Finalized Concept

Competitive Gaming Module

I have been playing video games for as long as I can remember. I believe my very first video game was Super Mario on the Super Nintendo and I think I was so young at the time I had no idea how to play the game properly, let alone win at it. And when you play a game by no means do you play to lose, I mean you might play to have fun -but the very idea is to accomplish a particular objective as cleanly and efficiently as possible. Winning becomes the central goal or idea for the player but how effectively one wins is just as important to ponder as the achievement in and of itself. An idea I wish to tackle in my current endeavor as I seek to create an interactive medium in which to improve the average players capacity in not only how they execute their play-style but how they think and analyze situations.

As I grew up gaming evolved not just graphically but conceptually and competitively in ways a 16-bit plumber could never even imagine. No longer was I jumping over platforms or saving the princess in another castle but fighting back the terrifying Locust swarm in Gears of War and the tenacious Covenant in Halo 3 . Hallmark titles with modern on-going sequels to this very day.  At the time there was a popular website in the gaming scene called Gamebattles that was affiliated with the renowned esports organization Major League Gaming (aka. MLG for short) and I participated in several seasonal online ladders on their website. With my close school mates as my team we accomplished little to nothing, with a constant loss streak with one to two minor victories here and there. And as we continued on we lost more and more matches and my hopes at fame, fun, and fortune in my all time favorite hobby were considerably dashed.

As I reflect years later on my ambitions to achieve a modicum of success in a competitive gaming circuit much of what I know now in comparison to what knew prior made me realize my hopes were always built on a false premise to begin with. Nothing in competition is achieved just by simply playing and winning but analyzing and correcting the mistakes you and your teammates make. It is almost a necessity to question every move you make, what weapons you use, what characters you pick, what map you play on, and etc. to the point of greasing yourself into a well oiled machine of efficiency. Contextualization and discipline is key. Having an answer to give when most questions arise in a match, and not getting cold feet when the other team gets too creative.

For my thesis project I wish to develop an interactive esports module centered around a popular title that teaches people how to think differently about their game-play actions in an online setting. A module that will entail recorded video simulations with point values that provide insight into how to act and react. Slides with highlight markers detailing important numerical statistics. And clips of the most competitive tournament matches explaining how and why professionals players utilize certain techniques and methodologies. Competitive development has always been a slight interest of mine as probing what makes other players more lethal that than their competition was like observing a game of Pokemon. Saying things like “this player fundamentally plays like a water type -they go with the flow,” or “that player plays like a fire type -constantly on the offensive and aggressive”. I personally think much of why I want to do this is to identify and harness the potential people have inside them in the hobby I am most passionate about. Because somewhere deep down inside I firmly do believe everyone has potential to be a winner. They just need the secret cheat codes to unlock it.