Hey guys!
I am in my last semester in school and pretty much have tailored every project I am doing in the next few months to help my portfolio reflect my hopeful career in the game industry.

I am currently working on a Choco-mog in my sculpture class, I am “Branding” Tokyo as a anime / manga / videogame and cosplay Mecca for my Graphic Design Integrated Campaign class, and am working on a large research project that explores the hypocritical standards videogames are judged against for my senior ethics class. I also have two additional classes, but they are boring…haha

The last project is where I need your guys help. Below I copied my proposal paper for the project, and want to know what you guys think. Mad kudos to you if you make it all the way through the paper, but more than anything I want to know if you guys think I am leaving out any important issues that I would need to address in my research and final project. I also want to know what you guys think would be the best way to craft this research project into a final product. I think I am for sure making a website, but I must have other deliverables. What do you think? Informational stuff such as flyers and brochures? Campaign stuff like buttons and web banners? Please, your opinion matters a ton to me! I really want this project to be solid, and something that might make a difference, even if it is small.

Also, if you know of any good studies, websites or articles that would be good to read and include, let me know! Thanks SO much in advance!


Here is my proposal paper:

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In 1961 Steve Russell, a student from MIT, created Spacewar, the first interactive computer game, and in doing so changed the entertainment world forever1. This places the videogame industry at a mere 46 years old, just leaving behind its childhood compared to other media giants such broadcasting, film and publishing. It is understandable then that the videogame industry would go through growing pains to be accepted as a valid form of media. However, it seems that the usual trials and tribulations for this medium have been exchanged for intense scrutiny from both other forms of media and from the public, resulting in the industry being made a scapegoat for larger societal issues. Comparable to a child star, I began to wonder if the videogame industry is being unfairly demonized simply because it is going through its adolescence in the public eye? With such an information hungry culture and an access to a global community, is it possible for the gaming industry to evolve as other forms of media have under such intense scrutiny?

It is fair to say that the other forms of media have had their fair share of controversy. Literature has been the subject of debate since its conception. Books like The Communist Manifesto, Slaughterhouse Five, Fahrenheit 451 and even Religious staples such as the Bible and the Koran have been received with a storm of opposition2. The Film trade follows a similar path. Over 100 years old, controversial titles such as The Birth of a Nation which became a Ku Klux Klan recruiting tool were created within decades of the industries formation3. Music, Magazines, the Internet and yes, videogames are not exception. However, it seems that the same themes that are protected as freedom of speech in most mediums often land the videogame industry in hot water.
The massive and primarily negative amount of attention that videogames receive in today’s culture is what I want to focus my senior project on. The purpose of this project is not to deny that videogames include violent images, profanity, and stereotyping, but that all forms of media have or currently still do engage in this behavior. I wish to illustrate why games are having such a difficult time being recognized as a legitimate medium because of the hypocritical standards to which they are held. This topic is especially important to me as I have grown up following the trade and hope to help shape it someday with a career in the field.

In order to fully address this topic I will break the project down in to several categories. First, I will start by giving background information on the history of video games, and then touch briefly on the history of broadcasting, film and publishing to give the reader a general understanding of the development in mass media. Second, I will address the current standing of each industry, what laws and legislation are in place, and what laws and legislation are being proposed or appealed. I will also explain the current Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) system that was used to rate over 1,285 games last year4. This section will also include statistics reviling the audiences for each of these forms of media. Then, I will use case studies of controversial issues such as crime and violence, sexuality and nudity and portrayal of women, minorities and religion to compare and contrast the standards to which each industry is held. These issues are all hot issues in the current media and political climate and are the primary area in my project that will focus on ethics. The subjects of violence, sexuality and censorship are universal topics that can be understood by a wide audience.

The ultimate reason for this project will be to inform the public of the large gap between these forms of media, and how as a result the videogame industry is being unfairly made into a scapegoat for larger society issues. I do not intend to change the viewers opinion on violence, stereotypes and profanity as cultural elements, but prove that they are evident in all forms of media, and for that reason extra legislation and laws do not need to be made to restrict video game usage further.
While this project does focus on videogames, my project will target both those unfamiliar with the industry as well as those who play videogames. The majority of those who are active consumers in the videogame world already see and recognize the hypocrisy and are vocal about it. For that reason my project will be aimed at people who do not realize the extent to which this issue expands, including everyone from parents to government officials as well as those who wish to help the cause along.

This will be a very research-intensive project. As a whole, people who play videogames tend to have to swim upstream to have their message heard. The gap and the lack of understanding of the medium leads the general public to think that only youth play video games, and that the hobby goes hand in hand with bad behavior and lack of education. In reality, the average game buyer is 40 years old and the average game player is 33 years old according to research done by the Entertainment Software Association5. I will need to fight this stereotype by researching and interviewing, as well as making sure I have a well-written and crafted final project. The message is the most important thing in this project to me, and I need to make sure that nothing, including the fact that I myself am a “gamer”, distracts from that fact. I am lucky to have a large pool of friends who play videogames and industry professionals at my disposal to provide me with opinions and information.

I feel my project should be judged on the clarity and quality of the information, and on the ability to reach a large audience. These two criteria are the most important to me, because if the message is not clear, the projects goal has not been accomplished. The design and execution of the project and its ability to be widely disseminated is also of high importance. For this reason, I am approaching my project as a campaign, with a website being the largest element. Support elements will also be available, such as web banners and print items, which will be explored further at a later time.

As a gamer and an industry hopeful, it is my goal to have this project be influential in the video game world, even if on a small scale. I have set my expectations high for a reason, and I know my work will reflect it. With large amounts of research, resources and design knowledge, this project will evolve into something I will be proud to put in my portfolio.

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Thanks for your help!