Initial reactions to Alien Phenomenology
This is just a quick post to point you to a few early reactions to Alien Phenomenology. First, Levi Bryant has two posts up, From an object’s point of view and A brief note on units and operations. Substantive stuff as usual. Levi draws productive connections to Jakob von Uexküll, for example. Second, Alex Reid discusses the connections between alien… read more
In the New Scientist "Big Ideas" column
Are everyday objects, such as apple pies or microchips, aliens? It depends how you think about what it’s like to be a thing. This essay appeared in the
Mark Sample's assignment for How to Do Things with Videogames
I’ve been flattered to see so many courses in media studies and related fields adopt my 2011 book How to Do Things with Videogames so quickly. But my favorite use of the book in a classroom thus far comes from Mark Sample’s Videogames in Critical Contexts course. He’s assigned his students to write a “missing chapter” for the book. Here’s… read more
First image out of my Lytro
I just received my Lytro lightfield camera. It’s the first commercialized plenoptic camera, which is an optical device with an array of lenses to capture a scene at multiple focal points. There’s a lot of terrible rhetoric in the tech and electronics communities about this camera, claiming that it will allow you to take a photograph and “worry about focusing… read more
The style of thatgamecompany
While we often see the evolution of artists working in old media, ever-shifting technical terrain tends to obscure videogame makers’ aesthetic trajectories. In Thatgamecompany’s pathbreaking and gorgeous games for the Playstation 3, we get the rare chance to watch these artists at work against a fixed technological backdrop. My review of thatgamecompany’s Journey, in the context of a discussion of… read more
Anna Anthropy's new book
These days, everybody can make and distribute a photograph, or a video, or a book. Rise of the Videogame Zinesters shows you that everyone can make a videogame, too. But why should they? For Anna Anthropy, it’s not for fame or for profit, but for the strange, aimless beauty of personal creativity. That’s my back cover blurb for Anna Anthropy’s… read more
My schedule for this year's event
It’s almost time for the Game Developers Conference again! To think, last year I was struggling to escape the grip of a certain cow game, and this year I’ve perhaps almost partly escaped the grip of a certain cow game. This year I’ve got a relatively light schedule. First, Ben Sawyer, Jane McGonigal and I are running the new GameIT… read more
or, A Slow Year at the Telfair
This week, the Telfair Museums will open Game Change: Videogames as Art Medium and Inspiration. My game A Slow Year is among the pieces that will be on exhibit from February 27 to April 1, 2012. I’ll be in Savannah Thursday evening for the Game Change panel, from 6-8pm at the Jepson Cetner. Other artists in the show include Kunal… read more
An update on my next book
I talked to my publisher this week and got news that Alien Phenomenology is scheduled to land in the warehouse by March 7. It should be shipping to booksellers immediately thereafter. If you preorder from Amazon.com, you’ll see it ship out that very week. While I can’t make any promises, sometimes these dates move up thanks to happy accident, so… read more
Me on NPR's Radio Times with Marty Moss-Coane
I’ve had a chance to be on a number of different radio programs, both national and local. I really like doing radio, particularly longer programs on NPR and CBC since the additional time really allows more sustained exploration of a topic. It’s also particularly fun and weird to be on a show you’ve listened to extensively. I did NPR’s Talk… read more