PLATO

In his book "From Sun Tzu to Xbox" Ed Halter mentions the PLATO network as one of the first timeshare systems that enabled communications between different computer stations. PLATO was first developed at the University of Illinois in the 1960s and was initially funded by the Army, Navy, Air force, and The National Science Foundation. Professor Don Bitzer, known as the "father" of the PLATO project, was interested in building computers systems that communicate with each other and are used for educational purposes. Under his supervision, PLATO was built both for educational and military training uses. Because of its network capabilities PLATO was one of the first platforms for early versions of network multiplayer games, instant messaging, chat rooms, and more. Many of today's video games sprung form earlier versions that were created on the PLATO network. A few of the games that were originally developed on PLATO are Avatar, Dnd, Empire, Panther, and Spasim.

What I find interesting about the PLATO network is the vast array of uses the system had. The project was managed by a professor from the University of Illinois, Don Bitzer, who was hoping to build an educational tool, and by the 1970's PLATO had about 1,000 terminals worldwide, most of which were stationed in educational institutions, from elementary schools to universities. At the same time, the funders of the project were military and government organizations that had invested in this project in order to create a training tool for military purposes. In addition to the foreseen educational and military uses of PLATO, and during the ongoing process of developing PLATO, "university geeks" with access to the PLATO network developed other innovative uses such as games and social interactions such as chatting, posts, etc. All of these first uses of PLATO play an important role in various ways computers are used today - email, instant-messaging, forums, education, and games are only a few of the inventions that first saw light on the PLATO network.

This link is to a PLATO user guide from 1981:

http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/cdc/plato/97405900C_PLATO_Users_Guide_Apr81.pdf

This link is to a document from 1971 that describes the PLATO architecture, with some cool diagrams:

http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/univOfIllinoisUrbana/plato/X-20_The_Plato_IV_Architecture_May72.pdf

THX 1138

In his essay "From Sun Tzu to XBox: war and video games", Halter describes the development of technology which has allowed wars which were once disastrously intimate, messy, passionate affairs to be fought from a greater distance and with almost no personal interaction. The innovative Igloo White project of the war in Vietnam had airplanes dropping disguised electronic spies which recorded signs of life and translated the targets in the form of tiny "worms" on a screen, where they could then be shot at or blown up without ever knowing who or what was being demolished. This was understood as a clean and safe way of waging war. The concept of reducing people to dots on a screen or in the case of THX 1138, numbers as opposed to individuals, is illustrated in George Lucas's 1971 debut feature film. The movie depicts an underground, sterile, world run by robots, where emotions and sexual acts are outlawed and suffocated by regular mandatory drug intake. Halter describes the white passionless, robotic world of this movie as voicing the growing concerns with the direction in which technological advances were headed.

I believe the comparison is quite sound. THX 1138, the protagonist of this cult classic film, is given a number instead of name, and works at a factory where he assembles the very robotic beings that police his life completely. The fear of creating a weapon that would then turn itself on the creator is a frightening reality in electronic warfare development. It is frightening when something as serious and devastating as war becomes as removed and casual as reading a computer screen and pressing some buttons. While the advancements of weapons during war time led to the technology that created video games it is no surprise that war has becomes more like a video game for those participants lucky enough to have the technology.

Trailer -> http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi3864002585/

Orson Scott Card Ender's Game

Ender's Game is an award winning science-fiction novel from 1985, written by Orson Scott Card. In Sun Tzu to Xbox, Ed Halter cites Ender's game as a major inspiration for current military and game strategy. The novel is mainly about child soldiers being sent to space for battle training against an alien race. The government sends its most promising children into battle room training, "which takes the form of video games, both two-dimensional and holographic, as well as laser-tag style low-gravity faux-death matches" (Halter, 154). In the end, it is discovered that these games were more than just simulations. The simulations operate as remote battles being fought against the alien enemy. Ender, the novel's main character, effectively wins the war for Earth and destroys the alien race all through the means of rather grueling virtual immersion.

In considering our military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan it becomes quite clear how this book would be inspirational towards the future of combat training. It outlines complete immersion within the training environment, soldiers must focus on creative solutions to the tasks at hand. This type of experiential learning is much different then what a soldier of the past may have read to learn about. I would imagine that the soldier feels and reacts the the environment, he or she is in there. Training is most importance to the leaders, and the see video games as the new learning environment of the youth. The virtual environment is a place to play out roles and witness the repercussions but I wonder if training in a virtual environment of such a period of time won't create some form of dependence on the virtual scenario or a complete disregard for the risks of warfare. The risks are not real in virtual war. The lines between real war and virtual war become blurred, therefore real people and real death become sidelined, the soldier may become disillusioned than they one already is in a real war environment.

World Game

Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion World Game

Formed as a reaction to the proliferation of military games addressing the end game scenario. Fuller’s idea for the game is that “advantage at expense” is removed, and the game becomes about how everyone can win. The game was designed to promote understanding of world situations/ relationships and common good for all.

