Template talk:Cite video game

Language variable

Maybe the Language variable could be reworked to work with {{languageicon}}-based templates? Great idea, btw. Circeus 01:48, 1 June 2006 (UTC)

It doesn't do that in the other citation templates. I'm trying to keep a similar style (or at least until the correct one can be found). Dread Lord CyberSkull ✎☠ 11:50, 1 June 2006 (UTC)

It's because most of the time, the language is not used by the template itself. {{cite book}} and {{cite web}} are exceptions in this regard (possibly because they are the most commonly used such templates with foreign languages sources). Maybe drop the field altogether? Circeus 15:22, 1 June 2006 (UTC)

Regional differences between games can be huge, which is why it is important to specify the edition. Dread Lord CyberSkull ✎☠ 12:02, 26 June 2006 (UTC)

I gave it a try. Testing now:

• Blizzard Entertainment (2004-11-23). World of Warcraft (Mac OS X) (in Japanese) (1.0 ed.). Vivendi Universal. Level/area: Brill.

The documentation for language says 'language: language of publication (don't specify spanish" as this is the default)'. Should this be English instead? I have reverted it back to the original English version, since the person who changed it also removed the platform line and left no comment regarding the change. ScottSteiner (talk) 18:08, 27 March 2011 (UTC)

Bug

At time of writing, in the article Sonic the Hedgehog (character), {{cite video game |title=[[Shadow the Hedgehog (video game)|Shadow the Hedgehog]] |developer=Sonic Team |publisher=[[Sega]] |date=2005-11-15}} produces

24. Sonic Team. Shadow the Hedgehog Sega. . 2005-11-15.

in the references section. I don't think this is specific to the article.

This appears to stem from the "level" field. I'd fix it, (I have previously made an esoteric template,) but I'm not letting my editing skills touch a citation template like this with a barge pole. Too much could go wrong if you let me at it. ;-) --DavidHOzAu 08:05, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

The problem wss that the period after the "language" if was not removed along it. I solved that.

Circeus 13:09, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

Ah, so that's what was wrong! Thanks for fixing it for me. --DavidHOzAu 01:31, 28 June 2006 (UTC)

Shouldn't there be a period after the game title? --SevereTireDamage 04:48, 10 August 2006 (UTC)

Regarding readibility

Having used this template multiple times at various articles, I was wondering if perhaps we could turn the title, developer, etc. fields all the way to language a different color or style, to differentiate between quotes and the reference. See the refs on Characters in the Halo series, for example (I don't use the quote parameter because I like the quotes before the refs, personal pref) - to try and make it more obvious where the game information started, I was using dashes. David Fuchs ^(talk) 22:14, 19 August 2007 (UTC)

Citing Cutscenes

I was considering using this template for citing some of the Command & Conquer games. However, the trouble is that most of what's worth citing in those games occur during ingame cutscenes. Sometimes, different missions lead to the same cutscene (and sometimes they don't), so it's kind of ugly if you try to cite them as being part of a certain level. Also, the intro cutscenes for those games (the ones that play right after you launch the game) are typically cite-worthy, but don't have any level associated with it. I don't suppose that a "cutscene" field could be added to accomodate games like these? Or is there some better way to cite using the existing template in a manner that I'm not thinking of. -Thunderforge (talk) 02:35, 8 December 2008 (UTC)

Why not just put the cutscene in the level/area field? Der Wohltemperierte Fuchs ^(talk) 02:59, 8 December 2008 (UTC)

The trouble would be that for cutscenes that aren't part of a level, you'd have something like "Level/area: Intro cutscene," which just looks weird. -Thunderforge (talk) 23:49, 8 December 2008 (UTC)

{{citation}} code for use in this template

New code to use {{citation}}. Old code still in effect until citation updated to support software and video games.

