INTERFACE
USING ANY NUMBERS OF PHYSICAL FORMS
TO PROVIDE ISOLATED
KNOWLEDGE
A BOOK IS A SEQUENCE OF ROOMS
USING INTERCONNECTIONS
TO PROVIDE CERTAIN
NEGOTIATION
A BOOK IS AN OBJECT
USING LAYERS
TO PROVIDE SPECIFIC
KNOWLEDGE
A BOOK IS A SEQUENCE OF MOMENTS
USING A SYSTEM OF KNOTTED STRINGS
TO PROVIDE SPECIFIC
MEANING
A Book is a physical/non-physical object that can help you get out of darkness, navigate around the world, one might discover one's sexual orientation! A book can be your best friend, or can be a powerful sleeping pill.
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5. Darkness
Land of Silence and Darkness, Werner Herzog
an object that is really soft and fluffy fur, airy cloth in black/grayish)
Tino Sehgal – This Variation First performed in 2012 at Documenta 13 in Kassel
Back in 2012 I went to Documenta 13 in Kassel with a group other students from art academy. At some point we went to the Tino Sehgals piece "This variation" that was performed in the Hugenottenhaus. As a group of five we were allowed to enter a room that was pitch black. I could neither see my own hand nor the people that were supposed to stand close to me. I tried to walk a few steps to move away from the entrance, but I instantly felt an enormous insecurity: A level of disorientation I never experienced before. So I decided to just stand there and wait, hoping to find any markers in my surroundings that would help me to get orientated. Suddenly I noticed noises, other people breathing, moving around the room, wispering. How were they able to orientate in this darkness? […]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSBVEjwVy_0 song: the darkness from "Crazy ex-girlfriend" Rebecca: IN MY LIFE I'VE HAD SO MANY MEN BUT THERE'S ONE I COME BACK TO AGAIN AND AGAIN WE'VE BEEN ON AND OFF FOR SUCH A LONG TIME AND NOW HE'S BACK AND I'M FEELING OH-SO-FINE
HE'S THE DARKNESS MY FIRST LOVE, MY TRUE LOVE THE DARKNESS HE KNOWS ME BETTER THAN ANYONE HE HOLDS ME CLOSE AND WHISPERS THINGS THAT I DON'T WANT TO HEAR WHEN I FEEL THE BUTTERFLIES OF DREAD I KNOW THE DARKNESS IS NEAR
WE MET AROUND THE TIME I STARTED FIRST GRADE EVERY SUMMER AFTER THAT WE'D PLAY SOLITAIRE IN THE SHADE ON PROM NIGHT HE WAS THE ONLY BOY I KISSED AND WHEN HE'D VISIT MY DORM I REMEMBERED HOW MUCH I'D MISS
THE DARKNESS HIS LOVE FOR ME IS PURE THE DARKNESS HE'S HANDSOME FOR A METAPHOR AND HIS NAME IS... TYLER YEAH, THAT FEELS RIGHT HIS NAME IS TYLER HE DRUNK DIALS ME EVERY NIGHT TYLER, TYLER, TYLER YOUR KISS FEELS LIKE A CUT YOU PLAY DRUMS AND WEAR GUYLINER AND YOUR PET NAME FOR ME IS "SLUT"
FOR SO MANY YEARS I'VE USED THE DARKNESS TO FEEL BUT NOW THERE ARE THINGS IN MY LIFE THAT ARE ACTUALLY REAL I GOTTA MAKE A CHOICE, DARLIN' DON'T ASK ME WHY SO WILL I HAVE THE STRENGTH TO TELL THE DARKNESS TO TELL TYLER DARKNESS GOODBYE?
