The Art of Videogames

Videogames aren’t just for children anymore. In fact, their fictional worlds now inspire us to make judgments about perceptual beauty, involve us in interpretation, and arouse our emotions. Reflecting the increasing technical and moral sophistication of the genre, The Art of Videogames presents a unique philosophical approach to the art of videogaming. The author, a philosopher as well as an avid gamer, explores how philosophical theories developed to address traditional art works – such as novels and film – can also be applied to videogames. Chapters delve into relationships between games and earlier artistic and entertainment media, employ the theory of fiction to explore how videogames allow for interactive fiction, look at the role of game narrative, and address the debate about the moral status of violent events depicted in videogame worlds. The text concludes by arguing that videogames do indeed qualify as a new and exciting form of representational art.
By situating videogames in the framework of analytic philosophy of the arts, The Art of Videogames offers unique philosophical insights while finally bridging the worlds of fantasy and philosophy.

Spis treści:
1. The New Art of Videogames
2. What Are Videogames Anyway?
2.1 On Definition
2.2 Theories of Gaming
2.3 A Definition of Videogames
3. Videogames and Fiction
3.1 From Tennis for Two to Worlds of Warcraft
3.2 Imaginary Worlds and Works of Fiction
3.3 Fictional or Virtual?
3.4 Interactive Fiction
4. Stepping into Fictional Worlds
4.1 Welcome to Rapture
4.2 Meet Niko Bellic
4.3 Experiencing Game Worlds
4.4 Acting in Game Worlds
5. Games through Fiction
5.1 The Nature of Gaming
5.2 What are the Rules of this Game?
5.3 Playing, Cheating, Fragging, and Griefing
6. Videogames and Narrative
6.1 The Stories Games Tell
6.2 Would You Kindly Put Down that Wrench?
6.3 Reconciling Games and Narratives
7. Emotion in Videogaming
7.1 How Can We Be Moved by the Fate of Niko Bellic?
7.2 My Fear of Mutants
7.3 The Role of the Emotions in Gaming
8. The Morality of Videogames
8.1 The Problem with Crime Simulators
8.2 Are Games Bad For You?
8.3 On Being Offensive
8.4 Sticking Up For Videogames
9. Videogames as Art
9.1 Are Videogames Art?
9.2 A Cluster Theory of Art
9.3 The Art in Videogames
9.4 New Art From Old Bottles
Glossary
References
Index


Nota biograficzna:
Grant Tavinor is a Lecturer in Philosophy at Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand. He has published articles on videogames in the journal Philosophy and Literature and has been playing videogames for as long as he can remember.

Okładka tylna:
Videogames aren’t just for children anymore. In fact, their fictional worlds now inspire us to make judgments about perceptual beauty, involve us in interpretation, and arouse our emotions. Reflecting the increasing technical and moral sophistication of the genre, The Art of Videogames presents a unique philosophical approach to the art of videogaming. The author, a philosopher as well as an avid gamer, explores how philosophical theories developed to address traditional art works – such as novels and film – can also be applied to videogames. Chapters delve into relationships between games and earlier artistic and entertainment media, employ the theory of fiction to explore how videogames allow for interactive fiction, look at the role of game narrative, and address the debate about the moral status of violent events depicted in videogame worlds. The text concludes by arguing that videogames do indeed qualify as a new and exciting form of representational art.
By situating videogames in the framework of analytic philosophy of the arts, The Art of Videogames o ffers unique philosophical insights while finally bridging the worlds of fantasy and philosophy.