University Adds Videogames to Library as Study Materials

Tom Goldman

Crying on the inside.
Aug 17, 2009
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University Adds Videogames to Library as Study Materials



The library at the University of Calgary is going to become way more fun in the coming months.

We could go on and on about how schools are embracing videogames for use in education, as is the case with textbooks becoming RPGs [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/102951-College-Professor-Requires-Students-to-Study-Portal], but then we'd be here all day. Instead, we should just move ahead and examine the latest merger of videogames and school, which involves the University of Calgary adding videogames to its library for "study and research."

Jerremie Clyde, a college librarian, is pioneering the videogame collection of the university's library which is scheduled to be released to students in March 2011. Signing out games will work in the same way as it does for books. Let's just hope the library creates a penalty ruleset to prevent mishandling because some people really don't know how to take care of their videogames.

In addition to game sign-outs, students will be able to play games in "multimedia rooms" in the library itself. Part of Clyde's goal is to show the oblivious that videogames aren't just making people kill each other and beat up prostitutes. He points out that games can be used to study "history, procedural rhetoric, human-computer interaction, feminist studies, and casualty-free epidemiology" too.

And the awesome librarian doesn't think that students will abuse the videogame collection, which when complete will contain games from Atari to Xbox 360. "There's potential for students to goof off already," he says. "They have games in iPhones and smartphones, web-based games like Farmville, they're already there. This doesn't really add to that ... As soon as you have to do it for study and research, it becomes a bit like work. You find yourself slogging through a game, wondering how a developer has done something, or looking for how it's rendering light, and it becomes a bit of a slog."

"People will be treating [games] the same as books or film documentaries," Clyde believes. He calls videogames a "sophisticated media form," and is "surprised" that more universities haven't been doing the same thing.

Clyde appears to have an answer to any criticism of the project, even towards budgetary concerns, because the collection won't even use "half-a-percent" of the library's $9 million budget. If you'll excuse me, I have to go "study" now.

Thanks for the tip PedroSteckecilo [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/view/PedroSteckecilo]!

Source: 1up [http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/gets+respect+research+tool/3560007/story.html]

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Rainboq

Elite Member
Nov 19, 2009
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And now, I enjoy Media Studies at any ever greater level!

[sub]BTW, have any of you noticed how racist Disney is?[/sub]
 

Redlin5_v1legacy

Better Red than Dead
Aug 5, 2009
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...

I suddenly have a desire to transfer. I wonder why that would be!

[sub][sub]I want to go studying with you Tom![/sub][/sub]
 

Lost In The Void

When in doubt, curl up and cry
Aug 27, 2008
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Damnit, why couldn't that have been the U of A instead of the U of C. I'm going to the former in a couple years and I'm sure that the library resources would have been....beneficial
 

Gigaguy64

Special Zero Unit
Apr 22, 2009
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This is awesome.
And i think its a great idea!
There are plenty of games that are relevant to all kinds of Study courses.
 

Chewster

It's yer man Chewy here!
Apr 24, 2008
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This is nothing new. Game studies has been established for a few years now, even though the sub-discipline isn't quite centralized yet.

What I am looking forward to is the day when there will be full classes or whole programs around the medium, like film. It may take quite a few years though.
 

Benmonkey7

New member
Jun 15, 2010
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Give that man a medal! Awesome idea indeed. Hopefully there won't be any sort of protesting parents or something.
 

Mr. Omega

ANTI-LIFE JUSTIFIES MY HATE!
Jul 1, 2010
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I hope U of D gets an idea like this soon... I might actually enjoy having to go to the library to study...
 

mad825

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Mar 28, 2010
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eh, whatever.

regardless if they do add it or not, it's not going to be "fun" anyway there is going to be hard work involved.

HCI being related to a computer game? that's already being done, for year my course has been teaching both theoretically and practically on how to implement such feature for a educational game
 

Logic 0

New member
Aug 28, 2009
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Those calgarians always seem to get the best libarys ... I want to go the U of C now.
 

Brotherofwill

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Jan 25, 2009
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Tom Goldman said:
feminist studies

Mhhhhmmm...

Tomb Raider? No

....

Let me think...erhmmm...

Final Fantasy? Ok, ok.

erh....

Dead or Alive: Beach Volleyball? Ow! Ok, ok I'll stop! I'll stop! *laserpointer appears on forehead*

.....

.....
.....
..
.
[small]Duke Nukem?[/small] [HEADING=2]BLAMMM![/HEADING]


Okay, anyone got any suggestions here?


All I could think of was maybe Beyond Good and Evil and maybe Half Life 2 (which has a somewhat normal girl that can actually talk like an adult...and isn't taken care of by men...[small] and doesn't wear a tanktop[/small])
 

Tom Phoenix

New member
Mar 28, 2009
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Brotherofwill said:
Tom Goldman said:
feminist studies

Mhhhhmmm...

Tomb Raider? No

....

Let me think...erhmmm...

Final Fantasy? Ok, ok.

erh....

Dead or Alive: Beach Volleyball? Ow! Ok, ok I'll stop! I'll stop! *laserpointer appears on forehead*

.....

.....
.....
..
.
[small]Duke Nukem?[/small] [HEADING=2]BLAMMM![/HEADING]


Okay, anyone got any suggestions here?


All I could think of was maybe Beyond Good and Evil and maybe Half Life 2 (which has a somewhat normal girl that can actually talk like an adult...and isn't taken care of by men...[small] and doesn't wear a tanktop[/small])
Metroid, obviously! :p Samus is an inspiration to all the women in the world.

On topic, I don't think this will be as fun as people make it sound. Sure, it will be great to have videogames in a library. But considering this material is meant for educational purposes, chances are that people will be playing these titles for completely mundane purposes. It's like game testing; sounds fun in theory, but you grow to hate the game as you have to slave hours and hours trying to find bugs and glitches.
 

SilverUchiha

New member
Dec 25, 2008
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I WANT TO GO TO THIS SCHOOL!!!!

Seriously, why can't more schools do this? Furthermore, stuff like this should show why games deserve to keep their first amendment rights and that they really are more than just killing and murder.
 

Thorvan

New member
May 15, 2009
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Well, that's good. They make some smart arguments for it too. Let's hope this bleeds over into more Canadian universities.
 

viranimus

Thread killer
Nov 20, 2009
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As games push the boundaries of being considered art, you will begin to see this more. I know I am studying Psychology and on more than one occasion I have had to use game material such as citing something like Bioshock as potential case examples to patternistic behaviors, which I have never been faulted by my professors for using such references. I usually have to go into elaborate detail and explanations to justify it, or record/upload scenes to be used as examples.

Our technology is changing our forms of self expression and the more that occurs the more commonplace this will become.
 

lacktheknack

Je suis joined jewels.
Jan 19, 2009
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Lost In The Void said:
Damnit, why couldn't that have been the U of A instead of the U of C. I'm going to the former in a couple years and I'm sure that the library resources would have been....beneficial
I'm with you here. Dagnabbit, Rutherford Library has everything from books to microfilm to audio tapes, but no games.

Hmmmm... U of C is only three hours south...