6.Destination
side-note: what would happen if we use 'darkness' as a verb
2nd Trimester
Noise cancelling devices with kamo, chae and erica
https://pad.xpub.nl/p/noice_cancelling_devices_turns_off_also_your_inner
From pad
NOISE CANCELLING MAGIC https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNK4Wc3-Ij4 (Noise Cancelling Heaphones Experiment)
BACKGROUND
"세상에 혼자 있는 기분"이라거나 "우주 공간으로 날아간 기분" -> Feel like I am alone in this world / Feels like over the moon-in the space Review of Noise cancelling headphones
In Seoul, the city is super noisy and very crowded. You are constantly surrounded by all the mass/mess. So by having a noise-cancelling headphone, it allows you to make a personal space. Having a personal space was not a key concept in conventional history. For example, the door knob/ door is a very Western concept. By closing a door meaning having a private space.
private space as privilege -> maybe even the most privileged ppl in back in the days, did not have personal spaces... idk(need more research)
I think this shows the recent tendency of ppl feeling tired of life, constantly surrounded by unwanted stimuli.
"How people are using noise cancelling to settle in the silence and revel in the sounds." Real stories of people tuning in or out to feel peace, find escape, and for self-care.
"Work from home like a boss" BOSE Website: https://www.bose.com/en_us/products/headphones/noise_cancelling_headphones.html
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how can we distinguish the material functioning from the ideological functioning? see also "perfomative materiality and theoretical approach to interfaces" by Johanna Drucker
ANC(Active Noise Control):
Active noise control (ANC), also known as noise cancellation (NC), or active noise reduction (ANR), is a method for reducing unwanted sound by the addition of a second sound specifically designed to cancel the first. The concept was first developed in the late 1930s; later developmental work that began in the 1950s eventually resulted in commercial airline headsets with the technology becoming available in the late 1980s. The technology is also used in road vehicle and in mobile telephones.
noise-cancelling headphones: Noise-cancelling headphones are headphones that reduce unwanted ambient sounds using active noise control. This is distinct from passive headphones which, if they reduce ambient sounds at all, use techniques such as soundproofing. (wiki)
how does it work? A microphone captures the targeted ambient sounds, and a small amplifier generates sound waves that are exactly out of phase with the undesired sounds. When the sound pressure of the noise wave is high, the cancelling wave is low (and vice versa). The opposite sound waves collide and are eliminated or "cancelled". (wiki) what are the premises for its functioning and for its development?
the noise reduction probably started from the desire to record sound to achieve the most accurate copy of the “original”.
"Throughout the history of sound reproduction, efforts to prevent, reduce, or eliminate all of the noise and distortion produced by sound media were a major concern for inventors, engineers, and developers; and the myth of perfect fidelity, based on the ideal of the vanishing mediator, retained a strong appeal. From the standpoint of noise reduction practices, noise and distortion are inherently negative and disruptive. As the conceptual genealogy provided in the previous chapter makes clear, however, the fight against noise and distortion ultimately amounts to an interminable game of cat and mouse. First come innovations in sound definition. It then emerges, however, that the new technologies affect the sounds they reproduce, often in unforeseen ways, which in turn demand new measures for preventing, reducing, or otherwise eliminating these effects." ---------> at some point when engineers try to clean a certain sound from the noise they end up altering the sound. Because 🤯 noise is fundamental to the sound. 🤯
"Everyone who is serious about music should buy a pair of noise cancelling headphones. You may be an audiophile, or you may be someone who doesn't want to think too much about your headphones. Either way, noise cancelling headphones are purpose-built for destroying outside noise, and they're really good at it."
soundguys.com
it relies on 1 the idea that the high fidelity reproduction of music (or every cultural object) is something always desirable. 2 that a cultural object is detached from the world where it comes from. 3 that contamination between the piece and the soundscape is something that impoverish and not enrich it.
this is great!! sorry for intervening
- an object for a single user fruition
- and by removing significative manifestation of the world it enforces a concept of individuality
- its functioning supposes a center and a rest of the world (well, 👂 two centers 👂)
- it reminds me about the visual critics about linear perspective and how occidental visual culture is embedded with anthropocentric premises.
more about it here >>> https://www.e-flux.com/journal/24/67860/in-free-fall-a-thought-experiment-on-vertical-perspective/
- this devices make no distinction between sound and noise, in fact it treat everything as noise,
- ideology and narratives: it's difficult to think about ideology without casting new ideologies on things ? i mean it's always a matter of encoding / decoding signs: re enchanting objects with our ideologies
what does it cancel? it cancels the lower frequencies for cutting specific sound that are perceived as noise. but...
it's an objects that makes self-isolation not only possible but also desirable:
- how does it materially work? it registers the frequencies of the surroundings and reproduces them but inverted, so to neutralize the formers - what does imply?