<includeonly>{{
#if: {{#if: {{{developer|}}} | {{{title|}}} }}
  || Error on call to [[template:cite video game]]: Parameters '''title''' and '''developer''' must be specified
}}</includeonly>{{Citation/core
 |Citation class=video-game
  |Surname1 = {{{last|{{{surname|{{{last1|{{{surname1|{{{author1|{{{author|{{{authors|{{{author|}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}
  |Surname2 = {{{last2|{{{surname2|{{{author2|{{{coauthor|{{{coauthors|}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}
  |Surname3 = {{{last3|{{{surname3|{{{author3|}}}}}}}}}
  |Surname4 = {{{last4|{{{surname4|{{{author4|}}}}}}}}}
  |Surname5 = {{{last5|{{{surname5|{{{author5|}}}}}}}}}
  |Surname6 = {{{last6|{{{surname6|{{{author6|}}}}}}}}}
  |Surname7 = {{{last7|{{{surname7|{{{author7|}}}}}}}}}
  |Surname8 = {{{last8|{{{surname8|{{{author8|}}}}}}}}}
  |Surname9 = {{{last9|{{{surname9|{{{author9|}}}}}}}}}
  |Given1 = {{{first1|{{{given1|{{{first|{{{given|}}}}}}}}}}}}
  |Given2 = {{{first2|{{{given2|}}}}}}
  |Given3 = {{{first3|{{{given3|}}}}}}
  |Given4 = {{{first4|{{{given4|}}}}}}
  |Given5 = {{{first5|{{{given5|}}}}}}
  |Given6 = {{{first6|{{{given6|}}}}}}
  |Given7 = {{{first7|{{{given7|}}}}}}
  |Given8 = {{{first8|{{{given8|}}}}}}
  |Given9 = {{{first9|{{{given9|}}}}}}
  |Authorlink1 = {{{author-link|{{{author1-link|{{{authorlink|{{{authorlink1|}}}}}}}}}}}}
  |Authorlink2 = {{{author2-link|{{{authorlink2|}}}}}}
  |Authorlink3 = {{{author3-link|{{{authorlink3|}}}}}}
  |Authorlink4 = {{{author4-link|{{{authorlink4|}}}}}}
  |Authorlink5 = {{{author5-link|{{{authorlink5|}}}}}}
  |Authorlink6 = {{{author6-link|{{{authorlink6|}}}}}}
  |Authorlink7 = {{{author7-link|{{{authorlink7|}}}}}}
  |Authorlink8 = {{{author8-link|{{{authorlink8|}}}}}}
  |Authorlink9 = {{{author9-link|{{{authorlink9|}}}}}}
  |Year={{{year|{{    <!-- attempt to derive year from date, if possible -->
             #if: {{{date|}}}
             |{{
                #iferror:{{#time:Y|{{{date|}}} }}
                |{{#iferror:{{#time:Y|{{{publication-date|einval}}} }}||{{#time:Y|{{{publication-date|}}} }}}}
                |{{#time:Y|{{{date|}}} }}
              }}
             |{{{publication-date|}}} <!-- last resort -->
           }}
        }}}
  |YearNote = {{{origyear|}}}
  |Date = {{#if:{{{date|}}}|{{{date}}}|{{{day|}}} {{{month|}}} {{{year|{{{publication-date|}}}}}}}}
  |Developer = {{{developer}}}
  |Title={{{title}}}
  |TransTitle={{{trans_chapter|}}}
  |TransItalic={{{trans_title|}}}
  |URL={{{url|}}}
  |Series={{{series|}}}
  |Volume = {{{volume|}}}
  |Issue = {{{issue|{{{number|}}}}}}
  |IncludedWorkTitle = {{{chapter|{{{contribution|}}}}}}
  |IncludedWorkURL = {{{chapter-url|{{{chapterurl|{{{contribution-url|}}}}}}}}}
  |Other = {{{others|}}}
  |Edition = {{{edition|}}}
  |Place = {{{place|{{{location|}}}}}}
  |Platform = {{{platform|}}}
  |PublicationPlace = {{{publication-place|{{{place|{{{location|}}}}}}}}}
  |Publisher = {{{publisher|}}}
  |PublicationDate = {{{publication-date|}}}
  |language = {{{language|{{{in|}}}}}}
  |format = {{{format|}}}
  |ID={{{id|{{{ID|}}}}}}
  |AccessDate={{{access-date|{{{accessdate|}}}}}}
  |DateFormat={{{dateformat|none}}}
  |quote = {{{quote|}}}
  |laysummary = {{{laysummary|}}}
  |laydate = {{{laydate|}}}
  |Ref={{{ref|}}}
  |Sep = {{{separator|{{{seperator|.}}}}}}
  |PS = {{#if:{{{quote|}}}||{{{postscript|.}}}}}
  |amp = {{{lastauthoramp|}}}
}}

Dread Lord CyberSkull ✎☠ 10:34, 28 July 2009 (UTC)

core missing fields

isbn or other retail identifier code is missing as well as trans_title.陣内_Jinnai 22:28, 4 August 2009 (UTC)

Revamp of cite video games template

There is no consensus to update this template. The following is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section.

Here's what I have. Right now it looks like several fields, most notably developer, will need to be added to work somehow as they aren't showing up. Neither of those are within cite core and i can't find an easy equivalent like i could with disc. This brings the template in line with other similar templates.

