In this section, Professor Eric Klopfer shares his reflections about the Gamer Profile assignment in 11.127J Computer Games and Simulations for Education and Exploration. He discusses how the assignment is designed to challenge assumptions about who gamers are and what they play. He also shares why he does not allow students to present their gamer profiles in the form of papers or PowerPoint presentations.
Purpose of the Assignment
In 11.127J Computer Games and Simulations for Education and Exploration, we ask each student to interview a person who identifies as a gamer. Students learn about how the gamer understands his or her gaming experience, as well as details about the gamer’s style of play, habits, and preferences. Students present their findings as case studies.
I borrowed this assignment from my colleague, Barry Fishman, who is a Professor of Learning Technologies at the University of Michigan. I use it because I want students to challenge the commonly held belief that gamers fit a particular profile. The goal is help students understand that there are actually many different kinds of gamers. For example, many college-educated students are gamers; they might only play games for a few minutes each day, but this time might be important to them—and that’s what defines them as gamers. Being a gamer is more than how many hours someone plays games or what kinds of games they play. This assignment helps students explore this idea; it really gives students a sense that there are different kinds of gamers out there.
Most students present their gamer profiles as videos. Video enables students to integrate media in a way that allows the audience to hear the gamer’s own voice and to experience the games the person plays and how he or she plays them.
— Eric Klopfer
Profiled Gamers
Students typically profile gamers familiar to them, such as their younger siblings, parents, and people in their dorms on campus. Initially it feels like the gamers in their dorms will not challenge the stereotype of gamers because, in many ways, they strongly reflect the stereotype (playing for many hours, etc.). However, the process of sitting down and interviewing them tends to break down some of the myths about who these people are and why they play.
On Outlawing Papers and PowerPoint Presentations
Students have the option of presenting their gamer profiles in many different formats, but they cannot share their case studies as papers or PowerPoint slideshows. I made this decision because papers and slideshows tend to distill the gamer’s experience in ways that don’t capture the richness of who that person is or why they play games.
Most students present their gamer profiles as videos. Video enables students to integrate media in a way that allows the audience to hear the gamer’s own voice and to experience the games the person plays and how he or she plays them. Video footage of the interview provides so much context—we might see the computer the gamer uses, or a game poster or box in the room. This kind of visual information conveys a lot of information about the gamer, and it’s the kind of information that often gets lost in a paper or PowerPoint presentation.