2023
Felczak, Mateusz; Garda, Maria B.
Zulionerzy and the Polish Independent Video Games of the Early 2000s Journal Article
In: Studies in Eastern European Cinema, vol. 14, iss. 1, pp. 25-38, 2023, ISSN: 2040-3518.
Abstract | Links | Tags: 2000s, Freeware games, Humour, Independent games, Parody, Poland, Who wants to be a Millionaire
@article{Felczak2023,
title = {Zulionerzy and the Polish Independent Video Games of the Early 2000s},
author = {Mateusz Felczak and Maria B. Garda},
url = {https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/2040350X.2022.2071519?journalCode=reec20
https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/175408353?lang=fi_FI},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.1080/2040350X.2022.2071519},
issn = {2040-3518},
year = {2023},
date = {2023-01-02},
urldate = {2023-01-02},
journal = {Studies in Eastern European Cinema},
volume = {14},
issue = {1},
pages = {25-38},
abstract = {This article investigates the development of discourses related to a specific era of independent games and offers a close historical and cultural analysis of the freeware Polish game Żulionerzy (Ortalion Entertainment 2001). The game is positioned as a compelling cultural artefact from the often overlooked and underresearched period of the early 2000s, combining inspirations from the globally recognized TV franchise Who Wants to be a Millionaire and the emerging indie games scenes. The authors argue that Żulionerzy is a project that manages to capture young adults’ perspective on the economic and cultural zeitgeist of the era. Its potential as a counter-cultural and transgressive gaming intervention is further reinforced by intertextual references and a parodistic core gameplay loop. The assessment of Żulionerzy is concluded with a call to investigate similar productions which, while produced in a national language, shared their key features with the rising wave of grassroot browser-based games.},
keywords = {2000s, Freeware games, Humour, Independent games, Parody, Poland, Who wants to be a Millionaire},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
This article investigates the development of discourses related to a specific era of independent games and offers a close historical and cultural analysis of the freeware Polish game Żulionerzy (Ortalion Entertainment 2001). The game is positioned as a compelling cultural artefact from the often overlooked and underresearched period of the early 2000s, combining inspirations from the globally recognized TV franchise Who Wants to be a Millionaire and the emerging indie games scenes. The authors argue that Żulionerzy is a project that manages to capture young adults’ perspective on the economic and cultural zeitgeist of the era. Its potential as a counter-cultural and transgressive gaming intervention is further reinforced by intertextual references and a parodistic core gameplay loop. The assessment of Żulionerzy is concluded with a call to investigate similar productions which, while produced in a national language, shared their key features with the rising wave of grassroot browser-based games.
2020
Sotamaa, Olli
Modes of Independence in the Finnish Game Development Scene Book Section
In: Ruffino, Paolo (Ed.): Independent Videogames: Cultures, Networks, Techniques and Politics, pp. 223-237, Routledge, 2020, ISBN: 9780367336202.
Abstract | Links | Tags: Game culture, Game development, Game industry, Independent games
@incollection{Sotamaa2020b,
title = {Modes of Independence in the Finnish Game Development Scene},
author = {Olli Sotamaa},
editor = {Paolo Ruffino},
url = {http://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202012188980},
doi = {10.4324/9780367336219},
isbn = {9780367336202},
year = {2020},
date = {2020-10-08},
booktitle = {Independent Videogames: Cultures, Networks, Techniques and Politics},
pages = {223-237},
publisher = {Routledge},
abstract = {by putting the focus on two games: Nex Machina (2017) and Baba is You (2017/2019). A contextualizing reading of selected games connects them to their relevant cultural and economic framings. Special focus is placed on funding schemes, production networks, and distribution channels that make these games possible in the first place and shape the forms they take. Through the two case studies, this chapter examines how independence and ‘indie’ get particular meanings in a North-European game development scene defined by small domestic market. In the past decades, features like digital distribution, accessible development tools, small teams, and game jams at some point considered central markers of independent game production and have become crucial aspects of almost all game development. The study shows how very different game projects can include different aspects of independence, highlighting the blurred boundaries between top-down corporate game production and bottom-up participatory indie culture. In most cases, the ability to quickly adjust to an ever-changing industry environment is crucial. Long-term sustainability is very difficult to guarantee, and most studios – large and small – are still pretty much one failed project away from insolvency.},
keywords = {Game culture, Game development, Game industry, Independent games},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {incollection}
}
by putting the focus on two games: Nex Machina (2017) and Baba is You (2017/2019). A contextualizing reading of selected games connects them to their relevant cultural and economic framings. Special focus is placed on funding schemes, production networks, and distribution channels that make these games possible in the first place and shape the forms they take. Through the two case studies, this chapter examines how independence and ‘indie’ get particular meanings in a North-European game development scene defined by small domestic market. In the past decades, features like digital distribution, accessible development tools, small teams, and game jams at some point considered central markers of independent game production and have become crucial aspects of almost all game development. The study shows how very different game projects can include different aspects of independence, highlighting the blurred boundaries between top-down corporate game production and bottom-up participatory indie culture. In most cases, the ability to quickly adjust to an ever-changing industry environment is crucial. Long-term sustainability is very difficult to guarantee, and most studios – large and small – are still pretty much one failed project away from insolvency.