<includeonly>{{
#if: {{#if: {{{developer|}}} | {{{title|}}} }}
|| Error on call to [[template:cite video game]]: Parameters '''title''' and '''developer''' must be specified
}}</includeonly>
<includeonly>{{
#if: {{#if:{{{isolang|}}} }}
|| [[Category:Cite video game templates using unusual language parameter|{{NAMESPACE}} {{PAGENAME}}]]
}}</includeonly>
{{Citation/core
|Citation class=video game
|YearNote = {{{origyear|}}}
|Date = {{#if:{{{date|}}}|{{{date}}}|{{{day|}}} {{{month|}}} {{{year|}}}}}
|Developer = {{{developer}}}
|Title= {{{title}}}
|TransTitle = {{{trans_chapter|}}}
|TransItalic = {{{trans_title|}}}
|URL = {{{url|{{{originalurl|}}}}}}
|AccessDate = {{{access-date|{{{accessdate|}}}}}}
|ArchiveURL = {{{archiveurl|}}}
|ArchiveDate= {{{archivedate|}}}
|Series={{{series|}}}
|Chapter= {{{chapter|}}}
|Level = {{{level|{{{area|}}}}}}
|Characters = {{{characters|}}}
|Disc = {{{disc|{{{volume|}}}}}}
|Other = {{{others|}}}
|Version = {{{version|}}}
|Edition = {{{edition|}}}
|Place = {{{place|{{{location|}}}}}}
|Platform = {{{platform|}}}
|Publisher = {{{publisher|}}}
|language = {{{language|{{{in|}}}}}}
|ID ={{{id|{{{ID|}}}}}}
|ISSN = {{{ISSN|}}}
|EAN = {{{EAN|}}}
|JAN = {{{JAN|}}}
|quote = {{{quote|}}}
}}

Comments?陣内_Jinnai 06:50, 5 November 2009 (UTC)

Please create a sandbox to show how some examples would look using the old and new versions of this template. Gary King (talk) 18:48, 5 November 2009 (UTC)

User:Jinnai/temp: right now there are still some problems with certain fields not displaying - ones not in core.陣内_Jinnai 02:08, 6 November 2009 (UTC)

There's barely anything on that page; I mean something like this. Gary King (talk) 20:58, 6 November 2009 (UTC)

That "this" mentioned above is now this. Jimp 08:56, 1 April 2014 (UTC)

You want me to give examples of how it currently (with the above code) works or how it should work?陣内_Jinnai 00:05, 7 November 2009 (UTC)

No, use the same input with both the old and new templates, so we can see the differences. There should be no differences between the two. Gary King (talk) 06:33, 7 November 2009 (UTC)

Okay, although I'd say the purpose of the update is to make a difference since so many fields are lacking. :D陣内_Jinnai 01:55, 8 November 2009 (UTC)

Well did that. Seems it doesn't like title and developer for some reason. User:Jinnai#Temp Furthermore i don't know why it insists they be in Japanese since some titles/developers aren't.陣内_Jinnai 02:44, 8 November 2009 (UTC)

"in Japanese" just means that you set language to Japanese, like "language=Japanese". Gary King (talk) 04:26, 8 November 2009 (UTC)

Ok. figured out what was wrong in the coding...except with archiveurl. For some reason it's not seeing that i have url specified. Some items aren't showing still as well.陣内_Jinnai 08:00, 8 November 2009 (UTC)

• {{Citation/core}} does not support fields such as Developer, Level or Characters, so these will not show.

• By JAN, I presume you refer to Japanese Article Number, which is a barcode similar to EAN. Could I see an example of where JAN would be useful? I suspect this barcode is used for sales, thus could change for something as simple as repackaging. I am quite sure we can add them to |ID=.
• The only original game box I have at hand is for Phantasmagoria, which has a UPC and an ISBN, thus the template should support ISBN; see also the request above.
• The larger issue is to decide what the output should look like. We can request new fields be added to {{Citation/core}}, but there are a number that can be used as is if we look at them properly. Here are a few samples I threw together using current fields:
  • "Halo 3" (video game), v 1.0, Xbox 360, Level/area: The Storm, Bungie, Microsoft Game Studios, September 9, 2007, JAN 123456, "quote" 
  • Kellner, Charlie (1985), "The Eidolon" (video game), Apple //, MSX, Atari XL/XE, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, Epyx 
  • "Phantasmagoria" (video game), PC, Sega Saturn, Sierra On-Line/Kronos Digital Entertainment, Sierra On-Line, 1995, ISBN 0-87177-007-5 

---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 15:21, 18 September 2010 (UTC)

I've created a Template:Cite video game/testcases which has a couple of test cases in it, and Template:Cite video game/sandbox for testing code using {{citation/core}}. I'm really not sure as to why it needs to be unified with citation/core as the two do not seem to be that close a match. What benefit does it bring?--Salix (talk): 15:28, 18 September 2010 (UTC)

• Well developer could possibly be piped to author. Characters could possibly be removed. However, level, scene and disc needs to be added. If they won't show on cite core, there is a serious problem with using it then for video games because core seems concerned with linear citations. Except for the most simplest video games, they cannot be cited properly for specific areas with core then as it stands do to this non-linear framework.
  • A good example is citing something in Persona 3 that takes place on a specific day in the community. This game goes over the same places over-and-over again throughout its game and someone wanting to cite a specific point in that game has no way to direct the person to the proper place and time to help verify it because even if they use something like the |level= field to state the place, the pre-conditions to see that scene may not have been met and it may not be on the right day, or even right time during the day.
• Many older, and even more modern Japanese-only video games, use JAN. Since a majority of video games are produced in Japan, this is a major item of importance for video games.
  • For specific examples, Popotan visual novel has the games which were only released in Japan that either have only a JAN or ASIN. Since the JAN is not tied to one site, that one IMO is the better to use. ISBN is not as universal as people think.
  • However, this can apply to almost every Japanese video game released in Japan (as opposed to a Japanese video game that was translated and released in English).陣内_Jinnai 20:48, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

