Socializing Gamers - Wordplay and the Discourse of Video Games - page 22

descendent of Sir Francis Drake, who is approached by two former accom-
plices in an ef ort to track various parts of the voyage of Marco Polo and
discover lost treasure. There are a variety of elements to how Uncharted
2 brings players into the game, but the most notable are the integration of
the game play and story narrative, the out-of-game promotional blitz, and
the tutorials within the game and the paratexts surrounding it that 'teach'
players just how the game should be played.
Uncharted 2 starts like many other games on either the PlayStation 3
or Xbox 360. If this is the fi rst time you have played the game or if you
have taken a lengthy break in between play sessions, the game will likely
instruct players that updates are required to play. This forces players to
download new content, and possibly consent to new terms of service, before
they actually start up the game itself. Upon boot up, the publisher (Sony
Computer Entertainment) and developer (Naughty Dog) are announced
before a ceremonial dagger begins spinning in the bottom of the screen,
marking the loading screen for the game itself. Although these may seem
like innocuous, regular parts of games, they are still key, constructive ele-
ments of the discourse of Uncharted 2 . In requiring regular updates and
downloads, console games shift from what were once seemingly complete
cartridge games into the kind of impermanence and change that used to
be exclusive to their compatriots designed for personal computers. This
changes how games are constructed, making them updateable, like the
roster updates frequent to sports games, and also facilitates the sale of
downloadable content, expanding what constitutes a game and potentially
extending its lifecycle by adding playable material over time. The ability to
include additional content shifts the development and marketing for high-
end console games because the package you buy at the store is not neces-
sarily the end of what the game is. The typical inclusion of the developer
and publisher works as a small ad, predominantly functioning as a matter
of branding. High-profi le, notable games that are played over several ses-
sions of er both companies the opportunity to present themselves in front
of a primed, receptive audience who can then track down other games
made by those companies. The spinning icon for the loading screen has
a dual function. In the case of the Uncharted series, the objects depicted
on the load screen are central to the plot of the game. 5 Simultaneously,
the objects are sleeker than the screen on many games that simply states
“Loading,” as they push players toward the larger narrative of the game.
This eases the break between the mechanical, processing needs of the game
system and the diegetic, story-driven interests of players.
When Uncharted 2 begins, players are presented with a menu that
requires them to select from a list of options. Upon starting a new game,
players are greeted with the introductory cinematic, which prominently
features a Marco Polo quote, “I did not tell half of what I saw, for I knew
I would not be believed,” that cleverly announces to players that they are
about to embark upon a wild adventure, while of ering the game designers