Playing war

Bibliographic Data

ID3978309
AuthorsIsabel Shaw (0000-0002-4289-1740, corresponding author), Ian Graham Ronald Shaw
Year2010
Volume11
Issue8
Pages789-803
Publication date2010-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial & Cultural Geography (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1464-9365 • E-ISSN: 1470-1197
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14649365.2010.521855
OpenAlexW4237178110
LanguageEN
Citations received46

This paper argues that war video games are transitional spaces that connect players to the 'war on terror'. It explores the pervasive influence of militarism in video games and how the US Army is enlisting play as an active force in blurring the distinctions between civilian and soldier. The paper begins by theorizing what exactly it means to 'play', and settles on the concept of 'transitional space' provided by psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott. It then investigates the 'military entertainment complex', an assemblage of institutions and sites that produce military video games for commercial release. Next, the paper looks at the aesthetics of video games, revealing an entrenched colonial logic instrumental for military recruitment and consent. The final section pulls all of this together to argue that video games are transitional spaces instrumental to understanding the everyday geographies of violence, terror, and warfare

Aesthetics · Art · Assemblage (archaeology · Entertainment · Media studies · Militarism · Multimedia · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Video game · Computer Science · Digital Games and Media · Gender, Feminism, and Media · History · Law · Youth Education and Societal Dynamics

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