For me, YouTube is very rarely used source for entertainment. If I am using YouTube it is probably to look up a highlight reel goal or a game highlight that I may have missed from the night before. I am not an avid YouTube user by any means, however, I was able to pretty easily put together a playlist that I can relate to, and actually enjoyed doing it. I have never uploaded a video to YouTube or even made a playlist before today so I had fun creating My Top 15. In no specific order, and with a little help from friends, I was able to combine sports, comedy and music into a playlist that reflects a bit of who I am.

I began the playlist with a soccer video that was on the YouTube homepage as a recommended watch and I was immediately intrigued as I really enjoyed the Dude Perfect NHL video that they did with the Dallas Stars. The soccer video also attracted me because I am a fan of the Arsenal Football Club who is featured in the video and has a Champions League game coming up against Barcelona which is why I added the hype video to my playlist.

From the recommended Dude Perfect video I moved into some music to share. I am into country music and have seen Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Billy Currington and Zac Brown Band in concert, so I wanted to share some of my favorite songs from them. I also added two songs; The State of Massachusetts and The Whip because they were the warm up songs for us last spring in the NCRHA National Championship tournament in which we finished second in the country. I was able to find one of our games against Kansas State in the round robin beginning stage of the tournament that we won 9-1. This year we are currently ranked number one in the nation and hoping to get back to the National Championship to change the outcome of last year’s game.

I think I have watched more Brian Regan on YouTube than anything else so I had to put his standup “I Walked on the Moon” on My Top 15, especially because I watched several clips of him just last night. Lastly, I am born and raised a die hard New England Patriots fan and couldn’t help but to add the final drive of Super Bowl 36 where John Madden is very willing to disagree with the Patriots game plan in the final two minutes. Tom Brady leads us down the field with a couple of great throws and Adam Vinatieri goes on to kick the game winning field goal with time expiring. The most recent Patriots Super Bowl win last year in Super Bowl 49 is one of the greatest games in NFL history so I had to add it and of course, the greatest player of all time needed his spot reserved on my playlist with a video I could watch 100 times a day.

I had fun with creating this playlist and I think it gives a good idea about my interests in sports, music and comedy. Although I am not the biggest YouTube user, I definitely take it for granted that at any given moment I can find just about any video I could ever imagine in a matter of seconds. YouTube for me is not an intricate part of my life, but it is something that I use more than I even realized before creating My Top 15.

“Ask your girlfriend how to play this game” was one of the considered taglines for Luxuria Superbia, Auriea Harvey revealed in an interview with Hip Hop Gamer at Indiecade. Indeed, she points out that most of the women who demo’d it at the event played it better than the men.

Luxuria Superbia is a suggestive, flirtatious, and spiritual exploration of intimacy, faith, and gaming. In Luxuria Superbia, the player experiences levels as flowers, which burst into bloom as the player interacts with its buds. The player can charge straight through a level, collecting all of the items and triggering the end of the level, however, this results in a low score and failed level. The objective of Luxuria Superbia is to prolong pleasure, not rush toward an objective. The game encourages the player to immerse themselves in the flower, enjoying the experience, rather than charging through to the finish.

As the player progresses through the flowers, the flower speaks to them, giving encouragement and telling the player how it likes to be touched. The marriage of intimacy and explicit consent in Luxuria Superbia is present all throughout the game, as the player must follow the wishes of the flowers in order to succeed at the game.

Joy and entertainment figure largely into what makes Luxuria Superbia what it is as a game. In the same interview, Harvey says Tale of Tales “wanted to put something nice into the world and into people’s lives”. Acknowledging the love and entertainment value in gaming is refreshing–in an industry in which games are made for money, for expansions into existing universes, for experiments into realism and grittiness and cynicism, the production of a game to be “something nice” is surprisingly wonderful.
Luxuria Superbia is a love letter to its players, to female sensuality, to entertainment, and to love itself. Consent and joy and beauty are not concepts which need be in direct opposition to video games, as Luxuria Superbia shows. For in Luxuria Superbia, they are all one and the same.

“There was this distinction for us, this line between games, which are ancient. There’s always been games, you play games your whole life from birth practically. And then there’s video games, the pixels and the interaction, and the thing that you do in your living room or whatever. And y’know that was a completely different subject. And to us there was no limit in that. There was no rules in that. We started going around to games conferences and figuring out how people make games ‘cause we were completely fucking clueless and perplexed why games were the way they were. We started playing lots and lots of games at that point and realizing that why they were genre-bound, why there were not many women playing games, all these things which were questions for us did not have answers, or rather people did not have answers for it.”

