Game Play: Paratextuality in Contemporary Board Games

by Paul Booth

Overview

The 21st century has seen a board game renaissance. At a time when streaming television finds millions of viewers, video games garner billions of dollars, and social media grows ever more intense, little has been written about the rising popularity of board games. And yet board games are one of our fastest growing hobbies, with sales increasing every year. Today's board games are more than just your average rainy-day mainstay. Once associated solely with geek subcultures, complex and strategic board games are increasingly dominating the playful media environment.

The popularity of these complex board games mirrors the rise of more complex cult media products. In Game Play: Paratextuality in Contemporary Board Games, Paul Booth examines complex board games based on book, TV, and film franchises, including Doctor Who, The Walking Dead, Lord of the Rings, Star Trek, The Hunger Games and the worlds of H.P. Lovecraft. How does a game represent a cult world? How can narratives cross media platforms? By investigating the relationship between these media products and their board game versions, Booth illustrates the connections between cult media, gameplay, and narrative in a digital media environment.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781628927436
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	04/23/2015
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Paul Booth is Professor of Communication at DePaul University, USA. Booth's research interests include fandom, new technologies and media, popular culture, and cult media. He is the author of Time on TV (2012), Digital Fandom (2010), and Playing Fans (2014). He has edited Fan Phenomena: Doctor Who (2013), and has published numerous articles on fans, social media, and technology. He is currently enjoying a cup of coffee.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Part I: Understanding Games
Chapter 1 - Ludifying Lovecraft in Arkham Horror
Chapter 2 - Lord of the Rings as Convergent Gameplay
Chapter 3 - Transmedia Pathos and Plot in The Walking Dead
Part II: Understanding Media
Chapter 4 - Battlestar Galactica and Spimatic Meaning in Games
Chapter 5 - Mutability and Materiality in Star Trek
Chapter 6 - The Hunger Games and Fan Paratextual Participation
Chapter 7 - Narratives and Databases in Game of Thrones
Conclusion - Ludic Interaction in Doctor Who
Bibliography
Glossary of Terms
Index

Editorial Reviews

Booth's approach demonstrates exemplary textual analysis of games ... This book is that rare combination of solid critical methodologies alongside such clear enthusiasm for the subject matter that anyone with an interest in the hobby could enjoy just as easily as those in the academic fields of Game, Media or Film Studies.” –Intensities: The Journal of Cult Media

“Game Play [Booth’s] latest book, is a sustained analysis of licensed board games. … Booth bypasses earlier games in this genre, focusing instead on more recent examples adapted from ‘texts’ beloved by geeks like The Walking Dead and The Hunger Games. This is, he notes, a complicated media environment where comic books, TV shows, movies, and board games overlap and interconnect.” –Raymond Simon, Games Magazine

“Having chosen a Cylon Leader character, Booth commandeers a fine act of infiltration, working licensed board games' way into the Galactica of media studies, showing exactly how and why it matters – both by itself and as an outgrowth of other media properties – as successfully as an unchecked centurion edging down the boarding party track on its way to certain victory. Highly recommended.” —Jonathan Gray, Professor of Media and Cultural Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA, and author of Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts

“Licensed board games based on popular media franchises have long been considered bereft of creative output, if they were considered at all. Paul Booth challenges that assumption by delving deeply and respectfully into that world, arguing for more nuanced considerations of board games as paratextual adaptations of their respective universes. Bringing together studies of fandom, media universes and games, Game Play offers a sustained and rewarding examination of contemporary licensed board games.” —Mia Consalvo, Professor and Canada Research Chair in Game Studies and Design, Concordia University, Canada

“Paul Booth's Game Play: Paratextuality in Contemporary Board Games is a ground-breaking piece of work. Demonstrating a keen eye for detail, critical analysis and genuine affection for the art of play Booth has produced a much-needed book that shines light on an often overlooked area of popular culture. With chapters on major franchise board games like Star Trek and The Lord of the Rings and those based on acclaimed weird fiction writer H.P. Lovecraft Game Play offers us new ways of understanding the joys and social practices of board game culture. Fans and scholars alike will want to read this - and then go break out the dice!” —Lincoln Geraghty, Reader in Popular Media Cultures, University of Portsmouth, UK

From the Publisher

Paul Booth's Game Play: Paratextuality in Contemporary Board Games is a ground-breaking piece of work. Demonstrating a keen eye for detail, critical analysis and genuine affection for the art of play Booth has produced a much-needed book that shines light on an often overlooked area of popular culture. With chapters on major franchise board games like Star Trek and The Lord of the Rings and those based on acclaimed weird fiction writer H.P. Lovecraft Game Play offers us new ways of understanding the joys and social practices of board game culture. Fans and scholars alike will want to read this - and then go break out the dice!

Lincoln Geraghty

Licensed board games based on popular media franchises have long been considered bereft of creative output, if they were considered at all. Paul Booth challenges that assumption by delving deeply and respectfully into that world, arguing for more nuanced considerations of board games as paratextual adaptations of their respective universes. Bringing together studies of fandom, media universes and games, Game Play offers a sustained and rewarding examination of contemporary licensed board games.

Mia Consalvo

Having chosen a Cylon Leader character, Booth commandeers a fine act of infiltration, working licensed board games' way into the Galactica of media studies, showing exactly how and why it matters - both by itself and as an outgrowth of other media properties - as successfully as an unchecked centurion edging down the boarding party track on its way to certain victory. Highly recommended.

Jonathan Gray