For JAN, we can do something like this:

|ID={{#if:{{{id|}}}|{{{id}}}}}{{#if:{{{jan|}}}|[[Japanese Article Number]] {{{jan}}}}}

This allows a custom id and/or a JAN; it can be extended to add EAN or whatever. Will need some spacing and separator tweaks.

Similarly, for level, scene and disc:

|Other={{#if:{{{level|}}}|Level {{{level}}}}}{{#if:{{{scene|}}}|Scene {{{scene}}}}}{{#if:{{{disc|}}}|Disc {{{disc}}}}}

Again, we really need to understand what the output should be, then we can develop the needed markup. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 00:36, 20 September 2010 (UTC)

• For JAN/EAN/etc. it should be similar to ISBN where we render the say "JAN 12-34567-89012-3", "12-3456789-012-3" or "12-3456-7-8". I don't know if its possible, but the country code for JAN is either 45 or 49 and if possible it should recognize that and change it to JAN them. Same for EAN with their respective id codes.
• For disc, the problem comes with the 2 different types of way discs are labeled. The classic format one disc 1, disc 2, etc. and the ones applicapble only to PCs of Install disc, Play disc and BGM disc. The only option I can see for redering that would keep things consistant between the two would be something like "Disk: 1" or "Disk: Install"
• The problem with level is that it was being used for both levels (like levels in Super Mario Bros. and areas such as those used in RPGs. Without splitting them into two seperate codes I don't have an answer.
• For scene, this would be hard to render as its is a very descriptive notation and would be a lot of text similar to |quote= field.

As for placement, JAN should be obvious. Disc should be placed before chapter and the level/scene should be placed where page numbers should be as they serve a similar function.陣内_Jinnai 03:07, 20 September 2010 (UTC)

• Nevermind what I said about developer. I should have a similar output as publisher usually immediately before publisher. There's no real way to distinquish between developer and publisher without adding a "Developed by" and "Published by" to all of them which would change how the cite works for everything because of the latter. Just doing it for developer would make it stand out because usually when you note something is developed by something you then, if applicable say its published by someone else clearly denoting the difference.陣内_Jinnai 03:54, 21 September 2010 (UTC)

ISBNs are recognized by the MediaWiki software— see WP:ISBN. For similar support for JANs, an enhancement request would have to be opened.

I have looked around for examples on citing games and software. None discuss elements such as developer or level/scene/area/disc. We need to decide how this looks in a cite before we go further. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 15:59, 21 September 2010 (UTC)

It may be too new of a concept as well as quite difficult because of the non-linear format. I've asked for support at WP:VG, but there is generally little to no interest.陣内_Jinnai 20:25, 4 October 2010 (UTC)

I have tried to have the ISSN numbers added and was told they wouldn't do it and that it should be done via template code itself.陣内_Jinnai 19:57, 13 October 2010 (UTC)

ISSN is already supported, but those are for magazines. We can add JAN, but not the linking like ISBN. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 03:59, 14 October 2010 (UTC)

Well they are all under the umbrella of the Global Trade Item Number, but like ISBN, which is also under that number, no one refers to it as such. From what the bug report said they thought it was possible to do through the template (though I could be wrong [1]). The problem would be is that no one uses GTIN, they use JAN, UPC or EAN. That's why i wanted to see if the template could check the first 3 numbers and then decide the output because not everyone knows if a code is JAN, UPC or EAN, especially the latter two.陣内_Jinnai 15:22, 14 October 2010 (UTC)

The ISBN magic passes the ISBN to another wiki page with links to various sites. We cannot pass variables from one page to another in a template in that manner. We can make the JAN link to an external site— the site needs to provide full functionality and be as neutral as possible. This is a fairly minor issue and the functionality can be added at any point. We still need to define what the cite is going to look like. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 15:28, 14 October 2010 (UTC)

Video game citation styles

These are taken from some reliable sources for citing:

• Chicago
• computer software - APA
• MLA doesn't have anything for citing software, let alone video games

The issue with the generic software one is a lot of that doesn't apply 1:1 for video games. FE: Developer and publisher are often different, the producer or lead designer matters more than a programmer, video games often span multiple discs, can vary wildly as things progress, and video games have a narrative structure similar to books/movies.陣内_Jinnai 19:45, 14 October 2010 (UTC)

New sandbox version

I created {{Cite video game/sandbox2}} to include all standard features with video game specific fields.

