volume 2, issue 1
July 2002
Game Studies is a crossdisciplinary journal dedicated to games research, web-published several times a year at www.gamestudies.org. Our primary focus is aesthetic, cultural and communicative aspects of computer games.
Our mission - To explore the rich cultural genre of games; to give scholars a peer-reviewed forum for their ideas and theories; to provide an academic channel for the ongoing discussions on games and gaming.
The Dungeon and the Ivory Tower: Vive La Difference ou Liaison Dangereuse?
by Espen Aarseth
Here is an idea for a strategy game:
"You are a young professor who just got tenure
at Calisota State University. Your objective is to establish a program
in computer games within three years. You can play the role of Humanist,
Computer Scientist, Visual Artist/Designer, Social Scienctist, Psychologist,
or choose a hybrid background. Within each breed, several subclasses (eg.
sociologist, linguist, film theorist) are available. Against you are the
Public, the University Board of Directors, the Funding organisations,
your department colleagues, Politicians, your computer lab admins, and
one or two alien monster races ...
[more]
The Myth of the Ergodic VideogameSome thoughts on player-character relationships in videogames |
Sims, BattleBots, Cellular Automata, God and GoA conversation with Will Wright |
by James NewmanOne of the most common misconceptions about videogames is that
they are an interactive medium. [...] the misconception reveals
a more fundamental misunderstanding of videogames and the experience
of play. Quite simply, videogames are not interactive, or even ergodic
...
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by Celia PearceCP: What is your philosophy of interactive design?WW: Ooh, a heavy question, a philosophy question.CP: It’s a big question, but I wanted to start you talking
about why you design games. What is it about the format of an interactive
experience that is so compelling to you? ...
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Playing with PlayersPotential methodologies for MUDs |
Cultural Framing of Computer/Video Games |
byTorill MortensenThe freedom of communication by way of computer is a liberty to
present yourself as realistically as you desire. In writing, the
traces of your physical reality are limited to your own presentation.
If you control the language, you can appear convincingly as what
ever you wish ...
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by Kurt SquireSince their inception, computer and video games have both fascinated
caused and caused great fear in the politicians, educators, academics,
and the public at large. In the United States, this fear and fascination
goes back to the early 1980s, when Ronald Reagan extolled the virtues
of games to create a generation of highly skilled cold war warriors
...
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Halo and the Anatomy of the FPS |
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Aki Järvinen reviews HaloMetacritic.com tells us that Halo's average review score
in game magazines and sites is 97 out of 100. EDGE Magazine gave
it a full ten (for the fourth time in the publication's history).
In the review, the details of the gameplay were shrouded in secrecy,
"because it's difficult to find the words to do Bungie's work
justice" ...
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