Storyline: The Inextricability of Narrative and Rules in New Super Mario Bros. Wii

Due to the relative youth of game studies as a discipline and the astounding variability of its

object, a consensus has yet to emerge on nearly any topic beyond the defining of certain terms, even

regarding the object of inquiry itself. The argument which demonstrates this disharmony best is the

so-called “ludology versus narratology debate,” because it deals with how the researcher should

approach videogames to begin with. In short, ludologists favor an approach which focuses solely on

the “ludic” qualities of games, that is, the elements of the medium which make it unique, such as

player interaction and the underlying rules which govern it, whereas narratologists favor an approach

which focuses on the storytelling ability of gamesi. Both sides make salient points, but the dichotomy

itself is unnecessarily reductive and ultimately obscures the object itself. A strictly narratological study

may sell itself short by ignoring the ludic qualities of a videogame, and a strictly ludological study

misses the uber-medialii nature of videogames by focusing only on the traits unique to the medium.

This study will demonstrate that the narrative of a game is inextricable from its underlying rules, and

that the narrative of New Super Mario Bros. Wiiiii is created through a cooperative interaction between

game and player. The game uses its rules both to compel the player forward and to teach the player

how the game, and narrative, should be played, resulting in the creation of a third, immaterial (but not

irrelevant) narrative formed out of the story of the game and the story of the playing of the game. The

concept of the line, as previously only used in skateboarding to describe a series of connected tricks,

offers a way to describe the particular kind of movement undertaken in the game. In addition, the

psychological concept of flow has been previously used by game theorists to describe the

psychological state of the player during concentrated playiv. Applying these two terms to New Super

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Mario Bros. Wii will allow for an examination of videogame narrative that nonetheless pays strict

attention to the ludic qualities of the game.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii is especially ideal as the object of this study for two reasons. Firstly,

it is the latest in a long line of Mario videogames, stretching back almost to the medium's inception.

Because the gameplayv has not changed significantly through each iteration, concepts that arise in the

course of this study will be relevant to more than one game. Secondly, New Super Mario Bros. Wii

supports multiple players at one time, a gameplay element not seen before in any other version, and

which has the effect of bifurcating the game into two distinct modes. Each mode has its own methods

of teaching the player, and its own characteristic emergent narrative. The first mode occurs only with a

single player, and highlights Mario's ability to move smoothly and quickly through a level, facilitating

flow through obstacles favorable to particular lines. This first mode is oriented so as to increase the

likelihood that the emergent narrative will showcase Mario's exemplar adventuring ability. The second

mode, which occurs when playing with more than one player, works to frustrate flow and favors an

emergent narrative where the kinetic, often comical interactions between players are more important

that the completion of lines.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii uses a variety of techniques to teach the player how to enact its

narrative. These techniques can be broadly divided into two categories: those which compel the

player forward, and those which teach the player how to play. Although the former are technically

part of the latter, the distinction is helpful because it reveals the complexity of the relationship

between game, player, and narrative. The most explicit of the former techniques is the timer. In each

level, a timer appears in the top right corner and begins counting down as soon as the level begins. If

the player does not reach the flagpole at the end of the level before the timer runs out, Mario dies.

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More interesting that this, however, is the way the game uses the screen itself to compel progression.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii is an example of what is commonly called a “side-scrolling platform game,”

because the screen scrolls from side to side, up down, left, and right as the player avatar moves

through the levelvi jumping from one platform to another. At any given time only a portion of the level

is visible to the player, because the screen acts as a frame through which the player views the virtual

world. In the majority of levels, the screen stays relatively centered on Mario, and moves with him.

Course 1-1 from Super Mario Bros. The red box to the left represents the amount of the level visible at any given time.

In certain levels, however, the screen moves of its own accord, and Mario must move along with it. If

the screen catches up to him, it will push him along, and if Mario is caught between an object and the

advancing screen, he dies. The edge of the real-world screen on which the game is being played is

incorporated into the virtual world and serves to push the player forward on threat of death.

Forward progression is necessary for any narrative, and this is taken care of in NSMBW by the

game rules themselves. In addition to forcing the player forward, the game also teaches the player

what to do while moving forward. Because of the nature of videogame narratives, teaching the player

how to play also means teaching the player how to enact the narrative. In order to avoid the danger of

focusing on the narrative at the expense of the game, a more useful approach will be to look at the

kind of narrative the game favors through its rules and underlying functions, and then see how that

compares to the overall narrative already present in the game.

