Full Description
This volume examines fifty of the most important video games that have contributed significantly to the history, development, or culture of the medium, providing an overview of video games from their beginning to the present day.
This volume covers a variety of historical periods and platforms, genres, commercial impact, artistic choices, contexts of play, typical and atypical representations, uses of games for specific purposes, uses of materials or techniques, specific subcultures, repurposing, transgressive aesthetics, interfaces, moral or ethical impact, and more. Key video games featured include Animal Crossing, Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto, The Legend of Zelda, Minecraft, PONG, Super Mario Bros., Tetris, and World of Warcraft. Each game is closely analyzed in order to properly contextualize it, to emphasize its prominent features, to show how it creates a unique experience of gameplay, and to outline the ways it might speak about society and culture. The book also acts as a highly accessible showcase to a range of disciplinary perspectives that are found and practiced in the field of game studies.
With each entry supplemented by references and suggestions for further reading, Fifty Key Video Games is an indispensable reference for anyone interested in video games.
Contents
1. Adventure (1979), 2. Angry Birds (2009), 3. Animal Crossing (2001), 4. Assassin's Creed Origins (2017), 5. Bejeweled (2001), 6. BRAID (2008), 7. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009), 8. Dance Dance Revolution (1998), 9. Diablo (1996), 10. Donkey Kong (1981), 11. DOOM (1993), 12. Dragon's Lair (1983), 13. The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall (1996), 14. Elite (1984), 15. EVE Online (2003), 16. FarmVille (2009), 17. FIFA 14 (2013), 18. Final Fantasy VII (1997), 19. Fortnite Battle Royale (2017), 20. Grand Theft Auto III (2001), 21. Guitar Hero (2005), 22. Half-Life (1998), 23. Journey (2012), 24. King's Quest (1984), 25. The Legend of Zelda (1986), 26. Minecraft (2009), 27. Mortal Kombat (1992), 28. Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit (1998), 29. No Man's Sky (2016), 30. The Oregon Trail (1971), 31. Pac-Man (1980), 32. Pokémon Go (2016), 33. PONG (1972), 34. Portal (2007), 35. Resident Evil (1996), 36. Riven (1997), 37. Sid Meier's Civilization (1991), 38. SimCity (1989), 39. The Sims 4 (2014), 40. Space Invaders (1978), 41. StarCraft (1998), 42. Super Mario 64 (1996), 43. Super Mario Bros. (1985), 44. Tetris (1984), 45. This War of Mine (2014), 46. Ultima IV: The Quest of the Avatar (1985), 47. Wii Sports (2006), 48. Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger (1994), 49. World of Warcraft (2004), 50. Zork (1980)
