Now in its eighth edition, Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition 2015 Ebook is the ultimate guide for videogame lovers, perfect for reading on smart devices on the go. Whether you’re an avid fan of platformers, shooters, MMOs or racing games, there’s something for everyone, including interviews with industry experts, handy in-game tips and, of course, hundreds of amazing new records. In this year’s Gamer’s Edition, the book features a countdown of the top 50 videogames of all time, based on our readers’ poll. Be sure to check out where your favourite games rank. Also get the lowdown on all the latest hardware developments, from next-gen virtual-reality peripherals like Oculus Rift and Project Morpheus to who’s the reigning champion in the battle of the eighth-gen consoles: PlayStation 4 or Xbox One – place your bets now! But the Gamer’s Edition isn’t all about the games and consoles – it’s also a showcase of the most dedicated gamers in the world. Meet the chart-topping players who have completed games the quickest, earned the most points or collected the most memorabilia. Maybe they’ll inspire you to break a gaming record of your own…

Game Audio Fundamentals takes the reader on a journey through game audio design: from analog and digital audio basics to the art and execution of sound effects, soundtracks, and voice production, as well as learning how to make sense of a truly effective soundscape. Presuming no pre-existing knowledge, this accessible guide is accompanied by online resources – including practical examples and incremental DAW exercises – and presents the theory and practice of game audio in detail, and in a format anyone can understand. This is essential reading for any aspiring game audio designer, as well as students and professionals from a range of backgrounds, including music, audio engineering, and game design.

The Video Games Textbook takes the history of video games to the next level. Coverage includes every major video game console, handheld system, and game-changing personal computer, as well as a look at the business, technology, and people behind the games. Chapters feature objectives and key terms, illustrative timelines, color images, and graphs in addition to the technical specifications and key titles for each platform. Every chapter is a journey into a different segment of gaming, where readers emerge with a clear picture of how video games evolved, why the platforms succeeded or failed, and the impact they had on the industry and culture. Written to capture the attention and interest of students from around the world, this newly revised Second Edition also serves as a go-to handbook for any video game enthusiast. This edition features new content in every chapter, including color timelines, sections on color theory and lighting, the NEC PC-98 series, MSX series, Amstrad CPC, Sinclair ZX Spectrum, Milton Bradley Microvision, Nintendo Game & Watch, gender issues, PEGI and CERO rating systems, and new Pro Files and quiz questions, plus expanded coverage on PC and mobile gaming, virtual reality, Valve Steam Deck, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5. Key Features Explores the history, business, and technology of video games, including social, political, and economic motivations Facilitates learning with clear objectives, key terms, illustrative timelines, color images, tables, and graphs Highlights the technical specifications and key titles of all major game consoles, handhelds, personal computers, and mobile platforms Reinforces material with market summaries and reviews of breakthroughs and trends, as well as end-of-chapter activities and quizzes

The Third Edition of Alan M. Schwitzer, Amber L. Pope, and Lawrence C. Rubin′s Diagnosis and Treatment Planning Skills: A Popular Culture Casebook Approach thoroughly covers essential clinical thinking skills in professional counseling through classic and contemporary popular culture case examples. Fully revised for use with the DSM-5-TR, the text begins with discussion of diagnosis, case conceptualization, and current treatment planning practices, covering the interplay of individual clinical tools and their application in contemporary practice. Twenty DSM-5-TR updated case illustrations follow, representing a diverse range of individual differences and intersecting identities. Students will engage with each case illustration in a start-to-finish application of clinical tools.

Sborník shrnuje příspěvky z první výroční konference Central and Eastern European Game Studies, konané v Brně ve dnech 10.–11. října 2014. Příspěvky zaměřené na výzkum digitálních her zahrnují témata od historie k teorii, od empirických studií k aplikovanému výzkumu. Značná část příspěvků se váže k regionu střední a východní Evropy.

