Papers by Charles Ecenbarger
This article illuminates the transmedia storytelling techniques in The Walking Dead comic book
an... more This article illuminates the transmedia storytelling techniques in The Walking Dead comic book
and video game. Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead localizes itself within the comic book world of
The Walking Dead by acting as a transmedia storytelling device and using intertextuality comics to
assist game players with meaning-making. By participating in the game, Telltale rewards players with
additional information about The Walking Dead universe, as well as creating a contingent but separate
narrative that expands upon the existing Walking Dead world. This exploration of The Walking Dead
offers insights into the specific methods that are being employed by creators to further engage the
audience in the transmedia storyworld.
Pennsylvania Communication Annual
As a planet we spend three billion hours a week playing video games . Individuals from all walks ... more As a planet we spend three billion hours a week playing video games . Individuals from all walks of life are participating in some sort of gaming activity on a daily basis, whether it is for five minutes or five hours. Studies suggest that a player spends, on average, 13 hours a week playing video games . That is 13 hours a week that a player can take the role of a superhero, a soldier, a spy, or even create their own virtual identity.
Forgiving Through Connecting: Neil Patrick Harris and Barney Stinson
Well Played: video games, value and meaning, May 2, 2012
Book Chapter by Charles Ecenbarger
100 Greatest Video Game Franchises: Mortal Kombat
Ecenbarger, C. (2016) Mortal Kombat. In R. Mejia, J. Banks, & A. Adams (Eds.), 100 Greatest Video... more Ecenbarger, C. (2016) Mortal Kombat. In R. Mejia, J. Banks, & A. Adams (Eds.), 100 Greatest Video Game Franchises. Lanham, Maryland, USA: Rowman & Littlefield.
Our Country, Our Language, Our Server: Xenophobic and Racist Discourse in League of Legends
Race and Gender in Electronic Media
Conference Presentations by Charles Ecenbarger
I Remember When This Was Free: The transition from add-ons to downloadable content
March 22, 2016 Popular Culture Association National Conference. Seattle, WA
Press Start and Press On – Navigating Postgraduate Research in Game Studies
Much discussion has revolved around the interdisciplinary nature and institutional status of game... more Much discussion has revolved around the interdisciplinary nature and institutional status of game scholarship, since the first international computer games conference in 2001 (Aarseth 2001), and indeed over the past 13 years of DiGRA. As a field inhabited by scholars from a wide variety of backgrounds (Quandt, van Looy, et al. 2015), it can be a challenge for early career scholars to discover their orientation. This panel examines the interdisciplinary nature of game studies and what this means for early career researchers attempting to navigate the field, particularly in the face of different philosophies, disciplinary expectations, styles of research output, and publication practices. Challenges include: contending with issues relating to the paradigm(s) of game studies (Kuhn 1970); identifying what methods and methodologies are acceptable; avoiding stock arguments or debates; exploring gaps in current research and formulating appropriate research questions; working with supervisors and colleagues from a variety of disciplines; as well as finding support among a broad range of resources and peers.
This panel explores these challenges from the perspective of early career scholars. Uniquely, the panel is comprised of members of the editorial board for Press Start — an international student-led game studies journal that aims to publish high quality work produced by students. All are involved in the study of games, from a wide range of nations and disciplines, ranging from the Arts and Humanities to the Computer Sciences. With these backgrounds, the panel is in an excellent position to both provide insight into the current state of game studies and to examine how this affects (post)graduate research. Further to this, they each also have experience in seeking to establish an international community of practice (Lave & Wenger 1991) that can offer peer support and peer evaluation over the course of research projects in this field, including those aspects associated with academic writing.
More broadly, the panelists will discuss what it means to pursue a PhD or other postgraduate research qualification in game studies, the value of such qualifications, and the nature of the research and dissemination process. The panel will also ask how junior researchers can support each other in this field, drawing on experience of managing the community of practice that has developed around Press Start. As students, the panelists are currently experiencing these types of situations and can help junior researchers navigate key issues in game studies. The panel will also argue that such a discussion is of interest to the wider DiGRA community, including more established academics who are engaged in the recruitment, supervision, and training of research students. Namely, to look to the future of game studies, and ask those in attendance to explore the ways in which their individual institutions could cultivate, or are already cultivating, a supportive environment for emerging game scholars.
Our Country, Our Language, Our Server: Xenophobic And Racist Discourse in League of Legends.
Three Perspectives on Multidisciplinary Collaboration in the Immersive Game Development Studio
The Bone Wars is an original educational video game about the historic 19th-century feud between ... more The Bone Wars is an original educational video game about the historic 19th-century feud between rival paleontologists, Othniel C. Marsh and Edward D. Cope. This two-player game explores their race to claim dig sites and discover new species, but its only by publishing their results that the players earn the fame that delivers victory. Just as their historic characters did, a successful player will end the game with little money, few friends, many publications, and crates of unanalyzed fossils. The game was designed and developed in a student-centered, faculty-mentored studio experience by a team of ten undergraduates and one graduate student. The team followed established practices of game design and agile software development, making effective use of a dedicated lab environment. The incremental and iterative development process was publicly shared on the team's blog and on Twitter, and we describe the impact that this had on the team and on the community of potential players.
