A Moment in the Life of a Generation (Why Game Studies Now?)

Game studies entering academia means that games are finally positioned at the heart of a dedicated field of learning. There is a tension however as the need and demand for game studies has faced the opposing, structural forces that slowdown the development. It is hard to ignore the cultural significance of digital games and play, particularly as numerous game play experiences underlie personal relations and histories within an ICT-Penetrated society. Rather than a single “game culture,” there are several of them, as visible and invisible sense-making structures that surface not only in games themselves, but in the language, practices, and sensibilities adopted and developed by groups and individuals. As the academia is loaded with expectations of providing games industry with workforce or opportunities for more innovative and experimental game culture, it is good to remember that the fundamental task of universities is to create knowledge and promote learning.