Assignment 3 - Task 7 | Career Development Materials

Task 7 – Career development materials
Create one of the following career development materials:
·Career Development spreadsheet.
·CV for University/Games Industry.
·Personal portfolio.
·Business Card.

Then reflect on what you have created and discuss:
·How you would use it to gain employment.
·Your creative decisions while making it.

(You are aiming to prepare personal career development material to a quality that reflects near-professional standards consistently using correct formal language).

CV:
A curriculum vitae (English pronunciation: (CV or vita) is a written overview of a person's experience and other qualifications for a job opportunity. In some countries, a CV is typically the first item that a potential employer encounters regarding the job seeker and is typically used to screen applicants, often followed by an interview. CVs may also be requested for applicants to postsecondary programs, scholarships, grants and bursaries. In the 2010s, some applicants provide an electronic text of their CV to employers using email, an online employment website or using a job-oriented social networking service' website, such as LinkedIn.

Pros and Cons: My CV uses the Traditional format, because of this it means that all of my achievements and qualifications have been listed meaning the employer can see everything I am capable of, this ensure that I have ticked all of the boxes and maybe even open up the eyes of the employer that I can do more than they need me to - I am more than capable for the role they are offering. However, some things can easily be overlooked. If I have a qualification that meant I was the best person in the world at using Construct or Unreal Engine which is what the job I was going for requires - but because that was from 4 years ago then it will be overlooked really easily, this is because your more recent qualifications are displayed first and are what are taken into more consideration. Ultimately, this style of CV has its 'ups and downs' but it is a very professional CV which employers like to see.

CV Examples:
Traditional CV
Skills-based CV
Academic CV

Traditional CV:
The traditional CV, sometimes known as a chronological CV is used to match your qualifications and work experience with the requirements for the job role. The CV is structured in reverse chronological order i.e. the most recent qualifications and experience are listed first. This type of CV template makes it easy for employers to identify potential candidates. It allows you to provide clear details of your qualifications, work history and responsibilities which match the criteria provided in the job description. It's important to include: dates - cover any gaps in your history; qualifications and work experience - match these to the role you're applying for; additional skills and knowledge - cover essential criteria for the role.

Pros and Cons: There are many advantages and disadvantages of using a Traditional style of CV, when using it, it allows for your most recent qualifications to be displayed first which could be argued that they are the most relevant. Why would an employer care about something that happened 5 years ago, when you have something just as useful that has happened the most recent - if this is displayed first then it allows for the employer to see the most important information and therefore better your chances of being employed. However, this can also be a bad thing as what if you have a qualification that meant you was the best person in the world at using Construct or Unreal Engine which is what the job you are going for requires - but because that was from 4 years ago then it will be overlooked really easily as your more recent qualifications are displayed first and are what are taken into more consideration. Ultimately, this style of CV has its 'ups and downs' but it is a very professional CV which employers like to see.

Skills-based CV:
The skills-based CV, also known as a functional CV, can be used if you have gaps in your employment history. This type of CV template is also useful if you have limited experience or are applying for a job which is not related to your degree. Employability skills are transferable to different roles and employers. The skills-based CV allows you to focus on the skills you have developed in various areas of your life. It's important to position your skills profile prominently; match skills with the role profile and use the same headings; provide evidence of how you've used your skill in a real life situation.

Pros and Cons: This form of CV is really useful if you just want to show the employer what you are good at, ignoring the long-winded information that the employers are not bothered about, only listing the 'good-stuff' so to speak, this will ensure that your skills are not overlooked and that you will be noticed for what you are good at. It is also really useful if you have gaps in your qualification time periods, for example; if you get one qualification in 2010, but the next in 2013, it will not be shown when you achieve the qualification but only what the qualification is itself. However, sometimes some of the skills you may have labelled will be irrelevant for the job you are trying to get which means that your CV is not as useful and quite simple, which is why using a Traditional CV is a good/safe option as everything on the CV is useful and relevant however some thing can be overlooked easily compared to a Skill based CV.

Academic CV:
Academic CVs are focused on educational achievements and are used when applying for lecturing or research-based roles. Although there's no page limit, it's important to keep your CV concise and targeted to the role's requirements, with each section in reverse chronological order. Your academic achievements, research interests and specialist skills should be placed on the first page. Ensure that your writing style is scholarly but clearly understood to those outside of your field of interest. Include details of your specialist skills, research outcomes, potential future developments, and any funding or grants that you've received, conferences that you've attended, professional memberships that you've gained and publications that you've been featured in.