Current

{{cite video game |title=[[Halo 3]] |developer=[[Bungie]] |publisher=[[Microsoft Game Studios]] |date=September 25, 2007 |platform=[[Xbox 360]] |version=1.0 |level=The Storm |quote='''Arbiter''': More Brutes? / '''Master Chief''': Worse.}}

Bungie (September 25, 2007). Halo 3 (Xbox 360) (1.0 ed.). Microsoft Game Studios. Level/area: The Storm. Arbiter: More Brutes? / Master Chief: Worse.

Sandbox2

{{Cite video game/sandbox2 |title=[[Halo 3]] |developer=[[Bungie]] |publisher=[[Microsoft Game Studios]] |date=September 25, 2007 |platform=[[Xbox 360]] |version=1.0 |level=The Storm |scene=1 |disc=2|jan=1234567890 |ean=1234567890 |quote='''Arbiter''': More Brutes? / '''Master Chief''': Worse.}}

Bungie. Halo 3. (Microsoft Game Studios). Xbox 360, (v1.0). Scene: 1. Level/area: The Storm. (September 25, 2007) Arbiter: More Brutes? / Master Chief: Worse.

Needs a few tweaks, but should be good for discussion. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 11:38, 13 December 2010 (UTC)

3 things:

• The developer and publisher should say Developed by and Published by as that is standard practice for citing.
• It the {lead) designer piped through author. The rest is mostly in core.
• If we are going to have level be dealt like thar we need another field: |area= for games that are based around areas, not levels, like RPGs.陣内_Jinnai 19:47, 13 December 2010 (UTC)

Mad a few more updates:

• Added level
• Fixed separators

{{Cite video game/sandbox2 |last=last |first=first |title=title |chapter=chapter |developer=developer |publisher=publisher |date=date |platform=platform |version=version |level=level |scene=scene |disc=disc |area=area |jan=jan |ean=ean |quote=quote}}

developer. title. (publisher). platform, (vversion). Scene: scene. Level/area: level. quote

The standard |last= and |first= are supported.

---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 19:00, 24 September 2011 (UTC)

• Does this version have publisher listed as "Published by XXXX"? As I mentioned before, that's standard practice for citing video games. Other than that, adding in the chapter field (should be in core) and I think this be ready to bring up to a wider group at WP:VG (since they'll be most affected). They might want some more stuff, but I think the rest should be in core.∞陣内Jinnai 00:45, 26 September 2011 (UTC)

'Published by' added; chapter already supported. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 01:49, 26 September 2011 (UTC)

I say it's rather difficult using the "chapter" or makes it rather complicated. Not all games will number nor name their levels or even have chapters.Bread Ninja (talk) 08:39, 26 September 2011 (UTC)

All parameters are optional. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 09:10, 26 September 2011 (UTC)

Just like {{cite book}} has tons of parameters that aren't always used, so to would this one. Just as not every book has an editor, not every video game has chapters.∞陣内Jinnai 16:29, 26 September 2011 (UTC)

Once the update is implemented, I will update the documentation. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 02:28, 27 September 2011 (UTC)

Unless there is a policy/guideline against it, I'd say title should be required because if all the other info is filled out, without the title nothing can be known. On the other hand if someone is lazy and just wants to add the title there is the possibility the info can still be extracted. We don't have a series parameter so there's no reason for people to not be using a title.∞陣内Jinnai 04:48, 27 September 2011 (UTC)

|title= and |developer= are required in the current template. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 10:47, 27 September 2011 (UTC)

I wouldn't add developer as required. There have been a few cases I've not found a developer for older games.∞陣内Jinnai 15:41, 27 September 2011 (UTC)

The current template requires both. Title required added. I just noticed that with the current template |level= shows "Level/area" . Any issues with it being separated? ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 19:58, 27 September 2011 (UTC)

Yea, developer is required atm, much to my frustration at times. I don't know why. Maybe its because we couldn't do an either/or of developer/publisher. However it shouldn't in the new version because there are a few older titles where the developer isn't known and you'd end up with developer needing to be filled, usually by the publisher, and thus being an inaccurate citation. As for level/area, that is because some people believe that level/area are the same. In some cases, that's true, but there are a handful of games like .hack. The problem comes in that diplaying "level:" would be inapporpaite for games that are divided into areas and vise versa for "Area:". In theory we could just combine the two and give instructions to the person to be descriptive such as "Level 5 or the Durgoth Ruins" or "Port Prospect".∞陣内Jinnai 17:50, 28 September 2011 (UTC)

In the sandbox version:

• |title= is required, all others are optional
• has |level= and |area=
• noticed that most uses of {{quote}} include a period, so I removed the automatic period

---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 11:22, 2 October 2011 (UTC)

Comments? ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 22:15, 12 October 2011 (UTC)

Comments

My suggestion on the level/area/chapter is to default to "level" (the most common scheme) but have a second parameter, which I don't know how to best name, but would be something like "descriptor", where the user can then specify something other than "level". (eg, "area", "section"), or whatever best fits.

