Archive for game

The Art of Computer Game Design

Posted in Books with tags , , , , on April 4, 2008 by frans

Many of the early critical works of digital game studies have been authored by games industry professionals, rather than academics. Chris Crawford published this classic text originally in 1982, and it has then been made available online by professor Sue Peabody from Washington State University Vancouver. The book has been very influential in the way it discusses games through comparisons to some neighboring cultural forms.

Crawford, Chris (1982/1997) The Art of Computer Game Design. The electronic edition. Online: http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/fac/peabody/game-book/ACGD.pdf

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Toward a Critical Vocabulary for Games

Posted in Online papers with tags , , , on April 4, 2008 by frans

There is a continuing need to clarify the concepts used within game studies, and defining ‘game’ is one of continuing interest. This article by game designer and critic Greg Costikyan is interesting in the way it discusses the process of constructing the definition it puts forward. The original version was published in 1994 in Interactive Fantasy #2, the revised version in CGDC conference proceedings in 2002.

Costikyan, Greg (2002) ‘I Have No Words & I Must Design: Toward a Critical Vocabulary for Games’. In: Frans Mäyrä (ed), CGDC Conference Proceedings. Studies in Information Sciences. Tampere: Tampere University Press, pp. 9–33. Online: http://www.digra.org/dl/db/05164.51146.pdf

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