Game Studies - “They call it political to degrade what they disagree with.” How players understand the terms politics and political in videogame discourse

gamestudies.org · 10,489 words · saved by 1 readers

Based on a qualitative interview study, this article investigates how game enthusiasts in Norway understand the political and what they associate with politics in the context of videogames, and to what degree players experience game culture and its associated discourse as political. Grounded in cultural studies research on the political relevance of popular culture, we use a broad understanding of politics and the political to grasp the respondents’ experiences of how game discourse and political topics intersect. Results show that the topics most often associated with the political and politics among these respondents are connected to ideological struggle and resistance within game culture, with focus on identity politics and social issues. Keywords: game culture, player studies, interview study, political, politics, politicization Based in a qualitative interview study, this article investigates how game enthusiasts in Norway understand the political and what they associate with poli

Game Studies - “They call it political to degrade what they disagree with.” How players understand the terms politics and political in videogame discourse Game Studies volume 26 issue 2 April 2026 ISSN:1604-7982 the international journal of computer game research home about archive RSS Kristine Jørgensen Kristine Jørgensen is Professor of Media Studies at University of Bergen. She is the author of Gameworld Interfaces and A Comprehensive Study of Sound in Computer Games , and the co-author of The Paradox of Transgression in Games . She is Principal Investigator at the Center for Digital Narrat

Game Studies - “They call it political to degrade what they disagree with.” How players understand the terms politics and political in videogame discourse

related reading