New Minor Added to HUM/CWL: Minor in Video Game Studies

Minor in Video Game Studies

This interdisciplinary program examines the many ways that video games intersect with our lives.  We recognize video games as a uniquely complex media that we encounter through many different modes of experience: as games, stories, challenges, escapes, vehicles of self-creation, platforms for interaction with others, marketed commodities, cultural representations, and so much more. 

This program is designed to introduce you to the complexity and excitement of many different forms of studying video games.  It is not directly about making video games.  Rather, it introduces students to ongoing scholarship, research projects, and disciplinary approaches to the study of video games, while also building potential bridges into vibrant fields of both study and industry.

The minor in Video Game Studies focuses student learning on questions about the personal, social, and ethical impact of design, representation, and involvement in video games. We invite you to experience different disciplinary approaches to answering such urgent questions as: How have video games affected contemporary cultures and values? Do they influence our personal attitudes and choices? What responsibilities do games have for representing people, or providing safe spaces for marginalized individuals and communities? Can video games serve as vehicles for social or political change? In our program, you will develop your own unique interdisciplinary approach to complex questions facing us today.