Video Games and Configurative Performances

Abstract

A recent shift in computer game design involves a move away from 2-D level design in games like Prince of Persia (1992), or from isometric design in games like Warcraft, to 3-D design and a first-person point of view. This shift increases the senseof immersionby replicating the aesthetic approaches of first-person shooter games in other types of games, such as adventure games, role-playing games, and even strategy games, which previously used 2-D levels or isometric views. The shift in design is indicative of an overall trend tomakedesktopvideogames feelmore likevirtual reality.Myapproach here is to reexamine our concept of immersion in video games and suggest that immersion has become an excessively vague, all-inclusive concept. It is necessary to break down the concept of immersion into its more specific meanings and develop a more specific terminology. In this essay, I take the.