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Poster Information

TitleDesigning War: Call of Duty 3 as a Straightjacket for Meaningful Historical Inquiry
Presenter(s)Stephanie Fisher
SessionConference Reception, Game Exhibition, and Poster Session
TimeThursday, October 9, 6:00p-8:00p
LocationEast Lansing Technology Innovation Center
FormatPoster Presentation
DescriptionThis research investigates how history is packaged within a popular ommercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) first-person shooter (FPS) video game, Call of Duty 3. In light of the pedagogical potentials found within well-designed games, popular commercial war games that guarantee a faithful representation or experience are in a position to persuade players to adopt certain ways to view history. As a designed experience, these games contribute to the formation of historical frameworks that may influence how the player perceives the event, conducts historical inquiry, or even understands present international relations.

Using analytic frameworks developed by Frasca and Bogost, I analyze narrative and procedural rhetoric found in the representational elements and game mechanics of Call of Duty 3. Frasca offers three levels for analyzing where designers can convey meanings and ideology: narrative representation and events, game mechanics, and mandatory goal rules. Bogost's theory of 'procedural rhetoric' further explores Frasca's second and third levels, where meaning is created through user interaction with the game's algorithms.
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