Vote. Vote for your favorites. Vote for those whose ideals match yours. Vote for the guy who you think is better than the other guy. Just Vote!
'Tis the season gamers and true believers. Come Nov. 9, the American people will be choosing who among the candidates will run this fantastic country of ours. But I’m here to remind you all that voting exists in the gaming industry as well in a participatory culture sort of fashion.
On Oct. 15, it was revealed by IGN that Deep Silver (developers of Dead Island 2011) would give “fans the option to choose everything from pillowcases to bobbleheads to keychains, with plenty of fun options in between.”
Deep Silver released this statement: “We’ve polled the community for ideas, and we have some ideas of our own. We will take all of this feedback under serious consideration.”
This really lets the fans feel like they are now invested in the upcoming Dead Island: Riptide and building a community before the game is even released.
Vigil Games (developers of Darksiders II) asked the fans what kind of cover they’d like to see on the Collector’s Edition of the game. The gamers who voted had the choice between three distinct portraits of the main character Death and the one on the far right was chosen.
On Oct. 10, Irrational Games (developer of the upcoming Bioshock: Infinite) let fans choose who would be highlighted in the trailer: The female protagonist or the mechanical monster antagonist. Ten days later, this trailer was released and emphasized that female protagonist being a sufficient wingman for the player’s shooter escapades although they still managed to sneak in the other choice here and there.
I wrote a piece last semester about games that build communities through networking systems and create a longer lasting game experience after you beat the game. Letting the fans pick is just an extension of that community building process and the larger picture of participatory culture in the 21st Century.
Let me know in the comments below if I missed any noteworthy video game fan voting.
Follow me on Twitter @MaroonandGamer or email me at shfawcet@asu.edu for any comments, questions or complaints that you might have
