This special issue examines the role of games in American culture. Since the 1950s, emerging from the military-industrial complex and early computation contexts, video games have appeared across computer, arcade, console, mobile, virtual reality, and augmented reality platforms. Digital games are now played by an estimated 2.5 billion people worldwide, as the medium becomes an ever more popular choice for how people spend their money, time, and attention. Given its increasing cultural importance, this medium demands in-depth and ongoing analysis.
With the broadening formal and cultural scope of games, the medium also demands analysis from experts in a wide variety of disciplines. The range of game genres—from puzzle-platformers to first-person shooters, from survival horror to rhythm games—has exploded since the emergence of video games in the mid-twentieth century. And beyond entertainment, the variety of audiences addressed by digital games becomes apparent through terms such as artgames, indie games, serious games,...
