Glossary - Game Invaders: The Theory and Understanding of Computer Games - page 192

retainer: group of surprises that constitute major sites of interest and interaction, for
example, mini-missions, fi re fi ghts, puzzles, and so on. Part of perceptual mapping ,
introduced in Chapter 7. See also challenge point , choice point , and route .
rewards: found in perceivable consequences , the payoff for taking action. A type of
surprise that forms part of perceptual opportunities , introduced in Chapter 7. See also
attractors and connectors .
route: groups of surprises that guide us round a game world. Part of perceptual mapping ,
introduced in Chapter 7. See also challenge point , choice point , and retainer .
semiotics: the study of signs in terms of signifi er and signifi ed . Introduced in
Chapter 10 .
shocks: unwanted content that reminds us we are playing a game. Part of perceptual
mapping , introduced in Chapter 7. See also sureties and surprises .
sign: the basic unit semiotic theory, a sign consists of a signifi er and a signifi ed .
Introduced in Chapter 10 .
signifi ed: the meaningful aspect of a sign, what the signifi er brings into our minds.
Introduced in Chapter 10. See also semiotics and signifi er .
signifi er: the aspect of signs that we perceive in the world around us. Introduced in
Chapter 10. See also semiotics and signifi ed .
signs of intervention: buttons, joysticks, and so on, any technology that allows us to
signal our intentions to the game engine to control the interactive sign . Part of the
semiotic theory of interaction, introduced in Chapter 11.
spatial: the extent of the game world, whether that be in 3D or links between locations in
text adventures and so on, part of Janet Murray's digital environment characteristics,
introduced in Chapter 4 .
sureties: game content that helps to create believability, goes largely consciously
unnoticed by players. Part of perceptual opportunities , introduced in Chapter 7. See
also surprises and perceptual mapping .
surprises: content the player pays conscious attention to during gameplay. Part of
perceptual opportunities , introduced in Chapter 7. See also attractors , connectors ,
rewards , shocks , sureties , and perceptual mapping .
symbol: the signifi er of a sign is related to the signifi ed purely by convention: the words
dog and chien, for instance, both stand for canines and things to do with canines in
English and French respectively. Introduced in Chapter 10. See also semiotics , icon , and
index .
synchronic: signs we perceive at the same time, as on the page of a magazine. Part of
semiotic theory introduced in Chapter 10.
text: the term used in semiotic theory for anything that can be analyzed as being made
up of meaningful signs: a novel, a fi lm, a newspaper, a game, and so on. Introduced in
Chapter 10 .
transformation: the pleasure of becoming someone or something else in gameplay, one of
the aesthetic pleasures of games introduced in Chapter 4.
transience: property of a computer - based sign whose signifi er may change but is always
associated with the same object or character. The ghosts in Pac-Man are transient: they
are represented by fi ve or more signifi ers. Part of the semiotic theory of interaction,
introduced in Chapter 11 .