Component One: Section B Investigating Media Industries and Audiences

1. Component One: Section B Investigating Media Industries and Audiences Assassins Creed 3: Liberation Summary of Textbook p.115-119

2. Key Terms and Definitions: PEGI: Pan European Game Information – Game content rating system to help when buying video games or apps through the age recommendations. MMORPG: an online role-playing video game in which a very large number of people participate simultaneously Persistent Worlds: Add to the realism of online gaming CRPG: Computer role-playing game, where player controls the actions of a player and makes their own decisions Augmented Reality: a technology that superimposes a computer-generated image o a user’s view of the real world Avatar: an icon or a figure representing a particular person in a video game, internet forum. PlayStation Vita: A handheld game console developed and released by Sony entertaining. Ubisoft: Videogame company headquartered in Montreuil France, with development studios. Transgressive Behavior: Exceeding a limit or boundary especially of social acceptability.

3. Historical Context of Video Games Industry • Popular Consoles: • Xbox 1 • Nintendo Switch • PS 2 • PS 3 • PS 4 • PC • PSP • DS • DSi Overview: The computer games industry is fairly new compared to other media industries, however has grown quite a lot over the past years. Games can be played on a range of different consoles, making it a industry that is a lot more diverse. Sales of consoles are also increasing. Over time, the stereotype of only males playing videogames has broken, as it has become a lot more common for females to also play videogames. Playing videogames is also now taken a lot more seriously than it used to, as tournaments and other careers are being made out of the gaming industry.

4. Regulation of the Video Games Industry Overview: There are regular reports of age suitability when it comes to the regulation of games, which is why it can sometimes be an important subject to touch on. Games like call of duty and Grand theft auto, these have taught children to act a certain behavior that large regulations do not have the time to take the blame for, and therefore there is not much change on the way that these games are produced. It is very important that videogames in this day and age are regulated, this is because of the mass use of weaponry in the gaming industry, as it has grown to be a lot more popular, this also includes graphic images of different situations, in which some audiences might not be suitable to see.

5. Regulation of the Video Games Industry Why is regulation necessary? Regulation is important, because if a game was not set to the right age, the people that would be playing these games would be seeing content, that is not suitable for their game, and this could lead to the children taking part in some of the activities that they see, thinking that it is appropriate for them to do at their age, or at all in general. This has occurred in some real life situations where children have taken weapons to school, as a result of what they have been playing online. What is PEGI? PEGI is Game content rating system to help when buying video games or apps through the age recommendations. The company helps figure out what age rating to give to a specific game, so that if it is a PEGI 18 and they are underage, they will not be able to purchase it. The company can usually be noticed at the beginning of a video, said in a serious toned voice.

6. What’s the Audience Appeal of Video Games? • Video games differ from other media products in a range of ways. • They give user experience not available in other products. Many games offer a multi playing online experience not replicated in any other media platform. In the MMORPG, format a large number of players can be involved in the virtual world at one time. • These huge multi-player games are also unique in that they have persistent worlds, which adds to the realism of the experience. • Smaller versions are online multi-player games where there are usually few plcxzzayers and non-persistent world. This interactive experience crosses genres, for example FIFA 17 and Dark Sword III are examples of CRPGs but clearly the roles for the gamers are different.

7. Set Product: Assassins Creed 3: Liberation Production, Distribution and Circulation: • Assassins creed was released on the Sony hand held device, PlayStation Vita, an advance in the new gaming technology. The game was a multinational development. • The video game is part of the very successful Assassin's creed franchise; it was developed by Ubisoft and was launched alongside Assassins Creed in October 2012. Assassins Creed III was the best selling game in the UK in the week of its release on the PlayStation 3 with the best sales up to date. It was the biggest release In Ubisoft’s history and the third biggest launch of any game in the UK in 2012. It was therefore a successful marketing ploy to release Assassins Creed III: Liberation alongside this to benefit from it’s success and to have maximum impact on the three major games markets of Japan, North America and Europe.

8. Set Product: Assassins Creed 3: Liberation Economic Context Summary: Video games are very competitive across the platforms and producers. PlayStaytion Vita is part of the 8th generation of gaming technology and was released to compete with the Popular Nintendo 3DS. The game was originally exclusive to PS Vita but in further marketing strategy, it was released in 2014in a modified HD version across a larger range of consoles and platforms, including PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles, to expand the audience reach and ensure greater economic success.

9. Set Product: Assassins Creed 3: Liberation Watch the trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5RxYUw4DFY How important is the trailer in the marketing of the game? The trailer is important, because it includes a narrative side to the game, so that people watching the trailer can really get into the mindset of what it would be like if they were actually playing the game. The trail;er also includes a wide range of different shots that would actually happen in the game, so that the people that are watching gets a hint of what they might be getting themselves into. The trailer is also important because it tells the audience, what the game 1is about, so if it is the sort of game that they would typically buy, they would know straight away because of the genre that the trailer has set.

10. Set Product: Assassins Creed 3: Liberation What is the Unique Selling Point of the PS Vita?: The unique selling point of the PS Vita is that it is a small device that is portable, but is still able to play a range of games on, making it the perfect game to bring around. It is also from the same brand as PlayStation, and therefore supports a lot of the same games. Who is the Target Audience?: The target audience for the PS Vita is targeted to the 18-25 young adults who are working and gaining money, as the device can be quite expensive, and therefore would be targeted to a more older generation. Why do you think the creators of the game included the (female/mixed race) character of Aveline de Grandpre? The creators of the game wanted to widen the audience that the game was targeted to, becauser this way, there would be a lot more sales, as both genders and all races would feel welcome into buying the game and playing it, and they would feel more entertained by seeing an avatar like them on it

11. Set Product: Assassins Creed 3: Liberation Social and Cultural Context: What issues are subject to debate in the gaming industry and why? • Considering video games in relation to gender issues may be a useful way to explore them in terms of social and cultural significance. The representation of female characters, under-representation of women in video game development and an assumed minority of female video games players are areas that could be explored. This game has a female protagonist and • it may be useful to consider whether she subverts or reinforces expectations of female characters in games and how audiences may respond to this.

12. Set Product: Assassins Creed 3: Liberation Study the following gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L97VKWGPo78 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVmgHaL-ljs Key Question: Do you think that Aveline is a positive role model for female game players? I think that Aveline is a good role model for the game, as she is not sexualized, like a lot of models and female avatars in role play games would usually be. She is fully clothed, in an outfit, that fits the theme of the game, that shows that she is focused. She is also of a black race, which means that it is not just aimed to white people, and more people might want to play the game as her.

13. Key Theory: Bandura – Media Effects What does Bandura suggest in his idea? (3 key points) He suggests that people learn from each other via observation, imitation and modeling. The theory has often been called a bridge between behaviorist and cognitive learning theories because it encompasses attention, memory and motivation. Banduras theory can be important as it analyses the different ways that people might be able to pick up different habits from gaming online. It also shows from a different perspective of how someone who might be effected by these sorts of situations.

14. Key Theory: Bandura – Media Effects Key Question: Do you agree with his theory? Can playing violent video games lead audiences to imitating them in real life? I agree with Banduras theory, because I think that it is a wise approach to the idea of how different people learn from each other, and how people might learn from games, and how they might interpret a game as real life, and sometimes take some violence from some games, and use it in real life, as some people might forget, which virtual world they are actually in. I also think it is important because in some ways it can raise awareness of the problems people are having with underage people looking at the wrong types of media, and the problems that can arise from this.