Alternatively, simply have a "ingame location" parameter where the user needs to spell out exactly how best to represent it, given that proper level/area names should be "quoted", while if the game simply provides chapter/act numbers, they do not need to be quoted. I think this is better than trying to fit a one-size-fits-all approach. --MASEM (t) 23:48, 12 October 2011 (UTC)

That is a good idea. Perhaps simply |ingame= that would not have a prefix, thus could be set freestyle. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 00:35, 13 October 2011 (UTC)

Well core has a seperate |chapter= field already and there are plenty of games (especially JRPGs) that are structured by chapters. I'm fine for merging level/area into ingame (although level/area should be piped to ingame). I'm not so sure about chapter as I'm not sure how that one works.

The one major problem is how to distinqush quotes from long descriptions of location at a glance (ie does not require the person to read the entire quote). This is especially problematic for games that may use chapter/level/area/location terminology in the quote.∞陣内Jinnai 03:04, 13 October 2011 (UTC)

|chapter= is not supported in the sandbox, but it would show in quotes. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 03:12, 13 October 2011 (UTC)

I suppose it might work if we piped them altogether. The two issues I mentioned would have to be addressed.

1. How to make certain people could distinquish it from a quote at a glance for long descriptions

2. How to get consistant wording so we don't end up with 500 different ways people think is correct that will only confuse people trying to figure out what's being cited.

Also, does |disc= display (not in quotes) "Disc: 1". The reason is that there are sometimes numbered discs, but for some games, especially PC games, there are named discs and that was the only method I could think of that would work with a first disc and install disc as "Disc: 1" and "Disc: Install". Finally you may want to pipe alternate spelling for disk/disc as I'm sure if you use just 1 it'll frustrate people.∞陣内Jinnai 03:26, 13 October 2011 (UTC)

Unclosed uses of <p> replaced to fix subsequent paragraph formatting

1. "could distinquish it from a quote" I don't understand— what is "it."

2. "consistant wording"— please elaborate

3. |disc= would show as "Disc whatever". Adding exclusive field for disk or disc can be done, but add more complexity. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 14:30, 13 October 2011 (UTC)

• Now, why are we changing this in the first place? I think the current version looks nice and clean. Adding all that information to clarify what each field is is unnecessary and messy looking. I would not like to see that in every video game cite. Not to mention, it would look completely different then other citations such as web, book, episode, film, etc. It looks like you two are the only ones wanting this change. Has there been an actual discussion or poll to see if consensus wants this changed? _Blake ^{(Talk·Edits)} 13:52, 13 October 2011 (UTC)

See {{citation}} code for use in this template above (July 2009) and the following discussions. I was asked to look at this over a year ago. There is no deadline, so changes will not be implemented until it looks right. Please let us know what issues you see. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 14:30, 13 October 2011 (UTC)

Quick question, would the first and last parameters refer to the game's writer or designer?

Also, I agree that developer should not be required. While rare, Jinnai is correct that some older games have ambiguous developer credits. Publisher seems fine to require though. (Guyinblack25 ^talk 14:37, 14 October 2011 (UTC))

|disc= should be changed to "Disc:". Disc 1 and Disc: 1 are fine either way, but Disc Install is not. Disc: Install is because the colon separates it. Normally that would read "Disc 1" and "Install Disc", but the template can't really handle that.

As for publisher, I could see that since publisher would be required for any higher-level review anyway. It may break some existing citations though so if we do it there should be a page to track them.∞陣内Jinnai 03:02, 16 October 2011 (UTC)

Closed. After a year of discussion and updates, there is no consensus to update this template. ---— Gadget850 (Ed) ^talk 12:38, 2 November 2011 (UTC)

Quotes

Is there a format to use a truncate quote from a game? I want to cite what I think is a fairly important speech from Metal Gear Rising, as it speaks to the main villains entire motivation, but its a fairy long speech that could be cut down to include the relevant parts if there is an appropriate format for that. Using "..." didn't seem appropriate as that might actually appear in the subtitles. Darkwarriorblake (talk) 07:59, 14 March 2013 (UTC)

How about using "[...]"? The brackets around omitted (marked with the ellipsis), inserted or altered parts are standard in academia. --Florian Blaschke (talk) 19:42, 15 November 2013 (UTC)

Thank you :D Darkwarriorblake (talk) 19:54, 15 November 2013 (UTC)

Quotes versus italics

Per most ever style guide I've ever used, the title of a work should be italicized, e.g. Myst instead of "Myst" as it currently stands. Any compelling reason not to change it? Der Wohltemperierte Fuchs^(talk) 15:44, 1 February 2015 (UTC)

WP:VG/STYLE appears to agree with you. – Jonesey95 (talk) 16:41, 1 February 2015 (UTC)

@David Fuchs: Hi! A bit more context would be appreciated. What goes against this style guide?

