texts

Assemblage of Play

“The Assemblage of Play”, Games and Culture, vol. 4, no. 4, 331-339, 2009.

(Correction to text: This piece was funded by the MacArthur Foundation.)

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Abstract
This article explores the notion of assemblage for computer game studies. Drawing on this framework the author proposes a multi-faceted methodological approach to the study of games and the play experience. Drawing on user-created mods (modifications) in the game World of Warcraft and an analysis of a raid encounter there, a discussion is undertaken about the relationship between technological artifacts, game experience, and sociality. Primary to the consideration is an argument for the centralizing the inter-relation of a variety of actors and nodes when analyzing lived play in computer games.