Differentiating Serious, Persuasive, and Expressive Games
Keywords:
Video Games, Categorization, Serious Games, Persuasive Games, Expressives GamesAbstract
This article highlights the similarities and differences between “serious”, “persuasive” and “expressive” games. Since these categories rely on the developer’s intention and since this intention is not always clearly stated, I identify a series of textual and paratextual clues that might help the players in inferring the developer’s intention. To illustrate the idea that procedurality is not the only factor involved in the labelling of these games, I refer to many examples and conduct a white-box analysis of the game A Conversation With Hugo. I finally stress the importance of not falling into the essentialist trap when labelling these types of games.
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List of Video Games / Liste de jeux vidéo :
A Conversation With Hugo (Trépanier-Jobin, 2015)
America’s Army (Ubisoft, 2002)
Antiwargame (Josh, 2001)
Braid (Blow, 2008)
Crate (BreakAway Game)
Dafur Is Dying (Ruiz and York, 2006)
Doom (ID Software, 1993)
Flight Simulator (Microsoft, 1982)
Harpoon 3 (Advanced Gaming Systems, 2001)
Howard Dean for Iowa (Bogost and Frasca, 2003)
Kabul Kaboom (Frasca, 2002)
Keys of a Gamespace (Genvo, 2014)
Mansion Impossible (Unknown)
McDonald’s Videogame (Molleindustria, 2006)
Power Politics III (Mindspace, 2004)
Save the Whales (20th Century Fox, 1984)
Secra (Trépanier and Blais, 2013)
September 12 (Frasca, 2003)
Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo, 1985)
Super Mario Clouds (Coryarcangel, 2002)
Take Back Illinois (Bogost, 2004)
Tenure (Gaede, 1975)
The Marriage (Humble, 2006)
Tooth Protectors (Johnson & Johnson, 1983)
Velvet-Strike (Schleiner, 2002),
Warcraft (Blizzard Entertainment, 1994)
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