Publication:
One-dimensional creativity: a Marcusean critique of work and play in the video game industry

dc.contributor.departmentDepartment of Media and Visual Arts
dc.contributor.kuauthorBulut, Ergin
dc.contributor.kuprofileFaculty Member
dc.contributor.yokid219279
dc.date.accessioned2024-11-09T12:25:26Z
dc.date.issued2018
dc.description.abstractCreativity is at the heart of the video game industry. Industry professionals, especially those producing blockbuster games for the triple-A market, speak fondly of their creative labour practices, flexible work schedules, and playful workplaces. However, a cursory glance at major triple-A franchises reveals the persistence of sequel game production and a homogeneity in genres and narratives. Herbert Marcuse's critique of one-dimensionality may help to account for this discrepancy between the workers' creative aspirations and the dominant homogeneity in game aesthetics. What I call 'one-dimensional creativity' defines the essence of triple-A game production. In the name of extolling the pleasure principle at work, one-dimensional creativity eliminates the reality principle, but only superficially. One-dimensional creativity gives game developers the opportunity to express themselves, but it is still framed by a particular technological rationality that prioritises profits over experimental art. One-dimensional creativity negates potential forms of creativity that might emerge outside the industry's hit-driven logics. Conceptually, 'one-dimensional creativity' renders visible the instrumentalisation of play and the conservative design principles of triple-A game production - a production that is heavily structured with technological performance, better graphics, interactivity, and speed. Multi-dimensional video game production and aesthetics, the opposite of one-dimensional creativity, is emerging from the DIY game production scene, which is more invested in game narratives and aesthetics outside the dominant logics of one-dimensionality in triple-A game production.
dc.description.fulltextYES
dc.description.indexedbyWoS
dc.description.indexedbyScopus
dc.description.issue2
dc.description.openaccessYES
dc.description.publisherscopeInternational
dc.description.sponsoredbyTubitakEuN/A
dc.description.sponsorshipN/A
dc.description.versionPublisher version
dc.description.volume16
dc.formatpdf
dc.identifier.doi10.31269/triplec.v16i2.930
dc.identifier.eissn1726-670X
dc.identifier.embargoNO
dc.identifier.filenameinventorynoIR01501
dc.identifier.issn1726-670X
dc.identifier.linkhttps://doi.org/10.31269/triplec.v16i2.930
dc.identifier.quartileN/A
dc.identifier.scopus2-s2.0-85056828798
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14288/1586
dc.identifier.wos443306500032
dc.keywordsHerbert Marcuse
dc.keywordsOne-dimensionality
dc.keywordsOne-dimensional creativity
dc.keywordsVideo games
dc.keywordsDigital games
dc.keywordsVideo game industry
dc.keywordsImmaterial labour
dc.keywordsPlay
dc.keywordsPolitical economy
dc.languageEnglish
dc.publisherTripleC
dc.relation.urihttp://cdm21054.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/IR/id/8082
dc.sourcetripleC: Communication, Capitalism and Critique
dc.subjectCommunication
dc.titleOne-dimensional creativity: a Marcusean critique of work and play in the video game industry
dc.typeJournal Article
dspace.entity.typePublication
local.contributor.authorid0000-0002-7972-3919
local.contributor.kuauthorBulut, Ergin
local.publication.orgunit1College of Social Sciences and Humanities
local.publication.orgunit2Department of Media and Visual Arts
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication483fa792-2b89-4020-9073-eb4f497ee3fd
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication.latestForDiscovery483fa792-2b89-4020-9073-eb4f497ee3fd

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