PSXExtreme on Ian Bogost and gaming's "goodness": Part II

PSXExtreme continues its discussion of HOW TO DO THINGS WITH VIDEOGAMES with Ian Bogost.

During the first part of our interview with author and professor Ian Bogost, we talked about how focusing on violence in games does an injustice to the medium, why we haven't managed to break into the mainstream media, and the tricky definition of "art."

And now, here's Part II:

PSXE: Do you think someone who plays video games as a primary hobby is any different than someone who lists movies or music as their primary hobby?

Bogost: "In the book, I try to eviscerate the label of 'gamer.' You can be really into music and somehow, that doesn't consume your whole identity. We've been holding on to this identity of 'gamer' as a way of identifying ourselves. Games are interesting and appealing for various reasons, but there's always other stuff that interests us, too. So by creating this perception that there's this gamer planet where all the gamers are isolated from everyone else hasn't done us any favors.

It doesn't help us advance the cause of games, so the 'gamer' label is worth rejecting and eliminating."

Published in: PSXExtreme
By: Ben Dutka


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