Refereed Journal Articles
Harper, T. (2023). Fighting / Fat: How fighting game characters can show us the emptiness of video game fatness. Journal of Electronic Gaming and E-sports. 1(1), 1-9.
Magazine/Trade Publication
Harper, T. (2024). Why queer characters often feel too "safe". Polygon.
Harper, T. (2024). Dragon Age: The Veilguard is the friend group simulator we've been waiting for. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2024). Star Wars Outlaws hits the walls of open-world games. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2024). Star Wars Outlaws proves you can still be Star Wars without the Jedi. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2024). FF7 Rebirth’s ending is the worst kind of cop-out. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2024). Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth swamps its exhilarating tribute in open-world bloat. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2023). Baldur’s Gate 3’s Patch 5 shows off the game’s defining principle. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2023). Diablo 4’s approach to body types lacks imagination. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2022). Saints Row reboots the series with a rage-fueled take on the gig economy. Polygon.com.
Harper, T. (2022). Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes fails to reinvigorate the Musou genre. Polygon.com.
Harper, T. (2021). Final Fantasy 14: Endwalker feels great when it works, but takes very few risks. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2021). Samurai Warriors 5 does what Warriors games do well, again. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2021). Netflix’s Dynasty Warriors movie has terrific fantasy action — and a split-identity problem. Polygon.
Harper, T. (2020). 'Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity' Presents a Bloody, Zelda-Focused Epic. Waypoint/Vice Games. N/A(N/A),
Harper, T. (2020). In Early GameFAQs, the Subtext Was Often Sexism. Waypoint/Vice Games. N/A(N/A),
Harper, T. (2020). Final Fantasy VII Remake Gives Cloud's Honeybee Inn Makeover The Update It Needed. Kotaku. N/A(N/A), N/A.
Harper, T. Queerness and Games Conference, "Bodies That Matter 2.0: Meaningful Marginalized Bodies in Games," Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, CA. (2020).
"Observing Player-Run Social Venues in Final Fantasy XIV" (Planning)
This research examines the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) Final Fantasy 14, and the "venues" -- cafes, dance clubs, performance halls, and more -- which the game's playerbase run from the game's player housing system. Specifically, the study is focused on 1.) what structures (social or mechanical) players build to facilitate this style of play, 2.) how such spaces negotiate the hybrid real/unreal space an MMO provides, and 3.) how some of the spaces construct themselves specifically as queer-friendly. The study will use participant observation of the spaces via in-game attendance of public events, along with analysis of supplemental material, such as a venue's out-of-game website.
NOTE: Currently awaiting IRB approval for data collection