All games teach their players in some way, and NSMBW is no different. The focus here,

however, is only those ways in which the game teaches the player through the playing of the game, as

opposed to something like in-game text or an instructional videovii. To see how the game teaches the

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player through playing, it will be helpful to look at an in-game example. Level 4-3viii begins with Mario

standing on top of a small hill. A line of gold coins leads down the hill and a crab which throws

coconuts stands a little ways off. Immediately, the coins going down the hill allude to one of Mario's

abilities. When walking or running down a steep enough incline, the player can press down on the

controller and Mario will slide down the hill in a sitting position, killing any enemies he encounters.

Sliding down this hill works to the player's advantage, because it allows Mario to dodge the coconut

flying towards him at head level when he reaches the bottom. Further on in the level, Mario is

confronted with another hill, which leads into puffer-fish infested waters. If the player has reached

this point without getting injured while collecting any possible items, Mario will be wearing a penguin

suit, which allows him to walk on ice without slipping, throw snowballs, slide across the ground on his

stomach, and slide across the surface of water on his stomach. All of these abilities except for sliding

on water will have likely been used already by the time the player gets to 4-3, because World 3 is

largely ice and snow without any water, and the most common item is a penguin suit. In addition,

Mario will have collected a star, which renders him invulnerable for a short while. If the player presses

down while Mario is on the second hill, he will slide on his stomach across the water. If he continues

sliding, he will hit a switch that makes blue coins appear. In order to collect the blue coins, Mario

continues sliding and jumping when appropriate, culminating in collecting all the blue coins, a Star

Coin, and hitting the midway flag.

The events just described take only a matter of seconds, but they involve a number of

interactions between player and game that serve to teach the player information about the game as

well as information about the desired narrative of the game. However, because the brief period of

gameplay just described contains a huge number of variables, discussing it requires a not insignificant

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amount of tedium (as the above paragraph demonstrates.) The term line, taken from the world of

skateboarding and used critically for the first time here, will offer a useful tool to discuss this series of

movements without having to recall each individual variable.

One of the defining characteristics of the videogame medium is its ability to recreate physical

space in a virtual environment. Where a text can only describe a space and an image or film can only

show it, the virtual world of a videogames is a place in which the real-world player has agency, and

can act and move within itix. Unfortunately, the relative novelty of this virtual space means that there

are few critical tools for describing movement within it. Because movement is so integral to this

discussion, the concept of the line will help to describe this particular kind of intentional, structured

movement. In street skateboardingx, a series of tricks performed in succession is called a line. The

term describes not only the tricks themselves, but also the movement necessary to link them. Thus,

the above example of Mario sliding on his stomach in world 4-3 may be considered a line. This

particular line would include everything from the moment Mario slides on his stomach all the way to

the point when he reaches the mid-way flag.

Two Lines Below are two different examples of lines. On the left are images of the NSMBW line described

on page 4. On the right are images of a line from a professional skateboarding videoxi. The goal here is

not equate the actions in NSMBW to this particular skateboarding line, but rather to give two

disparate examples of a line so as to better describe the concept. An unassailable definition will not be

attempted here, but a reasonable explanation might be that the line is the totality of intentionally

sequenced actions/movements through a space (real or virtual) characterized by the particular

relationship between those actions/movements and the surrounding objects/obstaclesxii. For an

explanation of the skateboarding terms, see the end-note.

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Above: The first hill in level 4-3, with a line of coins leading down. Above: Preparing to ollie.

Above: Frontside tailslide on the ledge.

Above:The second hill, with another line of coins leading down. The Below: Pedaling towards the site of star which will allow Mario to collide with enemies uninjured is in the the next trick. . question-mark box visible in the upper left of the image.

Below: Mario sliding across the surface of the water.

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Above: Collecting blue coins by jumping over certain obstacles. Above: Transitioning to a frontside kickflip. (Mario is somehow able to jump from a prone position.)

Above: Mario about to collect the large golden Star Coin.Above: Frontside kickflip over the dirt gap.

Below: Just before Mario hits the midway flag, finishing the line. Below: Landing/finishing the line.

