ipl-logo

Elder Scrolls And Fallout: Bethesda's Video Game Industry

1094 Words5 Pages

Known for their popular video game series, the Elder Scrolls and Fallout, Bethesda Games Studios (often shortened to ‘Bethesda') is an American video game development and production company that was established in 2002 (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). This paper employs a ‘political economy' method to investigate, analyze, and explore the ownership structures that are characteristic to this media company. To draw upon the work of Timothy Havens and Amanda D. Lotz "media do not fulfill essential human needs," however, "many people nevertheless see media as central to their lives" (Havens and Lotz). Because media play an important role in contemporary society, it is imperative that the "instances, mechanisms, and occurrences" that underline the …show more content…

Bethesda is highly aware of their acclaim in the video game industry and takes pride in their accomplishments, introducing themselves as "one of the industry's most respected and accomplished game development studios" (ZeniMax Media) on the main page of their website. They also cite the various awards they have received and describe themselves as an "award-winning development team known around the world for their groundbreaking work" (ZeniMax Media). However, Bethesda's values and beliefs as a company are outlined by their public relations and marketing manager Pete Hines, who in an interview with GamesRadar said that "[we're] doing some things that are different and cool and unique … [and] that all ties in – I think very well – with what we feel like our identity is at Bethesda" (Stone). So, while they are eager to highlight their past successes and continue to expand upon those products, Bethesda also makes it clear that they want to test different paths and strive for …show more content…

However, there are naturally important figures within the organization, such as their director and executive producer, Todd Howard, who manages the development and production activities of their artistic team. According to Bethesda's LinkedIn page, their team consists of approximately 100 to 200 artists (LinkedIn), depending on the size of their current projects, who work closely with one another in the creation of their video games. In the interview cited above, public relations and marketing manager Pete Hines also explains that all team members are invited, even encouraged, to share their ideas and suggestions, though final decisions are made at top level

Show More
Related
1207 Words | 5 Pages

The video game industry is currently a growing multimillion dollar business. Getting into this business is a risky move since many game developers flop. There are many great games and developers with their presence in the market that for a new company to become part of it would have to put in a lot of work and effort to get themselves known. Currently, there are 2,858 video game companies throughout the United States, of those 2,858 there are 2,322 development companies and 526 publishing companies. It is estimated that the video game industry brings in an added 11.7 billion dollars a year to the GDP (Anderton).

Read More
690 Words | 3 Pages

Anderson repetitively informs the audience about how accessible the “stupid games” have gotten. “Today it has been downloaded… equipment for kids,” (Anderson 107). It is clear that the journalist was prepared to disclose any facts that he had to help back up his claim on the effects that video games have on society, as well as how accessible the video games have gotten in the past few years. Although Chabon does the exact same thing for his audience, he provides more vivid details about the declining sales of comic books. “But the strange counter-phenomenon to this indisputable… neighborhood of 80 million today),” (Anderson 916).

Read More
625 Words | 3 Pages

Chris Hedge’s article, “Our Country Is Lost Believing in What It Sees on Screens, and We Are Going to Pay a Nasty Price for It,” highlights the negative influence electronic media has on society. The author provides a realistic insight into the negative effects of electronic media. Hedges states, “It is the electronic image that informs and defines us. It is the image that gives us our identity. It is the image that tells us what is attainable in the vast cult of the self, what we should desire, what we should seek to become and who we are” (Hedges, 4).

Read More
650 Words | 3 Pages

As “Digital History” states, “The collapse of the new economy at the decade's end would generate economic debates as intense as the cultural conflicts of the early and mid-1920s.” (The Consumer Economy and Mass Entertainment, Digital

Read More
861 Words | 4 Pages

Video games, television, social media among others, have a significant impact on people's mind, especially young minds, therefore, nowadays “Many children are “hooked” on electronics, and in fact gaming releases so much dopamine—the “feel-good” chemical—that on a brain scan it looks the same as cocaine use” (Duckley). Technology is dangerous, for instance, it has the ability to enslave humans in a bogus world and drive them to distance themselves from family and friends. In like manner, technology's effect on people’s minds builds a society that can be easily manipulated. The over dependence and obsessive use of technology creates a vulnerable society that is every day more exposed to unfixable

