The concept of Game Spaces versus Play Spaces was an interesting topic to think about. As we discussed in class, there are people who play video games to do tricks or speed runs. They walk the thin line between the two, as the game spaces are being appropriated for bending the intended rules. When talking about playgrounds, skateparks, and parkour, it seems like all can be construed as the same place. The difference would be the age range of participants. The different ages of people within the three categories can classify their desire for the series of play. Young kids go to playgrounds just to have fun; teenagers skateboard to show off their tricks; and young-adults or grown-ups do parkour to either exercise, or essentially trespass (with finesse). Parkour gyms, a game space, seem like an oxymoron, when Parkour is commonly known as “free running;” But here is a ‘contained’ space to do such parkour activities. Language used to define terms of play do not always have clear answers. Parkour shouldn’t have ANY game spaces, as all of the participants are their own architects of play. Even if it’s a race, the runners are up to their own sequence of means between Start and Finish.
I wouldn’t have ever though of politics as fun within the context of play before hearing about kettling. Other games I’ve played depict politics as abhorrent behaviors between conflicting ideologies. The Metal Gear game series, being my favorite, subverts history by using covert actions of realistic (and admittedly some hyperbolic) fiction to supercede real life events. Metal Gear shows the horror of politic changes because that is the main point of the games. If thought about through the lense of kettling, other games can be shown with political subtext. The one that jumps to my mind would be “Werewolf,” which may also be known as “Mafia,” where a group of people try to discern the game’s traitor among them. This doesn’t require a single type of place, just anywhere that people can deal character cards and sit in a circle. The different characters would have 1800s European village jobs which have their own abilities conducive to play. The way players commence werewolf will always change depending on the relationships they have with each other to spot lies/tells. A player can also choose to completely role play their character, or another among the known pool, should they choose to divert or attract attention, as if they were actual spies. The game is a representation of Macarthy Era witch hunts, much like the allegory shown in “The Crucible.” Instead of socialism as a pseudo-threat, the virtual death by werewolf is a more natural fear, so the politics between the blacksmiths, bartenders or hunters are not so complicated (we don’t talk about the masons).