Computer Games and Interactive Digital Narrative
The object of this research is to understand the functions of agency, materiality, interactivity, and play as elements that shape our experience of algorithmic narratives.
Main content
Videogames offer a unique platform for exploring complex narratives, fostering empathy, and providing players with agency in virtual worlds. Understanding how videogames impact player experiences and influence their perceptions can inform not only the gaming industry but also broader discussions on digital culture, entertainment, and the evolving landscape of storytelling in the digital age.
The Computer Games and Interactive Digital Narrative research node studies the intersection between player and game in the shaping of narrative experiences.
How does agency and play affect the way we understand narratives? How does the algorithmic logic of computer games affect the way we interact with narratives? What is the role of emotion, immersion, and empathy in creating narrative experiences in computer games? These are some of the questions that this node explores.
To answer these and other questions, the research node will use player-centric methods. It will combine ethnographic research, biometric studies, and co-design to understand current interactive digital narratives, as well as explore the potential for new forms of narratives that combine an algorithmic logic with play and agency to better understand the myriads of stories out there, including marginalized stories that previously have been overlooked.
The goal is to understand how the digital has affected the way we tell stories with games, and to develop better research methodologies to study this.