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Because “line” describes the actions, and not the obstacles, one can use the term to describe

any specific portion of gameplay without having to worry about segmentation based on elements

within the level itself. Thus, the line only exists when it is performed by the player. Because the actions

of the player are largely dictated by the obstacles in the game, if one examines the level with the line

in mind, it becomes clear that the game favors and encourages certain kinds of movement and lines.

Just as a the layout of a business park might suggest a series of tricks to a skater, so too does a level in

NSMBW suggest a series of actions to the player. However, the skater cannot look to the business park

to find out the best possible line, whereas the game provides the player with ample direction.

In addition to the example from level 4-3, NSMBW uses shorter in-game sequences to teach

the player. Often they are instances of recurring obstacles or challenges, as in level 1-3. Level 1-3 is the

first level in which Yoshi is available to the player. Yoshi is a dinosaur which Mario can ride, giving the

player a variety of different abilities, including the ability to flutter in the air longer than a normal

jump would allow. The game teaches the player how to take advantage of this particular ability by

repeating a series of similar challenges. First, there is a line of coins leading up to a Star Coin. Then,

this same theme is repeated with the second Star Coin, and finally another line of coins leading to the

top of the final flagxiii.

The first two Star coins in level 1-3.

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Each instance reinforces the lesson so that by the final instance, the player should know immediately

what to do.

Because the game teaches the player in identifiable ways, this means that the game actually

favors certain kinds or styles of playing. The kind of play NSMBW favors can be identified by looking at

what the game teaches the player to do in the examples above. Seen most clearly in the example for

level 4-3, but also in level 1-3, the game favors the player who can move through the level quickly and

smoothly while collecting items and coins. The collecting of items and coins is largely a result of

moving quickly and smoothly, because the game uses the items and coins to create a path for the

player. Once again, it is the movement that is most important, and the items and obstacles serve to

direct the movement.

In addition to the obstacles and rewards the game uses to direct the player, special

attention must be paid to one more way in which the game encourages smooth lines and a state of

flow, and that is through sound. Sound can serve any number of functions in videogames, but the

sounds important to this study are those which Kristine Jorgenson would call external transdiegetic

soundsxiv. External transdiegetic sounds are those sounds which communicate information between

the game system and the player but which have no internal source within the game world. For this

study, the most important external transdiegetic sound in NSMBW is the applause that is heard upon

completion of any number of challenges. If the player performs a triple jump or collects all the red or

blue coins in a level, applause is heard. The applause praises the player's performance but does not

issue from anything in the game world. Rather, it is the game itself applauding the player. This detail is

important for two reasons. Firstly, it shows the game encouraging certain achievements using

methods other than items, coins, or other in-game rewards. Secondly, it situates the game system

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itself as a kind of audience, observing the player's performance and giving real-time feedback.

If line describes the linking of these movements into a fluid sequence, then flow describes the

intended effect of performing these movements. Flow is a psychological state in which the player is

fully immersed in the gameplay experience. It arises when the player is able to perform at peak ability

to complete challenging but not impossible tasksxv. In some ways, all videogames can be considered

flow engines, because they are essentially designed in order to facilitate a state of flow. NSMBW

facilitates flow through the layout of the levels and the abilities which allow Mario to move through

those levels. The ability most closely tied to flow is the triple jump. If Mario jumps three times in rapid

succession while running at top speed, each subsequent jump will be higher and further than the

previous one, resulting in Mario performing a front flip. The player is enticed to perform the triple

jump at least once in almost any level, because the clearest way to reach the top of the final flag in the

majority of levels is to perform a triple jump. Early on, the game provides simple platforms and hills to

help the player time each jump accurately, but as the game progresses, the areas conducive to the

triple jump become more and more difficult. Where a player originally just had to hit the top of three

adjacent hills, later on the the player may have to jump on a moving platform, jump again onto an

enemy on the ground, and perform the final jump off of a bullet moving through the air. Each instance

reinforces the player's ability to perform the triple jump, and in turn increases the likelihood that the

player will achieve a state of flow. By encouraging the player to achieve a state of flow, the game

encourages the player to peak performance, which will allow for the completion of difficult lines.

