Making Games? Towards a theory of domestic videogaming
This article is concerned with the lived cultures or cultural practices of gaming - the where, when and with whom gaming occurs. It follows David Morley’s suggestion that we need to decentre the media from our analytical framework in order to grasp both the relations between new and ‘old’ media, a...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Open Humanities Press
2008-01-01
|
| Series: | Fibreculture Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://thirteen.fibreculturejournal.org/fcj-091-making-games-towards-a-theory-of-domestic-videogaming/ |
| _version_ | 1819091223078502400 |
|---|---|
| author | Helen Thornham |
| author_facet | Helen Thornham |
| author_sort | Helen Thornham |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article is concerned with the lived cultures or cultural practices of gaming - the where, when and with whom gaming occurs. It follows David Morley’s suggestion that we need to decentre the media from our analytical framework in order to grasp both the relations between new and ‘old’ media, as well the way we live with them. It is an argument taken literally in this article, where an alternative framework of ontological narrative is developed as the primary means through which an understanding of the relationships between gamers and technology is reached. It focuses on interviews with gaming households and is interested in the ways gamers actively narrate gaming experiences, their gaming selves, and the gaming technology. Using ontological narrative as a central signifier facilitates discussions of the relationship between technology and the social which go beyond what the technology ‘itself’ can offer. It also insists on a socio-political context for the discussion itself. Through a more ontological narrative approach, videogames are framed as agents in negotiations with the power dynamics of the house, but their agency is complicated through issues of performativity, pleasure and identity. Finally, this approach allows for a much more nuanced understanding of the way games and the meanings they hold for the gamers are enmeshed in the everyday. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-21T22:36:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ef6e2c77d4784ec28deeb6282590efa7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1449-1443 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-21T22:36:18Z |
| publishDate | 2008-01-01 |
| publisher | Open Humanities Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Fibreculture Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-ef6e2c77d4784ec28deeb6282590efa72022-12-21T18:47:57ZengOpen Humanities PressFibreculture Journal1449-14432008-01-0113Making Games? Towards a theory of domestic videogamingHelen ThornhamThis article is concerned with the lived cultures or cultural practices of gaming - the where, when and with whom gaming occurs. It follows David Morley’s suggestion that we need to decentre the media from our analytical framework in order to grasp both the relations between new and ‘old’ media, as well the way we live with them. It is an argument taken literally in this article, where an alternative framework of ontological narrative is developed as the primary means through which an understanding of the relationships between gamers and technology is reached. It focuses on interviews with gaming households and is interested in the ways gamers actively narrate gaming experiences, their gaming selves, and the gaming technology. Using ontological narrative as a central signifier facilitates discussions of the relationship between technology and the social which go beyond what the technology ‘itself’ can offer. It also insists on a socio-political context for the discussion itself. Through a more ontological narrative approach, videogames are framed as agents in negotiations with the power dynamics of the house, but their agency is complicated through issues of performativity, pleasure and identity. Finally, this approach allows for a much more nuanced understanding of the way games and the meanings they hold for the gamers are enmeshed in the everyday.http://thirteen.fibreculturejournal.org/fcj-091-making-games-towards-a-theory-of-domestic-videogaming/games and everyday lifecomputer games |
| spellingShingle | Helen Thornham Making Games? Towards a theory of domestic videogaming Fibreculture Journal games and everyday life computer games |
| title | Making Games? Towards a theory of domestic videogaming |
| title_full | Making Games? Towards a theory of domestic videogaming |
| title_fullStr | Making Games? Towards a theory of domestic videogaming |
| title_full_unstemmed | Making Games? Towards a theory of domestic videogaming |
| title_short | Making Games? Towards a theory of domestic videogaming |
| title_sort | making games towards a theory of domestic videogaming |
| topic | games and everyday life computer games |
| url | http://thirteen.fibreculturejournal.org/fcj-091-making-games-towards-a-theory-of-domestic-videogaming/ |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT helenthornham makinggamestowardsatheoryofdomesticvideogaming |