Case Study 11
Axe 5
Objet d'étude 2
Gaming the dream
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Design the future American video game hero.
The Wilson Center in Washington D.C. is hosting the annual summit of Serious Games initiatives. The theme this year is American soft power. The video games industry is at a crossroads. Should U.S. games continue to promote traditional ideals of success, power, and individual victory, or adapt to a new generation of digital citizens who value connection? As a creative strategist, present your vision of the “future American hero” to the board.
The Wilson Center in Washington D.C. is hosting the annual summit of Serious Games initiatives. The theme this year is American soft power. The video games industry is at a crossroads. Should U.S. games continue to promote traditional ideals of success, power, and individual victory, or adapt to a new generation of digital citizens who value connection? As a creative strategist, present your vision of the “future American hero” to the board.
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1
The architect of ego
angt-cs11-step1.mp3
Apple TV+'s Mythic Quest: Raven's Banquet comically explores the inner workings of a successful gaming studio. Filled with colorful, diverse characters, the acclaimed series is the brain child of Megan Ganz, Charlie Day, and Rob McElhenney, who stars as the erratic but brilliant creative director Ian (that's EYE-an) Grimm. […] He is a complex, intelligent, and admittedly visionary creation. The comedy stems not from his cluelessness but his fierce intelligence and ADHD-fueled mania.
And McElhenney plays Ian – a “narcissist maniac” – to perfection.
McElhenney's Ian Grimm has a very specific look. It's perhaps one you've seen before. Black clothes. Mostly long-sleeved shirts. Extended, millennial-friendly beard. Often a knit cap. And rings, lots of rings. Online buzz hypothesized that the look for Ian Grimm was too familiar to be a coincidence, leading to rumors of Twitter's Jack Dorsey being a significant inspiration. […]
But it's not only the clothes that made the man. McElhenney continued to physically transform himself to play Ian. Previously, he gained near 60 pounds for a season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia to mark a down, aimless period in that character's life. For Mythic Quest, he looked at a lot of people in the gaming industry and realized that the stereotype of the overweight gamer doesn't really apply in reality. McElhenney's observation is that many men within this world are hyper-masculine and tend to work out incessantly. So did McElhenney.
It all works in coordination to create a perfectly realize Ian Grimm as a successful, and successfully realistic, creative director of a gaming company.
And McElhenney plays Ian – a “narcissist maniac” – to perfection.
McElhenney's Ian Grimm has a very specific look. It's perhaps one you've seen before. Black clothes. Mostly long-sleeved shirts. Extended, millennial-friendly beard. Often a knit cap. And rings, lots of rings. Online buzz hypothesized that the look for Ian Grimm was too familiar to be a coincidence, leading to rumors of Twitter's Jack Dorsey being a significant inspiration. […]
But it's not only the clothes that made the man. McElhenney continued to physically transform himself to play Ian. Previously, he gained near 60 pounds for a season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia to mark a down, aimless period in that character's life. For Mythic Quest, he looked at a lot of people in the gaming industry and realized that the stereotype of the overweight gamer doesn't really apply in reality. McElhenney's observation is that many men within this world are hyper-masculine and tend to work out incessantly. So did McElhenney.
It all works in coordination to create a perfectly realize Ian Grimm as a successful, and successfully realistic, creative director of a gaming company.
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Mythic Quest, Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day, and Megan Ganz, 2020.
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Coined by Joseph Nye in the 1980s, “soft power” refers to a country's ability to influence others through attraction rather than force. Cultural products such as movies, music, sports, and video games can spread values linked to the American Dream: the belief that hard work and ambition can lead to success and a better life. These values often include individualism, ambition, freedom, self-reliance, and social mobility.
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Step 1
1
Find information on the plot and setting of Mythic Quest in the text. Watch the trailer to complete your findings.
2
How does his physical appearance help him project power? Explain how he represents a traditional “power hero” in the gaming world?
3
What American Dream values does he embody? Justify.
Action!
Create a motivational catchphrase or slogan that reflects Ian Grimm's vision of success, power, and the American Dream.
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2
Radical empathy in gaming
“Ashly Burch Talks Mythic Quest and Voicing Video Games from Horizon Zero Dawn to Life is Strange”, Katee Sackhoff, 2025.
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Step 2
1
Who is Ashly Burch? How does her work contribute to the cultural influence of video games?
2
How does modern voice acting change the player's experience compared to the past?
3
Why does Ashly Burch believe complex, nuanced characters are more powerful than “perfect” heroes?
Action!
You decide to repost this video on your profile. Write a caption explaining how today's video game heroes are evolving, and invite your followers to react.
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Step 3
1
Listen from 1:05 to 3:02. Who is Tracy Fullerton? How is her opinion relevant here?
2
Listen from 13:22 to 16:45. What is the “traditional” view of video games, and how are modern games different?
3
According to Tracy, why is it important for games to talk about real-world problems?
Action!
Create a concept card for your video game hero: who they are, what they fight for, and what values they help the player understand.
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Ready...
- Decide what your “future American hero” will be like.
- Select or create the best visual to support your vision.
Steady...
- Outline your pitch (hook, arguments, key takeaway), showing how your hero will attract a global audience.
Go!
- Deliver your pitch to the board. Speak clearly, using your visual to illustrate your point.
- Conclude with a statement on the future of the American Dream in the digital age.
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