This first game mode, which facilitates flow and favors the completion of lines, does so for

good reason. Mario only has a certain number of lives, and if he runs out, then it is Game Overxvi. In

order to complete the game with any kind of efficiency, the player must avoid Game Overs and try to

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die as infrequently as possible. This goal is most easily achieved if the player takes the cues from the

game and attempts to complete the lines it suggests. The example from level 4-3 demonstrates this,

because avoiding or defeating all of the enemies and pitfalls would be far more difficult if Mario were

not performing the line. The first mode of play facilitates flow and encourages lines in order to help

the player complete the game smoothly and efficiently. The second mode, however, actually frustrates

flow and encourages disharmony, without making the game necessarily more difficult or lengthy.

The second mode of New Super Mario Bros. Wii supports up to four players, with each player

controlling a different avatar. Player one controls Mario, player two controls his brother, Luigixvii and

players three and four control two different colored Toads, the native inhabitants of the fictional

Super Mario Bros. world.

From left: Yellow Toad riding Yoshi, Mario, and

Luigi carrying Blue Toad. A koopa troopa and two

goombas are visible to the right of Yellow Toad.

Each new player alters the structure of the game because the avatars can interact with each other in a

number of ways, and this relates directly to the narrative. In the larger Super Mario Bros. mythology,

Mario and Luigi are heroes of renown, with the former receiving most, but not all of the attention.

Toads appear in a number of roles throughout the series, but always serve as comic relief, and often

require rescuing by Mario or Luigixviii. These roles are supported and carried out by the rules of the

game. In the first mode of play, the game favors emergent play that is smooth, quick, and includes the

performance of impressive lines. The addition of other players alters the structure of the game so that

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in most cases while these traits are still favored, the means to achieve them are altered. The addition

of Luigi to the game makes things easier, because two players working together can assist each other

while still having enough freedom to perform acrobatic maneuvers and impressive lines. This makes

sense considering that Mario and Luigi are the adventuring team par-excellence in the Super Mario

Bros. mythos. When Toad is included, however, the game becomes more difficult, because screen

space becomes limited, increasing the likelihood that an avatar may accidentally land on another

avatar's head, or else push them off a cliff. In addition, because the frame of the screen follows the

avatar in the lead, players may inadvertently kill their fellows. The fourth Toad only exacerbates this,

but this increase in difficulty is accompanied by an increase in comical moments, because avatars

often find themselves in awkward situations, such as continuously bouncing on top of someone's head

for an extended period of time, which is accompanied by a myriad of sounds coming from both the

bouncer and the bouncee. Thus, the inclusion of the Toads, by increasing both the difficulty and

randomness of the game functions, also supports and helps to enact the Toads' duel role as hindrance

and comic relief. It is important to note that this occurs independent of the ability of the player,

because the increased randomness created by the inclusion of another human actor helps to negate

any particular skill of one player.

The disruption of flow which may occur with the inclusion of multiple players does not

invalidate the earlier claim that the game favors smooth, quick lines. Rather, the game favors smooth,

quick lines when the only protagonists are Mario and Luigi, but changes the emergent play it favors

when the embedded narrative changes to include Toad. Then, the game favors a much more hectic

emergent narrative which includes moments of Toad messing things up for the two brothers and

comically unpredictable movements. The threat of death changes as well, because while the second

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mode of play frustrates flow, it does not frustrate the player in a similar fashion. As mentioned earlier,

Mario only has a limited number of lives he can lose before receiving a “Game Over” and starting over

from the most recent save point. This holds true in the second mode of play, except that each player's

lives and “Game Overs” are counted independently. While one player may get a “Game Over,” as long

as at least one other player still has a life, no one will be forced to start over from an earlier point. In

effect, this gives players practically infinite lives, so long as all four players do not run out of lives at

the same time. Thus, while the second mode of play in NSMBW frustrates flow, it does so because the

overall nature of the game changes. The goal is no longer the efficient, smooth completion of the

game, but rather a frenetic, bumbling completion, and the game allows for practically infinite lives to

aid in this more random game modexix.

In any videogame, there are always at least two narratives in play. The first is called the

embedded narrative, and it is composed of all the aesthetic and narrative elements already in the

game, independent of the player. This includes everything one might usually think of as narrative, such

as the plot, the characters, and all of the levels and landscapes. The second narrative at work is called

the emergent narrative, and is the narrative created by the player through the playing of the game.

