Unit 13 Understanding the Computer Games Industry

Employment:

Employment is a relationship between two parties, usually based on a contract, one being the employer and the other being the employee. Employer and managerial control within an organization rests at many levels and has important implications for staff and productivity alike, with control forming the fundamental link between desired outcomes and actual processes. Employers must balance interests such as decreasing wage constraints with a maximization of labour productivity in order to achieve a profitable and productive employment relationship.

development:

1. The act of developing.

2. The state of being developed.

3. A significant event, occurrence, or change.

4. A group of dwellings built by the same contractor.

5. Determination of the best techniques for applying a new device or process to production of goods or services.

6. The organized activity of soliciting donations or grants; fundraising.

7. Music

a. Elaboration of a theme with rhythmic and harmonic variations.

b. The central section of a movement in sonata form, in which the theme is elaborated and explored.

Information sourced from: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/development

License:

a. Official or legal permission to do or own a specified thing. See Synonyms at permission.

b. A document, plate, or tag that is issued as proof of official or legal permission: a driver's license.

2. Deviation from normal rules, practices, or methods in order to achieve a certain end or effect.

3. Latitude of action, especially in behaviour or speech. See Synonyms at freedom.

a. Lack of due restraint; excessive freedom: "When liberty becomes license, dictatorship is near" (Will Durant).

b. Heedlessness for the precepts of proper behaviour; licentiousness.

1. To give or yield permission to or for.

2. To grant a license to or for; authorize.

Information sourced from: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/license

NDA:

A non-disclosure agreement (NDA), also known as a confidentiality agreement (CA), confidential disclosure agreement (CDA), proprietary information agreement (PIA), or secrecy agreement, is a legal contract between at least two parties that outlines confidential material, knowledge, or information that the parties wish to share with one another for certain purposes, but wish to restrict access to or by third parties. It's a contract through which the parties agree not to disclose information covered by the agreement. An NDA creates a confidential relationship between the parties to protect any type of confidential and proprietary information or trade secrets. As such, an NDA protects non-public business information.

NDAs are commonly signed when two companies, individuals, or other entities (such as partnerships, societies, etc.) are considering doing business and need to understand the processes used in each other's business for the purpose of evaluating the potential business relationship. NDAs can be "mutual", meaning both parties are restricted in their use of the materials provided, or they can restrict the use of material by a single party.

It is also possible for an employee to sign an NDA or NDA-like agreement with an employer. In fact, some employment agreements will include a clause restricting employees' use and dissemination of company-owned "confidential information."

Information sourced from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-disclosure_agreement

Collaboration:

Collaboration is working with each other to do a task and to achieve shared goals. It is a recursive process where two or more people or organizations work together to realize shared goals, (this is more than the intersection of common goals seen in co-operative ventures, but a deep, collective, determination to reach an identical objective[by whom?][Original research?]) — For example, an endeavour that is creative in nature—by sharing knowledge, learning and building consensus. Most collaboration requires leadership, although the form of leadership can be social within a decentralized and egalitarian group. In particular, teams that work collaboratively can obtain greater resources, recognition and reward when facing competition for finite resources. Collaboration is also present in opposing goals exhibiting the notion of adversarial collaboration, though this is not a common case for using the word.

Structured methods of collaboration encourage introspection of behaviour and communication. These methods specifically aim to increase the success of teams as they engage in collaborative problem solving. Forms, rubrics, charts and graphs are useful in these situations to objectively document personal traits with the goal of improving performance in current and future projects.

Information sourced from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collaboration

Copyright:

Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time. Generally, it is "the right to copy", but also gives the copyright holder the right to be credited for the work, to determine who may adapt the work to other forms, who may perform the work, who may financially benefit from it, and other related rights. It is a form of intellectual property (like the patent, the trademark, and the trade secret) applicable to any expressible form of an idea or information that is substantive and discrete.

