Lexington Books How Video Games Impact Players: The Pitfalls and Benefits of a Gaming Society

How Video Games Impact Players provides a balanced and nuanced look at the complex role that video games play in society through an analysis of the positive and negative effects of game rules, feedback, and self-presentation. Rogers examines the positive aspects of video games like their use in education, encouragement of prosocial behaviors, and enablement of mood management, as well as the negative aspects like their association with violence and diversity issues, promotion of substance use behaviors, and their role as an outlet for harassment behaviors. Review Solidly researched and lucidly framed, this balanced assessment of the positive and negative effects of video games goes beyond standard social-scientific approaches by incorporating insights from ludology, narratology, and cultural studies. A valuable addition to any game scholar's bookshelf.--Bob Rehak, Swarthmore College How Video Games Impact Players is a book we have badly needed. Today, games are made for impact of all different sorts, including entertainment, learning, health, and social change. Ryan Rogers lucidly explicates how game design features give rise to impacts that can be good, bad, or ugly.--James Paul Gee, Arizona State University, and author of What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Leanring and Literacy About the Author Ryan Rogers is assistant professor at Butler University.