November 21, 2007

Trigger Happy Trigger Happy is a book about the aesthetics of videogames — what they share with cinema, the history of painting, or literature; and what makes them different, in terms of form, psychology and semiotics. It was first published in 2000; this is the revised edition with the updated Afterword written in 2004. It’s offered under a CC license, for a limited time only. I’m not sure how limited that time will be, so grab it while it’s hot.

I've not read the book yet, but Steven Poole's columns in Edge were always interesting.

posted by dng 17 years ago
  • Interesting stuff. Downloaded it for lunch hour reading. Nice primer in the graphical techniques used from 3D Ant Attack to the latest stuff. I liked the stuff about deliberately limiting the player in what they can do or carry, and how that can backfire. E.g. arbitrary limits on numbers of objects carried, or invisible barriers to stop you going down a particular path.