Call of Duty RPG Shooter - Research Proposal Example

Game-making companies have been designing for children with simple storylines, graphics, and gameplay to match. Today, however, the demographics of game players have changed. Computer games and alternate gaming consoles are being designed for adults as old as in their mid-thirties, who have a keen interest in games (Perron and Wolf 2).
Call of Duty (Activision) is one such game that has captured the imagination of its players, this researcher included. CoD is a series of RPG games that feature first and third-person shooters set in the backdrop of the World War II period. The game started as a series played on PCs but was later improvised for console and handheld players.
CoD is a series of games that changes game scenario and gameplay with each series but its core setting is the same: WWII; Except the last two series Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, which are based on modern times (Wikipedia). CoD, CoD 2, and CoD 3 are first-person shooter games that simulate infantry and combined arms warfare except in CoD 2, the experience can be navigated through three different national soldiers: Red, British or American army. CoD 3 have been released in other gaming consoles other than the PC such as Playstation 2, 3, Wii, Xbox, and Xbox 360. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and CoD 5: Modern Warfare 2 are set in modern times and involve a different type of gameplay - with a third-person shooter as well, and adapted to other media for different types of players (Wikipedia). The Modern games are tactical in nature as well as the chartered missions are adapted to the campaigns of modern times. The missions can be cooperative or individual allowing different types of players to choose to reflect their choice.

Personal Connection
What fascinates this research is the fact that even compared to other shooting games like Quake, Medal of Honour, Battlefield: 1942, and Operation: Flashpoint, CoD is still a relatively simple game with few tactical options. It does not focus on strategies or complex missions. Instead, it emphasizes brotherhood and playing as a team. For every mission, the game changes its settings but the comrades remain the same. For a game player like myself, I find this game not only a means to connect with the other players but also to team up with strangers to go on "dangerous missions" with the trust of the CoD brotherhood. The game is intense and allows me to use intelligence while feeling the interactivity of the scene.

Preliminary Research Questions
These ideas lead the researcher to question the popularity of CoD, especially among adult players. Some of the questions that the researcher aims to find answers to in further research include the following:
1. What separates CoD from other RPG shooter games?
2. Based on what gaming theories and foundations CoD continued to extend its gaming series?
3. What connection do players have while playing CoD?

Secondary Research Sources
Despite criticism (Smith 2004), the creation of CoD is not simple. According to Perron and Wolf (3), video game experts whose published work "The Game Theory Reader" indicate that today video games are being developed with extensive research and study in multi-disciplines before they are produced for the masses. Their work is enumerative in understanding what is the theory behind current video games and what are some of the features that creators include.
The depth of a video game can be understood by the facts Pedersen (61) has identified. In his publication Game Design Foundations, Pedersen writes that games are not linear. They have goals; they are winnable, and they have a storyline from start to end. Interactive games especially are even more difficult to create because the stories have to change with changing gameplay.

Working Thesis Statement
These perspectives lead the researcher to pose the following thesis statement for further research:
CoD is a digital game that has the potential to draw a diversified population of players for training, educating, and simulation purposes besides entertainment.

Prospective Audiences
The researcher shall be good for readers who have a keen interest in RPG games. It shall also be interesting for game designers who want to find out what attracts game players and fan following in games such as CoD. Read More