Overview

The immensely popular Grand Theft Auto game series has inspired a range of reactions among players and commentators, and a hot debate in the popular media. These essays from diverse theoretical perspectives expand the discussion by focusing scholarly analysis on the games, particularly Grand Theft Auto III (GTA3), Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (GTA:VC), and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (GTA:SA). Part One of the book discusses the fears, lawsuits, legislative proposals, and other public reactions to Grand Theft Auto, detailing the conflict between the developers of adult oriented games and various new forms of censorship. Depictions of race and violence, the pleasure of the carnivalistic gameplay, and the significance of sociopolitical satire in the series are all important elements in this controversy. It is argued that the general perception of digital changed fundamentally following the release of Grand Theft Auto III. The second section of the book approaches the games as they might be studied absent of the controversy. These essays study why and how players meaningfully play Grand Theft Auto games, reflecting on the elements of daily life that are represented in the games. They discuss the connection between game space and real space and the many ways that players mediate the symbols in a game with their minds, computers, and controllers.

Full Product Details

Author:   Nate Garrelts
Publisher:   McFarland & Co Inc
Imprint:   McFarland & Co Inc
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 1.30cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.358kg
ISBN:  

9780786428229

ISBN 10:   0786428228
Pages:   264
Publication Date:   19 October 2006
Recommended Age:   From 18 years
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Undergraduate
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Available To Order  
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Table of Contents

Table of Contents An Introduction to Grand Theft Auto Studies      PART ONE: GRAND THEFT AUTO V. THE POWER-GO-ROUND .1 Spilling Hot Coffee? Grand Theft Auto as Contested Cultural Product      2. Political Interface: The Banning of GTA3 in Australia      3. Virtual Gangstas, Coming to a Suburban House Near You: Demonization, Commodification, and Policing Blackness      4. Play-Fighting: Understanding Violence in Grand Theft Auto III      5. The Subversive Carnival of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas      6. Grand Theft Video: Running and Gunning for the U.S. Empire      7. From Stompin’ Mushrooms to Bustin’ Heads: Grand Theft Auto III as Paradigm Shift      PART TWO: A GRAND THEFT AUTO WAY OF LIFE 8. Everyday Play: Cruising for Leisure in San Andreas      9. Cruising in San Andreas: Ludic Space and Urban Aesthetics in Grand Theft Auto      10. Experiencing Place in Los Santos and Vice City      11. Positioning and Creating the Semiotic Self in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas      12. Against Embedded Agency: Subversion and Emergence in GTA3      13. Inviting Subversion: Metalepses and Tmesis in Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto Series      14. Playing with Style: Negotiating Digital Game Studies      About the Contributors      Index     

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Author Information

Nate Garrelts is a professor of English at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan.

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