Introduction: Videogames as Performances

Abstract

This chapter presents a structural overview of the book, introducing key terms and concepts. The chapter opens with the figure of a door as a way of intertwining two central themes: framing and performativity. The approach to performativity taken by the book is distinguished from other significant traditions and texts in the academic study of games. The central contribution (a comparative methodology for analyzing videogame performances) is outlined along with the interdisciplinary engagements of the text.