narrative

Ken Perlin on a game-narrative difference that makes a difference: does agency, rather than identifiction, make characters in a game seem more real than those in novels or films?

Marta Werner uncages Emily Dickinson's fragments.

Pat Harrigan and Noah Wardrip-Fruin introduce Cyberdrama, the first section of First Person.

Kenneth Hite argues that the long-running, H.P. Lovecraft-inspired Call of Cthulhu franchise differs from traditional tabletop role-playing in its focus on suspense rather than character growth. Hite's analysis suggests that in its origins and emphasis on narrative structure Cthulhu is a highly literary game.

Espen Aarseth foresees the quick end of Murray's "story-game hybrid" and suggests instead a "critical theory of games."

Kiki Benzon and Mark Z. Danielewski discuss his 2006 book Only Revolutions at the International Festival of Authors in Toronto.

In response to Perlin, Victoria Vesna reiterates the unique realism of games.

The man behind The Sims, Will Wright, places narrative controls back in the hands of gamers.

Eric Dean Rasmussen explores Lynne Tillman's "cognitive aesthetic," suggesting that her work is powered by the generative disconnect between asignifying affect and signifying emotion. He argues that her 1998 novel, No Lease on Life, examines the role of affectively sustained universal values in responding politically to the neoliberal city.