Gaming and Gamers in Times of Pandemic

This edited collection brings in multiple scholarly perspectives to examine the impact of the pandemic and resulting government policies, especially lockdowns, on one particular cultural sphere: games. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted virtually every aspect of our lives, regardless of where we live. In the initial months, many industry reports noted the unexpected positive impact on online digital game sales. Games were not just lockdown-proof, but boosted by lockdowns. Stay-at-home orders triggered a rush toward games as an alternative form of entertainment, and the ubiquity of mobile phones allowed wider than ever participation. Gaming and Gamers in Times of Pandemic studies how the COVID-19 pandemic affected game players, game developers, game journalists and game scholars alike in many other ways, starting with the most direct – illness, and sometimes death. Some effects are temporary, others are here to stay. Cover Half Title Title Copyright Contents Figures Table Introduction: Gamers and Gaming in the Strangest of Times Part One During the Pandemic ... 1 Roblox in Lockdown: Understanding Young People’s Digital Social Play in the Pandemic (Hugh Davies and Larissa Hjor 2 “I’ve Played More Minecraft with the Kids”: Gaming and Family Dynamics in the Early Stage of the COVID-19 Pandemic (Mikko 3 Uses and Appropriations of the Cozy Game Animal Crossing: New Horizons during the Lockdown1 (Gabrielle Trépanie 4 Gaming (the Pandemic) with Vision Impairment: An Autoethnographic Account (Lobna Hassan) Part two The Lasting Impact of the Pandemic 5 When the Virtual Office Became Reality: Digital Game Development during and after the Lockdown (Jakub Majewski) 6 The Influence of COVID-19 on Newspaper Discourses on Video Games in Cross-cultural Perspective: Between Safe Social Spaces an 7 A Review of Studies on Location-Based Live-Service Games during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Players’ Behavior and Reluctance to Re 8 Pandemic Gaming and Wholesome Philosophy: How New Players Reimaged Gaming Practices (Noel Brett and Sasha Soraine) Part three Lessons Learned 9 “It Was All without Emotions, and This Wasn’t the Same Anymore”: “Replacing” Traditional Sports with E-Sports during the COVI 10 Playing as the World Falls Apart: The Use of Video Games during the COVID-19 Crisis—the Case of Italy (Arianna Boldi, 11 Reflection Inception: Creating a Reflective COVID-19 Game by Reflecting on the Pandemic (Adam Jerrett) Contributors Index