For Mass Media I'm going to examine the forms used in the publication of the Earthbound Player's Guide as previously discussed in the Paper Collage Topic  Dusty Dunes Desert is home to an interesting array of characters. There are disgruntled sun bathers, talking sesame seeds, hungry wolves, cave monkeys, a meditating guru, and a golddigger. This front page of the newspaper refers to the deeds done by the player when in this area. It is interesting that it refers to everything in past tense... perhaps to give the player a sense of accomplishment to reflect upon even when the area has been completed. The newspaper combines interesting elements to get across basic information. When compared to the visual style of the traffic jam in the game the photograph of the traffic is almost laughable. The player knows that in the game there are only two lanes on the road and that it looked nothing like what is pictured, yet somehow the photograph works in this context. It may be that the idea of 'stock footage' is something to be commented on or that the newspaper always exaggerates. Whatever the case may be it is an effective appropriation of outside material into the realm of the game. 
Fourside is a city of sky scrapers and big business. It's based on every generic commercial center and conjures up images of New York. It is no wonder, then, that the Player's Guide editors chose to imitate the visual styles of The Wall Street Journal for this page. Immediately the reader's eyes are drawn toward the graph which has come to indicate the idea of the stock market or other an "official government reporting". The news reports are generally about crime-related stories, although when playing the game you don't get the feeling that it is necessarily a bad town. The Player's Guide allows the reader to take more from the experience than actually existed. In a game you more often see the results of your actions as opposed to how other's interpret your actions from a "unbiased" third person perspective.
On an unrelated note, Morgan might get a kick out of this because she's obsessed with the Drudge Report. The Bound Report. It's nothing too special... but it's an interesting use of a unique site.
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