In the case of the term paper, we want you to design and answer a research question that takes on the central questions of the course: what can games tell us about what we value, how we think, and who we are? There are many different ways to do this – a close reading of a single game of your choosing, an analysis of a gaming practice, a critique of some aspect of gaming culture – and we will attempt to model many of them over the course of the semester. Ultimately, the direction your paper goes will be up to you. Your final paper should be no more than 3000 words. You may refer to sources outside of the course texts, but this is not required. Any sources that you do consult must be properly documented (<link is hidden> through citations and a bibliography) in APA, MLA, or Chicago.

Those of you interested in the game design project can create either a traditional game or a digital one. You don’t necessarily need to know anything about code to design a digital game, since there’s simple game design software you can use: Scratch, Twine, Unity, ChoiceScript, Sploder, Flowlab, Gamefroot, and RPG Maker are just some of the good options out there, but there are others too. (See a longer list at
<link is hidden> /> .) As with the paper, the intention is for you to make an interesting game – one that might “say something” beyond itself. I’ll say more this in class, but please also dee the December 2016 issue of GAME for excellent examples of what we mean (
<link is hidden> /> ). When you hand it in (as a single executable file, a link to a website, or a traditional game), include a 750 word artist’s statement outlining your intentions.

In the case of the term paper, we want you to design and answer a research question that takes on the central questions of the course: what can games tell us about what we value, how we think, and who we are? There are many different ways to do this – a close reading of a single game of your choosing, an analysis of a gaming practice, a critique of some aspect of gaming culture – and we will attempt to model many of them over the course of the semester. Ultimately, the direction your paper goes will be up to you. Your final paper should be no more than 3000 words. You may refer to sources outside of the course texts, but this is not required. Any sources that you do consult must be properly documented (<link is hidden> through citations and a bibliography) in APA, MLA, or Chicago.

I started on this proposal already and did like a pre-draft:
opic: Close reading of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998)
Research question: How does The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998) display what society values?

Thesis: The widespread popularity of the 1998 game The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time implies that society values archaic gender roles, the hero’s journey, and racial stereotypes.

Argument 1: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time implies that society values archaic gender roles.

In the game, Princess Zelda is captured in the climax of the game, leading to Link’s final battle with Ganondorf to save her
She disguises herself as Sheik – a man – throughout the game to help Link through his quest
In video games, female characters often fulfill secondary or submissive roles (Miller, 2007)
They’re often the victim of the game’s plot or the prize the hero receives at the end of the game (Miller, 2007)
Also often take on the helper figure for the male protagonist (Miller, 2007) – akin to Sheik helping Link

Argument 2: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time implies that society values the hero’s journey

Ocarina of Time depicts a classic tale of good conquering over evil
The Hero’s Journey is a story structure popularized by Joseph Campbell (1949) and describes common patterns seen in hero myth narratives
Ocarina of Time takes Link through several of the stages of the hero’s journey, such as a call to adventure, meeting a mentor, supernatural aid, trails, rewards, etc.

Argument 3: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time implies that society values racial sterotypes

Link and Princess Zelda are Hylians, the most dominant race in the game and original rulers of Hyrule
Ganandorf is a Gerudo, a race of thieves in the game
Hylians are depicted as fair in colour, whereas Gerudos are more tan
Ganondorf represents Western colonialist fears of non-White, “uncivilized” men in need of the interference of a white savior male (Kimball, 2018)
Players are invited to align themselves with these values to identify themselves implicitly with the character of Link and with the land of Hyrule (Kimball, 2018)
can he use the thesis atleast