Monstrosity in Games and Play: A Multidisciplinary Examination of the Monstrous in Contemporary Cultures, edited by Sarah Stang, Mikko Meriläinen, Joleen Blom, and Lobna Hassan (Amsterdam University Press 2025)

Book review

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7557/ejcgc.v16i2.8369

Keywords:

monster, monstrosity, games, cultural studies, gender, ethnicity, mental health, otherness, zombie

Abstract

A review of Sarah Stang, Mikko Meriläinen, Joleen Blom, and Lobna Hassan’s edited volume Monstrosity in Games and Play: A Multidisciplinary Examination of the Monstrous in Contemporary Cultures. Published by Amsterdam University Press, 2024. ISBN: 978-9-46372-568-2, 294 pages.

Author Biography

  • Jaroslav Švelch, Charles University
    Ph.D. candidate at Charles University in Prague, visiting scholar at Singapore-MIT Gambit Game Lab

References

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Chrulew, M. (2005). “The only limitation is your imagination”: Quantifying the medieval and other fantasies in Dungeons and Dragons. In S. Trigg (Ed.), Medievalism and the Gothic in Australian culture (pp. 223–240). Melbourne University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1484/M.MMAGES-EB.4.000034

Chrulew, M. (2006). “Masters of the wild”: Animals and the environment in Dungeons & Dragons. Concentric: Literary and Cultural Studies, 32(1), 135–168. http://www.concentric-literature.url.tw/issues/Animals/6.pdf

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Krzywinska, T. (2015). The gamification of Gothic coordinates in videogames. Revenant, 1(1), 58–78. https://www.revenantjournal.com/contents/the-gamification-of-gothic-coordinates-in-videogames/

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Stang, S. (2019). The Broodmother as monstrous-feminine: Abject maternity in video games. Nordlit, 42, 233–256. https://doi.org/10.7557/13.5014 DOI: https://doi.org/10.7557/13.5014

Stang, S., & Trammell, A. (2020). The ludic bestiary: Misogynistic tropes of female monstrosity in Dungeons & Dragons. Games and Culture, 15(6), 730–747. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412019850059 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412019850059

Stang, S., Meriläinen, M., Blom, J., & Hassan, L. (Eds.). (2025). Monstrosity in games and play: A multidisciplinary examination of the monstrous in contemporary cultures. Amsterdam University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5117/9789463725682

Sucker Punch Productions. (2020). Ghost of Tsushima [PlayStation 4]. Digital game directed by Nate Fox and Jason Connell, published by Sony Interactive Entertainment.

Švelch, J. (2023). Player vs. monster: The making and breaking of video game monstrosity. MIT Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/14106.001.0001

Tango Gameworks. (2017). The Evil Within 2 [PlayStation 4]. Digital game directed by John Johanas, published by Bethesda Softworks.

van den Beukel, S. (2025, July 9). 28 editors resign after takeover at publisher AUP. Folia. https://www.folia.nl/en/actueel/167396/28-editors-resign-after-takeover-at-aup-publishing-house

Webley, S. J., & Zackariasson, P. (Eds.). (2020). The playful undead and video games: Critical analyses of zombies and gameplay. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315179490

Zeenoh, & 7 Seals. (2016). Nightfall: Escape [Microsoft Windows]. Digital game directed by Jhondie T. Abenaza and Geoffrey Daigon, published by Zeenoh.

Downloads

Published

2025-12-19

Issue

Section

Reviews

How to Cite

Švelch, J. (2025). Monstrosity in Games and Play: A Multidisciplinary Examination of the Monstrous in Contemporary Cultures, edited by Sarah Stang, Mikko Meriläinen, Joleen Blom, and Lobna Hassan (Amsterdam University Press 2025): Book review. Eludamos: Journal for Computer Game Culture, 16(2), 319-323. https://doi.org/10.7557/ejcgc.v16i2.8369