Pros and Cons: This style of CV is really good as it focuses on your educational achievements and are used when applying for lecturing or research-based roles. It is essential to ensure that when you are writing in this style that you keep your CV concise and targeted to the role's requirements - if you have skills written down etc. that are not relevant to the job role you are trying to obtain then it is really pointless and unprofessional. Each section of your CV should be in reverse chronological order - so your most recent achievements are listed first. Your academic achievements, research interests and specialist skills should be placed on the first page. Ensure that your writing style is scholarly but clearly understood to those outside of your field of interest. Include details of your specialist skills, research outcomes, potential future developments, and any funding or grants that you've received, conferences that you've attended, professional memberships that you've gained and publications that you've been featured in. However, what is bad about this form of CV is that sometimes, you may not have enough qualifications to list to follow this style which is why it is usually always the best to stick with the safe option (Traditional Style of CV) - by doing this, it ensures that all of the required information is there whilst also keeping to a professional standard.

Employment:
How would I use my CV to gain employment? I would be able to hand my CV out to different people so they could see my achievements, being made aware who am I and able to see whether or not I am the right person for the job. I hope to gain experience from College and working to put on my CV to help me gain employment in the Games Industry. Whilst writing my CV, I used a mixture of the 3 examples given, by doing so it means I can use the best parts of the 3 examples to make my CV as good as possible and best presentable to then give to an employer. As previously mentioned, it it essential to have a really good CV - this is basically your microphone, what I mean by this is that, this is how you communicate to the employers. They have no idea who you are and so it is your job to make them aware - by using your CV you are making yourself known to the employer, that way you will have a better chance of being employed. If you are speaking through the microphone (qualifications/achievements on your CV) - it will show who you are as a person and whether you are a right fit, some people may have a better speaking voice (qualifications), so you need to make sure to have as many qualifications as possible to ensure you are right for the job. This is why I am hoping to get as much experience as possible via various methods, including; College (the Games Design course I am currently taking), Work Experience in the Industry, making games myself and generally speaking improving my understanding of how the Games Industry works all-together. By doing this, it will not only improve my CV but open the possibilities elsewhere. 

Bibliography:

Curriculum vitae (2016) in Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curriculum_vitae (Accessed: 20 December 2016).

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Written (2016) Example CVs. Available at: https://www.prospects.ac.uk/careers-advice/cvs-and-cover-letters/example-cvs (Accessed: 20 December 2016).

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Assignment 3 - Task 6 | Using Project Management Techniques

Task 6 – Using project management techniques.
Define the following project management documents and describe how you have used them in your own work:
·Recce Report
·Risk Assessment
·Contracts
·Game Design Documents

·Identify how you have used these documents in your own work, and may in the future

You are aiming to apply project management techniques to direct a project to a quality that reflects near-professional standards, working independently to professional expectations.

Recce Report:

Recce is a military term that has been borrowed by media production in the United Kingdom and New Zealand, derived from "reconnaissance" in the noun sense and "reconnoitre" in the verb sense. It refers to a pre-filming visit to a location to work out its suitability for shooting, including access to necessary facilities and assessment of any potential lighting or sound issues, and is closely related to location scouting. The term 'recce' is also used in radio and television production. Other examples of later media borrowing from film includes wildtrack which, in film production, was sound recorded without pictures for use in post-production later. In the US the term "site survey" or "tech scout" is commonly used with the same meaning.

Real-World Example: Here is an example of a Recce Report used in the Real World, it shows the pros and cons of the respected areas and how they are either better or worse to use for whatever purpose it is you are using them for.

Pros and Cons: There are several pros and cons of using a Recce Report, for example; it shows you the best conditions to use, for example; if you were filming, are there any risks in the environment that should be taken care of. However, it does not inform you of any other information, for example; the cost of something or availability of the facility which often needs to be taken into consideration if you are wanting to use the area.

Risk Assessment:

As part of managing the health and safety of your business, you must control the risks in your workplace. To do this you need to think about what might cause harm to people and decide whether you are taking reasonable steps to prevent that harm. This is known as risk assessment and it is something you are required by law to carry out. If you have fewer than five employees you don't have to write anything down. A risk assessment is not about creating huge amounts of paperwork, but rather about identifying sensible measures to control the risks in your workplace. You are probably already taking steps to protect your employees, but your risk assessment will help you decide whether you have covered all you need to.