–Auriea Harvey, Indiecade 2014 Keynote

What makes a video game a video game?

Tale of Tales, an indie developer who frequently questions and disregards genre restrictions on video games, often receive backlash in terms of their products not being “games”. So, what is a video game, really? What must a piece contain to qualify itself as a video game? What are the genre restrictions of “video game”? Are there any?

Why is it so threatening to gamers when those boundaries are pushed?

Tale of Tales games challenge the definition of gaming. Their games include mechanics and narratives which, to more conventional games, seem absurd. The Path, a game which allows the player to take control of girls within a Little Red Riding Hood scenario, asks that the players disobey instructions in order to complete the game. Players must ignore instructions and purposefully trigger failed endings in order to fully experience the game. The Endless Forest, an MMO in which the player inhabits a deer, includes very few of the markers which are synonymous with MMOs. The deer cannot chat with one another, only through symbols and body language, and there is no violence or similar conventional gameplay involved.
These games, through disregarding the genre conventions of video games, show just how enormous the genre can be if pushed. What states what a video game is, or how it must behave in order to be successful? Tale of Tales produces games which interrogate the boundaries of gaming, and in doing so, show the possibility for the marriage of video games and interactive artwork.

I signed up for English 302 because it met an IT minor requirement. I didn’t know what the class would be like or what “new media” meant. All I knew was that it’d help me get one step closer to graduation. I thought we’d read books and use computers and analyze news articles or something basic like that. In high school I took a media studies class where we analyzed contemporary media including everything from tv shows to advertisements to magazines. I expected this class to be similar, but I was in for a pleasant surprise because I’ve learned quite a lot, an almost overwhelming lot. If I were to narrow down what I’ve taken away from this class into the 3 main concepts that I found most valuable, they would include:

1) Analyze everything!
Who knew memes had a purpose? I didn’t! I thought memes were superfluous, immature, and pointless graphics made by a bunch of pissed off and bored teenagers with nothing better to do but troll the internet with seemingly irrelevant comments. Boy, was I wrong! I learned that memes play a significant part in allowing this generation a new medium to express themselves and voice their opinions, especially in response to contemporary matters in a cynical and creative way. Memes are outlets that can be both constructive and fun. Why does Snow White have Steve Buscemi’s eyes in this picture? What does this photoshopped image say about society?

Or this one?

Or this?

I do not know, and I’m not sure I care. But I do know that someone out there does know and care. I’m sure that if I wanted to and if I had the time to, I could probably write pages upon pages about what this meme means and what its significance is today in society. Memes are fun. They’re playful, but they also hold important messages.

2. Don’t trust Google, even though we need it!
Google and other platforms, as warm, fuzzy, and friendly as they appear are untrustworthy sources that possess way more information about us than they should. At the same time, however, these platforms like Amazon and Facebook and Google have become an integral, almost central part of our lives. We are constantly checking our Twitter feeds, our Instagram likes, our Facebook notifications. Platforms have given us a new way of life–a new way of socialization and connection. These platforms have made communicating easier and faster than ever before in the entire history of humanity. But we need to tread carefully.

3. New media creates a space for minorities to voice their opinions, to express themselves, and to make themselves more present in today’s society.
Which is awesome! Web series have given minorities more air time in a way that television has been slow to do. It has opened up an entire world for minority viewers to see themselves reflected online or even in video games. New media is diversifying entertainment. It’s giving minorities a voice, empowering them, and legitimizing their presence. Finally! A world in which they are in charge of what they produce, create, write, and publish. No longer are minorities constrained to the limitations of mainstream media. New media has created a promising and welcoming space for minorities to speak, share, and communicate.

YAY!

I love Amazon. Amazon Prime is a life saver! When I broke up with my ex last year I needed a new mattress, and I needed on quick. So what did I do? I didn’t go to Sleepy’s. I didn’t have the means to transport a 100lb mattress from the store into my apartment. I also didn’t have the funds to pay for a mattress worth more than $500. I avoided all this hassle. I avoided the awkward mattress testing. I avoided the desperate salesman. I avoided the burdensome pick up and drop off. What did I do? I went to Amazon, and in just a few clicks, and after reading a few reviews, and in just a matter of 2 days, I had a brand new mattress!

Amazon has made my life incredibly easy. I’ve found everything from textbooks to bathing suits to special light bulbs on this platform. Amazon has saved me obnoxious trips to random hardware stores or to distant malls. Amazon has allowed me to use and expend the least amount of energy to receive a product I probably purchased on a mere whim. Amazon has allowed me to indulge in my American, first world, world class laziness. Amazon has opened up a world of possibility for me, a world of consumerism and shopping and joy and gratification I probably would not have experienced otherwise. And I love Amazon for this, but after reading several articles on platforms and their sneaky sales tactics, I have to admit that Amazon doesn’t appear as kind and pure as it once had been for me.

