回家與旅行之間:過程語藝與手遊《旅行青蛙》

Abstract

本研究以「過程語藝」分析 2018 年初興起的手機遊戲《旅行青蛙》，試圖理解 這款療癒型、放置型小遊戲，為什麼會令玩家如此著迷?更透過該手機遊戲的語藝學 分析，說明數位文本中可能性空間的設計與操作，並開展「過程」概念在數位語藝中 的重要性。 在本研究中，可以見到該遊戲文本透過規則性的電玩空間建構，讓玩家在看似 簡單的過程中得到遊玩樂趣，藉由青蛙在家與旅行之間的細心準備與緩慢等待，回應 了不斷加速的現代性日常生活，獲得某種對峙與抵抗的片刻。透過《旅行青蛙》的例 證，從過程語藝的角度來看，玩家經由電玩文本過程的實踐，參與了遊戲觀點的表 達，而這正也是數位時代中語藝學的關鍵視野。

In early 2018, there emerges a mobile game called “Travelling Frog” favored by the public. This stress-relieving game, released by the Japanese company Hit Point, has evoked great zeal for keeping frogs among players in Taiwan and China, with its elegant illustrative style, easy gameplay, and zenful user experience. What makes this simply designed “Travelling Frog” fascinating to all players? The reason can lie in the fact that the game deploys playful procedural rhetoric, persuading players to engage in resistance to modernity. The article, after clarifying the concepts about “procedural rhetoric,” proceeds thereby to analyze the game “Travelling Frog.” We can see that the game, through the construction of regular gameplay space, allows players to obtain fun in the seemingly simple patterns of gameplay. Through careful preparations when the frog stays home and patient waiting when it travels, players may respond to the accelerating modern daily life and immerse themselves in certain moments of resistance and rivalry. Through the example, examined in the view of procedural rhetoric, players not only simply play but also participate in the expression of specific points of view. This also explains partly a key perspective of rhetoric studies in the digital age.