Videogames

As one of the first scholarly investigations of videogames as a distinctive form rather than as an adjunct to film or media study, Videogames is essentially a research monograph. The work is based on negotiating a path between those few studies that largely emanated from the research labs of behavioural psychology and the insights into videogame structure, interactivity, audience and fandom, and the feedback loops of interface that were Newman's particular research focus. This enabled him to provide an analytical synthesis of the emerging positions of ludology and narratology that both engaged with existing work and situated it within the context of media communication and cultural studies scholarship. Two of the areas of enquiry are illustrative of the position of the work within Newman's research trajectory. First, the investigation of videogame structure and the development of a continuum of participative engagement draws on his original work that began in 1994 during his PhD and was developed through subsequent journal articles. (2002). The discussion of the 'non-interactivity' of videogames and the model of that highlights the kinaesthetic engagement have proved particularly influential and are often cited in subsequent discussions of character and interactivity (e.g. Dovey and Kennedy 2006) and has ensured that it remains a key text for game studies curricula in the UK and USA (and recommended by the Digital Games Research Association, DiGRA). Second, the investigation of the fan cultures and shadow economy of videogaming not only developed the audience based approach to videogame play that Newman had begun in his analysis of interactivity and narrative and that was largely absent in extant literary and filmic approaches, but also showcased original research into the creativity and productivity of gamers and gaming cultures.

References
Dovey, J. and Kennedy, H.W. (2006) Game Cultures: Computer Games as New Media. Maidenhead: OUP