games, design, and living well - dave dubin

Games, Design, and Living WellDavid DubinO tober 17, 2013David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Bernard H. Suits, 1925�2007

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Bernard H. Suits, 1925�2007Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, University of Waterloo

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Bernard H. Suits, 1925�2007Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, University of WaterlooPh.D. 1958, University of Illinois

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Bernard H. Suits, 1925�2007Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, University of WaterlooPh.D. 1958, University of IllinoisThe Grasshopper: Games, Life and Utopia, University ofToronto Press, 1978.

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Bernard H. Suits, 1925�2007Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, University of WaterlooPh.D. 1958, University of IllinoisThe Grasshopper: Games, Life and Utopia, University ofToronto Press, 1978.2005 edition by Broadview Press

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

The Grasshopper

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

The GrasshopperIn his Philosophi al Investigations (1958) Ludwig Wittgensteinfamously argued that many ommon ategories la k pre isene essary and su� ient onditions. He used the example of�game,� whi h, he said, sould be understood in terms of familyresemblan e.David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

The GrasshopperIn his Philosophi al Investigations (1958) Ludwig Wittgensteinfamously argued that many ommon ategories la k pre isene essary and su� ient onditions. He used the example of�game,� whi h, he said, sould be understood in terms of familyresemblan e.Suits takes on Wittgenstein's hallenge of identifying what it isthat all games have in ommon.David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

The GrasshopperIn his Philosophi al Investigations (1958) Ludwig Wittgensteinfamously argued that many ommon ategories la k pre isene essary and su� ient onditions. He used the example of�game,� whi h, he said, sould be understood in terms of familyresemblan e.Suits takes on Wittgenstein's hallenge of identifying what it isthat all games have in ommon.Another agenda is an examination of what it means for things(people, our lives, the world) to be good.David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

The GrasshopperIn his Philosophi al Investigations (1958) Ludwig Wittgensteinfamously argued that many ommon ategories la k pre isene essary and su� ient onditions. He used the example of�game,� whi h, he said, sould be understood in terms of familyresemblan e.Suits takes on Wittgenstein's hallenge of identifying what it isthat all games have in ommon.Another agenda is an examination of what it means for things(people, our lives, the world) to be good.The book itself is mu h more playful and entertaining thanmost works of philosophy, though it has a lot of in-jokes forphilosophers. David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of games

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of gamesA game is a �voluntary attempt to over ome unne essaryobsta les.� That is to say it is an attempt:

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of gamesA game is a �voluntary attempt to over ome unne essaryobsta les.� That is to say it is an attempt:to a hieve a spe i� state of a�airs (the prelusory goal), where

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of gamesA game is a �voluntary attempt to over ome unne essaryobsta les.� That is to say it is an attempt:to a hieve a spe i� state of a�airs (the prelusory goal), where onstitutive rules prohibit the realization of that goal by themost e� ient means, and

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of gamesA game is a �voluntary attempt to over ome unne essaryobsta les.� That is to say it is an attempt:to a hieve a spe i� state of a�airs (the prelusory goal), where onstitutive rules prohibit the realization of that goal by themost e� ient means, andthe rules are a epted just be ause they make the gamepossible (players' lusory attitude).

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of games

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of gamesSuits fo uses on the game session or episode, rather than thegame institution ( hess, vs. billiards vs. so er).

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of gamesSuits fo uses on the game session or episode, rather than thegame institution ( hess, vs. billiards vs. so er).Any a tivity might be a game, if approa hed with the rightattitude.

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of gamesSuits fo uses on the game session or episode, rather than thegame institution ( hess, vs. billiards vs. so er).Any a tivity might be a game, if approa hed with the rightattitude.We're invited to imagine a utopia where all our instrumentalneeds were met: what would we do and why?

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Suits de�nition of gamesSuits fo uses on the game session or episode, rather than thegame institution ( hess, vs. billiards vs. so er).Any a tivity might be a game, if approa hed with the rightattitude.We're invited to imagine a utopia where all our instrumentalneeds were met: what would we do and why?This raises broader questions about making our livesmeaningful in our non-utopian world.

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Impli ations for Game Designers

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Impli ations for Game Designers1 Fo us on the session: what makes us willing to take on (asStephen Wright puts it) �fake problems that ome in a box.�

David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Impli ations for Game Designers1 Fo us on the session: what makes us willing to take on (asStephen Wright puts it) �fake problems that ome in a box.�2 Consider Suits riti ally: what instrumental needs of ours dogames address?David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Impli ations for Game Designers1 Fo us on the session: what makes us willing to take on (asStephen Wright puts it) �fake problems that ome in a box.�2 Consider Suits riti ally: what instrumental needs of ours dogames address?3 Suits answers Aristotle: goals that are good in themselves vs.a tivities for their own sake.David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Impli ations for Game Designers1 Fo us on the session: what makes us willing to take on (asStephen Wright puts it) �fake problems that ome in a box.�2 Consider Suits riti ally: what instrumental needs of ours dogames address?3 Suits answers Aristotle: goals that are good in themselves vs.a tivities for their own sake.4 Lusory attitude and audien e appeal: onsider designer Ni kBentley's blog post this week on �over-investment syndrome.�David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well

Impli ations for Game Designers1 Fo us on the session: what makes us willing to take on (asStephen Wright puts it) �fake problems that ome in a box.�2 Consider Suits riti ally: what instrumental needs of ours dogames address?3 Suits answers Aristotle: goals that are good in themselves vs.a tivities for their own sake.4 Lusory attitude and audien e appeal: onsider designer Ni kBentley's blog post this week on �over-investment syndrome.�5 Creative freedom: rule and omponent hoi es are wide open.David Dubin Games, Design, and Living Well