This innovative text examines videogames and gaming from the point of view of discourse analysis. In particular, it studies two major aspects of videogame-related communication: the ways in which videogames and their makers convey meanings to their audiences, and the ways in which gamers, industry professionals, journalists and other stakeholders talk about games. In doing so, the book offers systematic analyses of games as artefacts and activities, and the discourses surrounding them. Focal areas explored in this book include: . aspects of videogame textuality and how games relate to other texts. the formation of lexical terms and use of metaphor in the language of gaming . gamer slang and 'buddylects'. the construction of game worlds and their rules, of gamer identities and communities. dominant discourse patterns among gamers and how they relate to the nature of gaming. the multimodal language of games and gaming. the ways in which ideologies of race, gender, media effects and language are constructed.Informed by the very latest scholarship and illustrated with topical examples throughout, The Language of Gaming is ideal for students of applied linguistics, videogame studies and media studies who are seeking a wide-ranging introduction to the field.

An exploration of the language of video games and gaming from the perspective of discourse analysis

List of Illustrations.- List of Tables and Figures.- Acknowledgements.- List of Abbreviations.- Introduction.- Approaches to Discourse Analysis.- Games and Language.- Videogame Genres, Macrostructures and Textuality.- Words and Meanings.- The Linguistic Pragmatics of Gameplay.- Metaludic Discourses.- Gaming and Multimodality.- The Narrative Language of Videogames.- Conclusion.- Notes.- Glossary.- Bibliography.- Index.