Game Studies:
Once upon a time, “game studies” meant glowing oil-paintings depicting dead pheasants & hares. Now… stand by your beds, because a new Game Studies is on its way; academics write about computer games. Let’s hope it doesn’t make the same painful mistakes that media studies, film studies and critical theory did. It’s probably destined to remain a small field, though; just do the maths. Film Studies; watch film (90 mins), write paper (one week). Game Studies; play game (two months), play game again & again in the wide variety of characters, plotlines and skill-level options (a year), write about it (one week). So it’s hardly an attractive proposition for academics seeking to boost their Department’s research publications rating.