What is This?: Every week of the course (though not for every class; see “Submis

by Caaltu · May 23, 2024

What is This?: Every week of the course (though not for every class; see “Submission Info” below for more details), you must write or record a short (250-500 words/approximately 3-5 minutes) journal entry where you analytically reflect on your experiences with one of the assigned games through the lens of at least one of the assigned readings from the corresponding class (for example, analyzing Baba is You via Aubrey Anable’s chapter on failure).
Learning Outcomes: Through consistent critical engagement with the assigned readings and games, you will have the opportunity to repeatedly improve and refine your writing, research, and game analysis skills.
Instructions: In each of these entries, you must adhere to the following instructions:
Critically reflect on your experience playing (or watching a Let’s Play of) your selected assigned game. Here, you should try to be thoughtful in what you decide to discuss and only choose elements that are directly relevant to that week’s particular themes and readings. Try to be as focused/specific as possible when writing about your selected game. Be sure to reference specific aspects of your unique, personal experiences with it and avoid overly broad, generalized summaries.
Explain how one of the assigned readings from the corresponding class could be used to analyze the game. Here, you should not be attempting to summarize the entire reading, as you do not really have enough time/space to do this effectively. Instead, you should utilize a single specific key argument/concept and briefly outline how you think it is applicable to your selected game.
Using short, well-integrated quotes from the readings is encouraged but not necessary. However, please do not use lengthy block quotes that would outweigh your own writing. If you use direct quotes, you must include properly formatted in-text citations and an accompanying work-cited section.
Informal/conversational writing, first-person pronouns, and embedded images are perfectly okay for this assignment. I am also completely open to the idea of you submitting these entries as roughly 3-5 minute audio or video recordings. Remember, this is meant to be a reflective journal assignment, not a formal essay.
Please avoid using ChatGPT or other similar generative AI as much as possible for this assignment. I know it seems like an easy solution, but it is relatively easy to spot and is quite prone to making very obvious mistakes/inaccuracies when discussing the details of specific videogames. Furthermore, these tools often produce boring, uncreative content and will not help you improve as a writer or communicator. I would rather read a thoughtfully written personal reflection (even if it has typos/grammatical errors) than the uninteresting, repetitive, and vague content these tools typically deliver.