War Games : Memory, Militarism and the Subject of Play - Philip Hammond

War Games

Memory, Militarism and the Subject of Play

By: Philip Hammond (Editor), Holger Pötzsch (Editor)

Paperback | 17 June 2021

At a Glance

Paperback


RRP $67.99

$65.75

or 4 interest-free payments of $16.44 with

 or 

Ships in 3 to 5 business days

Many of today's most commercially successful videogames, from Call of Duty to Company of Heroes, are war-themed titles that play out in what are framed as authentic real-world settings inspired by recent news headlines or drawn from history. While such games are marketed as authentic representations of war, they often provide a selective form of realism that eschews problematic, yet salient aspects of war. In addition, changes in the way Western states wage and frame actual wars makes contemporary conflicts increasingly resemble videogames when perceived from the vantage point of Western audiences.

This interdisciplinary volume brings together scholars from games studies, media and cultural studies, politics and international relations, and related fields to examine the complex relationships between military-themed videogames and real-world conflict, and to consider how videogames might deal with history, memory, and conflict in alternative ways. It asks: What is the role of videogames in the formation and negotiation of cultural memory of past wars? How do game narratives and designs position the gaming subject in relation to history, war and militarism? And how far do critical, anti-war/peace games offer an alternative or challenge to mainstream commercial titles?

More in Media Studies

Bondi Terror : The tragedy, the courage, the aftermath - Sharri Markson
What a Time to Be Alive! : Scenes from a Strange Age - Marina Hyde
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 2026 - Lawrence Booth

RRP $120.00

$83.75

30%
OFF
A Sudden Flicker of Light : A Revisionist History of the Movies - David Thomson
Careless People : A story of where I used to work - Sarah Wynn-Williams

RRP $24.99

$21.75

13%
OFF
The Kids' Guide to Speaking Your Mind Without Losing Your Cool - Matt Agnew
Co-Existence : The Next Phase of AI - Ethan Mollick

RRP $39.99

$31.75

21%
OFF
Bird by Bird : Some Instructions on Writing and Life - Anne Lamott
Medium Hot : Images in the Age of Heat - Hito Steyerl

RRP $26.99

$22.99

15%
OFF
Manufacturing Consent : The Political Economy of the Mass Media - Noam Chomsky
Privacy in the Age of Social Media : Beyond the Like - Manimuthu Arunmozhi
The Ends of Art Studies : Time, Transcendence and Boundaries - Fan Baiding