Information sourced from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright

Trademark:

A trademark is a recognizable sign, design or expression which identifies products or services of a particular source from those of others. The trademark owner can be an individual, business organization, or any legal entity. A trademark may be located on a package, a label, a voucher or on the product itself. For the sake of corporate identity trademarks are also being displayed on company buildings.

Information sourced from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trademark

Patent:

A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time, in exchange for the public disclosure of the invention. An invention is a solution to a specific technological problem, and may be a product or a process.

The procedure for granting patents, requirements placed on the patentee, and the extent of the exclusive rights vary widely between countries according to national laws and international agreements. Typically, however, a patent application must include one or more claims that define the invention. These claims must meet relevant patentability requirements, such as novelty and non-obviousness. The exclusive right granted to a patentee in most countries is the right to prevent others from making, using, selling, or distributing the patented invention without permission.

Information sourced from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent

Registered Designs:

The following is the real terms of law on registered designs, all of the "Registered designs Act" can be found on the website link at the bottom of this article on registered designs.

1 Registration of designs

(1) A design may, subject to the following provisions of this Act, be registered under this

Act on the making of an application for registration.

(2) In this Act “design” means the appearance of the whole or a part of a product

Resulting from the features of, in particular, the lines, contours, colours, shape, texture

Or materials of the product or its ornamentation.

(3) In this Act—

“Complex product” means a product which is composed of at least two replaceable

Component parts permitting disassembly and reassembly of the product; and

“Product” means any industrial or handicraft item other than a computer program;

And, in particular, includes packaging, get-up, graphic symbols, typographic type-

Faces and parts intended to be assembled into a complex product.

Information sourced from: http://www.ipo.gov.uk/regdesignactchanges.pdf

Violence:

Violence is “the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person, or against a group or community, which either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, maldevelopment, or deprivation.” This definition associate’s intentionality with the committing of the act itself, irrespective of the outcome it produces.

The main ethical issue involved with violence in video games is freedom of speech. If the government were to restrict the intensity of violence in video games, then they would be violating freedom of speech. It is unethical to outlaw video game violence or to hold developers of these games responsible for violent acts committed by their customers.

Let’s take the utilitarian point of view, wherein the ethical option is the one that creates the most happiness for the most people. Although video games are by no means a requirement of happiness, it should be noted that video games are a common leisure activity for people around the world. Therefore, the civil suits against video game developers and laws against violence in games is unethical because it decreases the amount of games that can be made and thus the overall happiness level of those who play games.

Although it can be argued that regardless of a rating system, there will be parents who will let their kids play games regardless of rating. To argue this point, we should do a cost and benefits analysis. The benefits outweigh the costs as parents who use an improved rating system will have an increased understanding of the game content, which will ultimately allow them to make better decisions for their children. Additionally, the game industry may gain some goodwill from parent's groups who have been known to criticize the game industry.

Information sourced from:http://ethics.csc.ncsu.edu/speech/freedom/violence/study.php

Rating:

A video game content rating system is a system used for the classification of video games into suitability-related groups. Most of these systems are associated with and/or sponsored by a government, and are sometimes part of the local motion picture rating system. The utility of such ratings has been called into question by studies that publish findings such as 90% of teenagers claim that their parents "never" check the ratings before allowing them to rent or buy video games, and as such calls have been made to "fix" the existing rating systems. Video game content rating systems can be used as the basis for laws that cover the sales of video games to minors, such as in Australia. Rating checking and approval is part of the game localization when they are being prepared for their distribution in other countries or locales. These rating systems have also been used to voluntarily restrict sales of certain video games by stores, such as the German retailer Kaufhof's removing all video games rated 18+ by the USK following the Winnenden School shooting.

Information source from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_content_rating_system

Education:

The most widely used "positive" impact video games are said to have on children is that they may improve a player's manual dexterity and computer literacy. Ever-improving technology also provides players with better graphics that give a more "realistic" virtual playing experience.

This quality makes the video game industry a powerful force in many adolescent lives. However, numerous studies show that video games, especially ones with violent content, adversely affect a teen's aggressive behaviour.

