MIT: Independent Activities Period: IAP

IAP 2016



Video Games as Media Hybrids

Michal Zmuda

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions

Video games are deeply grounded in a culture of technological progress. They are promoted as a new form of entertainment, after all they introduce new aesthetics and new ways of engagement. This notion often overshadows the fact that video games are hybrids, not only games but also a conglomerate of different medialities, like movies, literature, drama, radio etc...

This series will explore how video games approach old media they were built upon. We will see how they implement, interpret and refashion them. We will try to examine: how the historical and sociological context of given media is adapted by games, how the gameplay influences and reshapes those medialities, what those medialities can tell us about video game medium itself.

The series of 3 meetings will consist of lectures and discussions. Sessions may be attended individually, but it is recommended that participants attend all of them.

Sponsor(s): Comparative Media Studies/Writing
Contact: Michal Zmuda, mzmuda@MIT.EDU


Jan/21 Thu 12:00PM-01:00PM 56-162

Video Games and Remediation

Introduction to Jay David Bolter's and Richard Grusin's concept of remediation. We will explore how it applies to video games.


Jan/26 Tue 12:00PM-01:00PM 56-162

Video Games as Interpretation of Literature

Can the concept of intertextuality be used for interpretation of video games? We are going to find out by analyzing games based on literary works.


Jan/28 Thu 12:00PM-01:00PM 56-162

Historical remediation

We will discuss how games create historical authenticity not only with gameplay and narration, but also with the use of different media languages.