What is it about?
This research constructs a theory of how one's style of gameplay is related to aesthetic experience and self-formation. Playstyle has often been viewed either as a strategy for winning a game, or as a way of displaying one's personal style. The article highlights that playing games in one's own way is a matter of what kind of playing provides aesthetic enjoyment for the player, and that players are not completely in control of how they play games.
Featured Image
Why is it important?
This research highlights that the ways people play games are based on aesthetic values. Winning strategy or a personal way of playing are not the sole reasons for playing in different styles. Instead, playing in one's own way can be based on what kind of playing feels beautiful or pleasurable for the player. This allows to understand how different ways of playing can be varied and not locked to competitive strategies or to the player's personal style.
Perspectives
In this article I investigate the personal and societal meanings of gameplay with theories of philosophical aesthetics. I hope this article provides readers with new perspectives of why games are played in different ways, how playing games can form one's sense of self, and how games can be designed to bring aesthetic enjoyment for players.
Johan Kalmanlehto
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Style Makes the Player? The Relation between Playstyle, Aesthetics and Subjectivity, Games Research and Practice, April 2025, ACM (Association for Computing Machinery),
DOI: 10.1145/3721120.
You can read the full text:
Contributors
The following have contributed to this page
