Physical games, digitaly enabled physical games, and discomfort
I thought this article was really interesting.
http://www.copenhagengamecollective.org/2013/07/08/3871/
It lists a lot of interesting games, like Johan Sebastion Joust, and talks a bit about the discomfort they can cause due to the physical contact they encourage.
But also looking at how the physical contact is negotiated between players, and these games can make other players more sensitive to, or aware, other players' boundaries.
Games like:
Dark Room Sex Game
Brutally Unfair Tactics Totally OK Now (B.U.T.T.O.N.)
Magnerize Me
Fingle
Chicanery
Spin the Bottle: Bumpie’s Party
I think there are game designs in this space that could be uncomfortable in bad ways. I think Hugatron's mechanic of using discomfort as a lose condition might be cathartic for some, but potentially intimidating and unpleasant for others. (The article explains this better than I just did)
Which makes it a somewhat weird new exciting design space.
Makes me think of our 2AM Ninja game that we played on the street at AMAZE Johanesburg. We were all guys at that stage, but some girls from the neighboring club came up and joined us in this physical game. Everyone had a good time, and that was really liberating.
Douglas Wilson had some really thoughtful thoughts on issues of social rules.
http://www.copenhagengamecollective.org/2013/07/08/3871/
It lists a lot of interesting games, like Johan Sebastion Joust, and talks a bit about the discomfort they can cause due to the physical contact they encourage.
But also looking at how the physical contact is negotiated between players, and these games can make other players more sensitive to, or aware, other players' boundaries.
Games like:
Dark Room Sex Game
Brutally Unfair Tactics Totally OK Now (B.U.T.T.O.N.)
Magnerize Me
Fingle
Chicanery
Spin the Bottle: Bumpie’s Party
I think there are game designs in this space that could be uncomfortable in bad ways. I think Hugatron's mechanic of using discomfort as a lose condition might be cathartic for some, but potentially intimidating and unpleasant for others. (The article explains this better than I just did)
Which makes it a somewhat weird new exciting design space.
Makes me think of our 2AM Ninja game that we played on the street at AMAZE Johanesburg. We were all guys at that stage, but some girls from the neighboring club came up and joined us in this physical game. Everyone had a good time, and that was really liberating.
Douglas Wilson had some really thoughtful thoughts on issues of social rules.
Comments
It IS a 'weird new exciting design space', as you said, for sure. I think not only do the creators have somewhat of a liability to make sure their game is made in such a way that it pokes at comfort zones while retaining the player's ability to back out gracefully, but there's definitely some onus on the player to be acutely aware of their playmates' experience and to foster respect in that light.
Speaking personally, socialising intimidates me and social contact with strangers even more so - but I'd be willing to participate in games like this both to help me get to grips (hur hur) with that intimidation and to potentially allow other more extroverted people to become more familiar with what it's like to suffer from social awkwardness/shyness. I'm quite confident in myself that I'd clarify when enough is enough. If I weren't, then I just wouldn't participate. That's my call and my decision, and by no means indicates that the game is a failure or is doing something wrong. I'm more inclined to think I'M the one doing something wrong if I enter into a situation that I don't want to be in.
But seriously though, I think that anything that makes people uncomfortable is disruptive, and disruptive is good for everyone - though it doesn't necessarily convert to commercial success.
I've emailed The Collective to see if we can set up a copy of Dark Room Sex Game for the game party. Fingers crossed!
Again, I don't mean to say that you shouldn't, rather that you might find it hard to get people to play along, don't you think?
Either way, interesting article.