People to Know
The Forefathers
E.M. Avedon
Roger Callois (1913-1978)
Famed sociologist whose study of games led to uniting various academic fields in a forerunner of ludology.
His work, Man, Play, and Games, is a key early insight into what to study and what can be revealed.
Building on the work of Johan Huizinga, he developed a system of dimensions for categorizing games.
Dimension 1: Is it a game of impulse (paidia--tumultuous, spontaneous activity) or control (ludus-- subordination to the rules)?
Dimension 2: Is it a game of competition (agon), chance (alea), simulation (mimicry), or vertigo (ilinx--confusion and chaos)?
Callois categorized Chess as agon-paidia competition dominated by tumultuous, spontaneous, activity.
Johan Huizinga
J.H.R. Murray
The Birth and Growth of Ludology
Irving Finkel
Gonzalo Frasca
Jesper Juul
Things to Know
The Forefathers
E.M. Avedon
Roger Callois (1913-1978)
Famed sociologist whose study of games led to uniting various academic fields in a forerunner of ludology.
His work, Man, Play, and Games, is a key early insight into what to study and what can be revealed.
Building on the work of Johan Huizinga, he developed a system of dimensions for categorizing games.
Dimension 1: Is it a game of impulse (paidia--tumultuous, spontaneous activity) or control (ludus-- subordination to the rules)?
Dimension 2: Is it a game of competition (agon), chance (alea), simulation (mimicry), or vertigo (ilinx--confusion and chaos)?
Callois categorized Chess as agon-paidia competition dominated by tumultuous, spontaneous, activity.
Johan Huizinga
J.H.R. Murray
The Birth and Growth of Ludology
Irving Finkel
Gonzalo Frasca
Jesper Juul
Things to Know