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Category Archives: Critical Retrospectives
First anniversary: What we’ve learned
For Higher Level Gamer’s one year anniversary, I thought we’d share what we learned while writing for HLG this past year. So, what follows is the result of us sharing what we’ve learned in a google document dialogue for the … Continue reading
Posted in Candice Lanius, Critical Retrospectives, Erik Bigras, Gaines Hubbell, Laquana Cooke, Nick Hanford, Stephanie Jennings
Tagged anniversary, blogging, co-authoring, confidence, how to, podcasting, rants, weekly content, writing, writing for a broad audience, writing process
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A Decked Out Retrospective: Cyberpunk Games
Welcome to a Higher Level Gamer Critical Retrospective! Retrospectives can take many forms: some focus on a single franchise while others are more expansive. For these retrospectives, I’ll be taking the latter approach. These retrospectives aren’t meant to be best-of … Continue reading
Posted in Critical Retrospectives, Erik Bigras
Tagged Blade Runner, Cyberpunk, Cyberpunk 2020, Cyberpunk 2077, Deus Ex, Deux Ex: Human Revolution, Heist, Neal Stephenson, Neuromancer, Ridley Scott, Shadowrun, Shadowrun Returns, Shadowrun Unlimited, Snow Crash, Uplink, Uplink: Hacker Elite, Watch Dogs, Watch_Dogs, William Gibson
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A Vulnerable Retrospective: Desolation Games
Welcome to a Higher Level Gamer Critical Retrospective! Retrospectives can take many forms: some focus on a single franchise while others are more expansive. For these retrospectives, I’ll be taking the latter approach. These retrospectives aren’t meant to be best-of … Continue reading
Posted in Critical Retrospectives, Erik Bigras
Tagged 7 Days to Die, Affect, Choice, D&D, Dark Sun, Dayz, Despair, Dune, Emotions, Emptiness, Fallout, Game design, Game Mechanics, Guilt, Kenshi, Loneliness, MechWarrior, New Vegas, Open World, Remorse, Rust, SEAL Team, Story, Twilight: 2000, Video Game History, Video games
3 Comments
A Simulated Retrospective, Part 4: Space
Welcome to the fourth and final part of this Higher Level Gamer Critical Retrospective! For these Retrospectives, I’ll take a broad approach to examine some of the tropes of particular game genres, their historical contexts, provide some examples, as well … Continue reading
Posted in Critical Retrospectives, Erik Bigras
Tagged Doom, Flight Simulation, Freelancer, FreeSpace 2, Game Mechanics, Games and cultural change, Historicity, Nature of games criticism, Open World, Rogue Squadron II, Space Simulation, Story, Video Game History, Video games, Wing Commander
3 Comments
A Simulated Retrospective, Part 3: Submarines
Welcome to Part 3 of this Higher Level Gamer Critical Retrospective! For these Retrospectives, I’ll take a broad approach to examine some of the tropes of particular game genres, their historical contexts, provide some examples, as well as explore why … Continue reading
Posted in Critical Retrospectives, Erik Bigras
Tagged 688 Attack Sub, Aces of the Deep, Cold War, Depth charge, Destroyer, First World War, Gulf War, Second World War, Silent Hunter, Sonar, Submarine, Submarine Simulation, Subsim, U-Boat, Video Game History, Video games, World War 1, World War 2
4 Comments
A Simulated Retrospective, Part 2: The Old West
Welcome to Part 2 of this Higher Level Gamer Critical Retrospective! For these Retrospectives, I’ll take a broad approach to examine some of the tropes of particular game genres, their historical contexts, provide some examples, as well as explore why … Continue reading
Posted in Critical Retrospectives, Erik Bigras
Tagged American Indians, Bound in Blood, Call of Juarez, Duel, Feminism, First Nations, Foucault, Game Mechanics, Gun, Gunslinger, Indians, Mad Dog McCree, Man with No Name, Michel Foucault, Native Americans, Old West, Open World, pistolero, Red Dead Redemption, Revisionism, Revisionist Western, Sergio Leone, Six-shooter, Spaghetti Western, Story, Video Game History, Video games, Western
3 Comments
A Simulated Retrospective, Part 1: Pirates
Welcome to a Higher Level Gamer Critical Retrospective! Retrospectives can take many forms: some focus on a single franchise while others take a more expansive approach. For these retrospectives, I’ll be taking the latter approach. These retrospectives aren’t meant to … Continue reading
Posted in Critical Retrospectives, Erik Bigras
Tagged Assassin's Creed 4, Black Flag, Bruno Latour, Edward Saïd, Errol Flynn, Feminism, Game Mechanics, Gender, Higher Level Gamer Critical Retrospective, Hollywood pirates, Open World, Pirate simulation, Pirates!, Sandbox, Sea Dogs, Sid Meier's Pirates!, Simulations, Thomas Hobbes, Uncharted Waters, Video Game History, Video games
4 Comments