The place of play : toys and digital cultures

Summary: "Increasingly, technology is at stake in toys, games and playing. With the immense popularity of computer games, questions concerning the role and function of technology in play have become more pressing. A key aspect of the increasing technologization and digitalization of both toys and play is the vagueness of borders between producers, consumers and players. In these so-called participatory cultures, players do not simply play with toys designed behind closed doors but become co-designers. This book takes a critical look at the advantages and disadvantages of participatory cultures and places the changing world of toys, games and playing in a historical context. Contrary to many New Media and computer game studies, this book takes the historical background of these phenomena into account by situating the changing world of play in the context of the social and cultural processes of commodification, domestication and urbanization from the 1850s to the present."--Publisher description.

Record details

ISBN: 9789048507962 (e-ISBN)
ISBN: 9789089640802
ISBN: 9048507960 (e-ISBN)
ISBN: 9089640800
Physical Description: print
159 p. : ill ; 24 cm.
Publisher: Amsterdam : Amsterdam University Press, c2009.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:

Includes bibliographical references (p. 139-151) and index.

Formatted Contents Note:

Introduction -- Changing practices, shifting sites -- Core and periphery of play -- Pt. I. New children, different toys -- The child as consumer -- Domesticating play -- The child in the city -- Toys as containers, mediators and promoters -- Pt. II. From solitary to networked geographies of play -- LEGO toys : from wooden blocks to plastic bricks -- Brand extension & product differentiation -- Bringing the fans into the company -- Many-to-many geographies of play -- Pt. III. Commercial geographies of play -- Toy towns and simulated cities -- A 21st-century dollhouse : The Sims -- Unwanted play practices in The Sims Online -- Commodified geographies of play -- Pt. IV. Serious geographies of play -- Participation tools -- Participation processes -- Purposeful play -- Serious geographies of play -- Conclusion -- Changing geographies of play -- Making do.