For my practicum project this semester, I'll be observing and participating in the online gaming community surrounding Bungie Software's Halo 3 on the Xbox 360. This wiki will serve as a journal of my experiences with the game and its players.
My Halo 3 Stats So Far:(Updated Daily)
Game Journal:
Monday, September 24th, 2007: The Preshow
Halo 3 launches tonight at midnight, so I don't actually have my hands on the game yet. However, a series of stolen shipments and broken street dates has put many copies of the game into the public's hands already, which means the game's community has founded itself without even having the ability to play the game online yet. (Bungie won't activate its online support for the game until the moment the clock strikes midnight.)
Saturday, October 6th, 2007: It Begins
It's been nearly two weeks since Halo 3 had the most successful launch of any entertainment product ever. Sales of the game generated over 170 million dollars in revenue in the first 24 hours after the game was released, and over 300 million dollars in the first week. In those momentous first 24 hours, over 1 million people played the game on Microsoft's Xbox Live Network, and I was lucky enough to be one of them.
Right after I picked up my copy of Halo 3, I started up an Xbox Live account under the name Flatline85. (So friend me if you have one yourself.) Since creating my account, I've spent at least an hour each night playing with my real life friends online. Initially, the game automatically relegates you to a playlist that pits you against other new people. The list is referred to as basic training, and puts players into small games with very basic game types. (Mostly very basic deathmatches.) After a few games, I was automatically promoted and placed into the normal playlists where I got access to all sorts of gametypes for different group sizes, objectives, and skill levels.
The shots below are from a game of assault; a game type that involves two teams, one attacks the other in an attempt to plant a bomb in the defender's base to blow it up.
The shot on the left is a close up of me cooking three opponents as they try to drive past me. The second shot is of the scoreboard at the end of a match. (I'm on top, w00t.)
Tuesday, October 9th, 2007: On Armor Permutations
Individual identity was a hard thing to come by in previous Halo games. In the original game, the only method players had to differentiate themselves from one another was a choice of one of a few different armor colors. Halo 2 introduced a choice of two different player models (spartan or covenant elite) as well as an expanded armor palette and a customizable emblem. In Halo 3 Bungie kept all of the previous game's innovations while adding a much hyped new feature known as the "armor permutation." Armor permutations are selectable variations that players can mix and match to create their own personalized appearance. For example, in the screenshot below, two of my teammates and I are riding in a jeep. If you look carefully you can see that each of us is wearing a slightly different helmet and set of shoulder pads despite the fact that we have all chosen to the spartan armor model. Customizable chest pieces are also available in addition to helmet and shoulder options.
Monday, October 15th, 2007: The Downside of Voice Chat
Due to a few certain characters I've encountered during my play sessions in these past few days, I feel compelled to expound on the nature of building voice chat into a game like Halo 3. Firstly, all people who surf the tumultuous waters of the internet should be familiar with John Gabriel's Internet F*#@wad Theory. In short, this theory states that the anonymity and audience provided by the internet has a tendency to turn otherwise polite, decent people into foul-mouthed, slur slinging bastards. What Gabriel's theory leaves out, is the enhancing effect that competition has on the transformative properties of the web's seductive facelessness. Halo 3, being an online game centered around head to head competition, add to this the built in voice chat feature that allows players to speak to one another before, during, and after matches, and the result is a noxious slurry of curse words, racism, and downright unpleasantness.
This past weekend, I ran into several heinous examples of this concept in action. There's something deeply disconcerting about being called a "fag" by a boy who speaks with a British accent and has obviously not yet gone through puberty. This kind of incident really illustrates just what a dystopia the internet can be at times. Of course, there are self-regulatory features built into the Xbox Live interface. I was quick to flag each of the unpleasant users as "avoid if possible," and then reported each of them for inappropriate language, but users are given no opportunity to take direct disciplinary action against one another, so I had to be content with the superfluous measures the interface allowed me. Just one of the dangers of competing on the Internet I suppose. Overall, I haven't really seen much of this kind of thing in my experiences with the game thus far, but the fact that people like that are allowed to continue playing the game alongside the polite majority is an unforunately notable circumstance.