Best regards,

Codename Lisa (talk) 18:31, 1 February 2015 (UTC)

Hey @Codename Lisa:, Chicago, APA, and MLA all use italics for the titles of long-form works. I am actually unaware of any modern style guide that uses quotes. Der Wohltemperierte Fuchs^(talk) 18:59, 1 February 2015 (UTC)

An example of the current template's output:

Cite video game

Markup	Renders as
{{cite video game |title=[[Halo 3]] |developer=[[Bungie]] |publisher=[[Microsoft Game Studios]] |date=September 25, 2007 |platform=[[Xbox 360]] |version=1.0 |level=The Storm |quote='''Arbiter''': More Brutes? / '''Master Chief''': Worse.}}	Bungie (September 25, 2007). Halo 3 (Xbox 360) (1.0 ed.). Microsoft Game Studios. Level/area: The Storm. Arbiter: More Brutes? / Master Chief: Worse.

I believe that the original poster is proposing Halo 3 instead of "Halo 3". The former appears to follow WP:VG/STYLE. The latter, which is the current template output, does not appear to follow WP:VG/STYLE. – Jonesey95 (talk) 21:37, 1 February 2015 (UTC)

Date format

This template’s doc specifies that the date be in YYYY-MM-DD format. Is this necessary? Does using a different (but internally consisten) format, as with other citations on a page, cause problems? —67.14.236.50 (talk) 23:03, 16 June 2017 (UTC)

• No, it's not necessary. You can use other date formats. Anything that Help:Citation Style 1 allows should be fine. --The1337gamer (talk) 09:10, 17 June 2017 (UTC)

Intrusive bolding

I'm copyediting Tidus (and alerting Tintor2 to this thread), and IMO the bolding of character names in the "quote" parameter violates MOS:BOLD; italics are equally effective, and far less visually intrusive in a reflist. All the best, Miniapolis 15:07, 28 October 2017 (UTC)

The bolding is not performed by the template, so it can be removed manually. I don't see any guidance in Wikipedia:WikiProject Video games/Article guidelines that recommends this sort of bolding, though I have seen it in other video game articles. You might ask at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Video games, which probably has more watchers. I found an inconclusive ten-year-old conversation in that page's archives. – Jonesey95 (talk) 15:22, 28 October 2017 (UTC)

When is it necessary to cite a video game?

Does every single paragraph about a video game have to be cited? When describing a game’s gameplay, characters, levels, story, etc., do you need to cite the video game every time? Interqwark ^{talk contribs} 22:47, 16 June 2018 (UTC)

Ideally don't cite the video game and use independent sources. You can use cite video game to add citations to plot sections if you want to cite a character's speech; the template has "quote" parameter for this. Although, generally we don't include citations in plot sections for articles and it is not necessary since the game is the primary source and the infobox provides details about the game. --The1337gamer (talk) 09:54, 17 June 2018 (UTC)

All right. Thanks. Interqwark ^{talk contribs} 06:38, 18 June 2018 (UTC)

It's not necessary all the time, but can be useful for certain info that's not immediately obvious to anyone who plays the game (for example, a plot point that's only stated very briefly by one character). Glades12 (talk) 18:43, 26 May 2020 (UTC)

What is this template for? Other templates briefly state what their intended use is. This one does not.

Presumably, judging by fields in this template, and context of chatter, it is intended for citing only the content of a video game -- and not, for example, instructions, readmes or patch notes included with a game or patch. Thus, this smells like it needs a companion template much like Template:Cite AV media has Template:Cite AV media notes. That, or state that Template:Cite AV media notes should be used for citing this other material (which, well, might make it a strange destination for all software companion material).juanitogan (talk) 05:03, 6 April 2023 (UTC)

Forced italics on title

Seems that the italics in the title are not avoidable. This is fine in most cases but I noticed in the case of Pokémon Red and Blue, there’s no way to prevent “and” from italicizing. _{th1rt3en.talk.contribs} 08:05, 4 April 2020 (UTC)

You should not cite both, or you should cite them as two separate citations. --Izno (talk) 16:00, 4 April 2020 (UTC)

Echoing Izno here: two different sources (even if only slightly different) should not be cited together as one. Cite the version you have played yourself. (You could technically cite both separately if you have also played the other version, but that would only be necessary for synthesis, which is disallowed either way.) Glades12 (talk) 18:55, 26 May 2020 (UTC)

Version parameter

The parameter |version= does not seem to work; {{cite video game|title=The Adventures of Foo|developer=Bar Corporation|version=2.0}} just displays as "Bar Corporation. The Adventures of Foo.". Can someone explain and/or fix this? Glades12 (talk) 19:00, 26 May 2020 (UTC)

My fault! When I switched to cite book we probably should have switched to using |edition= rather than |issue=, the latter of which is unsupported in cite book. --Izno (talk) 02:10, 27 May 2020 (UTC)

Is it desirable to have "(ed.)" after the version number though? Glades12 (talk) 17:14, 28 May 2020 (UTC)

