Semiotics and (video) games

Blue Prince: puzzles, puns, and politics

In this episode we discuss the puzzle adventure game Blue Prince by Dogubomb. Hosts Dr. Ibi and Dr. Joe cover topics including: * The game's world & lore * Word play in puzzles, as clues, & for fun * Colour semiotics * Sign versus noise ratio * The (un)translatability of the game Songs that are low-key about playing Blue Prince: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6DbDTBrBK23NIV4u077vcx?si=d8ed31681e964979 [https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6DbDTBrBK23NIV4u077vcx?si=d8ed31681e964979] Contains some strong (and other types of) language. ☕ If you would like to support us, you can buy us a coffee here: buymeacoffee.com/sayitlikeyouplayit 📺 We're also on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SayItLikeYouPlayIt ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Semiotics and (video) games

In this episode we discuss a concept which has been important – but implicit – in many previous episodes: semiotics, or meaning-making through signs. Hosts Dr. Ibi and Dr. Joe cover topics including: * The linguistic foundations and broad applications of semiotics; * Definitions and different types of signs; * Multi-modal semiotics in (video) games; * Genre-specific and genre-independent semiotics; * The relationship between signs and ludemes; * Examples such as UI, rarity colours, and controls; Contains some strong (and other types of) language. ☕ If you would like to support us, you can buy us a coffee here: buymeacoffee.com/sayitlikeyouplayit 📺 We're also on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SayItLikeYouPlayIt Resources: Blomberg, J. 2018. 'The Semiotics of the Game Controller', Game Studies, 18(2). https://gamestudies.org/1802/articles/blomberg [https://gamestudies.org/1802/articles/blomberg] Chandler, D. 'Semiotics for Beginners'. https://www.cs.princeton.edu/~chazelle/courses/BIB/semio2.htm [https://www.cs.princeton.edu/~chazelle/courses/BIB/semio2.htm] Hawreliak, J. (2018). Multimodal Semiotics and Rhetoric in Videogames. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315159492 [https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315159492] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Chants of Sennaar & Sethian reactions: what makes a good language puzzle game?

In this episode we talk about our experience playing two language puzzle games, 'Chants of Sennaar' by Rundisc and 'Sethian' by Duang! Games, LLC . Hosts Dr. Ibi and Dr. Joe cover topics including: * language puzzle and translation mechanics * embedding conlangs in game worlds * player versus player-character knowledge of conlangs * complexity of conlangs and how to make them decipherable Contains some strong (and other types of) language. ☕ If you would like to support us, you can buy us a coffee here: buymeacoffee.com/sayitlikeyouplayit 📺 We're also on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SayItLikeYouPlayIt ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Language, character design, and world building

In this episode we talk about the role of language in character design and world building. Hosts Dr. Ibi and Dr. Joe cover topics including: * language ideologies, stereotypes, and othering * characters with different accents or speech impediments * spelling in conlangs inspired by real languages * real-world associations mapping onto fictional worlds * games such as the Dragon Age franchise, Pillars of Eternity, Cyberpunk 2077, Disco Elysium Contains some strong (and other types of) language. ☕ If you would like to support us, you can buy us a coffee here: buymeacoffee.com/sayitlikeyouplayit 📺 We're also on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SayItLikeYouPlayIt Resources: Burrell-Kim, Danielle (2023). Stuttering Matt: Linguistic ableism and the mockery of speech impediments in video games. Game Studies, 23(2). Available here: https://gamestudies.org/2302/articles/burrellkim [https://gamestudies.org/2302/articles/burrellkim] Villanueva, Emily & Ensslin Astrid (2021). Divine intervention: Multimodal pragmatics and unconventional opposition in performed character speech in Dragon Age: Inquisition. In: Planchenault, G. & Poljak, L. (eds.) Pragmatics of Accents. John Benjamins Publishing Company, 205-228. Available here: https://bora.uib.no/bora-xmlui/bitstream/handle/11250/2993691/villanueva_ensslin_preprints.pdf?sequence=1 [https://bora.uib.no/bora-xmlui/bitstream/handle/11250/2993691/villanueva_ensslin_preprints.pdf?sequence=1] 'Constructed Languages and Intuitive *~ Culture Feels ~*', forum thread. Available here: https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/63958-constructed-languages-and-intuitive-~-culture-feels-~/ [https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/63958-constructed-languages-and-intuitive-~-culture-feels-~/] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Hearthstone deep dive: when game studies meets linguistics

In this episode we take a close look at the online collectible card game 'Hearthstone', which is part of Blizzard Entertainment's 'Warcraft' franchise, and three research papers which study the game in relation to language and communication. Hosts Dr. Ibi and Dr. Joe cover topics including: * Humour, puns, and wordplay in Hearthstone; * Linguistic differences between rule texts and flavour texts; * The functions and forms of keywords and card names; * Localization, with a focus on the use of Kanji in Japanese; * Communicative affordances and limitations of the in-game emote system; * Players' perceptions of "bad manners"; * Qualitative versus quantitative research approaches and the obstacles of research cultures; Contains some strong (and other types of) language. ☕ If you would like to support us, you can buy us a coffee here: buymeacoffee.com/sayitlikeyouplayit 📺 We're also on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SayItLikeYouPlayIt Resources: Arjoranta, J., & Siitonen, M. (2018). Why do players misuse emotes in Hearthstone? Negotiating the use of communicative affordances in an online multiplayer game. Game Studies, 18(2). Available here: https://gamestudies.org/1802/articles/arjoranta_siitonen [https://gamestudies.org/1802/articles/arjoranta_siitonen]. Jacquin, J., & Xanthos, A. (2021). Evolution of linguistic complexity in Hearthstone: a resource and an example in linguistic game studies. Digital Scholarship in the Humanities, 36(4), 907-918. Available here: https://serval.unil.ch/resource/serval:BIB_FA8B6BCC9CA2.P001/REF.pdf [https://serval.unil.ch/resource/serval:BIB_FA8B6BCC9CA2.P001/REF.pdf] Robertson, W. (2020). Unspeakable puns: kanji-dependent wordplay as a localization strategy in Japanese. Perspectives, 28(4), 606-624. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/0907676X.2018.1548628 [https://doi.org/10.1080/0907676X.2018.1548628]. 'German translations messy since last update', forum thread: https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/hearthstone/t/german-translations-messy-since-last-update/126281 [https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/hearthstone/t/german-translations-messy-since-last-update/126281]. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.