Get Over Here: Transmedia and the Mortal Kombat Reboot
Selling Ourselves: Restrictive Economic Policy & The Market for Human Organs
Games by Charles Ecenbarger
The Bone Wars
The Bone Wars is an original educational video game about the historic 19th-century feud between ... more The Bone Wars is an original educational video game about the historic 19th-century feud between rival paleontologists, Othniel C. Marsh and Edward D. Cope. This two-player game explores their race to claim dig sites and discover new species, but it’s only by publishing their results that the players earn the fame that delivers victory. Just as their historic characters did, a successful player will end the game with little money, few friends, many publications, and crates of unanalyzed fossils. The game was designed and developed in a student-centered, faculty-mentored studio experience by a team of ten undergraduates and one graduate student. The team followed established practices of game design and agile software development, making effective use of a dedicated lab environment. The incremental and iterative development process was publicly shared on the team's blog and on Twitter. The Bone Wars was designed in conjunction with the Indianapolis Children’s Museum.
Secret Schematics
Secret Schematics is a web based Hybrid Reality Game focused around Muncie’s Academy of Model Aer... more Secret Schematics is a web based Hybrid Reality Game focused around Muncie’s Academy of Model Aeronautics. The game is intended for visitors, specifically middle-school aged children, to interact with the museum in a new, interactive and engaging way. The game will be played over the course of six puzzles, solvable in any order. Solving each puzzle will give the player a keyword or idea that will allow them to solve the final piece of the puzzle. The game will ask players to help the AMA crack the code for schematics for a new model airplane they have acquired. The overall narrative is driven in a way that engages players to explore the exhibits more closely - looking for clues, hints, or anything that could help them acquire the passcode to the schematics. The game is meant to be played over the course of time it takes someone to explore the museum.
Double Up
In the card and dice game Double Up, you set the challenge. Do you play it safe and choose a chal... more In the card and dice game Double Up, you set the challenge. Do you play it safe and choose a challenge that’s easy for both you and your opponents? Or do you raise the bar and pick a tough one, betting your friends will fail where you’ll succeed? The starting player attempts to match a pattern on a card using a specified number of dice and a hand of roll modifying cards. The player has a fixed number of attempts and dice, as indicated on the card, to successfully complete the challenge. If successful, the rest of the players must attempt the same challenge card and beat it in as many or fewer attempts than the original player. If the player fails to beat the challenge, whoever set the challenge gains a point; if the challenge is a Double Up card, however, they gain two points. The challenge is over once each player has made an attempt. The next player starts a new challenge and the game continues until one person reaches an agreed upon number of points. Double Up your opponents often to win!
Luck of the Draw
Luck of the Draw is a real time dice and card game that takes place in the Wild West. Two rival p... more Luck of the Draw is a real time dice and card game that takes place in the Wild West. Two rival posses are having shootout at high noon and will settle the score once and for all! Roll your dice to take a shot while simultaneously turning over the top card of your shootout deck. The shootout deck can be a blessing or a curse! It’ll determine the direction of your shot, whether the cavalry comes in as backup, or if one of your Posse members can get behind cover! The first player to eliminate the opposing posse wins.
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Papers by Charles Ecenbarger
and video game. Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead localizes itself within the comic book world of
The Walking Dead by acting as a transmedia storytelling device and using intertextuality comics to
assist game players with meaning-making. By participating in the game, Telltale rewards players with
additional information about The Walking Dead universe, as well as creating a contingent but separate
narrative that expands upon the existing Walking Dead world. This exploration of The Walking Dead
offers insights into the specific methods that are being employed by creators to further engage the
audience in the transmedia storyworld.
Book Chapter by Charles Ecenbarger
Conference Presentations by Charles Ecenbarger
This panel explores these challenges from the perspective of early career scholars. Uniquely, the panel is comprised of members of the editorial board for Press Start — an international student-led game studies journal that aims to publish high quality work produced by students. All are involved in the study of games, from a wide range of nations and disciplines, ranging from the Arts and Humanities to the Computer Sciences. With these backgrounds, the panel is in an excellent position to both provide insight into the current state of game studies and to examine how this affects (post)graduate research. Further to this, they each also have experience in seeking to establish an international community of practice (Lave & Wenger 1991) that can offer peer support and peer evaluation over the course of research projects in this field, including those aspects associated with academic writing.
More broadly, the panelists will discuss what it means to pursue a PhD or other postgraduate research qualification in game studies, the value of such qualifications, and the nature of the research and dissemination process. The panel will also ask how junior researchers can support each other in this field, drawing on experience of managing the community of practice that has developed around Press Start. As students, the panelists are currently experiencing these types of situations and can help junior researchers navigate key issues in game studies. The panel will also argue that such a discussion is of interest to the wider DiGRA community, including more established academics who are engaged in the recruitment, supervision, and training of research students. Namely, to look to the future of game studies, and ask those in attendance to explore the ways in which their individual institutions could cultivate, or are already cultivating, a supportive environment for emerging game scholars.
Games by Charles Ecenbarger