Games, gamers, and digital entertainment in the home: sociological studies of computation and play

Опубликовано 6 сентября 2016, 16:32

Video games are big business, but can they be much bigger businesses?  To do so requires the retention of existing players and the expansion of the player population beyond its historically core constituency of young men.  Getting other demographics to engage the console experience may require modifying the product to fit the needs, interests, and issues of non-traditional players.  The success of the Wii is an indicator of this shift away from technical superiority to more inclusive play experience.  In this talk I will review our research conducted in the homes of a number of video playing households.  These visits highlighted several important aspects about the use and conflicts that emerge around the console.  Complementary research drawn from data generated by an online game discussion board offers additional insight into the challenges non-traditional gamers (such as women) face when engaging with male-centric content.