+ that there is a noisy background + that this noisy background is to be rejected for various reason in various occasions (to improve attention/concentration, to filter too many inputs, to ... etc) + that you don't have power on silencing your surrounding by interacting directly with it (passively)
to certain extent the noise cancelling headphones make me thing of false consciousness the most, because it seems super normal to use them in very chaotic environments as they offer a very quick and normalized solution. at the same time they are an object that could turn out handy in situations where an high performance is required. I'm thinking about the optimization of productivity, but also the example of the guy in the spectrum of autism whose well-being is not sought by intervening on the cause of extra-inputs but on the immediate-temporary filtering of those. yes, in the end, i think the point of this device is that its design, development and functioning are soaked of a certain ideology to the extent that by not intervening directly on the causes of noise while filtering noise for a person, it can be repurposed in a world in which the responsibilities for solving a problem are dropped on the individuals, that the solving of this problem is temporary, but that this temporary solution is normal and preferable because the environment is immutable.
+ they might be used in open offices where employees work really close the one to the other in order to reduce the sound and be more productive.
+ machines as computers, fridges or other people working may produce low frequency sound, that is perceived as noise and then it is cut out. But why exactly are they cut out?
+ in several contexts the female sound frequencies have been perceived as noise.
So another important question is what range of frequencies is perceived as noise from the designer of a product and what is the filtering of this noise.
safety measures from extreme environments (WDKA wood workshop, factories, planes, ) applied to everyday life
it works on perception, it doesn't affect the sources it implies that your surroundings are immutable, and therefore it validates them
making the Glossary of productive play with everyone in class
Pad
https://pad.xpub.nl/p/02022022
Wiki entry
https://pzwiki.wdka.nl/mediadesign/Glossary_of_productive_play
- What is a loot box? with everyone in class
https://pad.xpub.nl/p/16022022-ste<3
Excerpt from the pad
2022/02/16 Reading + Writing with Steve Steve writes: Thanks for this: we read through the wiki and through this pad = thanks so much for your suggestions and ideas
ideas for the lootbox: https://pzwiki.wdka.nl/mediadesign/Future_Loot_Box time schedule proposal: https://hub.xpub.nl/soupboat/pad/p/si17-overall game playlist: https://pzwiki.wdka.nl/mediadesign/Game_Playlist al's pad: https://pad.xpub.nl/p/alnik-si17-research
proposal for todays questions:
1. what are the characteristics of the lootbox? do we all agree on those? can we sharpen them? (based on yesterdays class, see list below) 2. what characteristic do we want to subvert? how? 3. who is the audience?
Player POV Developer POV Ideology POV
subvert /səbˈvəːt/ verb gerund or present participle: subverting undermine the power and authority of (an established system or institution). to overturn or overthrow from the foundation : RUIN to pervert or corrupt by an undermining of morals, allegiance, or faith When you subvert something, your words or actions criticize or undermine the usual way of doing something or common values. The girl who wears a tuxedo to the prom might subvert traditional ideas about beauty. To subvert an institution like a school or a government is to overthrow it or stop its normal way of functioning. Subvert comes from the Latin word subvertere, which combines the prefix sub, under, and the suffix vertere, to turn. So you can imagine something that subverts as overturning or flipping the usual way of doing things, like a student who subverts a teacher's authority, causing chaos in the classroom.
Examples of Subvert in a sentence In the movie, the rebels sought to subvert the tribunal’s power and replace the body with a democratic government. My stepmother is slowly changing things in our house in an attempt to subvert my mother’s traditions. Since the prince was in a hurry to become king, he planned to subvert his father’s influence by convincing everyone the leader was insane. The dictator ordered the execution of every insurgent who sought to subvert his authority. When the first mate tried to subvert the captain’s position, he was thrown overboard.
