Art & Technology - Game Controller

I really enjoyed the game controller project we did.  It came easier for me to create more than the game, perhaps because of our previous experience with Makey Makey.  I did like how the game controller and game brought our Scratch, sound, programming, animated gif and Makey Makey projects all together to work cohesively as one thing.  For my controller, I chose to create a spherical ball reminiscent of the crystal ball that the Goblin King uses throughout the Labyrinth movie, and the one that Sarah is trapped in during the ballroom scene.  I used an old clear plastic ornament, and attached metal clips to it as the "buttons." Inside, I used a phone wire with 4 small wires inside to attach to the Makey Makey for my four controls in the game - up, right, left and the space bar.  I wanted to be able to use the controller in one hand (my second hand use in the video is only to steady it).  I painted it white to conceal the wires inside as well. 

The game creation itself came together in the end, even though it was more simple than I originally intended, and it was interesting to play it with the controller because it added an element of difficulty.  I made the controller to fit my hand too, so it also has an element of customization and uniqueness to it that I wasn't expecting for some reason.  It definitely adds to the artistic quality of the game, to have a one of a kind controller. 

As art teacher, I look forward to incorporating multiple artistic techniques into single projects.  I feel like this adds an element of dynamic learning that helps students realize their strengths and overcome their challenges. Working on large scale projects like this collaboratively would also be a great way to teach about teamwork and getting along with peers.  Although I think technology can be combined with traditional art making practices, projects like these completely redefine the way we can teach in an art classroom.  It truly combines many disciplines, and is aligned with STEAM curriculum.  I look forward to using new media in my classroom in the future.  

Art & Technology - Sound Effects

For my second project, we were asked to create 8 sound effects, using a combination of samples, which I recorded on my iPhone 7, and also sounds created on the website bfxr.net.  For all of my projects as I learn to become an art educator, I like to get my children involved as much as possible. They are 7 and 4, so their tastes and sense of humor are of the potty variety.  Although these particular sounds and subsequent "instrument" I created (see it here) are not necessarily school appropriate, I did find the creation of sound effects to be highly educational.  We were faced with the challenge of trying to recreate a particular sound without actually using the sound itself (in one case we did).  We had to implement some creativity in order to get a variety of different noises, which had that distinguishable quality of the fart noise.  

In a classroom, I would love to create a project that involved creating sounds that are either original noises or mimic existing sounds without actually using the sound itself.  This presents both a challenge to creativity and an attention to nuance and detail.  It also teaches students that we can use our sense of hearing to evoke feeling or emotion, such as humor. 

Using bfxr.net was very simple and straightforward.  It provided a variety of controls to change the qualities of the sounds, and was easy enough for me to figure out immediately, without having any prior sound creation experience.  I think this would be a valuable tool to use in the classroom when creating sound effects, and would augment or even modify the way sounds are captured as samples.  It gives a nice introduction to the history of video game sound in particular, while teaching about the variety of ways sound can be made and recorded.  Samples are also a great way to augment sound making.  As demonstrated with my "Fart Sounds" below, you can use a variety of items and materials to create sounds that don't necessarily represent what they actually are.  This project was a lot of fun for me, and for my kids as well!

Art & Technology - Thoughts on The Effects of Sound on Video Game Enjoyment

When I think of playing video games, many different images come to mind.  Not just the ones I see on the screen, but also the technology and the active process of playing.  One thing I don't readily think of is sound.  However, the aspect of sound with video games is just as, if not more, important than the use of our eyes.  Indeed, when I hear a music tune or sound effect from Super Mario or Sonic The Hedgehog, it is immediately recognizable.  The effects of sound do not only allow us to enjoy games, but also can help us connect to them emotionally, provide us with motivation (faster music helps us play more efficiently, for example) and keep us immersed in the environment of the game we are playing, in order to get more enjoyment. Background music specifically "...is used to communicate aspect of the narrative, convey emotion, and enrich the experience of the player (Fu & Zhang, 2015)."

With the further development of technology, including high definition graphics and realistic, surround sound, video games "positively affect social richness, or the extent to which a medium is perceived as socially intimate and immediate, by more accurately communicating the visual and verbal features of other social beings (Skalski and Whitbred, 2010, p. 70-71)."  In other words, the level of immersion into the video game increases when visuals are combined with music and sound, and in turn, increases enjoyment of the game. 

Although music has a great effect on this enjoyment, I think that more subtle sounds can also have an effect on immersion. My husband was recently playing a Virtual Reality demo of "The Last Guardian."  It is an action adventure game, in which players control a boy who befriends a giant half-bird-half-mammal creature, Trico.  Trico follows you around, and helps you through your quests.  At one point while playing, my husband lost sight of Trico.  Suddenly, he "felt" his presence next to him, and when he turned, Trico was sitting there.  Although he isn't sure why he felt that way, I suspect that there was some low frequency sound that alerted him to Trico's arrival.  Whether it was meant to represent his breathing, or a shift in the air caused by his mass, it was something indeterminate that had a great effect on how realistic the game was, and in turn, how immersed my husband became in playing.

I think that with all art, some sort of transportation to an idea or a feeling or a world is important to convey.  When teaching visual art, we often forget that we use all 5 of our senses when experiencing our world around us, and sound can be an effective tool to convey messages too.  Anything from music to sound effects to subtle shifts in bass or frequency, sound can evoke feeling and presence too.  This is important to teach as well, that we must not only critically investigate visual forms of representation, but evaluate all forms of representation that are used to change or redefine our worlds.

References:

Skalski, P. and Whitbred, R. (2010) Image versus Sound: A Comparison of Formal Feature Effects on Presence and Video Game Enjoyment. Cleveland State University. P. 67-82.

Zhang J, Fu X (2015) The Influence of Background Music of Video Games on Immersion. J Psychol Psychother 5:191. doi:10.4172/2161-0487.1000191