Real-World Example: Here is an example of a risk assessment, this could be used in a real-life situation because it shows how much of a risk something is, if you need to make sure an area is safe to use, you can make a risk assessment to assess the situation ensuring that it is safe.

Pros and Cons: Risk Assessments are really important as they show you the risks of a certain area, and how likely something is to happen, if there is a water hazard, then you can use the risk assessment to see how likely the risk is of taking place. However, the risk assessment is based on personal opinion, so what you think is a really big hazard, could be minor to somebody else & vice versa. If this is the case, you may put you and other people in more danger than first thought.

Contracts:
A voluntary, deliberate, and legally binding agreement between two or more competent parties. Contracts are usually written but may be spoken or implied, and generally have to do with employment, sale or lease, or tenancy. A contractual relationship is evidenced by (1) an offer, (2) acceptance of the offer, and a (3) valid (legal and valuable) consideration. Each party to a contract acquires rights and duties relative to the rights and duties of the other parties. However, while all parties may expect a fair benefit from the contract (otherwise courts may set it aside as inequitable) it does not follow that each party will benefit to an equal extent. There are many ways to make or sign a contract, for example; if you wrote a contract on tissue paper, it would still be a legal document as long as the other party signed the document presented.

Real-World Example: Here are a few examples of Contracts that could be used in an everyday situation, with the contracts shown, as long as two people agree to the contract presented, the contract then becomes a legal document that both parties need to follow.

Pros and Cons: In the contract it states simple things that both the employer and the soon to be employee must agree on, and once the person first begins to work after they have agreed on the contract, that is when the contract is finalised and actually set in stone, anything that happens afterwards, for example; legal issues, the contract will be referred back to meaning everyone is safe. However, if you want to change the contract, you need consent from the other party to change the contract - no consent means no way of changing the contract.

Game Design Documents:

A game design document (often abbreviated GDD) is a highly descriptive living design document of the design for a video game. A GDD is created and edited by the development team and it is primarily used in the video game industry to organise efforts within a development team. The document is created by the development team as result of collaboration between their designers, artists and programmers as a guiding vision which is used throughout the game development process. When a game is commissioned by a game publisher to the development team, the document must be created by the development team and it is often attached to the agreement between publisher and developer; the developer has to adhere to the GDD during the game development process.

Real-World Example: Here is an example of a GDD, this is essential for the development of games in-real-life as it shows the whole plan of how the game will be - this means there is no confusion as to how the game will conclude etc. It can be used to track your process when designing games as you know if you have done the certain aspects that are highlighted in the Document - this way you are always remaining productive and sticking to the task presented.

Pros and Cons: This ensures that the development of the video games is kept to a steady pace and there is no risk of the production being jeopardised, however, it is really hard to stick to a specific guideline as when making games, the main part is to let your creativity flow - so if you limit the person to a specific way of doing something, it will not be a good game in the end.

Where has this been used in my work?:
I used the following project management documents in my own work: Recce Report and Risk Assessment. Both of these were really important to my work as I needed to use the Risk Assessment to ensure that the area I was using to record my documentary, was safe to use, if there was an issue then I needed to make sure I knew how to surpass the issue - that has been covered in more detail in my risk assessment. Also with the Recce Report, I needed to find the best location to not only edit my documentary, but to also film it. The Recce Report ensures that I am in the best possible location which therefore means my documentary will be as good as possible. As you can see from the following pictures, here is the example of my Risk Assessment and my Recce Report, both of these show how I have taken great care and consideration to ensure not only the my safety, but the safety of my work. The Risk Assessment has details about the locations I have used. For example; water in the area, that has been identified; listing how to prevent any risks/hazards if that were to take place. Also mentioned with a few others is; data corruption - how would I surpass the issue of data corruption and how much of a risk is it, this is all mentioned in the Risk Assessment which therefore shows a clear and thorough understand of the task presented (helping to make my documentary better). The Recce Report is very similar to the Risk Assessment in the fact you are ensuring that you are safe - for example; if there are loose wires, that is a hazard that needs to be taken into consideration as you can potentially trip and hurt yourself. Many things come into play with the Recce Report also as you are identifying what is good with an area, hypothetically speaking that all of the areas are safe to use for whatever purpose, which is the best location that provides the most professional outcome. That is all identified on my Recce Report which therefore shows that I have a clear understanding of the task I have been presented with - also making my documentary much better.

