Audiences & Institutions practice questions (games industry)

OCR AS Media Studies

AS G322: Key Media Concepts

Section B: Institutions and Audiences

 

Games Industry Practice Questions

 

1. Explain how the industry you have studied is exploiting new technology in the areas of production, marketing and exchange

 

2.    Account for recent changes in consumption and production in the industry you have studied.

 

3. To what extent are media audiences the agents, beneficiaries or victims of change?

 

4.    Explain the significance cross media convergence and synergy, in production, distribution and marketing; the industry you have studied

 

5.    How does your own experience of consumption illustrate wider patterns and trends of audience behaviour the industry you have studied?

 

6.    What impact does media ownership have on the industry you have studied?

 

7. How are audiences effectively targeted in the industry you have chosen?

 

8. How do institutions in your industry meet the needs and expectations of the audience?

 

9. What are the issues raised when targeting audiences in your chosen industry?

 

10. Discuss the issues raised by institutions’ need to target specific audiences within a media industry which you have studied.

 

11. Discuss the issues raised by media ownership within a media industry which you have studied.

Convergence Culture: TV and Gaming (The Walking Dead and Defiance)

Defiance & Convergence

Convergence of TV and MMO: The Making of Defiance
World-First Convergence of TV & Gaming
With 'Defiance,' Comcast's Syfy Bets $100M On Convergence Of TV And Videogames

The Walking Dead & Convergence

The Walking Dead: Convergence Unleashed
Convergence Culture and The Walking Dead

Video games industry Prezi for revision

Revision: Changes in audience profiles

Changes in audience profiles:
Whereas once the primary audience for games was seen as male, aged 11-15, the gaming markets are expanding, due to a number of factors.

• More sophisticated graphics and more complex game play have attracted more mature audiences.
• Early gamers continue as gamers - those who were in the original audiences in the 1980s are older but continue to play.
• Industry growth has enabled increasing diversity of games, leading to broadening of audiences.
• Industry growth has meant that games are now cheaper to buy (although more expensive to produce) which again broadens the audience.
• Gaming is becoming culturally acceptable across many social groups.
• Online gaming has considerably expanded game appeal - for example, increasing female audiences, who are participating in traditionally 'male' games as well as more 'female' games such as simulations.

Comments on and criticisms of computer games:

• Game play can be competitive, co-operative or individualistic.
• Many games are violent. Others are to do with excelling in sport, completing dangerous missions to retrieve or collect things, or taking on the persona of a warrior or hero and employing strategy to win. Games use technology to represent reality or to embody fantasy. Critics argue they harden players to the task of murder by simulating the killing of hundreds or thousands of opponents in a single game. Grand Theft Auto 3 is criticised, for example, because players can choose to steal a car, pick up a prostitute, have (implied) sex with the prostitute, then kill her and steal her money.
• Tomb Raider was marketed through the visual construction of Lara Croft.
• Many critics have commented on the lack of 'female' games.
• Critics also observe how few original games are produced, since so many games are spin-offs from films.

VLE area for Media Studies

New improved VLE area for Year 12 Media Studies.

In the "Exam Prep" area I have put all of the previous TV drama extracts along with sample answers and the examiner's report for each year.

There will also be guidance and tutorials to help you with your magazine constructions.

Any suggestions as to anything else that could go on there, let me know.



Click Rick or go to tinyurl.com/deyesmedia12

AS Media Studies G322 (TV Drama) Resit: Monday 13th May AM

Section A: TV Drama (Probably won't be medical drama + age...)

Section B: The video game industry

L3 will be open everyday after school for drop in revision or catchup - except for Mondays after school as FilmClub is based in there, but I will be still be about so you can ask anything or we can go somewhere to discuss any issues you may have.

EXAM ROOM CHANGE for those who weren't in today

The Media exam is now going to be in D1 and D2 tomorrow morning. The exam officer spoke to the class today to remind them but just to let those know who weren't in the lesson.

Maricourters - This will probably suit you three better as you are only going to the building that we are usually in for our lessons on Mondays so no fear of getting lost.

If anyone wants any last minute tips, reply to this post with any questions you may have and will get back to you.

P.S tip of the day: search G322 on twitter to see if other media teachers out there are putting out any last minute tips.

Mr Howard

REVISION: Spec broken down part 6

"The significance of proliferation in hardware and content for institutions and audiences"

This part of the spec may give you a headache due to the big p-word but it should not be much to worry you.