Essentially, the embedded narrative is the story of the game, and the emergent narrative is the story

of the playing of the gamexx. Thus, New Super Mario Bros. Wii favors a particular kind of emergent

narrative by structuring the embedded narrative in a particular way. The previous description of the

line in level 4-3 can be reiterated in terms of embedded and emergent narrative. The embedded

narrative of the level serves to facilitate a particular emergent narrative, that of the successful line.

However, this understanding of the game's narrative remains unsatisfactory, because there are details

in the game which hint at a third, total narrative. Specifically, the midway flag, the game's replayability,

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and the sound of applause all complicate the notion of narrative in NSMBW.

In almost all NSMBW levels, a midway flag is a flag situated near the middle of the level. If

Mario touches the flag, he will be able to restart the level from there should he die before completing

it. Thus, oftentimes Mario will touch the midway flag but die sometime after, and finish the level on a

subsequent attempt. The narrative problem arises when one attempts to consider this emergent

narrative in conjunction with the embedded narrative. As mentioned before, the game favors an

emergent narrative that includes smooth, quick movement through a level, but even if the player

completes a level without performing any evident lines, the emergent narrative stays within the realm

of possibility in relation to the embedded narrative, because the embedded narrative assumes the

completion of the level. However, if a player dies after the midway flag and completes the level on a

subsequent attempt, the emergent narrative contains a portion of narrative which cannot exist in the

embedded narrative. If one were attempting to construct a coherent narrative out of the player's

emergent narrative, the portion of the first attempt after the midway flag presents a problem,

because it exists as a narrative dead end. This problem disappears if one visualizes a third narrative at

play, one made out of the embedded narrative and the best of the emergent narratives. The player

need not play every level in order to reach the end of the gamexxi, but the player is able to replay any

previously completed level an infinite number of times, as well as go back to play levels which were

bypassed the first time through. Thus, one may view every attempt of the player as an attempt to

achieve the ideal, total narrative suggested by the embedded narrative. This third narrative only ever

exists as a thought, because the player must do the redacting work of imagining this narrative. This is

why the Super Guide, in which the game system guides an avatar through a level, cannot be

considered as the ideal or favored narrative of the game. The Super Guide only shows the most

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straightforward path through a level, and does not include the performing of any impressive lines or

the collecting of Star Coins or other bonuses. The Super Guide only gives the bare minimum needed to

complete the level, and leaves the enactment of the ideal narrative up to the player. Thus, the Super

Guide is only one more possible emergent narrative to be redacted into the third narrative.

The sound of applause further alludes to this third narrative. The applause sets up the game

system as a kind of audience, and thus emphasizes the player's performance in the theatrical sense.

The player controls Mario like a kind of marionette1, and the game system applauds accordingly. The

difference is that the player is effectively performing a play without having read the script first. Instead

of a theatrical disaster however, the embedded narrative of the game is able to guide the player

towards the ideal narrative, and the applause gives extra emphasis to particularly impressive feats.

Essentially, the player is able to roughly determine the ideal script just by looking at the sets and

costumes. Of course, this is likely not enough to get it right the first time, so the game's replayability

allows for repeated attempts, in front of an audience that will never get tired or bored.

For the most part, this essay has taken for granted that the narrative of the game is inextricably

linked to the rules and structures of the game. For example, the description of the line in level 4-3 is

also referred to as the emergent narrative. In order to effectively avoid the problems of the ludology

vs. narratology debate, this link must be justified. In his book A Theory of Fun, game designer Raph

Koster argues that the narrative content of a game is simply a visual metaphor for the underlying

structure of a game, and that “while metaphors are fun to play with, players can basically ignore

them.” For example, calling “the unique checker piece that has made it to the other side[a king] is

basically irrelevant, mathematically speaking,” because the narrative content (the name of the piece)

is largely arbitrary to the underlying mathematical rulesxxii. Koster argues that games teach players 1 Indeed, the Wii controller is a thin, boxy rectangle, reminiscent of the wooden slats used to control marionettes.

