Project: Video Game

Narrative

 

     I found this game, Pirates: Tides of Fortune, on addictinggames.com and read the summary. The story line immediately grabbed my attention so I began to play. Once I began play, I was prompted to pick a name and an avatar for my captain. There was a wide variety of both men and women from different ethnicities to choose from. I decided to name my captain "Reido" and chose an avatar that looked very adventurous and wore a turban. As soon as I created my persona, I received a message from Cap'n "Bonnie" Anne O'Malley. She goes on to introduce herself as the Queen of Port Royal and she apologizes to me about my ship so I assume Cap'n Bonnie destroyed it. She said it "was nothing personal" and "just business". Cap'n Bonnie also hints to me that I am a prisoner when she says "don't worry about the irons." She soon orders one of her men to free me from the shackles and offers me a chance to become a Port Royal pirate. Cap'n Bonnie gives me an offer I cant refuse. She wants me to become a pirate on her ship and help her and her crew of marauders with various tasks involving piracy. After the invitation, her voice and words disappear and I find myself looking at an island being constructed. At this time in the game, I realize that one adventurous sounding pirate song has been playing on loop the entire time. I can assume this Island belongs to me because I have complete control over what I can build and create to benefit my fellow pirate crew. My character isn't actually visible on the map but I can use my cursor to move, build, and maintain various objects on my island property. For the first time, I discover my inventory. The objects within my main inventory include barrels of rum, gold coins, and wood. Within this strategy game, All of these items are forms of currency used to barter, trade, build, etc.. I look around the map more closely and see some chests of gold and raw wood floating near where the waves are breaking. I click on these free items and they are immediately added to my inventory. I further explore my island in depth and am prompted to start building facilities for my crew. Using some of my inventory of rum, I build a rum distillery for my mates. I also decide to spend some gold coins to upgrade a gold mine and to upgrade a lumber yard on my island. After some time spent on construction and upgrades, a notification pops up that I have successfully reached level 2. As a result of leveling up, I receive 25 rubies and 150 experience points. I gain more rubies by building some necessary establishments on the island which include an observatory and quarters to house my soldiers in. Cap'n Bonnie prompts me with another opportunity to gain rubies and currency by showing me "discoveries". When looking at the discoveries menu, a player can choose from a wide variety of skills to invest "research time" in to have their captain gain knowledge about a  skill. Some of these discoveries players can choose to put time in include: Physics, Ballistics, Fortifications, Flight, Alchemy, etc. After investing some time in research for these discoveries, I am prompted for an oppurtunity at "Riches n' Glory". The challenge includes using my fleet of ships and my buccaneers to commandeer a strong enemy ship and steal their loot. I decide to accept the challenge due to the reward of 25 experience points and 7 additional buccaneers. After I accept, the whole map zooms out and I am spectating the enemy ship in deep water. I click on a button of clashing swords and my fleet effortlessly takes over the ship by sailing up to the ship and firing it's cannons. I then return to port with more men and experience than I set out with so I find the attack a success. After getting a good idea of gameplay, I decide to quit having learned a lot about Pirates: Tides of Fortune.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     From my gameplay, I can only assume that this game takes place some time during the period of early exploration and discovery of the new world. The music constantly playing in the background has an old, nautical, sailing tune to further put the gamer back in time to the age of early exploration and piracy. The setting where this narrative takes place happens to be on an island in the middle of the sea. On the island, it is the Captain's (gamer's) responsibility to provide necessary resources for the fellow pirates living there to prosper. Within the game, the specific kind of pirates present are referred to as "Buccaneers". According to a pirate history website, buccaneers "were made up of a group of men from Holland, England, France, and another group of pirates called the Barbary corsairs who were chased out of the Barbary Coast when merchant captains from France and England got tired of being captured and robbed by the French Corsairs." (thinkquest.org). The website further explains where the word "Buccaneer" comes from when the source says "The Indians used special knives called "boucans". The pirates began to sail the Caribbean Sea and used the boucan knife as a weapon...The name buccaneer came from them using the boucan knife." (thinkquest.org). Throughout my gameplay, the Buccaneers showed just how fierce and quarrelsome they could be when we successfully attacked the enemy ship.  

 

     I am a captain of a vessel until it gets destroyed by Cap'n "Bonnie" Anne O'Malley. I am captured by her crew and she plans to make a deal with me to join her crew as her partner in crime (piracy). I don't think I have an option, but I accept her request and am brought to an island under construction. I gain the knowledge that this is my own island and that I am in complete control of it's inhabitants, infrastructure, and it's overall production. For the cost of either gold coins, wood, or barrels of rum, I am able to upgrade different establishments (such as a distillery or a lumber yard) to increase efficiency and output. I learn more about discoveries along with the island and it's many properties and I eventually accept to randomly battle a rival enemy ship. With my team of pirates, I successfully commandeer the ship and gain experience and more Buccaneers. The most tension arises at the beginning of the story when Cap'n Bonnie destroys my ship and holds me captive under her demand. 

 

     I begin the game in shackles but through a deal Cap'n Bonnie makes, I am able to cooperate with the Cap'n Bonnie and free myself from captivity to join her adventures of piracy on the high seas. Although once an enemy, Cap'n Bonnie becomes a mentor and a teacher for me as I begin my tenure as a Captain in her fleet. Along with the change in my role of transitioning from a prisoner to a teammate, Cap'n Bonnie changes from an enemy who destroyed my ship to a useful reference and guide. Because I accepted the deal that Cap'n Bonnie provided, a shift in both the plot and character roles shifted.

