An Introduction to Game Studies
Format:Hardback
Publisher:SAGE Publications Inc
Published:18th Feb '08
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
This hardback is available in another edition too:
- Paperback£56.99(9781412934466)
An Introduction to Game Studies is the first introductory textbook for students of game studies. It provides a conceptual overview of the cultural, social and economic significance of computer and video games and traces the history of game culture and the emergence of game studies as a field of research.
Key concepts and theories are illustrated with discussion of games taken from different historical phases of game culture. Progressing from the simple, yet engaging gameplay of Pong and text-based adventure games to the complex virtual worlds of contemporary online games, the book guides students towards analytical appreciation and critical engagement with gaming and game studies.
Students will learn to:
- Understand and analyse different aspects of phenomena we recognise as ′game′ and play′
- Identify the key developments in digital game design through discussion of action in games of the 1970s, fiction and adventure in games of the 1980s, three-dimensionality in games of the 1990s, and social aspects of gameplay in contemporary online games
- Understand games as dynamic systems of meaning-making
- Interpret the context of games as ′culture′ and subculture
- Analyse the relationship between technology and interactivity and between ′game′ and ′reality′
- Situate games within the context of digital culture and the information society
With further reading suggestions, images, exercises, online resources and a whole chapter devoted to preparing students to do their own game studies project, An Introduction to Game Studies is the complete toolkit for all students pursuing the study of games.
The companion website at www.sagepub.co.uk/mayra contains slides and assignments that are suitable for self-study as well as for classroom use. Students will also benefit from online resources at www.gamestudiesbook.net, which will be regularly blogged and updated by the author.
Professor Frans Mäyrä is a Professor of Games Studies and Digital Culture at the Hypermedia Laboratory in the University of Tampere, Finland.
I have read the book with great interest and have decided to not adopt it for the course not because of any shortcoming on the part of the book, but because it did not fit with the rest of my planned curriculum. Mäyrä′s work is very comprehensive and presents a brief but considered introduction to the field.
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Sadly, the organization of ideas presented in the book was incompatible with my course plan. I will reconsider adopting this book next year after evaluating my current course plan. -- Dr Erinc Salor * drupal *
A well-written and insightful introduction to an emerging social phenomenon and field of study of our times -- Dr Scott Mitchell * drupal *
The book provides a nice introduction to key topics and areas of inquiry in the young field of game studies. It is well written, clear and accessible. There are, however, a number of formal issues (grammar, word choice, awkward expressions) that I hope will be rectified in a future edition of the text. Nevertheless, I recommend the text highly for introductory courses, and I have adopted it as the basic textbook for my own course on the topic (to be supplemented with lots of texts from the online journals Game Studies, Eludamos, as well as chapters from books by Alexander Galloway and McKenzie Wark, among others). -- Dr Shane Denson * drupal *
This book has a good general overview and shows the history of games with appropriate examples. It is a good book for supplemental reading. -- Miss Marian Carr * drupal *
An excellent read to introduction to game studies. Recommended. -- Miss Ying Ying Law * drupal *
Recommended to students especially for the last chapter on how to prepare a game study project. -- Mr Dominik Mieth * drupal *
I found this book extremely useful. I will use it as a reference for my teaching, and have already recommended it as a text for Masters students. I feel it is not suitable for the undergraduate students at this stage.
I have also ordered it for the university libraries. -- Ms Hanli Geyser * drupal *
Manages to give a concise introductory overview of the field, including both formalistic as cultural perspectives. Good assignments to use in class. -- Ms Sybille Lammes * drupal *
ISBN: 9781412934459
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 1000g
208 pages