Multiplayer: The Social Aspects of Digital Gaming (Routledge Studies in European Communication Research and Education)

In the past decade, digital games have become a widely accepted form of media entertainment, moving from the traditional 'core gamer' community into the mainstream media market.

With millions of people now enjoying gaming as interactive entertainment there has been a huge increase in interest in social multiplayer gaming activities. However, despite the explosive growth in the field over the past decade, many aspects of social gaming still remain unexplored, especially from a media and communication studies perspective.

Multiplayer: Social Aspects of Digital Gaming is the first edited volume of its kind that takes a closer look at the various forms of human interaction in and around digital games, providing an overview of debates, past and present.

The book is divided into five sections that explore the following areas:

• Social Aspects of Digital Gaming
• Social Interactions in Virtual Worlds
• Online Gaming
• Co-located and Console Gaming
• Risks and Challenges of Social Gaming

This engaging interdisciplinary book will appeal to upper level students, postgrads and researchers in games research, specifically those focusing on new media and digital games, as well as researchers in media studies and mass communication.

Thorsten Quandt is a Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Münster. He is the founding chair of ECREA’s Temporary Working Group ‘Digital Games Research’. His research and teaching fields include online communication, media innovation research, digital games and online journalism.

Sonja Kröger (M.A. in Education, Media Studies and German literature) works as a junior lecturer at the Institute of Communication Studies at the University of Hohenheim. Her research and teaching fields include media education, young children & media, and digital games with a focus on advertising.