Videogames as an 'Unheroic' Medium: The Child Hero's Journey. Issue 5 (July 2023)
- Record Type:
- Journal Article
- Title:
- Videogames as an 'Unheroic' Medium: The Child Hero's Journey. Issue 5 (July 2023)
- Main Title:
- Videogames as an 'Unheroic' Medium: The Child Hero's Journey
- Authors:
- Reay, Emma
- Abstract:
- In this article, I examine two contemporary videogames that engage critically and imaginatively with conventional definitions of heroism. In Röki (Polygon Treehouse) and Knights and Bikes (Foam Sword Games), the child-avatars loosen the connection between maturity and self-reliance by framing interdependence as both an inevitable and a desirable condition of human society. Furthermore, by emphasizing children's supposed malleability, these games insist on the relationality of identities: they suggest that one's identity depends on the interactions one has with individuals and institutions. I suggest that by centering cooperation, these games destabilize myths of independence and autonomy that surround the lone hero of hyper-individualism and thereby challenge assumptions about the kinds of heroism videogames can portray.
- Is Part Of:
- Games and culture. Volume 18:Issue 5(2023)
- Journal:
- Games and culture
- Issue:
- Volume 18:Issue 5(2023)
- Issue Display:
- Volume 18, Issue 5 (2023)
- Year:
- 2023
- Volume:
- 18
- Issue:
- 5
- Issue Sort Value:
- 2023-0018-0005-0000
- Page Start:
- 559
- Page End:
- 577
- Publication Date:
- 2023-07
- Subjects:
- cooperative play -- heroism -- the hero's journey -- childhood -- multimodality
Games -- Social aspects -- Periodicals
Video games -- Social aspects -- Periodicals
Computer games -- Social aspects -- Periodicals
Interactive multimedia -- Social aspects -- Periodicals
303.4834 - Journal URLs:
- http://gac.sagepub.com/ ↗
http://journals.sagepub.com/home/gac ↗
http://www.uk.sagepub.com ↗ - DOI:
- 10.1177/15554120221115395 ↗
- Languages:
- English
- ISSNs:
- 1555-4120
- Deposit Type:
- Legaldeposit
- View Content:
- Available online (eLD content is only available in our Reading Rooms) ↗
- Physical Locations:
- British Library DSC - BLDSS-3PM
British Library HMNTS - ELD Digital store - Ingest File:
- 27113.xml