UCLA

Much of the historiography of videogames focuses on representational or participatory aspects of the genre. Here, videogames are considered as an art that is dependent on the harmony of those two seemingly separate pieces, the video and the game, with architecture servings as the fundamental link between the two. Architecture works by mobilizing distinct but simultaneous forms of attention, one aesthetic and one interactive. Looking closely at the way architecture creates immersion on a specific format of games, the use of representational aesthetics to affect participatory interaction is examined. While representational immersion is a critical facet of videogames, ultimately it is participation which provides players with a sense of agency need to become immersed. This immersion in the virtual world can manifest itself in the physical manipulation of the real world environment.