Australian Larrikinism in Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow

June 11th, 2009

Turns out my latest column is out a few days early. It’s titled ‘Australian Larrikinism in Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow‘. This entry is similar to the last in that I discuss the way developers craft performances of their characters to push an implicit message. In this case how Sony Bend use Aussie Dane Bishop in Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow to introduce the player to larrikinism – an important part of Australian culture.

I’ve been thinking about this Australian larrikinism issue for about a week now as it was mentioned in one of my classes. It’s one of those ideas that’s always been at the back of my mind but never articulated that clearly. Being that us Aussies are a bunch of larrikins – simple eh? The effects of this can come out in intercultural contexts where our perception of a good time can result in a dire consequences in another’s culture. Well, that’s what the lecture was saying, I was too busy casting my mind into the pool of regret when thinking over some of my exploits in China. Ouch!

I’ve wanted to explore the Dane Bishop character for a while, and with larrikinism in hand, I could finally write something interesting about the guy. So please take a read, this entry is much shorter than my Portal analysis.

Lastly, I’m looking to write for external publications more than I have in the past. In fact, I hope that I’ll be able to migrate most of my content elsewhere. I find that writing for other publications ensures that I work harder on polishing my work and elevating my writing style; two areas that I wish to improve at. So look forward to more of that in the future. I wrote some thoughts on this here, if you’re interested.