Peer Review: My Style Guide (Rough Draft)



Style Guide Rough Draft
Style Guide for Hardcore Video Gamers

Introduction: Hey gamer, are you tired of people misunderstanding your Leet speak?  Want to come up with new ways of burying that noob with stylish insults far more creative than, “you got pwned!”  Well put down your joysticks and controllers, look away from your tv screens for a microsecond and let the blood flow back to your eyes.  Because here is a style guide that is guaranteed to improve those motors kills which you’ve long neglected since WOW hit cyberspace.

This manual was designed for maximum customization and replay value. It is not just a hardcore set of rules for you to swear allegiance to. Instead think of this manual as more of a gamer walkthrough that highlights the cream of the crop in terms of style and grammar. In the gaming-realm you may be the l33t, but communication in the outside world is a whole other adventure. By now I’ve grabbed your attention, long enough for you to lose your last life anyway,  so let’s take a break from saving the universe and check out these new unlockables.

Level 1: Sentences

With the exception of words themselves sentences are about as novice as you can get when communicating in the outside world.  But before we gear up to play one thing to keep in mind is that real-world communication is always a co-op game; you’re working with 2Player in order to hold a conversation and express yourself clearly.  If your having trouble with co-op mode looking at the basics of sentences can help you get into the game.

Sentences have two main functions; first is naming the subjects of your sentence, and second is applying verbs as the actions your subjects are a part of. Think of subjects as your avatar(s) and verbs comprise the customizable artillery that will get your subjects to their objectives.

Exp: Mrs. Pac-man effectively ate the jumping strawberry.

The subject of this sentence is Mrs. Pac-man and her actions of eating the strawberry are signified with the verb ate.

The objective of every sentence is to express a clear and complete thought. This entails that every sentence contain a subject and a verb, but this is not the only criteria for making sense with your sentences. There are a few other guidelines to keep in mind. Always be as direct and concise as possible when forming your sentences. Use an active voice, rather than a passive one, because it puts sentences in a positive form and keeps a straight point of view.  Even though sentences should be direct and concise, don’t sacrifice length at the expense of clarity.

Exp: Whoa, I just found a secret level. That is located inside Diablo’s chamber.

This sentence was broken in two parts when it makes more sense to leave it as one sentence.

I just found a secret level that is located inside Diablo’s chamber – is much better.

Level 2: Powering-Up to Paragraphs

In the real world writing often is the most convenient form of communication. When you write sentences are put into paragraphs. Paragraphs are the fortresses of sentences. When you put a group of sentences together they combine forces by forming into paragraphs. But you can’t just string together any group of sentences. Just like sentences have to make sense with subjects and verbs, paragraphs need to stick to one topic in order to make sense. Paragraphs usually start by introducing a topic, but an introduction alone does not make a paragraph. After a topic is introduced it is customary to follow up with a discussion which expresses a point or argument made about the topic.

Exp:

On November 15, 2002, Microsoft launched its Xbox Live online gaming service, allowing subscribers to play online Xbox games with other subscribers around the world and download new content directly to the system’s hard drive. The online service first operated with a broadband Internet connection and pproximately 250,000 subscribers signed up within two months of Xbox Live’s launch. In July 2004, Microsoft announced that Xbox Live had reached one million subscribers and that number has been steadily rising to 20 million current subscribers as of May 2009. Surely Xbox live has been a major influence on gaming in the past decade.

Level 3: Mastering the Craft of Clarity

Now that you have the basic tools for writing and speaking it is time to apply a few suggestions that will upgrade your style and word play. Real world communication is best expressed and more easily understood when thoughts and ideas are presently clearly. Often times in order to achieve clarity we need to take a step back and revise our words.

Make sure your words are as specific and concrete as possible. It is always better to be specific instead of speaking generally because it keeps the focus on your ideas.  Concrete language allows for your point of view to be experienced by others which will ensure their understanding of what your trying to say.

Exp:    “Boom, headshot!” is too general to explain what just happened.

I just shot that alien between the eyes with my blaster rifle – provides a more detailed and precise description.

Even though being specific helps to get your point across more clearly sometimes detailed language can get lofty and long-winded. If you find your sentences and paragraphs looking a bit crammed check to make sure you have not bloated them with unnecessary words or phrases. See if you can spot the unnecessary words here.

Exp: In my own experience the super-death mode of level four is a strange one.

Better version: I think level four in super-death mode is strange.

Conclusion: Game Over

This guide was designed to help you climb the ranks of real world communication champions.  No matter what you think you’ve learned, above all else, remember that these are just tips and tricks for your gaming pleasure. Just like there is no one way to beat a level of GTA there are endless combinations to speak and write in the real world.

I hope you had fun and be sure to play again!

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Peer Review

Besides the basic guidelines Steve gave everyone, I would also like you to think about/do the following when reading my draft…

• Are there any questions about the video game references I tried to implement? Do my references interfere with my style guide in any way? I wanted to keep a steady videogame theme going but I’m not sure if I over-did-it.
• Can you guys tell which rules I borrowed from? In other words I’m wondering if you think my suggestions pay clever homage or borderline plagiarism because I didn’t make it clear where my rules came from.
• I chose not to include my non-text part of the assignment because I am trying to find an appropriate internet game to coincide with this project. If I can’t find one I think I’ll just have to grab or make an image, right? Or would a link to an online game be cheating in terms of this assignment?