In using a recce report, I was able to identify all my possible places of work and then highlight the pros and cons of each workplace. This then allows me to put in place work plans and workarounds for any shortcomings I may have from any single place, for example; I can easily backup my files from the college computers using Google Docs, this therefore allows me to then carry on my work at home. Working from home is the more ideal workplace due to its multiple monitors - more monitors allows for easier multitasking allowing me to be more productive and get more work done in a shorter amount of time. In future, I think I will carry out risk assessments and recce reports before carrying out projects as it allows me to brainstorm whatever problems may occur and get ahead of them, it even allows me to think of problems I wouldn't have initially thought of - If I know what problem I can potentially run into then I can reduce the chances of me running into those chances and make my work more productive as I do not have to deal with unnecessary water spillages for example or data loss etc. 

Bibliography:

Recce (filmmaking) (2015) in Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recce_(filmmaking) (Accessed: 20 December 2016).
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Risk assessment (2016) Available at: http://www.hse.gov.uk/risk/controlling-risks.htm (Accessed: 20 December 2016).
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Good one to know! (2016) in Available at: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/contract.html (Accessed: 20 December 2016).
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Game design document (2016) in Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_design_document (Accessed: 20 December 2016).
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Written employment contracts: Pros and cons (2016) Available at: http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/written-employment-contracts-pros-cons-30193.html (Accessed: 20 December 2016).

Assignment 2 - Task 5 | Professional Bodies Supporting the Industry

Task 5 - Professional Bodies Supporting the Industry.

Explain and illustrate the professional bodies supporting the functions within the games industry:

Professional Bodies:
What is a Professional Body and what do they do? A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organisation, or professional society) is usually a nonprofit organisation seeking to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals engaged in that profession and the public interest. Basically, they want to make a certain thing more engaging to the public by raising awareness, so with BAFTA for example; they raise awareness about the good things done in games.

UKIE: Ukie is the only trade body for the UK's games and interactive entertainment industry. They are a not-for-profit and represent businesses of all sizes from small start-ups to large multinational developers, publishers and service companies, working across online, mobile apps, consoles, PC, eSports, VR and AR. Whatever the size of your company, if you join the Ukie network you are part of a strong collective voice for the games industry. You can get practical support, advice, guidance, introductions and discounts on services as well as key events when you join Ukie. You will benefit from our positive campaigns for the good of the industry and you will be part of a wider, inclusive, powerful industry voice on key issues that really do matter. Ukie provide facts and figures that can be used to get a greater understanding of the games industry and what people really feel about it. Showing us who play games, what games they play and overall just making the games industry even better with the outstanding work they do.

IGDA: As an international organisation, the IGDA is a U.S.-based 501(c)6 non-profit professional association that exists as a global network of collaborative projects and communities comprised of individuals from all fields of game development - from programmers and producers to writers, artists, QA and localisation. They bring together developers at key industry conferences, in over 90 Chapters and in Special Interest Groups (SIGs) to improve their lives and their craft. They advocate on behalf of our membership to ensure quality of life, perpetuation of our craft and preparing the next generation of developers. Whether you're a student with a goal to become a game developer or a seasoned veteran, regardless if you're based in the U.S. or any country/region in the world, whether you're an indie developer or in a AAA studio, whether your primary platform is a PC, console or a tabletop - They welcome you home to the IGDA!

Women in Games: Highlight academic and industrial perspectives on groundbreaking work in computer games research, games development and games education. Focus attention on issues of special interest to women in the games industry and through this seek to address the games industry's gender imbalance and develop a fuller understanding of games and game playing. Give a voice to women and men in the games industry and in games education with interests in supporting and encouraging the role of women in the games industry. Support and disseminate research into games, games culture, games education, games industry, games technologies, and other game related areas, especially (but not exclusively) with reference to the experience of women playing, developing and responding to games and game culture. Provide networking opportunities for women and men working in the games industry and researching game
related areas.

BAFTA: The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is an independent charity that supports, develops and promotes the art forms of the moving image by identifying and rewarding excellence, inspiring practitioners and benefiting the public. BAFTA is the leading independent charity supporting, developing and promoting the art forms of the moving image in the UK - from Film and Television to Video Games and Interactive Media. BAFTA regularly help the games industry as they have awards to give to people, for example; up and coming developers that can greatly contribute to the industry. They also have 'Ones to Watch' showcasing the work of developers and how good they are, this can help these developers to get noticed and push them into the right path of being amazing developers. In that section they talk about a developer team called 'Bluedoor Games' the work that they have done looks amazing and we as the gaming community would not have know that if BAFTA never introduced us to them - showing how great BAFTA really is.