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how to recognize patterns and mathematical structures, so the particular narrative “dressing” is

unimportant. For example, Koster might argue that the line of coins directing the player in the

example from level 1-3 could very well be a line of anything else without dramatically altering the

underlying game. On a very local level, this is true. The only reason the coins must be coins is to

maintain narrative fidelity to previous Mario games. When looking at the game as a whole, however,

Koster's argument does not apply. This is demonstrated most clearly in the second game mode,

because the addition of multiple player avatars changes the mathematical functioning of the game in

a way that reflects and is representative of the narrative content of those player avatars. While

individual narrative details may be considered arbitrary in relation to the underlying rules, the

narrative is actually supported and enacted by the rules in conjunction with the player.

To say that the ideal, third narrative only exists as a thought in the mind of the player should

not be taken to mean that it is irrelevant or otherwise negligible. Rather, this is a way of recognizing

the difficulty of ever truly realizing a game's narrative. Because of the large amount of freedom the

player is given, the best the game can do is provide guides and hints as to its ideal narrative. Even

then, the player is free to ignore them. The third narrative redacted in the player's mind is simply a

more extensive version of the imaginatory work done during any interaction with a text. Like the

details of a scene left undescribed, or the space between the panels in a comic book, the third

narrative is the fiction born out of the playing experience. New Super Mario Bros. Wii uses its

underlying rules in order to show the player the way to the third narrative, but the player must create

her own narrative in order to reach it. By including segments of levels particularly suited to acrobatic

lines of movement, the game subtly proposes an ideal path to be taken. Each attempt by the player is

also an attempt to enact this ideal path, because each emergent narrative created by the player is

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simply one more text to be redacted into the third narrative. By setting itself up as a spectator, the

game itself treats the player like a performer and attempts to direct the performance through a kind

of visual-auditory call-and-response. The game's ideal narrative shifts with the addition of other

players, and the accompanying shift in the function of the game supports this new ideal narrative. The

narrative is inextricably linked to the rules of the game, because the rules are what gives the game

power to direct the narrative. Thus, the ludology vs. narratology debate is shown to be fruitless,

because it obscures the actual complexity of the relationship between game and narrative. Rather

than directly apply previous critical concepts to a new medium, or break completely from all previous

criticism, a useful study of videogames will draw from the entire well of human experience in order to

discuss the medium most able to recreate human experience. As videogames are able to include and

adapt all media, so too must the researcher include and adapt concepts from all walks of life.

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Bogost, Ian. Unit Operations: An Approach to Videogame Criticism. Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2006.

Jorgensen, Kristine. “Audio and Gameplay: An Analysis of PvP Battlegrounds in World of Warcraft.” Game Studies 8, no. 2 (December 2008)http://gamestudies.org/0802/articles/jorgensen

Koster, Raph. A Theory of Fun for Game Design. Scottsdale: Paraglyph Press, Inc., 2005.

Salen, Katie and Eric Zimmerman. Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2004.

Yeah Right, DVD. dir. Ty Evans. 2003: GIRLFILMS.

i Bogost, Ian. Unit Operations: An Approach to Videogame Criticism. Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2006.ii By this we mean a videogame's ability to nest practically all other traditional media within itself.iii Though somewhat long, the complete title is used here to distinguish the game from New Super Mario Bros., which is an

earlier game for the Nintendo DS system.iv pg. 336. Salen, Katie and Eric Zimmerman. Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. Cambridge: The MIT Press,

2004.v For the most part, “gameplay” is a catch-all term for how the game actually plays out, meaning the product of the

interaction between the player and the underlying mathematical rules which govern that interaction.vi We use the term “level” here to mean a discrete subdivision of the game's virtual world and set of challenges, and are

the location of the majority of gameplay. In New Super Mario Bros. Wii, these are called “Courses,” most likely because each one is essentially an intricate obstacle course which the player must guide Mario through using a combination of running, jumping, and additional context-specific abilities.

vii NSMBW has a unique feature called the Super Guide. If Mario dies eight times in a row on a given level, Mario can hit a green box on the next attempt. This activates the Super Guide, wherein the game plays through the level using the Luigi avatar. The player can take back control at any time or let Luigi finish the entire level. As the Super Guide is essentially an instructional video, we will not consider it here, but it will become relevant when discussing the overall narrative.

viiiThere are eight Worlds in NSMBW which contain a total of seventy-five Courses. Each Course is designated in-game as “Course x-y,” where x is the World number and y is the number of the Course in that World. Thus, the third Course in World 4 is called Course 4-3. There are exceptions wherein the second number is replaced with an image, but this difference is negligible.

