Parties as playful experiences: Why game studies should study partying

Leland Masek; Jaakko Stenros

doi:10.7557/23.7562

Authors

Leland Masek Tampere University https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2694-9129
Jaakko Stenros Tampere University https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0320-7042

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7557/23.7562

Keywords:

partying, playfulness, playful experience, party studies, party

Abstract

Partying is a widespread, understudied, and playful phenomena. Game Studies has seen great value from defining important concepts related to games since its inception. Foundational play and game scholars urged for a need to analyze parties and celebrations as a form of playfulness, yet there is little empirical Game Studies work enabling a deeper understanding of partying. Partying bears striking resemblances to games: inefficient use of resources, arbitrary rules, cultural group formation, and ongoing moral panics. There are also practical overlaps: games occur at parties and digital party games are quite popular. This work contributes to a deeper understanding of parties by analyzing 33 semi-structured interviews where individuals from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds had highly playful experiences at parties. A new theoretical conception of partying as a form of playfulness is proposed as a “phenomenon that creates an experience of social connection in a group mediated through a shared engagement-prioritizing activity”. This work concludes with a call for party studies to become a sub-field in game studies.

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16%

External funding

No

32%

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11%

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Articles accepted

12%

33%

Days to publication

239

145

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Editor & editorial board: profiles
Academic society: N/A
Publisher: Septentrio Academic Publishing

Author Biography

Jaakko Stenros, Tampere University

Jaakko Stenros (PhD) is a University Lecturer in Game Studies working at the Centre of Excellence in Game Culture Studies (at the Game Research Lab, Tampere University). He has published eleven books and a hundred articles and reports and has taught game studies for well over a decade.

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