Brendan Downey

#50190372

DMS 448

Week 13

In week 13 of class, we played a variety of different fighting games, including Call of Duty and Super Smash Bros. Although two very different games, the core “winning” mechanic remains the same; be the last man standing. In this genre of gaming, the players goal is to eliminate all of the opposing players using skill. Theoretically, if one player is “better” than everyone else, he will be victorious every time. This genre of games relates directly to games that we played growing up as a child, whether it be Tag, Dodgeball or Wallball. Because of this, these games are easy to understand and easier to pick up and play, opposed to a more complex game with a variety of goals.

On one hand, Call of Duty provided the perspective of a competitive first person shooter game, which has generally been viewed as a male driven community. Call of Duty is a fantastic game to play for gamers who want to pick up and play, play with friends online or accomplish the feeling of winning something. For most Call of Duty players, the drive to win keeps them motivated enough to play. Secondary to this, players are motivated by improving themself within the game, whether it be increasing skills or equipment.

On the other hand, Super Smash Bros provided the perspective of a 1 on 1 fighting game. Similar to a game like Mortal Kombat, Super Smash Bros is best experienced with friends competing against one another. Comparing this experience with that of Call of Duty, Super Smash Bros is different because you are playing as a group physically together in a room. Call of Duty, on the other hand, is best played alone with a headset on to communicate with each other. Based on my limited experience of playing Call of Duty growing up, there is one thing everyone knows: no screen peaking. And the only way to assure no screen peaking = playing independently.

In Begy’s, “Fighting Games,” the author details what goes into a fighting game, breaking it down in simple terms. While reading this, I found it helpful to relate it to other games throughout history.