Course description

This course will study digital games (also known as computer games and video games). Digital games are not just the product of an important entertainment industry; they are increasingly seen as defining a generation and possessing important characteristics with the potential to change the world. In this course, we will consider a variety of games, from simple puzzle games to massively multiplayer online role-playing games. We will study the games within the context of literary and cultural studies, analysing how the games reflect and challenge the cultures from which they arise. Hypertext theory and ludology will be major forces driving our discussions of the games, but we will also examine the games from other perspectives. We will focus a lot of our attention on character, story, images, sounds, movement, interactivity, consumption, and symbolic interpretation. It is hoped that the class as a whole will contribute to defining the field of the advanced academic study of digital games.
      Note: Students will be expected to gain intimate familiarity with the games on the course syllabus. Students might have to purchase access to some of the games, which means having access to a personal computer (desktop/laptop; Windows/Mac) capable of running the games. No video game consoles (Nintendo, Playstation, Xbox, etc.) will be needed. Some games the course might study are: Pac-Man, Tetris, Robot Unicorn Attack, Bloons Tower Defense, Minecraft, Plants vs. Zombies, World of Warcraft, and Spore.