Part of the increase in aggressive behaviour is linked to the amount of time children are allowed to play video games. In one study by Walsh (2000), a majority of teens admitted that their parents do not impose a time limit on the number of hours they are allowed to play video games. The study also showed that most parents are unaware of the content or the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) rating (see below) of the video games their children play.

Information sourced from: http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_Impact_Video_Games/

I personally agree that video games generally have a positive effect on education, because when students have the stress of education pulling them down they can play a few hours of video games to either take out their stress on the game, or just simply relax and allow the stress to fade away. I have personally experienced this.

Stereotyping:

There are lots of different stereotypes when it comes to gaming. For example, gamers them selves can be stereotyped:
Gamers.

Just the mention of the word seems to conjure images of overweight, acne-ridden males, living in their parent’s basements, surviving on a diet of Burger Rings and Redbull. They are smelly, unsociable cave dwellers; sporting their sweat laden t-Shirts with the latest internet meme that would only ever make sense to another ‘gamer’ that they have no chance of running into, as they never leave their darkened rooms.

The show Southpark portrays a Gamer from the episode "Make love, not Warcraft"

Women and racial ethnicities can be stereotyped in video games:

The portrayal of women in video games is the subject of academic study and controversy. Recurring themes in both include the level of independence of female characters from their male counterparts, as well as their sexual objectification and sexualisation.

Early video games typically presented women in subsidiary roles, dependent on male protagonists. Many more recent games include women in active and self-reliant attitudes, but some have also increased the sexualized portrayal of women so as to appeal to a male audience.[2] In 2012, for instance, Dead or Alive director, Yohei Shimbori, admitted the developers received complaints from fans who had played the Dead or Alive 5 demo packaged with Ninja Gaiden 3. According to Shimbori, "We actually got a lot of feedback from people who were playing it, saying, 'We want bigger breasts. Make the characters more like that.' That was kind of surprising." Controversy is generated by cultural stereotypes, sexism and violence towards women portrayed in games.

Information sourced from:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_representation_in_video_games#Portrayal_of_women

The prime example that usually comes up in debates on racism and video games is Resident Evil 5. Resident Evil 5 has been identified as racist by some because of its portrayal of Africans. Some individuals believe that the images presented in this title make Africans (black Africans in particular) look like brutal savages, and they also provoke images of the days that African peoples were victims of colonialism.

Information sourced from: http://venturebeat.com/2009/09/28/racial-stereotypes-in-video-games-how-do-we-change-them/

Addiction:

Arguments for video games are addictive:

1. Numerous studies have found associations between computer game addiction and issues such as poor academic performance, work-related difficulties, marital dissatisfaction, poor health, and other psychological problems like anxiety and depression.

2. Habits such as exercise, gambling, sex, and computer games may not result in physical dependency like alcohol or drug addiction do, but many argue that psychological dependence can result if people become obsessed with these activities.

3. Excessive computer gaming seems to share a number of behavioural and cognitive symptoms with gambling addiction (which is officially recognized as a psychological problem).

4. When gambling addiction was initially suggested as a psychological disorder, many of the same arguments were made against the diagnoses that are today being made against the concept of computer game addiction.

5. Even if excessive computer gaming can be brought on by other mental health issues (e.g., depression), this does not mean that it ceases to exist. For example, alcohol abuse may be exacerbated by chronic anxiety and stress, yet few would argue that alcohol addiction isn't "real". Simply because excessive gaming can be triggered by other psychological issues does not mean that a separate diagnosis of computer game addiction is unjustified. Computer game addiction may exist independently of other psychological conditions or alongside other disorders.

Arguments against:

1. Although some individuals may play computer games to avoid addressing other personal issues, this does not necessarily indicate "addiction", but rather a less than ideal problem solving approach to life challenges, stress, and temptations.

2. Computer game "addiction" may simply be a symptom of other psychological, emotional, or interpersonal problems like anxiety, depression, poor self-esteem, relationship difficulties, and poor impulse control. It is sometimes argued that if the underlying problem was addressed, the symptoms of computer game addiction would diminish or disappear completely.