Monday, October 22nd, 2007: The Fight for Rank
It's been nearly a month since Halo 3 launched, and so far over 3.3 million copies have sold. A large proportion of those millions have, like me, gone online to compete in multiplayer matches. I've killed them, and they've killed me, all in the pursuit of two goals. The first of course is fun. I mean, it is a game after all. But there exists in the structure of Halo 3's multiplayer, another motivating factor for competition and the pursuit of victory. That factor is rank.
Each game of Halo 3 played within Bungie's matchmaking system is automatically tracked down to the smallest details. The system keeps records of absolutely everything including who killed who, how, where, and when. All that is fine, but many of the hardcore online competitors will tell you that the win is the only thing that matters. Each match has its winners and losers. Winners are awarded one experience point, and losers walk away with nothing. Over time, players accumulate these experience points and at certain predetermined values, "rank up." These ranks are seen by other players on both teams in the pregame waiting rooms, and resultantly act as a sort of status symbol amongst other players. High ranking officers are instantly intimidating, as their rank wordlessly conveys their skill. Oppositely, low enlisted ranks typically denote unskilled or new players.
These past few weeks, my rank has been fluctuating around the first officer rank of lieutenant. I've achieved it a few times now but breaking from the game for more than a few consecutive days causes ones rank to begin decaying and so I've slipped back down to the highest enlisted rank of gunnery sergeant. You can keep track of my rank by looking at the graphical info tracker at the top of this page.
I've taken a few more screenshots, the second one being particularly impressive as it captures an enemy vehicle exploding just a few inches from my face.
Til' next week, keep fragging!
Tuesday, November 6th, 2007: Real Life Friends/Electronic Mayhem
Media Gallery:
Here are some advertisements from the Halo 3 marketing campaign.
A play log like this would be a helpful addition as well
Here is my play log
Mediated Spaces
Warchalking
Research
These are some websites I found useful when researching the history of warchalking and some how-to's
warchalk.blogspot.com : a London warchalkers blog for the "pursuit of free internet and good coffee." Updated passed the 2002 burst of warchalking, a good chronicle of its downfall
I really wanted my effort of chalking to be useful beyond this project so I decided to use the SSID's I came across that I know are connected with commercial space, posting their locations online for other people's benefit. This also ties in how the death of warchalking came about in some ways by people marking a hotspot online rather than in person.
wifiareas.com: Madison : I originally planned to use this site to submit to as its one of the few wifi sites that plots hotspots on a map. Unfortunately, the site does not seem to be interested in user participation
Though I found this site less impressive, though just as heavy an ads, this site came with a submission form for new wifi hotspots.
Here's a screen cap of my submission for Starbucks
Posted wi-fi spots
Warchalking has become almost irrelevant due to the fact that most places advertise their wi-fi. Here are some places I've found on campus (and my comp)
Issues with Public Wi-Fi
Is stealing wireless wrong? : the BBC article that got me thinking about warchalking and wifi access over the summer and provoked me to want to do this topic
My BLOG, HotTopic Sports, is where people can come to discuss any topic in any major collegiate or professional sport. It is unique in that it offers fans of a variety of major sports a place to come and voice their opinions about HotTopics. Also, it is home to a segment that discusses sports betting advice for the upcoming week in sports. Due to the increased popularity in the sports betting business, this column offers a place for fans to come and share their views on the current lines. My blog also offers content about up-and-coming players. It also has links to some favorite sports-related blogs and Web sites. Also, the sidebar contains a random sampling of some popular sports videos on YouTube. Once in a while, I will throw in a sports poll where viewers can come to place their vote on what they think is the right response. This Blog offers a wide-variety of fresh sports content to a wide variety of sports fans.
10/6/07 --My first article posted briefly described the general purpose of my Blog and what viewers can expect. I also posted a link to another student's blog which related to collegiate sports.
10/6/07 --The first actual topic posted was called Unforgettable College Gameday Experiences. It briefly explained my experienced the day of the Wisconsin vs. Michigan game. I traced my experience from when I woke up to the post-game action. It offers viewers a chance to see what really happens at the "Greatest College Sports Town" (declared by ESPN's John Anderson). My main goal is to have viewers from other college universities explain their gameday experiences.
*I posted my URL on some other sports communinity sites, hoping to draw some viewers. It has worked a little, especially with the ProTrade site.
10/7/07 --I wrote this commentary article about the Boston Red Sox baseball team and their current run in the 2007 MLB Playoffs. It explains why the Red Sox are the tram to beat this October. Also, it explains why this team's "fearless swagger" makes them capable of winning it all. The article has drawn numerous (over 5) comments and serves as a HotTopic. I used a few links to further explain some of the content mentioned. I have received positive praise for this insightful article.
