"I'm in love with someone that doesn't exist!!" Bleed in the context of a Computer Game
"I'm in love with someone that doesn't exist!!" Bleed in the context of a Computer Game
Annika Wærn
TLDR
This article investigates the gameplay experience in the game Dragon Age, a single-player game that allows players to actively engage in romance, and argues that this sometimes will create an experience that is similar to the “bleed” effect in non-computerised role-play.
Abstract
It is not unusual for computer games to include romance, but most games treat romance as a narrative theme rather than as an integrated part of gameplay. In this article I investigate the gameplay experience in the game Dragon Age, a single-player game that allows players to actively engage in romance. Based on an investigation of blog and community comments, we argue that this sometimes will create an experience that is similar to the “bleed” effect in non-computerised role-play, and that the player to some extent shares emotions with his or her character.