Feel free to decide on another parameter if it meets the intent of versioning. (which is what edition does) --Izno (talk) 18:33, 28 May 2020 (UTC)

Possible additional parameters

• |year= – For cases where only the year of publication can be safely determined
• |orig-year= – For citing a version of a game that was released on one platform years after the original on another
• |trans-title= – For games with non-English titles (uncommon, but they do exist)

These are all from other CS1 templates. Glades12 (talk) 15:18, 5 June 2020 (UTC)

|trans-title= was apparently previously noted as missing at #core missing fields. I would add it right now, since no one has objected after more than three weeks, but lack the coding skills to do it. Glades12 (talk) 16:43, 28 June 2020 (UTC)

Never mind; the only thing holding me back was TemplateData, which is apparently not required. Glades12 (talk) 10:15, 29 June 2020 (UTC)

Bizarre error

Would anyone who has more expertise on debugging these templates be able to take a look at a citation error that appears to stem from this template? See Casey_Mongillo#cite_note-otcredits-40. The exact error is: {{cite book}}: |author= has generic name (help) Alxeedo ゐ talk 22:43, 21 March 2025 (UTC)

Request to add "Last played" and/or "Version" for digital titles being cited

I've been working on a few video game related articles that have similarly cited video games as their source or for specific plot elements, etc. in the game. I've noticed in some of their citations they add details of "Last played" followed by a date template. At first I was a bit amused as it kind of reminded me of my own backlog on Steam, but I do think this has valid use. Many titles are not going to be available in a physical format and only digitally. As these games are updated and content can come and go, its probably not a bad idea to confirm when whatever we are citing in a game is from either a certain version of a digital title "i.e: version 1.1106" whatever, or as the articles have done, state when the game was last played. This would help us confirm that material is not out of date if anyone actually tries to check the software out for themselves to clarify details. Thoughts? Andrzejbanas (talk) 17:10, 14 January 2026 (UTC)

Citing multiple consecutive lines of dialogue

Hey all, I was editing March 7th (Honkai: Star Rail) and needed to cite two consecutive lines of dialogue by two different characters. This template uses {{Cite book}}, and you cannot use line breaks in the parameters without it giving an error, as shown below:

miHoYo. Honkai: Star Rail. Scene: Captives, Behold the Expanse Beyond Light. ???: "What was the last thing [the Trailblazer] said to you before you parted the waters at the Scalegorge Waterscape" ...A tricky question, but one with a simple answer. (He/She) didn't say anything back then, right? That's correct. And now, I'm sure...
Dan Heng: You are not March 7th. There's no way she would remember that detail. {{cite book}}: line feed character in |quote= at position 417 (help)

While such an implementation would make sense for books (as it discourages pasting multiple large paragraphs of text as a quote, likely for copyright reasons), I'm not quite sure if it should be the same for video games. Lines of dialogue tend to be shorter than that on average, and most transcripts indicate that you are moving on to the next line of dialogue by using line breaks. This begs the question of how best to implement the quote parameter. Personally I'm thinking we should maybe request to add another classification which allows for this to the Lua module for CS1, but am open to other ideas as well.

Personally, in situations where you need to cite a quote I think it would look a little better if the end result looked something like this (using the above quote as an example):

miHoYo. Honkai: Star Rail. Scene: Captives, Behold the Expanse Beyond Light. Quote:

???: "What was the last thing [the Trailblazer] said to you before you parted the waters at the Scalegorge Waterscape" ...A tricky question, but one with a simple answer. (He/She) didn't say anything back then, right? That's correct. And now, I'm sure...
Dan Heng: You are not March 7th. There's no way she would remember that detail.

I'd love to hear others' opinions on this matter as well. Gommeh ^{(talk! sign!)} 14:04, 20 May 2026 (UTC)

Actually you don't have to open a new line after <br />, just like this:

miHoYo. Honkai: Star Rail. Scene: Captives, Behold the Expanse Beyond Light. ???: "What was the last thing [the Trailblazer] said to you before you parted the waters at the Scalegorge Waterscape" ...A tricky question, but one with a simple answer. (He/She) didn't say anything back then, right? That's correct. And now, I'm sure...
Dan Heng: You are not March 7th. There's no way she would remember that detail.

Royal Sailor (talk) 14:33, 20 May 2026 (UTC)

As Royal Sailor says new lines aren't necessary just use <br />. If you remove the new line from your example and just keep the br/ it all works correctly. -- LCU ActivelyDisinterested «@» °∆t° 19:18, 20 May 2026 (UTC)

Custom Module Preset

As video games become more and more impactful, I think Wikipedia editors should step-up to the plate and create a bespoke module preset for this type of reference. In regards to the debate around video games as an art form, I, personally, don't believe that it really makes a whole ton of sense to block off a whole section of media from getting a proper citation template. I know that this works for now, but this is just a thought. KatiexKillings (talk) 05:52, 28 May 2026 (UTC)