The Digital Role-Playing Game and Technical Communication: A History of Bethesda, BioWare, and CD Projekt Red

Author:   Daniel Reardon (Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA) ,  David Wright (Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
ISBN:  

9781501352546


Pages:   344
Publication Date:   20 May 2021
Format:   Hardback
Availability:   Manufactured on demand   Availability explained
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The Digital Role-Playing Game and Technical Communication: A History of Bethesda, BioWare, and CD Projekt Red


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Overview

With annual gross sales surpassing 100 billion U.S. dollars each of the last two years, the digital games industry may one day challenge theatrical-release movies as the highest-grossing entertainment media in the world. In their examination of the tremendous cultural influence of digital games, Daniel Reardon and David Wright analyze three companies that have shaped the industry: Bethesda, located in Rockville, Maryland, USA; BioWare in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; and CD Projekt Red in Warsaw, Poland. Each company has used social media and technical content in the games to promote players’ belief that players control the companies’ game narratives. The result has been at times explosive, as empowered players often attempted to co-op the creative processes of games through discussion board forum demands, fund-raising campaigns to persuade companies to change or add game content, and modifications (“modding”) of the games through fan-created downloads. The result has changed the way we understand the interactive nature of digital games and the power of fan culture to shape those games.

Full Product Details

Author:   Daniel Reardon (Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA) ,  David Wright (Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Imprint:   Bloomsbury Academic USA
Weight:   0.621kg
ISBN:  

9781501352546


ISBN 10:   1501352547
Pages:   344
Publication Date:   20 May 2021
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand   Availability explained
We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations Foreword by Adam Crowley Introduction: RPGs and the Explosion of Technical Content 1: Birth of the DRPG 2: New Century, New Technologies, New Challenges 3: Crowdsourcing -- The Game Changer 4: At the Top of Their Games 5: A Cocreative Game World, for Better or for Worse 6: The Social Media Imperium 7: Bigger, More, Better 8: The Wheels Fall Off Notes Index

Reviews

A timely and meticulously researched analysis of major game studios, important and influential video games, and emerging areas of practice and opportunity for technical communication. Written in an accessible and engaging style, the book is highly recommended for those interested in games and writing as well as those considering the future of our profession. * Rudy McDaniel, Professor of Technical Communication, University of Central Florida, USA * Reardon and Wright offer a comprehensive, compelling, and complex take on 3 love stories between digital role-playing game development companies and the fan-based communities they wooed with varying degrees of effectiveness. Technical Communication plays a prominent role in each of these love stories as the primary means by which developers and fans influenced one another in remarkably expansive co-creative game worlds, for better and for worse. * Rylish Moeller, Associate Professor of Technical Communication & Rhetoric, Utah State University, USA *


A timely and meticulously researched analysis of major game studios, important and influential video games, and emerging areas of practice and opportunity for technical communication. Written in an accessible and engaging style, the book is highly recommended for those interested in games and writing as well as those considering the future of our profession. * Rudy McDaniel, Professor of Technical Communication, University of Central Florida, USA *


Author Information

DANIEL REARDON currently serves as Interim Vice Provost of Undergraduate Education at Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA, where he also is on the faculty in the Department of English & Technical Communication. He teaches Science Fiction, Fantasy Literature, technical communication, and courses in the teaching of reading and writing. He has published articles about digital games, higher education administration, and the teaching of reading and writing. DAVID WRIGHT is the Professor of Technical Communication at Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA. His teaching and research interests include technology diffusion, digital communication, game studies, and usability studies. He has published articles on technical communication and digital communication.

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