MEF: The Mobile Ecosystem Forum is a global trade body that acts as an impartial and authoritative champion for addressing issues affecting the broadening mobile ecosystem. We provide our members with a global and cross-sector platform for networking, collaboration and advancing industry solutions. The goal is to accelerate the growth of a sustainable mobile ecosystem that drives inclusion for all and delivers trusted services that enrich the lives of consumers worldwide. Established in 2000 and headquartered in the UK, MEF has Chapters across Africa, Asia, Europe, Middle East, Latin and North America. Thy provide new markets, sector access and know-how, share data insight to improve monetisation or create new opportunities, inform about new market concepts and innovations, connect global companies to local innovators and mobile leaders. Similar to BAFTA, MEF have the MEFFYS, these are awards that are given out to people who are doing great things for the games industry etc. just like BAFTA, raising awareness for the up and coming developers. In the finalists section it talks about all of the people who are nominated for a MEFFY people like Anyline for Anyline, RFMOD for BeanIoT, See.Sense for See.Sense ICON, Smarter Applications for Smarter, VTREE SOLAR for VTREE SOLAR all for IOT.

Bibliography:

Professional association (2016) in Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_association (Accessed: 8 November 2016).

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About us (no date) Available at: http://ukie.org.uk/about (Accessed: 8 November 2016).

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YourMembership (2016) About - international game developers association (IGDA). Available at: https://www.igda.org/?page=about (Accessed: 8 November 2016).

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Eyles, M. (no date) Women in games. Available at: http://www.womeningames.com/ (Accessed: 8 November 2016).

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Statement, B.M. (2016) About. Available at: http://www.bafta.org/about (Accessed: 8 November 2016).

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MobileEntertainmentForum (2011) About. Available at: http://mobileentertainmentforum.org/about/ (Accessed: 8 November 2016).

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Ltd, M.E.F. (2013) About us. Available at: http://mobileecosystemforum.com/about/ (Accessed: 10 November 2016).
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Games (2016) Available at: http://www.bafta.org/games (Accessed: 10 November 2016).

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BAFTA ones to watch award nominees 2017 (2016) Available at: http://www.bafta.org/games/features/bafta-ones-to-watch-award-2017 (Accessed: 10 November 2016).

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2016, M. (2016) Homepage - MEFFYS 2016. Available at: http://www.meffys.com/ (Accessed: 10 November 2016).
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Banks, T., Green, T. and Perelmuter, R. (2015) MEF minute. Available at: http://mobileecosystemforum.com/mef-minute/ (Accessed: 10 November 2016).
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2016, M. (2016) Finalists - MEFFYS 2016. Available at: http://www.meffys.com/finalists/ (Accessed: 10 November 2016).

Assignment 2 - Task 4 | Contractual, Legal and Ethical Obligations

Task 4 - Contractual, Legal and Ethical Obligations.

Explain and illustrate the contractual, legal and ethical obligations within the games industry:

Contractual:
Contract obligations are those duties that each party is legally responsible for in a contract agreement. In a contract, each party exchanges something of value, whether it be a product, services, money, etc. On both sides of the agreement, each party has various obligations in connected with this exchange.

Employment: Employment Contracts are agreements between an employer and employee, so when a person wants to work for a company or even for a friend in their small team, they need to sign a contract of employment. Most employment contracts do not need to be in writing to be legally valid, for example; you can speak to the person and record the conversation and as long as the people are agreeing then it is a contract, but it is better if they are written down. A contract 'starts' as soon as an offer of employment is accepted (when an agreement is made). Once you first begin to work for your employer that proves you accept the terms and conditions offered. Most employees are legally entitled to a Written Statement of the main terms and conditions of employment within two calendar months of starting work. This should include details of things like pay, holidays and working hours. An existing contract of employment can be varied only with the agreement of both parties. On the right is an example of what an employment contract could look like, in the contract it states simple things that both the employer and the soon to be employee must agree on, and once the person first begins to work after they have agreed on the contract, that is when the contract is finalized and actually set in stone, anything that happens afterwards, for example; legal issues, the contract will be referred back to.