OUR DEFINITION OF SUBVERT taking something and making you own but also a bit of not conflictive way if we want to subvert the lootbox, how it is used in a manipulated way make fun of it __CANWEDISCUSS at some point__, change it, turning it around intention to reveal / question the mechanisms of the lootbox part of the loot box is that it keeps a secret chenging the context but not the functionality, it doesn't transform everything There are multiple ways/strategies to subvert something change direction or orientation of something
CHOOSE WHAT TO SUBVERT with a purpose
we don't have to subvert everything
-- from yesterday , characteristics of the loot box--
cost (you pay for it) exclusivity (limited time frame to obtain it) collectionable (you can have more) surprise mechanism further additional investment ? creates a certain final fantasy/desire gambling? (investment will not probably come back, anticipation) exploitative addictiveness reward fun & funny the risk/ the pleasure => emotion / create strong emotional reaction..? i have a choice (kinda), i feel empowered that i have that choice emotional reasoning
11.45 - 11.50 (5 min) Describe the loot box in your own words 11.50 - 12.00 (10 min) Describe the connections you make of the different characteristics of the loot box 12.00 - 12.15 (15 min) Discuss all together 12:15 (10 mins) go through the future loot box wiki page
Gi: The loot box is a virtual feature players can purchase with real money in free-to-play games or full-price-games. It can be assumed to be a certain item or feature but is random to the player. The element of surprise is a highly appreciated aspect of the loot box. Because of the way this feature has been embedded in games, it has very real addictive mechanisms to it. Some players might even feel cornered into purchasing loot boxes as the game cannot reach its “full potential” without it. This repeated scheme ensures the constant spending of the players into virtual game currencies. (what is a loot box)
The context of the loot box is very demanding to the player, it is what motivates immediate irrational (can be rational in the context of the game) purchases. The urgency of a narrative, quest, social pressure or else can justify any loot boxes. The immediate reward makes it fun, the risk comes with pleasure. This thus combines cost, addictiveness, gambling, reward, fun. Strong emotional reactions are tied to finances. The surprise mechanism and exclusivity of the loot box creates a constant FOMO, the endless collecting potential of loot box creates fantasy needs for people to be exploited by the fun. The benefits for the game platforms are financial, for the player emotional. (connections of the loot box characteristics)
Carmen:
- The loot box is like a secret treasure that is usually not worth the money you pay for it, or the expectations you have for it, but that its somehow exciting. I think the addictiveness is very connected to the surprise mechanism, I think that anticipation moment is what is addictive. How that makes you feel. Anything is possible. Of course then you open it and its disappointing. But there is a moment before opening it when ANYTHING is possible. I like that state of being. Is like the cat in the box, is he dead is he alive, he is both until you open the box. In that sense, this feeling of excitement and anticipation could be related to the excitement of gambling.
I think the reward is also connected to the collectionable feature, you feel that even if you don't get exactly what you wish you will get something, so you feel somehow rewarded, and the fact that there are more tries available make this reward feeling safe, thus repeteable or collectionable.
Jian: The lootbox is a digital or physical box that contains random (or unknown) items. The box is embedded in a context (for example in the fictional world of a game). There are 2 main characteristics: – Payment – Surprise The main characteristics or mechanisms of the lootbox are the payment and the surprise. You don´t get it for free, and you dont know what you get. The combination of payment and surprise can have the following effects: gambling, addiction, pleisure, thrill, excitement, reward, disappointment, risk, ritual, exclusivity, time pressure, social pressure, desire, destiny, exploitation, FOMO etc.
Chae In video game, the loot box is a virtual object containing randomized items—from making your game character more unique to shifting the dynamic of game.
The loot box is 1) an entertaining element, keeping the players hooked to the game by using the element of surprise and; 2) a money-making mechanism in video game by using real world money to get it.
Mitsa 1. A loot box is a virtual box inside video games that provide a player with collectibles or essential items that make them progress inside the game. It derives from the loot, a bunch of goodies that a player can get as a reward after they conquer-win a super boss or level up. But the loot box in its more recent and exploitative version is getting purchased with real money from a player. The player never knows what is inside of it. But they know that there is a chance of getting some items that they desire. Many times a loot box appear in the gameplay and it disappears quickly in order to be exclusive and make the player buy them without thinking too much.
