Play is the theoretical form of learning where ideologies restrict one’s behavior and identity. Play is usually perceived to be a deviation from a commitment to social relationships (Landreth, 2011). The society labels play in adulthood while play associates with happiness in childhood. Researchers analyze play beyond the specifications of society based on age groups or the normative patterns. Stuart Brown views play as a relief from the pressures of time. Brown states that there is a connection between time and space therefore when one disconnects from the time the dislocation from space automatically follows. Aging comes with responsibilities and specific struggles in life. Work, mortgage, debts or losing a spouse may make life miserable in one way or another. Play is, therefore, a recreational process to oneself in preparation to new life contexts and conditions. Th concept makes play imaginative.
Play is a mediation process through the transition in life. On the other hand, Paul Gee describes games as a way of reciprocating the passion as well as the motivation shown towards education. Gee finds value in recognition of play beyond digitized games. Play mediates through the people around games, playgrounds, toys, assessment, curriculum, equipment or us. On the contrary, Miguel Sicart defines play as the understanding of self and the environment. Sicart states that play is a way in which people engage with others (Piaget, 2013). Play enhances the understanding of power, cultural value, race, age or gender. Aging is an inhibitor to play since it brings about reluctance and redundancy to play. This paper demonstrates the understanding of play and the relationship between play and games. Furthermore, the article relates the game "small worlds'' to the concepts of play and games. The paper describes the basics of play as well as the mediations of play through pedagogies. Moreover, the paper explains the defiant in play.
Foundations for the New Forms of Play
Aging is a tragedy to play since paid employment gains more significance with the demands of living. In most cases, work is more preferred to play. Another inhibitor to play is the desire for higher education. Modern university life has shifted to the concerns over getting a job after studies, unlike previous times where students would engage in a drinking spree and get to class the following day. University life has become more of the assessments and preparation for learning outcomes. Sicart values the practices out of the normal (Schaefer, 2011). Chaotic and disruptive activities are appreciated as they break the monotony of the routines in life. All forms of media, without the exception of social media, are crucial to this transition process through life. Social media involves updating social status or selfies as the recreational process following the hurdles of life. In most cases, play symbolizes involvement as in playing the game ‘'small world''. Play usually calls for audience or participation by several individuals.
Computer games are becoming a favorite medium of play with games such as “small world’’ featuring more in the market (Bird " Edwards, 2015). Computers have an affiliation with games. Katie defined games as a system whereby players participate in artificial conflict leading to quantifiable results. David also described games as a means of recreation with set rules that clarify what object would be acquired and the ways of attaining that object (Deterding, Dixon, Khaled, " Nacke, 2011).Games have a fictional aspect. However, the definition of a game would not be complete without aspects of rules, outcomes, player effort, variable outcome, negotiation consequences and finally the player associated with the result. Games involve the interaction of players through a system of rules in the real world.
The small world game has a fictional aspect where double-sided boards contain the maps of four worlds. In the real sense, there is only one world in existence. Each player has to make an effort to acquire land. The players race to acquire land where they would construct an empire and rule in a small world. A player gets victory coins upon participation in a race with special power combination. Apart from victory coins, the player conquers the adjacent land. The variable outcome is that the player acquires victory coins for every land they conquer. The rules of the small world game involve picking up a raced with a special power followed by capturing regions and scoring victory coins. Once the race becomes over-extended, one would leave their civilization to look for another empire. The outcome of the game would be driving one's empire to an end and creating a new small world of supremacy.
For the case of computer games, the computer observes the rules of the game as opposed to a human player. Computers create added flexibility with more complexity in the rules since the player gets freed of the responsibility of enforcing rules. The computer allows for the possibility of a game where players do not know the game rules from the set of the game. It would almost be impossible to play small world without getting familiar with the rules of the game. While real-world games may lack specifications of time, computer games are mostly time bound. Some modern computer games may not be strict on the rules of the game. Small world game relies heavily on the human brain.
The Defiant in Play
The essence of games is their interactive nature (Colman, 2016). Interaction is vital for successful play. Players are part of a game. An active game would have social, artistic as well as the commercial implications. An understanding of the actions of play would create insight into what games are. Games are more of artifacts than media since the players shape the experiences of the game, express their desires in the game and interpret the experiences of the game. A person may refer to the experience of a game as being fun or challenging (Koster, 2013). When a player declines land and secures a new civilization in the small world game, the contesting players may conclude that the game is challenging.
The perception of the game would be the balance between the quantifiable challenge and the skill level of the player. However, the level of fun experienced in a game is a complicated issue. Social or cultural characteristics may influence the game play experience (De Koven, 2013). Most games have a high immersion level. Sensory immersion games appeal to sensory experiences such as the use of graphics in games. A challenging based immersion would involve constant exposure of the player to puzzles waiting to unravel. An imaginative immersion works best for role-playing games whereby players get possibilities of identifying objects in the game using imagination.
Mediations of Play through Pedagogies
Technological changes influence the manner of communication or behavior. A digitized environment has contributed to change in behavior. Over two decades ago, there were no online games, but the emergence of technology has led to the significant changes to the forms of play. The distinction between online and offline forms of play defines the person in a digitized age. Dematerialization is one aspect of the digitized era (Silverman " Torode, 2011). The use of written data is getting replaced with videos or calculated messages. DVD games have taken the place of manual games such as small world (Kafai, 2012). Technological advancements have led to re-embodiment with total age equality. Small world is a game suitable for eight years and above. The fact that games have been digitization means that there lacks discrimination on gender, age, race or physical ability.
A computer game would be operated by anyone regardless of status. Visual representation of players takes place in online games. Moreover, Digitization of play allows for sharing. The internet provides for not only sharing but also the downloading of games. Some internet sites allow for the renting out of games while others are commercialized. Digitization of games has increased the accessibility of games unlike the old forms of play where play becomes restricted to the persons handling the medium of play. Sharing existed before, but digitization facilitates widespread and massive sharing than before. Social media would not only involve friends through play but also an extensive population that would go through a specific blog post (Shin " Shin, 2011). Furthermore, digitization comes with a modern way of storing archive information as opposed to the old era where historical possessions would be in the form of literature.
Conclusion
The society defines play as the breaking of the rules of commitment in a relationship. Play in adults draws a lot of attention while in children play is subjective to happiness. Aging comes with responsibilities that cause people to develop redundancy in play. Play in adulthood may not be all about happiness since most adults prioritize a well- paid job to playing. Playing is, therefore, the recreational process that marks the transition from one stage of life to another. The mediations in play include a playground, other persons, games, social media, toys, equipment or curriculum.
A game is the medium of play that involves a system of rules guiding players in the participation of artificial conflict with possible outcomes. The small world game is one example where players struggle for limited space until one of them eventually secures an empire, which is a small world. The level of fun experienced in a game is complicated. The game experience would be the balance between the player ability and the level of challenge in the game. Digitization has contributed to significant changes in the forms of play and communication.
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