This book provides an introduction and overview of the rapidly evolving topic of game user experience, presenting the new perspectives employed by researchers and the industry, and highlighting the recent empirical findings that illustrate the nature of it. The first section deals with cognition and player psychology, the second section includes new research on modeling and measuring player experience, the third section focuses on the impact of game user experience on game design processes and game development cycles, the fourth section presents player experience case studies on contemporary computer games, and the final section demonstrates the evolution of game user experience in the new era of VR and AR. The book is suitable for students and professionals with different disciplinary backgrounds such as computer science, game design, software engineering, psychology, interactive media, and many others.

This important new work focuses on the pioneers in machinima, considered to be the grassroots and beginnings of virtual production. Machinima’s impacts are identified by the community, supplemented by Harwood and Grussi’s research and experience over a period of 25 years – from game, film and filmmaking to digital arts practice, creative technologies developments and related research and theory. Machinima is the first digital cultural practice to have emerged from the internet into a mainstream creative genre. Its latest transformation is evident through the increasing convergence of games and film where real-time virtual production as a professional creative practice is resulting in new forms of machine-generated interactive experiences. Using the most culturally significant machinima works (machine-cinema) as lenses to trace its history and impacts, ‘Pioneers in Machinima: The Grassroots of Virtual Production’ provides in-depth testimony by filmmakers and others involved in its emergence. The extensive reference to source materials and interviews bring the story of its impacts up to date through the critical reflections of the early pioneers. This book will be of interest to machinima researchers and practitioners, including game culture, media theorists, students of film studies and game studies, digital artists and those interested in how creative technologies have influenced communities of practice over time.

How a popular entertainment genre on YouTube--Let's Play videos created by Minecraft players--offers opportunities for children to learn from their peers. Every day millions of children around the world watch video gameplay on YouTube in the form of a popular entertainment genre known as Let's Play videos. These videos, which present a player's gameplay and commentary, offer children opportunities for interaction and learning not available in traditional television viewing or solo video gameplay. In this book, Michael Dezuanni examines why Let's Play videos are so appealing to children, looking in particular at videos of Minecraft gameplay. He finds that a significant aspect of the popularity of these videos is the opportunity for knowledge and skill exchange.

“Ball’s lucid and timely book offers a portal into a new realm.”—The Economist "The term “Metaverse” is thirty years old, yet only recently entered mainstream conversation, attracting both fascinating and skepticism. While some have promised its imminent arrival, in fact it will take a series of technological and societal leaps to realize its full potential. In The Metaverse, pioneering theorist, former tech executive, and acclaimed entrepreneur Matthew Ball offers an expansive tour of the “next internet”: he presents a comprehensive definition of the Metaverse (going far beyond mere virtual reality headsets), explains the technologies that will power it, addresses governance challenges, and predicts Metaverse winners and losers. Bringing clarity and authority to a frequently misunderstood concept, this revised and updated edition of Ball’s authoritative work demonstrates how the Metaverse will radically reshape society. “A comprehensive guide to every aspect of the metaverse.”—John Thornhill, Financial Times “Offers a better understanding of the metaverse than the novel that coined the term—1992’s Snow Crash.”—Cecilia D’Anastasio, Bloomberg

Americanness: Inquiries into the Thought and Culture of the United States analyzes several core themes that connect Americans because of, and despite, their pronounced diversity. The book investigates shared ideas and ideals, such as individualism, mobility, materialism, and future-orientation, that drive an overarching American worldview. Simon J. Bronner begins with ideas of space and time as they formed and changed through the history of the United States, before moving to the emergence of modern American culture. He examines reasons America is characterized as having a "victory culture" that extends to the American legal, military, and business complexes. This victory culture is further analyzed by looking at the country’s relationship with the game of football—a sport that thrives in America but has not caught on in other countries. Finally, the volume probes American consumerism driven by a desire for individual prosperity in a supposedly egalitarian society. Using interdisciplinary approaches drawn from psychology, sociology, ethnology, and history, Bronner seeks explanations for people invoking, and evoking, ideas that they perceive as American. This book would be an invaluable addition to courses on American history, sociology, cultural studies, and American studies.