The design of the World Game shows the utopian vision of the designer. By proposing an “everybody wins” objective the project as a game quickly losses interest. While the games and simulations being developed to test theories and responses to a world military conflict always have the hook of conflict and competition between groups. These games thrive on the clear logic of “Us-vs.-Them” that was heightened throughout this period and is a dominant force in gaming. Fuller, by attempting to remove this aspect of the game and substituting the idea of “advantage at expense” with “everyone wins” loses the driving force that the games he is responding to exploit to their great advantage. The idea of everyone winning is one worth pursuing. The question is how do you simulate everyone winning and still utilize the competitive spirit that drives so many successful games?

Interactive Global connections:

http://www.bestiario.org/research/citydistances/


“Interface of communication between the scientific and social communities.”
http://moebio.com/spheres/english.html#

http://www.wainova.org/atlas/

DOOM: The Immersive Battlefield

Laurel Planas

The classic FPS, or “First-Person Shooter”, Doom, was not among the first of its kind to fully immerse gamers in its admittedly violent world. However, it is considered a groundbreaking game due to several elements that set it apart from its predessessors. Updated graphics, the ability to explore, “secret” items and levels, less repetitive gameplay, a modern soundtrack that fit the times, a system that was easily modded, and a seductively hardcore sensibility made Doom a much-revered game that is still played and released today.

XBOX Arcade Live Trailer:

Video Games | DOOM | Xbox Live Arcade Trailer

XBox 360 | Playstation 3 | Nintendo Wii

“Press Start To Play” podcast: Doom. Includes some interesting history.



The plot of Doom is simple: you play an unnamed Marine whose only mission is to exterminate the legions of Hell with extreme prejudice. While the settings and enemies seem fanciful, the gameplay has a strong militaristic bent to it. Emphasis is put on how well the player can move about the battlefield, how fast they can assess a situation and react, and how accurate they can be with their shots. Doom quickly became popular due to its exciting, fast paced gameplay, as well for its customizable coding. Players could make their own versions of Doom, changing the enemies to Storm Troopers or Simpsons characters and creating their own maps. There were multiple homemade modified versions of Doom, from Super Mario Bros. themed maps to eerily accurate layouts of high schools and colleges.

Unsurprisingly, Doom attracted much controversy when it was released, due to its violent gameplay and highly moddable engine. The fact that it was a game considered to be attractive to school shooters attracted the attention of the media, as well as parents.

It also attracted the attention of the US Military, who saw it as a new venue for training. The US Military had a history of keeping tabs on gamers, especially those that played militaristic games such as Battlezone and the Castle Wolfenstein series. In Ed Halter’s book From Sun Tzu to XBOX: War And Video Games, he details how the military sought to attract gamers to their ranks through the medium they loved the most. Gamers were wanted for their heightened observation and reaction skills, which had been honed in the arcades and at home.

The military often used “recruitment games” that mimicked popular games such as Wolfenstein or Battlezone. With the release of Doom, however, the military began to look at games as a way to train their own people as well. Doom’s moddable engine allowed the military to create their own scenarios, leading to the creation of Marine Doom, a mod campaign created by four military officers. Unlike Doom’s solo-centric gameplay, its emphasis was on teamwork and cooperation. Players had to rely on each other in order to survive—powerups were completely removed, as were the futuristic weaponry. It was later released to the public, certainly as another attempt to entice gamers into joining up. Interestingly enough, it was also played by businessmen and office workers as a kind of teamwork exercise.

“Marine Doom” Campaign being played by management consultants:



Looking at Halter’s findings, it is interesting to see how the military used a source of interactive entertainment as a way of furthering its goals. The military’s relationship with the gaming world is one that extends further back then one realizes, right back to the pinball era of gaming. It’s a sobering thought, especially when “war games” and FPS franchises are still being made today. Doom helped usher in a whole new era of gaming—but at the same time, it brought the military further into the gamer’s world.

ASSIGNMENT: Ed Halter, From Sun Tzu to XBox: war and video games

Choose a term from Halter's book to blog on. Gather images or even better video related to your topic. Then you'll need also to write 2 paragraphs, one summarizing what Halter has to say about the term you have chosen. The second paragraph should reflect on something that came up in the reading related to your research term. (For example, about the aesthetics of portraying the enemy, or about how the military starts to think about "training time.") You can post your paragraphs and links to this post as a comment or start your own post if you want to include images.

GAME ASSIGNMENT

PHASE 1 (Complete before February 20th)

• as a group plan a game for 1 to 16  players to be played in the course of a 20 minute game session. (Let me know how many players ASAP so I can plan for Feb 23.)

• design and make the game

PHASE 2 (Complete by February 22 at 1:00)

• test out your game with friends

• write a preliminary report on successes, failures, and revisions – post this to the blog by February 22 at 1:00 pm

• (you will also include this preliminary report in your final report)

PHASE 3 (Complete by February 23 for class)

Final Game and Report

Each person writes the report individually.

REPORT 3-PART STRUCTURE:

• Aims of your game project

• Preliminary report on revision

• Reflection on your game in terms of McLuhan’s ideas about games and society

TOTAL LENGTH: 3 pages

Grade: Game 20 % of course grade (presentation 10%/report 10%)