Killing is Harmless A Critical Reading of Spec Ops The Line edition by Brendan Keogh Daniel Purvis Rob Zacny Benjamin Abraham Arts Photography eBooks
Download As PDF : Killing is Harmless A Critical Reading of Spec Ops The Line edition by Brendan Keogh Daniel Purvis Rob Zacny Benjamin Abraham Arts Photography eBooks 
One of the most critically discussed games of 2012, 2K and Yager’s Spec Ops The Line turns a reflexive lens back onto the genre of the military shooters to ask some hard questions just what is going on in these games? What does it say about us if we enjoy playing such games? Is virtual violence really harmless? Killing is Harmless isn’t an attempt to answer these questions so much as an exploration of just how the game is able to ask them in the first place. It follow’s the lead character, Walker, in his steps across Dubai to discover just how The Line is able to make so many players interrogate their own complicity in virtual acts of violence.
Killing is Harmless A Critical Reading of Spec Ops The Line edition by Brendan Keogh Daniel Purvis Rob Zacny Benjamin Abraham Arts Photography eBooks
A darn great game. Finished a 3rd playthrough and 100%'d it, mainly because I'm stubborn and loved the combat, but also as I'd started reading _Killing is Harmless: A Critical Reading of Spec Ops The Line_ after the first playthrough. The game's references to Joseph Conrad's books and Coppola's film (both of which I've been a huge fan of for years, and I think I've read all of Conrad's major works) with all their delving into the darker side of man's consciousness meant I couldn't leave this title after a single run through. It just got better each time, as I grasped more of the touches the artists and writers put in.Mechanically, Spec Ops is extremely sound. I've read complaints about the cover system, but I have none. The AI is smart and varied in their behaviour, and firefights rarely play out the same way twice in a row. It looked good, was completely glitch-free, and the only very minor annoyance was having to disable my xbox controller to nix controller-related tooltips. AI animation variations were numerous; such as, if they were hit in an arm or leg, they would react believably, and I can't recall any instance where I was taken out of immersion or felt I was shooting the same mannequin over and over -- important in a shooter where you are mowing down 100's of virtual soldiers.
But the buzz about this game of course, is the plot: Not only as a simple storyline completely outside of and separate from you the player; but as self-referencing critique of the military shooter genre and by extension video games in general, that attempts to make the player look in the mirror just a bit. Well, I don't feel like typing more on that, but would urge those playing the game to pay close attention to the artwork in the game, much of which clearly doesn't belong, and it's meaning. Also, the artists frequently play a subtle trick on the player by switching, e.g., the face on a billboard -- it will show one person the first time you see it, then change forever if you turn away. An important example is just before entering the Gates of the City, you see a flowering tree. Be sure to turn and look back at it before moving on...
The _Killing is Harmless_ essay is not well-edited, and really needed one or more re-writes. Two examples of this: In Chp 5, he does not realize who the 'Grey Fox' is, and thinks it is the player and his team, when it's pretty clear the term refers to Riggs (who is grey-haired) and the CIA operatives. Even worse, a couple paragraphs later the author completely misses the point of the 33rd commander saying 'they know not what they do', and seems to think the Major is somehow referring to himself, and that he might have a Jesus complex. In fact, 'they know not what they do' refers to the refugees, and how they are mis-guidedly inlisting in Riggs' insurgency operation.
Still, the essay (available on amazon) does increase my reflection on the game, the writing, and the FPS genre as a whole.
Product details
|
Tags : Killing is Harmless: A Critical Reading of Spec Ops: The Line - Kindle edition by Brendan Keogh, Daniel Purvis, Rob Zacny, Benjamin Abraham. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading Killing is Harmless: A Critical Reading of Spec Ops: The Line.,ebook,Brendan Keogh, Daniel Purvis, Rob Zacny, Benjamin Abraham,Killing is Harmless: A Critical Reading of Spec Ops: The Line,Stolen Projects,ART Criticism & Theory,GAMES Video & Electronic
People also read other books :
- Bisbosishas The HotHeaded Penguin A Tale of Learning to Keep Your Cool Raina Angelier 9781469955865 Books
- For the Love of Shih Tzu 2016 Calendar 14 x 12in 9781465047168 Books
- To Tame a Wild Firefighter Red Hot Reunions Book 2 edition by Jessie Evans Contemporary Romance eBooks
- Killer Moves The 4th Jolene Jackson Mystery Jolene Jackson Mysteries edition by Paula Boyd Mystery Thriller Suspense eBooks
- AmeRícan eBook Tato Laviera
Killing is Harmless A Critical Reading of Spec Ops The Line edition by Brendan Keogh Daniel Purvis Rob Zacny Benjamin Abraham Arts Photography eBooks Reviews
This is an very good essay about the game Spec Ops The Line.