The author of “The Age of the Platform” used a metaphor to best present the idea to me:

“Amazon Prime’s cheap and fast shipping causes shoppers to buy considerably more than they normally would…everything Amazon does–and how the company does it–is by design…For instance, grocery stores place milk in the back and put high-margin items near the register. They make it reasonably difficult for customers to run in and run out. Customers in the store for longer periods of time are more likely to purchase more things; they have more time to make impulse buys.”

When I read that my mind was blown. Milk is always in the back! And I always end up buying Icebreakers at the cash register! And Amazon’s design with its recommended products and ease of use and efficiency have definitely forced me to splurge more than once or twice! Reading that made me feel like a stupid, senseless, gullible, vulnerable, pliable, dumb, and greedy consumer. Reading that paragraph made me feel like a fat, wasteful cow easily goaded into buying products I don’t need.

But at the same time, hello?! I can order books I’ve been meaning to read and have them at my doorstep in 2 days with FREE shipping! I can order Dunkaroos (which have been discontinued in the US) from Canada and snack on them in 2 days! I can grocery shop on Amazon. I can buy shoes, clothes, bags, food, beds, and even milk from Amazon! As much as I feel I should be skeptical of Amazon, I really don’t see myself ever not using it.

Platforms, as sneaky and untrustworthy as they may be, in the long run do a great deal of good for the hungry American consumer. They make connections more efficient, fast, and easy. Americans will always value this over the hidden downfalls.

My television is alive and well. Well, perhaps that’s an exaggeration seeing as I haven’t had cable in almost 4 years thanks to being in college and thanks to the insane cost of cable. There’s no way I’m going to ask my parents to pay an extra hundred a month so I can get my fill of SpongeBob and The Walking Dead when I can easily stream these shows online for free or wait a year for my favorite series to become available on my ex-boyfriend’s Netflix account.

But I still do not retract my statement that my television is alive and well. I love TV. My earliest memories consist of me laying on a black leather couch that my parents bought in the ’80s. I’m sucking on a bottle full of milk and watching the Rugrats in my underwear. Good times–but twenty years later, whenever I go home during holidays, there I am again: I’m in my underwear watching ’90s reruns and sipping on a cold drink. I doubt ever seeing this kind of lifestyle, this kind of media ever going out of style.

There’s something very human, very comforting about watching television. I feel more connected to the universe. I’m comforted by the fact that there are thousands of other Americans sharing the same show with me. I’m comforted that I’m not alone, that I’m not the only one rolling my eyes at a lame commercial. Or that I’m not the only one fascinated by the way Rick Grimes says “CORAL”‘s name when a new episode of The Walking Dead airs.

It’s the same with the radio. There’s something special about listening to a song with others. It’s a communal feeling that I’m not sure if others share. I like knowing that a shared tv show, commercial, or song connects me to the rest of the world whereas choosing a song on my ipod or selecting a show on Netflix makes me feel more detached. Sure, I’m in charge of what I get to watch or listen to, and that’s an awesome perk, but I lose that sense of connection that cable and radio offers.

On that note, I feel like Netflix is definitely the way of the future. It’s cheap. It’s easy. It offers the audience control–something that cable lacks. There are no commercials. I can pause, rewind, or fastforward any time that I want. The same goes for web series–something I have never really found an interest in.

I personally can’t stand the poor quality of web series. I can’t watch bad acting, I can’t listen to bad writing, I can’t watch bad production and directing. I understand that web series offer something that TV has yet to give its audience. Web series offer minorities a place and a voice. As Professor Russworm states in her article about web series:

“Internet ‘television’ offers something network or cable programming never has: hundreds, if not thousands, of on-demand amateur and professional content…are created by or star black people… A micro-niche model best describes how to think about the audiences for the current online content, meaning it is highly probable that a given viewer will find something in the multitude relatable and entertaining enough.”

Now that I reflect on it, I have definitely, and on several occasions turned to YouTube to watch videos created by people who are like me–Asians, minorities, women. I have often turned to YouTube to watch Asian comedians describe what it’s like to be an Asian American–something that TV or Netflix has never offered me insight on.

All in all, I don’t think television is a dead medium. I will always have a desire for optimum quality and for the strange connection I feel to the rest of the world when I watch it. At the same time, I think that web series definitely have a bright future. I think it opens up mainstream entertainment to minorities and niches. I think both mediums have and will continue to have a place in our lives, and I’d be incredibly sorry to see either medium fade away with time.

