Online Games and Play
UndergraduateCUR-WEB3102024
Course information for 2024 intake View information for 2025 course intake
Delve into a world of gaming and play. Explore the interplay between commerce and game mechanics. Check in on ongoing debates about gaming. Critically analyse everything from casual and social games through to massively multiplayer online games.
Enrolments for this course are closed, but you may have other options to start studying now. Book a consultation to learn more.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- 100% online
- Entry requirements
- Prior study needed
- Duration
- 13 weeks
- Loan available
- HECS-HELP and FEE-HELP available
Online Games and Play
About this subject
At the completion of this subject students will be able to:
- analyse the interrelationship and application of play and game theory practices and technology
- critique the changing role of games and play in contemporary networked culture
- evaluate and assess concrete examples of gaming and gamification in diverse online and cultural settings
- communicate the various contexts in which games are produced and consumed and how these intersect with contemporary media and communication.
- 1.1: Play: An Introduction
- 1.2: Games and Rules
- 1.3: Immersion, Interactivity, & Narrative
- 2.1: Identity, Online Worlds, & RPGs
- 2.2: Social & Casual Games
- 2.3: Space, Mobile Games, & Locative Media
- 2.4: Horror and Violence in Games
- 2.5: eSports, Advertising, and Playing for Cash
- 3.1: Gamers and Online Community
- 3.2: Gamification
- 3.3: Games in Popular Culture
This subject was previously known as Online Games, Play and Gamification.
This subject explores the broader spaces and nature of play online, and how it relates to the development of digital forms of gaming. The nature of immersion, and its relationship to interactivity, is examined, investigating how narrative is constructed and communicated through game play. The subject provides critical perspectives on the notion of gamification and the growing area of research centred around videogame streamers and the labour ecosystem of eSports. It examines a series of gaming tropes and themes, games as texts, and the ways that games enter social frameworks to convey, refract, engage with, and resist power structures. An ongoing focus is on the function of rules in framing play, particularly in relation to how players cheat, hack and mod their games to break those rules..
Please Note: If it’s your first time studying a Curtin University subject you’ll need to complete their compulsory ‘Academic Integrity Program’. It only takes two hours to complete online, and provides you with vital information about studying with Curtin University. The Academic Integrity Program is compulsory, so if it’s not completed your subject grades will be withheld.
Find out more about the Academic Integrity module.
- Creative Artefact Exercise (35%)
- Case Study (40%)
- Essay (25%)
For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).
Start your career with Curtin’s globally recognised courses and extensive industry connections. Through OUA, their online courses offer an interactive and collaborative learning experience that gets you the same degree as if you studied on campus. Curtin is a global university with a vibrant culture of innovation and collaboration and is ranked in the top one per cent of universities worldwide.
Learn more about Curtin University.
Explore Curtin courses.
- QS Ranking 2024:
- 14
- Times Higher Education Ranking 2024:
- 15
Entry requirements
Prior study
To help set you up for success before you start this subject, we suggest completing or having equivalent knowledge in:
one of
- CUR-WEB101-Web Communications
CUR-NET11 (Not currently available)
Others
Students who have completed WEB309 Web Presence previously are still able to complete the new subject WEB310 but please note that this subject will count as an elective in their degree.
Additional requirements
No additional requirements
Study load
- 0.125 EFTSL
- This is in the range of 10 to 12 hours of study each week.
Equivalent full time study load (EFTSL) is one way to calculate your study load. One (1.0) EFTSL is equivalent to a full-time study load for one year.
Find out more information on Commonwealth Loans to understand what this means to your eligibility for financial support.
What to study next?
Once you’ve completed this subject it can be credited towards one of the following courses
Bachelor of Arts (Digital and Social Media)
UndergraduateCUR-NET-DEG
Bachelor of Arts (Digital Experience and Interaction Design)
UndergraduateCUR-DIG-DEG
Bachelor of Arts (Digital and Social Media) (Professional Writing and Publishing)
UndergraduateCUR-ICP-DEG
Bachelor of Arts (Digital and Social Media) (Visual Culture)
UndergraduateCUR-ICV-DEG
Bachelor of Arts (Digital Experience and Interaction Design) (Digital and Social Media)
UndergraduateCUR-DDI-DEG
Bachelor of Arts (Digital Experience and Interaction Design) (Fine Art)
UndergraduateCUR-DDF-DEG
Bachelor of Arts (Digital Experience and Interaction Design) (Visual Culture)
UndergraduateCUR-DDV-DEG
Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art) (Digital and Social Media)
UndergraduateCUR-FAI-DEG
Single subject FAQs
What’s a single subject?
Single subjects are the individual components that make up a degree. With Open Universities Australia, you’re able to study many of them as stand-alone subjects, including postgraduate single subjects, without having to commit to a degree.
Each of your subjects will be held over the course of a study term, and they’ll usually require 10 to 12 hours of study each week. Subjects are identified by a title and a code, for example, Developmental Psychology, PSY20007.
How can I use single subjects to get into a full degree?
First, find the degree that you would like to study on our website.
If that degree allows entry via undergraduate subjects, there will be information about this under the Entry Requirements section. You will find a list of 2-4 open enrolment subjects you need to successfully complete to qualify for admission into that qualification.
Once you pass those subjects, you will satisfy the academic requirements for the degree, and you can apply for entry.
Our student advisors are here to help you take that next step, so don’t hesitate to reach out when you’re ready! We’ve also made it easier to figure out the right way to get started on our pathways page.
Can anyone help me choose a subject?
Our student advisors are more than happy to help you plan your online study. Get in touch with an advisor by:
How do I pay for my subjects?
You can pay up front with your credit card, or you may be eligible for a HELP loan from the Australian government depending on your citizenship status and where you’ll live during your studies.
For more information about how to pay for your studies visit our fees page or contact a student advisor.
How do I enrol?
When you’ve made your choice, click ‘Enrol now’ on the relevant course page and follow the prompts to begin your enrolment. We’ll ask you to supply some supporting documentation, including proof of your identity, your tax file number, and a unique student identifier (USI) during this process.
Your university will get in touch with you via email to confirm whether or not your application has been successful.
If you get stuck at any time, reach out to us and we’ll talk you through it.
You can also take a look at our online self-service enrolling instructions.
When is the cut-off date for enrolling?
Close of enrolment times vary between universities and subjects. You can check the cut-off dates for upcoming study terms by visiting key dates.