Read More
984 Words | 4 Pages

Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer, in “The Culture Industry as Mass Deception,” conclude that mass culture in the United States is identical and unoriginal “under monopoly capitalism” (Adorno, Horkheimer 1242). The Matrix (1999), directed by the Wachowski siblings, is about a group of enlightened outsiders who wage a war against the machines in control of human beings, who are subdued and experiencing a false reality through a simulation called the Matrix. In this paper, I will describe how the film, while seemingly original in its concept of questioning reality and rejecting conformity, ultimately succumbs to the cliches and stylizations of mass culture/media, failing to break from the formula Adorno and Horkheimer criticize. One of the most important points Adorno

Read More
1631 Words | 7 Pages

As discussed in the literature review, the video gaming industry is male dominated as they target white males as their main consumers, as a result this creates cultural gender norms within society. Rakow argues that “technology is a site where

Read More
1794 Words | 8 Pages

Introduction In our current society, the media is a very powerful medium which cultivates the way the society thinks and behaves. At this stage of the political economy, the intellectual mode of production is largely made through the media industry. Aspects such as Hollywood, television and movies, they frame and direct our thinkings and values towards the direction as they desire.

Read More
1488 Words | 6 Pages

In both modern American society and the dystopian society technology and entertainment impact a human’s experience and it represents the individual’s struggle within society. Although modern American society and the dystopian society are almost completely different at this point in time, modern American society is slowly showing signs such as similar forms of technology and changes in the government and its leaders, that it is potentially shaping into the dystopian society read about in

Read More
998 Words | 4 Pages

In their respective articles, Mar and Oatley(2008) and Tan(2008) offer diverse insights into the significance of various forms of media. Although the articles take different approaches on this topic, with Mar and Oatley focusing on the function of fiction and Tan providing an overview of the entertainment experience, both articles shine a spotlight on the purpose of fiction and entertainment. In this essay, I’m going to discuss the main claims put forward by Mar and Oatley and then compare these views with those of Tan in relation to the social world and emotional effects of media on consumers. We spend huge chunks of our lives immersed in various forms of fiction. Some see this as a negative thing, arguing that fiction is mentally and ethically

Read More
928 Words | 4 Pages

What do birds mean to you? Do you view them as friends, or foes? In 2011, Bethesda Studios released The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The mega-popular single-player game takes place in a fantasy world filled with magic, castles, and powerful creatures.

Read More
1180 Words | 5 Pages

Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno’s essay, The Culture Industry (1944), juxtaposes the words culture and industry to describe a state where cultural forms, such as television, music, and film are no longer creative outlets but industries dominated by commodification and profit. The production of meaning, creation of stories, symbols, and experiences that we use to make sense of the world is an industry or a full profit venture. David Hesmondhalgh’s ideas, in The Culture Industries (2013), differ from Horkheimer and Adorno’s because he offers a more ambivalent approach. Horkheimer and Adorno discuss a solely negative angle, while Hesmondhalgh offers a more mixed point of view. Hesmondhalgh explores the culture industry as a complex system, for

Read More
1576 Words | 7 Pages

(Brake, 1980) In our topic, those people who work hard are culture. Gamers who play video games as daily routine are subculture. “Gamers” is an worldwide issue which worth to discuss.

Read More
1520 Words | 7 Pages

The company’s choices for products, promotion, price, and place all reflect its mission statement as well as its aims, target audience, and objectives. Their strategy and ways for expanding intellectual property in different sectors are ethical and seem effective, due to increasing in recognition of Ubisoft as game company that entertains and enriches the life of its gamers. This success should assist the company within the game development, cinema and television market and ensure that the business mix is sustainable in the future and will provide educational

Read More
1341 Words | 6 Pages

With recent pop culture trends, people are becoming more and more involved in the media that surrounds them. From movies, television shows, books, games, fan fiction, apparel and toys, it is becoming apparent that people are immersing themselves within these many types of media. This is particularly evident in the world wide sensation known as Star Wars. After the success of the first film Star Wars – now known as Episode IV: A New Hope - (George Lucas, 1977), the franchise has grown into a global phenomenon, stretching across generations and countries. This essay will deconstruct how this franchise has effectively used ‘Media Convergence’ and ‘Transmedia Storytelling’ to its advantage to become one of the most beloved, but also profitable,

Read More

More about Elder Scrolls And Fallout: Bethesda's Video Game Industry

Related Topics

Open Document