2. The loot box are designed for making profit and its latest form are getting purchased directly by the consumer. In order to be really essential for the player/consumer for keeping them more on the game and making them purchasing it again and again they are designed in order to be desirable. They are desirable because they create the chances that a player gets a really rare or powerful item out of them. But they are like gambling because the player doesn't know what is inside of it. They look like real gifts -they are closed boxes- but you purchase them for yourself. And at some point you get them as a reward after accomplishing a really heroic task. Also the fact that the loot boxes are rare makes them again desirable and put the player in a condition for purchasing them without thinking too much. This last characteristic is similar to the discount periods or black friday.
Supi 1. a loot box is a virtual box of hidden motives designed to persuade and/or trick players. an alternate reality experience of collecting things you can't own in real life 2. surprise that comes with consequences, risk, reward, trigger for addictive/toxic behavior
(answered the wrong question below) - surprise mechanism: how does exposing the inner workings and real motives of the loot box affect the players' behavior/decision making? looking under the hood - time: time constraint or the lack thereof: how this contributes to the risk/pleasure/adrenaline rush that comes with every loot box unlocking experience
flem 1. a virtual box where the user can pay and access products/items that can be useful to go on with the game, or can be collectable. This lottery box is based on a surprise and gambling mechanism, in which the user, excited for the "new-things-idea" would pay weird amounts of money to obtain something they have no idea about. a player pays real money to buy a virtual treasure box, HOPING it contains something valuable within the world of the game 2. no limitations (not good both for who is addicted or for children) the idea that you will get better if you buy one rewarding experience: you choose, you get something nice (idea of the gift to yourself), you have more power in the game (and in your life?) guaranteed reward in exchange of money (the characteristic that worries me the most is: game as escapism from the real life)
k.
1. A loot box is a gambling mechanism, exploitative by design, that promises immediate in-game rewards to the player. Those rewards can affect both the gameplay and the social environment around the game.
2.gambling (desire, surprise, fun, anticipation, risk) exploitative (designed to be addictive, target vulnerable player) immediate reward (hack the temporality of a game)
grgr The lootbox is a temporalized tool for the distribution and management of resources between the inside of the gameplay and the outside of the gameplay. Lootbox is like a pulse in the circulation of resources between virtual game and the reality ouside of it. Lootbox is temporalized because it sets the beat, it's a repetitive rhythm for the player's temporality. It builds an habit by triggering the attention and the emotional response of the player (surprise element + gambling + reward + it's fun), and ensuring that the player keeps playing potentially forever (from habit to addiction). The lootbox is also a mechanism that focuses on individual engagement, a personalized 1 to 1 interaction, or 1 to machine interaction. an immediately rewarding response preceeded by a generally customized trigger. but these are also the things I would like to change or make them fairer in our lootbox.
These two things are great= "They look like real gifts -they are closed boxes" & "hack the temporality of a game"
SUM UP (OUR CHARACTERISTICS OF A LOOT BOX): unknown items/closed boxes (a gift to yourself) surprise /excitement / emotional response gambling / risk /adrenaline immediate reward (hacks the temporality of a game) payment progress in the game exclusive (=fast-thinking) designed to be desiderable for vulnerable players FOMO rhythm: habit / ritual temporality: speed interfaces the game and the real world loot box as currency exchange (from game-coins or collectible items to "real money") lootbox needs a strong frame to work, a context, you approach it in relation to the narrative
1. loot box inside the game (that can be everywhere) 2. physical loot box
- Editing the "what is a loot box text in order to make it a content for the publication
https://pad.xpub.nl/p/loot.box.definition
Excerpt from markdown file
- A closed box with objects inside. - A digital or physical box. - A virtual box inside video games containing randomized items. - |-
A virtual box of hidden motives, designed to persuade and trick players.
- |-
A virtual box where the user can pay and access products. Those items can be useful to develop you character in the game or can be collectable.
- A lottery box. - |-
It looks like a real gift, but you purchase it for yourself.
- You choose it. - You get something nice.
- |-
A box embedded in a context.
- It works within the context of a game. - It works outside the context of a game. - When the game gets tough, the loot box offers you a shortcut.
