Overview

Over a mere three decades, the video game has become the entertainment medium of choice for millions of people, who now spend more time in the interactive virtual world of games than they do in watching movies or even television. The release of new games or game-playing equipment, such as the PlayStation 2, generates great excitement and even buying frenzies. Yet, until now, this giant on the popular culture landscape has received little in-depth study or analysis. In this book, Mark J. P. Wolf and four other scholars conduct the first thorough investigation of the video game as an artistic medium. The book begins with an attempt to define what is meant by the term """"video game"""" and the variety of modes of production within the medium. It moves on to a brief history of the video game, then applies the tools of film studies to look at the medium in terms of the formal aspects of space, time, narrative, and genre. The book also considers the video game as a cultural entity, object of museum curation, and repository of psychological archetypes. It closes with a list of video game research resources for further study.

Full Product Details

Author:   Mark J. P. Wolf ,  Ralph H. Baer
Publisher:   University of Texas Press
Imprint:   University of Texas Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 0.80cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.399kg
ISBN:  

9780292791503

ISBN 10:   029279150
Pages:   223
Publication Date:   01 April 2002
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

ForewordRalph H. BaerAcknowledgmentsIntroductionMark J. P. WolfI. The Emergence of the Video Game1. The Video Game as a MediumMark J. P. Wolf2. Super Mario NationSteven L. KentII. Formal Aspects of the Video Game3. Space in the Video GameMark J. P. Wolf4. Time in the Video GameMark J. P. Wolf5. Narrative in the Video GameMark J. P. Wolf6. Genre and the Video GameMark J. P. WolfIII. The Video Game in Society and Culture7. Hot Circuits: Reflections on the 1989 Video Game Exhibition of the American Museum of the Moving ImageRochelle Slovin8. Play It Again, Pac-ManCharles Bernstein9. Archetypes on Acid: Video Games and CultureRebecca R. TewsAppendix: Resources for Video Game Research Mark J. P. WolfIndexAbout the Contributors

Reviews

This book offers a historical, formal analysis of video games that no other book to date has provided in such detail... Wolf also effectively investigates the scientific and market forces that aligned with the development of video games to create a powerful cultural force. - Heather Gilmour, Executive Producer, American Film Institute New Media Ventures

Author Information

Mark J. P. Wolf is Professor of Communication at Concordia University Wisconsin.

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