Again, some prompts and bits to think about this point after the cut.

REVISION: Spec broken down part 5

"The technologies that have been introduced in recent years at the levels of production, distribution, marketing and exchange"



Below the cut will be some prompts to consider what you would talk about in this part of the spec based on the games and tech we have studied, but with regards to new tech - if you are v comfortable with the concept of Digital Distribution and DLC along with some great examples I bet you could answer anything to do with this.

Again - not an exhaustive list, just me thinking about what we've talked about and what examples we have mentioned or what you might want to look further into.

REVISION: Spec broken down part 4

"The importance of cross media convergence and synergy in production, distribution and marketing"

As yesterday's posts, many of these posts are going to be very much stream of consciousness splurging of whatever points I think we have discussed or anything else you need to be aware of but make sure you know some key terms and know what examples you can mention. By all means, use what I write here but go explore - nothing I mention is anything you can't find yourself - YouTube, official websites, Facebook pages - it is all out there so go live it up!

REVISION: Spec broken down part 3

the issues raised by media ownership in contemporary media practice; Below: Revision prompts to do with the part of the spec listed above: Ownership in the games industry: aka AAA/Blockbuster games vs The Independent

REVISION: Spec broken down part 2

Candidates should be prepared to understand and discuss the processes of production,
distribution, marketing and exchange as they relate to contemporary media institutions, as well as the nature of audience consumption and the relationships between audiences and institutions. In addition, candidates should be familiar with:

Below are some revision prompts to do with exchange/consumption

REVISION: Spec broken down part 1

This is the spec I will be going through all this in a PPT as a last minute reminder but I will post it up here as I do it to help you. First of here's a reminder of everything that the exam board wants us to know:

Candidates should be prepared to understand and discuss the processes of production, distribution, marketing and exchange as they relate to contemporary media institutions, as well as the nature of audience consumption and the relationships between audiences and institutions. In addition, candidates should be familiar with:

The issues raised by media ownership in contemporary media practice;

The importance of cross media convergence and synergy in production, distribution and marketing;

The technologies that have been introduced in recent years at the levels of production, distribution, marketing and exchange;

The significance of proliferation in hardware and content for institutions and audiences;

The importance of technological convergence for institutions and audiences;

The issues raised in the targeting of national and local audiences (specifically, British) by international or global institutions;

The ways in which the candidates’ own experiences of media consumption illustrate wider patterns and trends of audience behaviour.

Firstly, behind the cut I will be focusing on the elements of production, marketing, distribution and exchange. Remember: These are just prompts, if you don't have the notes to answer questions asked then you need to do some reading.

REVISION: Gaming in 2012

Gaming in 2012 http://wp.me/pZIJG-9U

Or view below behind cut:

REVISION: Games Industry by numbers

Games Industry by Numbers http://bit.ly/SXdfgU

REVISION: 2012 for Videogames

Video games in 2012: year in review - Telegraph http://bit.ly/UHE6QG 

A must-read for G322 ocr revision - Show off your knowledge on 9.1.12 (Next Wednesday!!) of the current games industry.

Or read the article after the cut below:

Radio 1 Stories - The story of the Blockbuster game

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/player/b01nnm0c

Every Monday on 9pm for the next three weeks, Radio 1 are having a 1 hour show on the story of the blockbuster game. Very useful - this week he looks at the production of a game, the history of gaming and Dev discusses cinematic storytelling and total immersion in modern games.
And err find out what JLS's first experiences of videogames were!

]

Dev goes behind the scenes of the videogames world as part of Radio 1's Gaming Season, finding out how the games you love are created and how the industry now rivals Hollywood.

Click the pic to take you to the "play now" page or click the following link to go to the page in iPlayer.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01nnm0c/BBC_Radio_1s_Stories_The_Story_of_the_Blockbuster_Game/

It would be great if you wrote notes on this but even if you just sit for an hour of your life and listen to this, I feel it would be very beneficial to our topic.

Mr Howard

Mindmaps - examtime.com

Have made a mindmap of the main topics we have looked at so far a https://my.examtime.com/en/mind_maps/766

Though from the looks of it you'll have to log in to see - http://www.examtime.com/
it's free to sign up and personally I find mindmapping very useful for revision.

Could be useful if you don't like going through reams of notes for revision. Just a thought...