Development: A development contract is a disclosure document that indicates the details of the future development of the strata scheme. The development contact is prepared as in Approved Form 15 and must contain a concept plan which is prepared on Approved Form 15A. The development contract gives an explanation of the each stage of the development after the first stage (Stage 1). Stage 1 of the development is the first plan and does not need to be described in the contract.Each stage described in the contract can be identified as warranted development or authorised proposals.The developer is compelled to complete warranted development.The developer is permitted to complete authorised proposals but not compelled.When describing authorised proposals the contract may indicate several options which may be adopted.The statements panel on the administration sheets of the plan should contain a statement as follows: 'This Plan Contains a Development Contract comprising ‘X’ sheets' with ‘X’ being the number of sheets in the contract. The contract shows clearly how things will pan out in the long term so it is just depending with the two people debating the contract whether it is actually signed or if some details need changing to better suit either person for whatever reason it may be.


License: A licensing agreement is a legal contract between two parties, known as the licencor and the licensee. In a typical licensing agreement, the licencor grants the licensee the right to produce and sell goods, apply a brand name or trademark, or use patented technology owned by the licencor. In exchange, the licensee usually submits to a series of conditions regarding the use of the licencor's property and agrees to make payments known as royalties. For example; Nintendo may tell a toy company that they can make toys with some of their iconic characters as they have given them the permission to do so, however, once they have finished making the toys, that does not mean that they have the rights to the toys design (the characters they used) as they still belong to Nintendo, they have simply used their ideas to raise awareness of the character and to make a toy out of it, so it is therefore a 'win-win' situation for everybody. Or even giving somebody permission to make a film about your character or game, this has happened with Assassin's Creed, that does not mean that the people who are making the Assassin's Creed movie are the rightful owners of the Assassin's Creed franchise, they are simply branching off and making a film about it as they have permission to do so from the licencor.

NDA: A non-disclosure agreement (NDA), also known as a confidentiality agreement (CA), confidential disclosure agreement (CDA), proprietary information agreement (PIA), or secrecy agreement (SA), is a legal contract between at least two parties that outlines confidential material, knowledge, or information that the parties wish to share with one another for certain purposes, but wish to restrict access to or by third parties. It is a contract through which the parties agree not to disclose information covered by the agreement. An NDA creates a confidential relationship between the parties to protect any type of confidential and proprietary information or trade secrets. As such, an NDA protects non-public business information. An example of an NDA would be if Sony hired people to work a new game they were making, the NDA will say the people are not to speak to anybody about the game and any features that it has etc. and if they do then they are breaking the agreement which is completely forbidden, it is not just with games for example; it can be with phones, TVs anything that Sony does not want the public to know about is 'Top Secret' as if word was released before Sony wanted then people could try and copy their idea. The picture on the right is an example of what an NDA could looks like. here this is where the person agrees to remain quite about the latest advancements in the company etc.

Collaboration: A Collaboration Agreement is a contract between artists who work together on a project. Lennon and McCartney, The Marx Brothers, Andre 3000 and Big Boi, many art forms, including writing, music, theatre, and filmmaking, often involve the collaboration between two or more people. A Business Collaboration Agreement specifies the terms and conditions of the parties' working relationship, including the type of creative work they plan to undertake together, the allocation of responsibilities, and how any profits might be divided. It is partially just to make sure that nobody tries to claim all of the rights to something, if two companies made a game or a movie together but one of them tries to claim rights to something, they can refer back to the contract to see if they did actually make what they are trying to claim. This is very important as in some films/games etc. character may be used again and the company who has rights to that character are the only ones who can use that character in other places unless they give permission in a License Agreement/Contract to as the Licencor to a Licencee. Activision Blizzard was originally two separate companies however they merged together and now they are making games together, originally they would have needed to sign a Collaboration Contract to make sure everything was in place.

Legal:
In its original sense, the term obligation was very technical in nature and applied to the responsibility to pay money owed on certain written documents that were executed under seal. Currently obligation is used in reference to anything that an individual is required to do because of a promise, vow, oath, contract, or law. It refers to a legal or moral duty that an individual can be forced to perform or penalised for neglecting to perform.

