A cultural product is defined as a media artefact which

can be anything included within the field of

communication. Nearly every household has one.

Whether it is in the kitchen, living room, bedroom, the

Xbox is played almost anywhere This can be

interpreted as power, as it is dominant in our society.

The fact that it is seen as a cultural product does

not alter the need for me to own one, but does

influence my purchase somewhat. I believe the

fact that it is a cultural product is because of its

popularity, With over 50 million sales worldwide it

isn’t surprising. This leads me to conform

pressurising me into buying one.

There are many factors which

prevented me from purchasing this

console. One reason is the person

who you are seen as, because the

PS3 is the more expensive

console, the user is seen as more

wealthy and possibly more upper

class. The ergonomic design of the

360 controller means playing games

is a lot simpler than on the PS3, this

helps me promote my ideal self in

games. Finally the main reason I

chose it is because my friends

already owned one, this stimulates

the sociability of the console.

Apart from the WII being a different type of console, it

doesn’t have many features which are suited to my

target audience, which is why not many people my age

own one and play it regularly. People associate the WII

with family play or as a method of exercise neither of

which are suit to my style of play.

There have been many advancements over the years in

consoles, there was only one Xbox before this, and I didn’t

own this one. I started with a PS1 which was the family

console for years. The console then evolved into

something for specific audiences, in particular teens.

Youth culture has become obsessed with video gaming, it

has now even integrated into our culture and become a

huge part of it.

Firstly when consoles first came out

the role they fulfilled was in the

home for occasional play when the

family got bored. Now consoles

have developed into lifestyle

products . People play a lot

more, and the technology is

advancing making it more popular.

Advances in graphics is rapidly

narrowing the divide between the

game and reality. Therefore the

sense of realism is changing the

way we see gaming as a whole.

The expansion of the console to different countries

has introduced a cultural shift. Now that many

different countries from all over the world have

access to online gaming, the variety of people I

can play against is increasing, meaning a greater

diversity of users in this ever expanding media

company.

Communication has played a massive part in the success of the Xbox, being able to talk to and play

against anyone in the world. I play on multiplayer games such as COD and Need For Speed which

require teamwork and have a certain level of competitiveness. I speak to people over a mic, this can

be either friends or people who I have never met, I find it easy to speak to anyone, which shows that

my self is altered as I am more able to talk to people when I don’t know who they are.

The profile on Xbox defines who you are, its all about

yourself. It consists of an avatar which is a visual

representation of yourself with information on how you

like to describe yourself. My profile gives an

impression of what I am like to other players. Although

my profile defines me quite well, there may be some

features which can be different from my ideal self The

profile on Xbox is not that comprehensive, however

making it as accurate as possible to my ideal self

helps me play better .

There is little sociability associated with the Xbox, so as far

as relationships go there is no link between the console

and relationship development.. Consoles could be said to

have increased communication while reducing personal

contact ,as social life is hindered by this as well as youth

culture. However as many others also play Xbox, the ability

to crossover and develop relationships and

communications is achieved.

The Xbox alters my identity and my outlook on life.

Some games can change how I perceive certain

aspects of my surroundings. Games like Call of Duty

make me realise the extremities of war, whereas

Racing Games portray the high levels of adrenaline

and thrill. This then alters my perception of reality

through artificial technology. The political implications

of this are, what is going on in the world at the moment

may not seem as real as it should be. But

differentiation is still possible.

According to Goffman’s theory of

presentation of the self in everyday

life, we cannot live without

communication or interaction. The

Xbox, I feel does fulfil both these

needs, while the interaction is not

physical it is still interaction

nonetheless. While the communication

is more expansive as I talk to people

from all over the world and also

people who I would never talk to if I

saw them in person.

http://www.shvoong.com/humanities/487866-presentation-self-everyday-life/

http://www.callofduty.com/

http://www.needforspeed.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Presentation_of_Self_in_Everyday_Life

http://www.cultsock.org/

http://www.theory.org.uk/

http://www.xbox.com/en-GB/

http://www.nintendo.com/wii

http://uk.playstation.com/ps3/