 

     Through my gameplay and having Cap'n Bonnie as a mentor, I was able to gain a lot of knowledge about the game from my player's perspective and my perspective. I learned the responsibility and what it takes to be a captain and to control a group of pirates along with my own land. Using the "discoveries" tab within the game, my captain could easily gain the knowledge and know-how of many important and relevant skills involved in piracy. Through this gaining of knowledge at both the character level and my personal level, we see that education is a re-occurring theme within the game and this is very important. At the very beginning, before I met Cap'n Bonnie, I was able to view and chose from a wide array of characters to be my avatar. This game integrates different geographical cultures of pirates through the wide array of avatar selections. Throughout the game, a track that can best be described as a nautical sounding adventurous tune is constantly playing on a loop. This track, along with the freedom of being your own captain and making executive decisions, gives the player a full adventurous experience.

 

     Within my own personal life, I experience some of the same images and themes that are present in this computer game. I have personally been told I am the adventurous type and I am always looking to experience new things. Along with adventure, this game promotes the theme of responsibility as it forces you to create your own personal realm for fellow pirates and yourself from basically scratch. This being my first year in college, I have a load of responsibility to handle whether it be classes, basketball, or life itself. This game also shows how important the ideas of research and education are. Within the game, knowing necessary skills are vital for you success as a person. I myself strive to learn and gain better ideas of the world around me and what it has to offer. These themes in the game can directly be related to my own personal life. 

 

     The fact that you are able to pick your own captain's avatar ethnicity shows just how the game is giving the player a better understanding of the many diverse cultures that exist. In the world today, it is vital that one gains a sort of cultural capital and understanding that each culture has their own unique characteristics and ideals. The more open-minded a person is, the more that person will accept different cultures for what they are. In the modern world, the problem of ethnocentrism is increasing. Ethnocentrism is the belief that one's own culture and what it entails is superior to another culture's. This is a very dangerous way of thinking and has occurred in the past by fueling genocides and mass killings of one culture by another (nazi Germany and the Jewish people). People must become educated to gain respect for other people's cultures, not just their own. From just the character selection stage, this game helps to show and teach the player that other cultures exist beside their own.

 

     Through the course of the game, Cap'n "Bonnie" Anne O'Malley is shown as a complete power figure. She captures you, she sets you free, and then she controls you as one of her own. This instance where the woman is in power is very similar to a notable term I mentioned earlier when discussing Mortal Kombat, the "Animus". As described earlier in narrative 1, the "Animus" is a Jungian archetype that focuses on the male aspect of the female psyche. This archetype remains constant throughout the game as Cap'n Bonnie shows her dominance and power. Like Cap'n Bonnie, sailing captains in general are shown being powerful and possessing great wealth in a quote from a rare manuscript that states "But that Kidd's accumulations were immense is well known." (Forrest and Ticknor). Scottish captain William Kidd was a very successful pirate and this shows how lucrative a profession in piracy can be. The game player also may select a female captain of their own when they are choosing their avatar. This further shows the manifestation of the Animus within gameplay. Some other notable character archetypes include "The Ruler" and "The Explorer". A web-based source claims the archetype of The Ruler "is also known as: The boss, leader, aristocrat, king, queen, politician, role model, manager or administrator." (soulcraft). Within the game, Cap'n Bonnie can best be described to me as an example of a ruler by fitting this archetype perfectly. Another web based source claims that the core desire of an Explorer is "the freedom to find out who you are through exploring the world." (soulcraft). Within the game, your created captain must explore the properties of the island with the assistance of Cap'n Bonnie. What you get out of the game is what you put into it. The explorer type can easily be related to this gameplay because the more adventurous and curious player will ultimately learn more from the experience of playing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     In this computer game, you get out what you put into it. A player can't simply feel like they have achieved anything unless they are patient and spend the time playing the game. A player must go through each task and level with a feeling of adventure and excitement. If a player doesn't play in this manner, they will gain little from the gameplay. Within my own life, when it comes to school, I must approach each task, project, assignment, etc. with upmost excitement and determination. Just like in the game, I wouldn't feel like I accomplished anything if I didn't put the required time, care, and effort into my school studies.

 

     This game narrative tells me just how important education is. Whether it is gaining new "discoveries" through game-play or becoming more accepting of different cultures, learning and education is vital. This game also portrays some cultural diversity through the avatar selection. This is important because it shows the player how important it is to realize the fact that there are other culture's in society besides just their own. This gameplay teaches us to be accepting of new experiences within the real world by being rewarded in the game for curiosity, responsibility, and adventure-seeking. 

 

 

 

Sources

http://library.thinkquest.org/J0110360/history.htm

 

http://www.soulcraft.co/essays/the_12_common_archetypes.html

 

Manuscript Source: Morgan, Forrest, and Caroline Ticknor, eds. The Bibliophile Library of Literature, Art and Rare Manuscripts; History, Biography, Science, Poetry,  Drama, Travel, Adventure, Fiction, and Rare and Little-known Literature from the Archives of the Great Libraries of the World. With Pronouncing and  Biographical Dictionary and Explanatory Notes ... New York: International Bibliophile Society, 1904. Print.