I also made a poll for to pick who will win the Red Sox v. Indians series and in how many games. Eight people voted and I was told the poll was a good idea. This is a newer feature on the Blogger network.
10/9/07 --This highly developed and researched article (roughly one hour's worth of writing time) serves as the debut of the highly-aclaimed The Weekly Bets, discussing the upcoming week's sports betting lines. I knew it would be a popular article because sports betting is very popular today, especially around football season. In fact, the article has drawn many comments.
10/16/07 --This article discusses George Steinbrunner's recent decentralization of power in the Yankees organization and Joe Torre's job status. It is a major topic in sports at the moment and is great fuel for debate. It includes a link whcih discusses the situation in more detail.
I took few weeks off with the popular "The Weekly Bets" column due to numerous mid-term exams. Don't worry, it'll be back in full-swing soon!
10/24/2007 --Due to the recent success of the Boston-area sports teams I decided to discuss why I wish I was in Boston right now. Boston area teams are contending for the championship in all major sports. This topic is very popular among sports fans because most fans either love or hate Boston sports franchises. I noticed that I now have a reoccuring viewer of my posts.
10/28/07 --I decided to expand my horizon and discuss something that most people are unaware of--the emergence of a star wide receiver from Texas Tech. Hopefully this post generates some interest in this player and gives him some much deserved attention.
11/4/07 --This post is something totally different than any of my other posts. I used an existing media clip to provide a comical view of a current HotTopic. I have received a few e-mails saying how funny this comparison is. Frank Calliendo is an emerging personality so I though it might be a good idea to base one of my posts on his work.
11/8/07 --I finally brought back my popular The Weekly Bets column discussing my picks for the NFL and college football this week. I actually pick all the college football spreads correctly, something difficult to do. There is a lot of research I do to prepare these columns. Due to many exams prior weeks, I was unable to write the column. If I wrote the column every week I beleive I would attract a few more viewers. Once again, I think a weekly column is very effective for continially attracting viewers to my blog. It also is a great way to get passionate views on the topic.
11/20/07 --I wrote a post about all the upsets of the #2 seed college football this year. This is a very popular HotTopic. I am trying to vary my posts from sport to sport, but it is hard not talking about some sort of football because it is so popular this time of the year.
I continually read Behind the Dugout, one of my favorite blogs. My blog is actually listed on the blogroll for this very popular site. Also, I enjoy participating in Curt Schilling's blog. He provides insight on the Red Sox that the media doesn't even know about.
11/21/07 --This post deals with a triumverate(3) up-and-coming star college basketball players. OJ Mayo, Eric Gordon, and Kevin Love have been geeting a lot of attention lately and it was time for me to discuss them further. Readers should look forward to the explosive matchup between Mayo and Love later on in the season.
12/1/07 --This college football post involves Missouri's quest for the national title being halted by an upset victory by Oklahoma. Also, Chase Daniel rise to fame reached an end with the loss to the Sooners. It was important for me to discuss Missour's football team because they have been all over the media of late.
12/2/07 --I decided to add an AdSense link to the side of my Blog. I though I would give it a try and maybe see if I could earn a few cents on ad viewership.
As of 12/10/07 I have earned a whopping $1.22
12/7/07 --Due to the excitement over the upcoming college football season, I wrote part one of a series of articles giving my bowl predictions. I gave my predictions for the first week's games.
12/12/07 --December 13, 2007, is set to be a very bad day for Major League Baseball. The names of between 60-80 players are set to be released about their performance-enhancing drug use. I wrote this topic because I knew it would be a huge, very debatable issue.
Overall
My blog is an emerging collection of a wide-variety of hot sports topics. It offers content of many styles and provides a quick and easy way to actively participate through a comments link. My blog is a great example of a Web 2.0 activity because it has a blogroll helping form a community with other bloggers. Also, it uses permalinks to easily link to one particular blog post. Overall, I fell my blog is a very effective blog and is still in the process of attracting a larger audience. I plan on continuing to occasionally update it even after the project is over.
This Web site is an experiment in group collaboration. The syllabus, assignment descriptions and schedule of readings are available on the main course Website: noodle.commarts.wisc.edu/346
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