When I first enrolled in English 302 back in November 2014–wow that feels like ages ago–I wasn’t really sure what to expect. As an English major, I decided upon English 302 simply because it fulfilled a requirement and fit perfectly within my schedule. However, I soon came to discover that this was not your average, everyday English class, instead finding that we would be taking a look at everything from internet privacy to the race and gender of video game protagonists. That being said, I was initially skeptical when first overlooking the syllabus and upon learning of the large group-component of the class. Looking back on those first days of classes now, however, I can confidently say that I learned a great deal in English 302, especially considering the topic and subject matter of the class.

Throughout the semester, as we jumped from topic to topic, from Googlization to Video Games, I found an increasing level of relatability between myself and the course material. Whether it was the shocking lack of internet privacy and the controversy that surrounds it, or the many discussions centering on social media and it’s various effects, I found myself thinking more and more about how my life is impacted by these previously neglected aspects. The time spent covering television, for example, taught and showed me that television is more than just a box–well, a very flat box these days–sitting in the living room, but rather is a significant cultural component that greatly impacts more than I had ever imagined. These unexpected discoveries continued with topics such as the web series(my group’s focus) and video games, specifically regarding the diversity aspect. It was interesting learning about how the web series platform has allowed for more diverse “television” offerings when compared to traditional television. Additionally, learning just about everything I could possibly learn about the web series medium–something in which I had previously known nothing about–shed light into the people and DIY culture that drive it, something I found incredibly interesting. Video games, on the other hand, have experienced a noticeable lack of diverse protagonists, something that, as someone who has played his fair share of video games, I had not been previously aware of.

Overall, English 302 proved to be a complete surprise considering it’s status as an “English” class. However, this surprise allowed me to learn a great deal about things that I never knew that I wanted to learn about. While I wouldn’t recommend English 302 to everyone at UMass, it is definitely a class in which a student can learn a substantial amount of important information that might otherwise be overlooked.

There is a popular Facebook page that I’m not proud to say that I subscribe to. It’s called Stuff that makes you cringe, a “facebook page [that] collects random pictures and videos of stuff that is intended to make you cringe.” Unfortunately, however, I find that the users and commenters more often than not are the source of any cringe I receive from visiting this page. This page often pokes fun at Furries, Bronies, nerds, feminism, gamer girls, etc. Comments range from threats of murder, rape, and humorous memes, but during the Gaming and Identity discussion week, I found myself constantly coming back and thinking of this page.

This is a screenshot from their Facebook page.

Photos like the one above are commonly shared on Stuff that makes you cringe. Within minutes these pictures gain hundreds of likes and just as many degrading, demeaning comments attacking the person featured in the image. These commenters react heatedly with angry responses that often mock the self-proclaimed gamer girl. In the above picture, one commenter mockingly states, “yes i am grill, yes i play video games, problme?” The commenter brings into question her intelligence and mocks her identity. Another commenter simply posted a picture of Piglet crying and holding a gun. Clearly poor Piglet does not want to shoot, but the commenter suggests that it simply must be done. He has no other option. She must die.

This image also screencapped from the Stuff that makes your cringe Facebook page.

There are countless posts shared by Stuff that makes you cringe similar to these two. The commenters who react most heatedly are often male. Shaw addresses the stereotype that the most common gamer is “the dominant White, heterosexual, male, teen.” Shaw states that this stereotype has been disproved time and time again by studies, but that the stereotype remains rampant among so many because game developers have yet to represent marginalized groups in games. Shaw states, for example that

“the argument is that if scholars can prove that members of marginalized groups are gamers, the industry will have to offer content that is more diverse.”

So I find it quite annoying that these commenters with their threats and their lame memes feel the need to attack girls that identify as gamers. I find it extremely annoying that these people assume that the gaming community should be one belonging  solely or mostly but widely to men!

I definitely agree with Shaw that the term “gamer” should not be all-inclusive. I play the Sims. I play Animal Crossing. I’ve beat Halo 3 on Legendary, but I would never, never, never call myself a gamer. Shaw states that “Labeling everyone
who plays video games as a gamer, however, is misguided.” I agree.

I don’t even know how this one is cringe worthy at all!

However, I think that applying the term “gamer” to yourself is a personal choice that I don’t think outsiders should really have a say in. Shaw says that “identification allows for the self-definition of the individual, rather than on static definitions of identity applied from the outside.” Why can’t these little girls call themselves gamers? How does it affect the critics? Really? How does it impact their lives?

I mean it’s not the same as eating broccoli once and then calling yourself vegan.

These girls are hurting no one.