- nw: Payment
se: Reward
- A virtual feature that players can purchase with real money. It is usually available in free-to-play games or full-price games. - "You don't get it for free, and you don't know what you get." - A promise for a virtual treasure that is purchased with real money. You buy a virtual treasure hoping it contains something valuable within the world of the game.
- Fast-thinking - It is what motivates immediate irrational purchases. - It can be rational in the context of the game. - A quest, narrative or social pressure can justify any loot box. - It appears and disappears quickly in order to seem exclusive. Thus, it makes the player buy it without thinking too much. - Time pressure creates artificial urgency (jeopardy).
- Excitement and anticipation - A feeling of excitement and anticipation could be related to the excitement of gambling. - You know that there is a chance of getting some items that you desire. - It is desirable because it creates rare chances to get powerful items. - It is like gambling because you anticipate what is inside.
- Surprise mechanism - The element of surprise is a highly appreciated aspect of the loot box. - A secret treasure that is not worth the money you pay for it, nor the expectations you have for it. However, that is somehow exciting. - |-
Addictiveness is connected to the surprise mechanism: the moment of anticipation is addictive. It makes you feel that anything is possible.
- "It's like the cat in the box: is she dead or is she alive? She is both until you open the box." - An entertaining element. - |-
It keeps the players hooked to the game by using an element of surprise.
- The player never knows what is inside of it. - |-
Surprise that comes with consequences.
- The immediate reward makes it fun. The risk comes with pleasure. - It derives from the loot, a bunch of goodies that you can get as a reward after you conquer a super boss or level up. - A reward after accomplishing a really heroic task. - An immediately rewarding response preceded by a generally customized trigger. - A guaranteed reward in exchange for money.
- Progress in the game - You have more power in the game. - Sometimes the game doesn’t reach its full potential without buying a loot box. That makes players feel compelled to make a purchase. - You will get better if you buy a loot box.
- sw: Emotional trigger
ne: Collectible item
- Strong emotional reactions are tied to the financial elements. - nw: Excitement
se: Disappointment
- ne: Desire
sw: Exploitation
- "Even if you don't get exactly what you wish for, you will get something, and you feel somehow rewarded." - Incremental rewards - It is disguised as safe and innocent. - You can keep opening loot boxes forever.
- It interfaces the game and the real world. - "It’s an alternate reality experience of collecting things you can't own in real life." - |-
It’s a pulse in the circulation of resources between a virtual game and the reality outside of it.
- Loot box as currency exchange - ne: Game coin
sw: Real money
- nw: Power-Up
se: Pleasure
- Designed to be addictive - Very real addictive mechanisms. - A repeated scheme that ensures constant spending into virtual game currencies. - Designed to be desirable and to be purchased again and again. - Some rewards are rare and that makes the loot box desirable. - It puts you in a condition for purchasing without thinking too much. - Its timespan is similar to the discount periods or Black Friday. - Looking under the hood. - |-
A trigger for addictive behaviour.
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A gambling mechanism, exploitative by design, that promises immediate in-game rewards to the player.
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The rewards of the loot box can affect both the gameplay and the social environment around the game.
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It sets the beat for repeated microtransactions.
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It's a repetitive rhythm for the player's temporality.
- It builds a habit by triggering the attention and the emotional response of the player. - "It's fun." - |-
It ensures that you keep playing potentially forever.
- From habit to addiction. - You pay money to obtain something new. - sw: Ritual
ne: Thrill
- nw: Risk
se: Destiny
- It hacks the temporality of a game. - |-
It allows you to customize your game character.
- It shifts the dynamics in the game. - |-
It provides you with collectables or power- ups that make you progress inside the game.
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A temporalized tool for the distribution and management of resources.
- The potentially endless collection creates artificial needs. - The benefits for you are emotional. The benefits for the game platforms are financial. - "A money-making mechanism that uses real-world money in video games' worlds."
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It targets vulnerable players.
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A trigger for addictive behaviour.
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A trigger for toxic behaviour.
- An escape from real life. - Fake promises.
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FOMO (fear of missing out)
- The surprise mechanism and exclusivity of the loot box creates a constant FOMO. - Peer pressure
- ne: Social pressure
sw: Individual engagement
- A personalized 1 to 1 interaction - 1 to machine interaction