Re: [-empyre-] playthings response

[Troy Innocent <troy@iconica.org>]

Hi Eugenie et al,

> i had the chance to play semiomorph for a couple of hours whilst i was 
> in
> sydney. apart from being a lovely, eerie little world, the game itself
> demonstrates something really interesting about semiotic morphism (and
> 'morphing' in general), and how it differs from my understanding of
> anamorphosis.
>
> semiomorph foregrounds the fissures - or 'interstices' (this was a 
> popular
> word at plaything!) - between the underlying system and its 
> representation,
> by drawing attention to shifts in 'external' representation: the form 
> of the
> environment and the player is constantly shifting. the internal logic 
> of the
> game, however - its 'internal' system - remains intact. in other 
> words, even
> though one's immediate perception of the environment is quite unstable 
> - and
> the constant shifts in perception are unsettling in themselves - the
> environment is consistently meaningful and legible to the player on a
> structural level - we don't have to 'relearn' a new system in order to 
> find
> our way around.

I like the idea of Semiomorph as a collection of interstitial spaces. 
The game system and structure are constant, and all experienced from a 
third-person POV. The rules of the game are linked into the system of 
semiotic morphism, as described by the gameplay:

"The goal of the game is to collect enough energy points to create a 
semiomorph and move onto the next stage. The kind of energy you collect 
will shift your mode of representation between word, diagram, icon and 
simulation. This in turn will change the rules of play and your effect 
on the world.

You must avoid opposing entities and blast icons. Power-ups make you 
invincible for a short period of time.        Muticons switch your mode 
of representation instantaneously."

So, perhaps the linking of the actions of the player with the 
representation of the space involves some learning of how this new 
space works - usually representations are fixed in game worlds.

I am interested also in this kind of space functioning as a 'generative 
meaning system'. It combines different codes of representation (text, 
diagrams, iconography, simulated reality) with the rules of play 
described above and situates them in an electronic space. Through the 
actions of the player different states of the space are generated, 
resulting in new meanings occurring through different patterns of play.

In a wider context, semiotic morphism attempts the mathematical 
definition of different sign systems in terms of 'algebraic semiotics' 
so that translations between these different systems can be computed. 
Entering the realm of speculation, if different game spaces could be 
defined in these terms, then semiotic morphs between them could be 
performed. Try morphing Quake III into the Sims or Grand Theft Auto III 
into Super Mario Bros...

An approximation of this concept can be seen in the more creative game 
mods that have emerged in recent years.

> anamorphosis, in other words, points up the simultaneous existence of
> multiple systems of subjectivity, not all of which are 'logical' and 
> many of
> which aren't even socioculturally legible or quantifiable as such. in
> cultural studies terms - and particularly in 'postmodern' accounts of
> cyberspace and VR - subjectivity tends to be cast as an effect of 'a 
> system'
> or 'THE system' of representation. Lacan's account of subjectivity 
> (i.e. as
> constituted in/by language) is a case in point. Rez - the game i was 
> talking
> about in my plaything paper - shows us something entirely different. 
> as i
> argued, it actualizes exactly the same thing that holbein's picture 
> does
> i.e. that subjectivity is multisensory and multistable.

Rez uses synaesthesia to great effect, and on a couple of levels 
(players actions, behavior of the various enemies flying about, the 
transitions between game stages). This is the case in all games, really 
(or at least all good games) in that images and sounds are closely  
linked together, and usually occur as a result of the actions of the 
player or other agents in the simulation. I guess this is not linked 
directly with non-perspectival systems of representation, but do you 
think this blurring of the senses assist with the manifestation of 
multiple systems of subjectivity?

Troy.

> eugenie
>
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>>> Troy Innocent : troy@iconica.org : iconica.org