3. As a whole, computer game addiction is rarely as serious as drug or alcohol addiction and furthermore, computer game addiction does not have a physiological component (i.e., physical dependence). Drug addiction often leads to serious health consequences, loss of employment, relationship loss, and criminal behaviour. In contrast, computer game addiction mostly just leads to lost or wasted time.

4. Due to the sometimes sensational coverage of computer game addiction in the media, it may be easy to overestimate the prevalence and seriousness of excessive computer use.

5. Playing computer games to briefly escape stress in the real world may in fact be healthy and adaptive, and not necessarily a problem that requires a diagnosis or treatment.

UKIE:

Ukie is the only trade body for the UK’s wider interactive entertainment industry. We exist to champion the interests, needs and positive image of the video games and interactive entertainment industry whose companies make up our membership.

We’re here to help ensure that our members from the video games and wider interactive entertainment industry have the right economic, political and social environment needed for this expanding industry to thrive.

We provide a range of services to meet the shared needs of our members and to further the interests of the interactive entertainment industry as a whole:

We build strong working relationships with parliamentarians and policy makers to ensure industry needs are met through appropriate Government support.

Our dedicated intellectual Property Crime Unit seeks to minimise the damage caused by intellectual property theft and catch those responsible for this criminal activity.

We act as a public information resource, to help consumers and the media better understand gaming.

We provide advice to budding IP creators and sellers on how best to pursue careers in the industry.

We work with our European partners, ISFE to ensure our members are aware of key EU developments and to promote the priorities and interests of the industry in Europe.

Information sourced from: http://ukie.info/about

IGDA:

The IGDA was founded in 1994 by Ernest Adams and was initially known as the Computer Game Developers Association (CGDA). Modelled after the Association for Computing Machinery, Adams envisioned the organization to support the careers and interests of individual developers, as opposed to being a trade organization, or an advocacy group for companies.

The need for a professional association for game developers was not apparent until the congressional hearings surrounding Mortal Kombat and other video game legislation became common in the 1990's. With legislation affecting the game development industry, the IGDA developed into a more organized voice for computer game developers as it merged with the Computer Entertainment Developers Association and grew from 300 members to over 12,000 members the next fifteen years.

In December 2012, Kate Edwards was appointed executive director after Gordon Bellamy, the previous executive director, moved on from the position in July of that year to join Tencent.

Information sourced from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Game_Developers_Association

Women in games:

Women in Games Jobs (WIGJ) works to recruit, retain and support the progression of women in the games industry by positively and actively promoting female role models and giving encouragement and information to those women seeking to work in games.

Women in Games Jobs was incorporated as a “not for profit” or Community Interest Company under the UK’s Companies Act 2006 on 2 June 2011.

ABOUT WOMEN IN GAME DEVELOPMENT

Developing Video games is increasingly being seen an exciting and rewarding career for women. Whether you come from an artistic, technical, creative, marketing or managerial background there are jobs in the games industry to suit you, offering interesting career progression and a stimulating and passionate work environment.

BAFTA:

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) is an independent charity that supports, develops and promotes the art forms of the moving image - film, television and games. In addition to its annual awards ceremonies, BAFTA has an international, year-round programme of learning events and initiatives offering access to talent through workshops, masterclasses, scholarships, lectures and mentoring schemes in the UK and the USA.

MEF:

The Managed Extensibility Framework or MEF is a library for creating lightweight, extensible applications. It allows application developers to discover and use extensions with no configuration required. It also lets extension developers easily encapsulate code and avoid fragile hard dependencies. MEF not only allows extensions to be reused within applications, but across applications as well.

Unit 13 Understanding the Computer Games Industry

Thursday, 12 June 2014

HA6 Task 5

HA6 Task 4

HA6 Task 2

Monday, 9 June 2014

HA6 Task 3

Monday, 2 June 2014

HA6 – Showcase Task 1

Thursday, 12 September 2013

Task 6 Contractual, Legal, Ethical and Professional