This book describes with the author's point of view how this game affected his perceptions about videogames in general, and specifically first person shooters.
I read this because Spec Ops The Line affected me also in a very similar way.
I highly recommend both this book and the game.
I have become infatuated with 'The Line', and this critical summary, from identifying the game's desire for the player to question their actions in the virtual arena to the small nuances that help drive both those points and the plot, dissects just what makes 'Spec Ops The Line' such an engaging experience. It's unfortunate that a large percentage of the gaming community is ignorant of this title's significance to the art form as a whole. After completing the game once or twice, this book becomes an enlightening companion to it.
I've mentioned that Spec Ops The Line is one of the few video games I genuinely consider to be art. This book deconstructs a lot of the elements of the book and draws many fascinating conclusions. I definitely enjoyed reading it but I do think the author considers his interpretations the "most" valid while not paying much attention to dissenting opinions.
One area I strongly disagree with is the interpretation of the endings. Brendan Keogh believes the "best" ending is about denial of reality. I believe it is about forgiveness and redemption. That, even in the hell of war and darkness, there can be hope. Brendan Keogh believes the more nihilistic and self-destructive endings are more honest (even moral!), which I absolutely disagree with. In my humble opinion, a major theme about Spec Ops The Line is the horrors of war but only one ending is really about setting your weapon down and embracing peace. The fact this quality is ignored makes me reduce my score for the book.
Definitely worth a read but not at all the "be end all" of Spec Ops Criticism.
As far as I can tell, this is the only critical reading of a video game on .
And that is really depressing.
While I thought Keogh's work was short of flawless, I commend the effort. May we see more people try to tackle video games with critical integrity in the future.
The author of this book wants to share his thoughts and views while playing Spec Ops. He's not trying to make and academic study of the game (he has done that in another article, which was published following all the rigors of academia). I enjoyed reading the account of Brendan's multiple playthroughs of the game, a title that I also found compelling, engaging, surprising, and deeply touching. Since he was not bound by academia, he can freely express his thoughts on the game, as well as his feelings and impressions. I applaud Brendan for taking the chance to share this with us, and I greatly enjoyed reading this book and comparing his impressions and interpretations with my own thoughts and experience of Spec Ops.
A darn great game. Finished a 3rd playthrough and 100%'d it, mainly because I'm stubborn and loved the combat, but also as I'd started reading _Killing is Harmless A Critical Reading of Spec Ops The Line_ after the first playthrough. The game's references to Joseph Conrad's books and Coppola's film (both of which I've been a huge fan of for years, and I think I've read all of Conrad's major works) with all their delving into the darker side of man's consciousness meant I couldn't leave this title after a single run through. It just got better each time, as I grasped more of the touches the artists and writers put in.
Mechanically, Spec Ops is extremely sound. I've read complaints about the cover system, but I have none. The AI is smart and varied in their behaviour, and firefights rarely play out the same way twice in a row. It looked good, was completely glitch-free, and the only very minor annoyance was having to disable my xbox controller to nix controller-related tooltips. AI animation variations were numerous; such as, if they were hit in an arm or leg, they would react believably, and I can't recall any instance where I was taken out of immersion or felt I was shooting the same mannequin over and over -- important in a shooter where you are mowing down 100's of virtual soldiers.
But the buzz about this game of course, is the plot Not only as a simple storyline completely outside of and separate from you the player; but as self-referencing critique of the military shooter genre and by extension video games in general, that attempts to make the player look in the mirror just a bit. Well, I don't feel like typing more on that, but would urge those playing the game to pay close attention to the artwork in the game, much of which clearly doesn't belong, and it's meaning. Also, the artists frequently play a subtle trick on the player by switching, e.g., the face on a billboard -- it will show one person the first time you see it, then change forever if you turn away. An important example is just before entering the Gates of the City, you see a flowering tree. Be sure to turn and look back at it before moving on...
The _Killing is Harmless_ essay is not well-edited, and really needed one or more re-writes. Two examples of this In Chp 5, he does not realize who the 'Grey Fox' is, and thinks it is the player and his team, when it's pretty clear the term refers to Riggs (who is grey-haired) and the CIA operatives. Even worse, a couple paragraphs later the author completely misses the point of the 33rd commander saying 'they know not what they do', and seems to think the Major is somehow referring to himself, and that he might have a Jesus complex. In fact, 'they know not what they do' refers to the refugees, and how they are mis-guidedly inlisting in Riggs' insurgency operation.
Still, the essay (available on ) does increase my reflection on the game, the writing, and the FPS genre as a whole.
0 Response to "[NLS]⋙ PDF Killing is Harmless A Critical Reading of Spec Ops The Line edition by Brendan Keogh Daniel Purvis Rob Zacny Benjamin Abraham Arts Photography eBooks"
Post a Comment