Copyright: Copyright is a legal right created by the law of a country that grants the creator of an original work exclusive rights for its use and distribution. This is usually only for a limited time. The exclusive rights are not absolute but limited by limitations and exceptions to copyright law, including fair use. A major limitation on copyright is that copyright protects only the original expression of ideas, and not the underlying ideas themselves. There are many example court cases to use however, for this example I will use the Betamax case. Basically, Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc. (1984), is a decision by the Supreme Court of the United States which ruled that the making of individual copies of complete television shows for purposes of time shifting does not constitute copyright infringement, but is fair use. The Court also ruled that the manufacturers of home video recording devices, such as Betamax or other VCRs (referred to as VTRs in the case), cannot be liable for infringement. The case was a boon to the home video market as it created a legal safe haven for the technology. Ironically, the popularity of VCRs significantly benefited the film industry through the sale of pre-recorded movies.

Trademark: A trademark, trade mark', or trade-mark is a recognisable sign, design, or expression which identifies products or services of a particular source from those of others, although trademarks used to identify services are usually called service marks. The trademark owner can be an individual, business organisation, or any legal entity. A trademark may be located on a package, a label, a voucher, or on the product itself. For the sake of corporate identity, trademarks are often displayed on company buildings. There are many examples to use of different trademarks, for example with Nintendo, they have trademarked many things. On the Nintendo website they have given examples of trademarks of their own, such as; distinctive names, words, logos, designs and symbols used to distinguish a product of a particular manufacturer or source. Some of Nintendo's most widely recognised trademarks include Nintendo®, Game Boy®, Super NES® and Super Mario Bros.®. The Nintendo® trademark has been filed in many countries throughout the world and registrations have been issued in Nintendo's name in many countries. Therefore anything that Nintendo has trademarked can not be used anywhere else for somebody's personal use.

Patent: A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for detailed public disclosure of an invention. An invention is a solution to a specific technological problem and is a product or a process. Patents are a form of intellectual property. Sony have got patents for many things, recently they have filed for patents for a lot of things, for example on their website they have filed patents for the following; Display panel or screen with graphical user interface, Speaker, Display apparatus, Communication control device, communication control method, program, and communication control system, Network handover optimisation and many more examples. All of these are original and new ideas as Sony would not be able to file for a patent if they are not new ideas - patents are new ideas.

Registered Designs: A design refers to the features of a shape, configuration, pattern or ornament applied to an article by any industrial process. If you register a design, you will be protecting the external appearance of the article. Registered Designs are used primarily to protect designs for industrial use. In the Games industry a Registered design would be used to protect the original design of the XBOX One logo for example or the PlayStation 4 logo, anyone who was using those designs for personal gain would have a call from Sony or Microsoft telling them that it is completely restricted to do so and that they must stop immediately. A registered design covers two-dimensional as well as three-dimensional articles and ornaments Registering a design with the Intellectual Property Office gives you extra legal protection. It gives you the exclusive right to make, use or stock any item incorporating your design and to take action against those who infringe this right. It can be a very valuable piece of intellectual property that you can license or sell. To register your design, there must be no product that has an identical design that has been made available to the public, have a new character idea (give an appearance of originality) and not to be offensive etc.

Ethical:
Ethical obligations are things a person must or should do based on a code of ethics. Ethics are not inherently based on laws, religion or one's personal feelings, but ethical obligations for professionals, like lawyers and doctors, can be codified into law. For example, according to the Wyoming State Bar, lawyers have an ethical obligation to keep their clients' confidentiality, but there is also a legal requirement in place that makes it absolutely necessary for lawyers to keep confidential information to themselves and to protect that information from becoming public. For some people, perhaps, the ethical obligation would be enough, but the law backs up this ethical obligation as an added measure of security.

Violence: Video game controversies are societal and scientific arguments about whether the content of video games change the behaviour and attitudes of a player, and whether this is reflected in video game culture overall. Since the early 1980s, advocates of video games have emphasised their use as an expressive medium, arguing for their protection under the laws governing freedom of speech and also as an educational tool. Detractors argue that video games are harmful and therefore should be subject to legislative oversight and restrictions. The positive and negative characteristics and effects of video games are the subject of scientific study. Results of investigations into links between video games and addiction, aggression, violence, social development, and a variety of stereotyping and sexual morality issues are debated. Games today are partially not as bad when it comes to violence due to the rules and regulations that are in place and also because of how some places like China and Germany may ban the game from being sold there. However, that was not the case for games in the early stages as they were deemed too violent, for example; Man Hunt 2 was banned for its "unrelenting focus on stalking and brutal slaying", the British Board of Film Classification said.

