Game Studies

Video games are not only a consumer product for leisure time in our living rooms, via streaming services and at conventions - they are considered the central (pop) cultural phenomenon of the 21st century. Likewise, their analogue counterpart remains important as a part of social practices. Moreover, games are - indisputably - a rich and valuable subject of the humanities and social sciences alike. The relevance of this research area is reflected in the interdisciplinary Game Studies series, which is a framework that encompasses thinnking about and with games. It gathers monographies, doctoral and postdoctoral theses, anthologies and essays.
Depending on the studies' respective focus, they appear in one of the following three subject-specific profiles: »Theory and Aesthetics« deals with the textual and philosophical analysis of games. Studies within this profile also discuss the ways in which games are a literary, cinematic, narrative, artistic and performative medium. The profile »Culture and History« is dedicated to the question of how games participate in life-world, cultural and historical discourses. Furthermore, it includes works that explore the didactic, mediating and transformational potential of games. Code aspects, rules, structures as well as technical conditions and game-specific production aesthetics are the focus of the profile »Design and Mechanics«.