ix The term “magic circle” is used to describe this phenomena. The magic circle is the imaginary boundary between the game world and the real world which the player must cross to play any game. The magic of it is twofold. First, the circle itself represents a finite space with infinite possibilities due to player interaction. Secondly, the player's interactions are a kind of magic. If one takes magic to be the performative ascribing of meaning to something (a stick gains meaning by being called a wand) then the multiplication of importance the player's actions undergo is essentially magic. The movement of the thumb less than a centimeter has huge consequences in-game, thus, the player's movements are “magically” transformed and given greater meaning by the game.

x The distinction here is between street and vert (vertical) skateboarding. Street skateboarding takes place in urban environments or skate parks designed to mimic the features found in urban environments. Vert skating takes place on a half-pipe, which is a large 180º ramp with vertical sides. Because most tricks are performed in the time between launching off the ramp and landing back on it, the term “line” is not frequently used in vert skating.

xi Brian Anderson in Yeah Right, DVD. dir. Ty Evans. 2003: GIRLFILMS.xii Should game researchers find this concept useful, we will leave it up to them to determine a more impeccable definition.xiiiIf Mario reaches the top of the flag, he receives a free life.xiv In her essay “Audio and Gameplay: An Analysis of PvP Battlegrounds in World of Warcraft,” Jorgenson identifies two

broad categories of videogame sounds, and a further subdivision within one of those categories. Diegetic sounds are those sound signals which communicate within the game world, such as the sound of Mario's feet hitting the ground. Transdiegetic sounds are those sounds which cross the magic circle and communicate between the game system and the player. These are further divided into internal transdiegetic and external transdiegetic sounds. Internal transdiegetic sounds are those which have a source in the game world, such as another player's avatar shouting “Help me!” when the game is played with more than one player.

xv Flow was first conceptualized by the psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in his book Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, and he described the components necessary for flow as the following:“First, the experience usually occurs when we confront tasks we have a chance of completing. Second, we must be able to concentrate on what we are doing. Third and fourth, the concentration is usually possible because the task undertaken has clear goals and provides immediate feedback. Fifth, one acts with a deep but effortless involvement that removes from awareness the worries and frustrations of everyday life. Sixth, enjoyable experiences allow people to exercise a sense of control over their actions. Seventh, concern for the self disappears, yet paradoxically the sense of self emerges stronger after the flow experience is over. Finally, the sense of the duration of time is altered; hours pass by like minutes, and minutes can stretch out to seem like hours.” Flow is not limited to videogames, but can occur in practically any situation. When we talk about athletes being “in the zone” or remark that “time flies when you're having fun,” we are talking about flow. Salen, Katie and Eric Zimmerman. Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2004.

xvi Interestingly, getting a “Game Over” is not necessarily the end of the game. It simply means the player must start over at the latest save point, or the beginning of the world, whichever is closer.

xviiThe second player actually has the choice of Luigi or one of the Toads, but on the character selection screen, Luigi is the

default choice for second player, and thus we may view second-player-as-Luigi to be the game's favored setup. xviiiIn the single player game, the player has the option of returning to earlier levels in order to save kidnapped Toads.xix The converse made be true as well; limiting the amount of lives in the first mode of play encourages the player to learns

lines and tricks, because death is the number one motivator in the game.xx In their book Rules of Play, Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman arrive at these terms when they “identify two broad

structural rubrics for understanding the narrative components of a game.” The first is that “Players can experience a game narrative as a crafted story interactively told,” and the second is that “players can engage with narrative as an emergent experience that happens when the game is played.” Thus, embedded narrative is “pre-generated narrative content that exists prior to a player's interaction with the game,” representing the first rubric. Emergent narrative “arises from the set of rules governing interaction with the game system,” and as such, “most moment-to-moment narrative play in a game is emergent.”

xxi While the general rule is that the player must complete a level in order to move on to the next one, multiple paths on the map mean that the player does not need to complete every level in order to progress. In fact, the end can be reached by only playing fourteen of the seventy-five total Courses, and there are only ten levels which must be played no matter which path taken.

xxiiKoster, Raph. A Theory of Fun for Game Design. Scottsdale: Paraglyph Press, Inc., 2005.