Rating: A video game content rating system is a system used for the classification of video games into suitability-related groups. Most of these systems are associated with and/or sponsored by a government, and are sometimes part of the local motion picture rating system. The utility of such ratings has been called into question by studies that publish findings such as 90% of teenagers claim that their parents "never" check the ratings before allowing them to rent or buy video games, and as such calls have been made to "fix" the existing rating systems. Video game content rating systems can be used as the basis for laws that cover the sales of video games to minors, such as in Australia. Rating checking and approval is part of the game localisation when they are being prepared for their distribution in other countries or locales. These rating systems have also been used to voluntarily restrict sales of certain video games by stores, such as the German retailer Galeria Kaufhof's removal of all video games rated 18+ by the USK following the Winnenden school shooting. The rating is there especially so that the right ages play the games, as the older you are, the more you will understand things and not take things literally for example; as a 12 year old if they played GTA V, may think that is how you should behave on a daily basis, whereas the suggested 18 year old age restriction is suitable as an 18 year old knows how to behave correctly.

Education: Video games can be used in educational settings. Students can develop their ability to find different ways to solve the problems they come across through gameplay. Often, players will find that they require these skills later on in the game as well, and thus are required to maintain and hone their skills for later use. Video games typically provide instant rewards for succeeding in solving a problem. This is in contrast to classroom environments, where students wait for graded tests and are only rewarded occasionally with report cards to report their progress. Thus, video games can be used as an alternative to a classroom setting while still maintaining levels of difficulty that foster learning. When the Nintendo DS was a rather large thing around 2005, many people used to play educational video games that would help to make you smarter whilst remaining fun, games such as Brain Train to name one was extremely effective as not only were there tasks and challenges that you needed to do but they were fun which meant you were predominantly having fun whilst also learning new things - win-win for everyone! 

Stereotyping: This is basically when games use the standard perception of people and races etc. then take that to the extreme, for example; a very ludicrous example is Muslims, they are given the status that they are terrorists and everybody knows that Muslims themselves are not terrorists it is just a stupid generalisation, and also that all black people steal from everybody they see - both of these examples are stupid as know that is not true, take Will Smith for example; he is a very well known and iconic actor who is definitely not somebody who steals. Also, Malala Yousafzai, she is another great example to use, she won the Nobel Peace Prize and what is the biggest thing to mention about her, she is a Muslim (who is not a terrorist). An example of a game in which stereotyping is a major issue is GTA V, it is very apparent. The main characters; Franklin is a black guy living in the hood who is only allowed to wear "urban" or "hood-street" clothes, Michael is an upper class middled aged white guy who can who has a mostly pathetic choice of a wardrobe selection and Trevor, well although Trevor is most definitely a super crazy, meth-head, selfish redneck he is only limited to wearing super crazy, meth-head, selfish redneck outfits! All of which shows how stereotypical the game is which can cause outrage with many people.

Addiction: Video game addiction is hypothesised to be an excessive or compulsive use of computer games or video games, which interferes with a person's everyday life. Video game addiction may present itself as compulsive gaming, social isolation, mood swings, diminished imagination, and hyper-focus on in-game achievements, to the exclusion of other events in life. In May 2013, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) proposed criteria for video game addiction in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, concluding that there was insufficient evidence to include it as an official mental disorder. However, proposed criteria for "Internet Gaming Disorder" are included in Section 3, Conditions for Further Study. While Internet gaming disorder is proposed as a disorder, it is still discussed how much this disorder is caused by the gaming activity itself, or whether it is to some extent an effect of other disorders. Contradictions in research examining how addictive video games are may reflect more general inconsistencies in video game research: For example, while some research has linked violent video games with increased aggressive behaviour other research has failed to find evidence for such links. Children are easy targets when it comes to video game addiction, they do not know any better and so when the games they are playing says add credits, they just think that there are no consequences, before you know it they are addicted to using in-game currency and spend a lot of money unintentionally. This happened to a man from Crawley as his son spent £4000 on an iPad game - A father is livid after his seven-year-old son racked up an enormous £4,000 bill on an iPad dinosaur video game. Mohamed Shugaa, 32, of Crawley, discovered his son Faisall had downloaded the iTunes game Jurassic World and spent £3,911 upgrading his dinosaurs. Faisall knew the passcode to unlock his father's iPad, but Mr Shugaa didn't realise his son had also memorised his Apple ID, which accesses payment information and only has to be entered once to make multiple purchases.

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