ABSTRACT
Analytical approaches to historical representation in video games often concentrate on the inclusion and negotiation of historical content. However, less work has considered the relationship between the act of playing itself and the representation of particular perceived historical periods. Such questions become significant when considering work such as Huizinga’s groundbreaking Homo Ludens, which argued that different periods of European development have manifested the play element of culture in different ways and to different degrees. Using this analytical reframing allows us to reconsider the relationship between history and video games through examining the playful interactions games structure in relation to particular historical content. This is an attempt to move beyond only examining the use of particular imagery or themes by particular games and towards considering if the very nature of the playful game form inherently offers something resonant with histories of those societies and cultures in which the play element was most apparent and central.
