A Juul of a Find

In The Game, the Player the World: Looking for a Heart of Gameness, Jesper Juul attempts to define what games are through his classic game model, which he extracts from historical definitions of games.  He also expounds on the transmedial nature of games and how computers fit so well into the gaming equation.  Some may argue that his deconstructions are overly scientific and 'surgical' to the point of drought. Despite this, I have a hard time finding fault with his logic.

 

To direct his study, Juul starts by setting parameters for what a definition of games should describe. The three things he finds most important to consider are: 1.) the kinds of systems set up by the rules of the game, 2.) the relationship that the game creates with the player, and 3.) the context and significance of playing the game and the rest of the world.  One could use this same formula to observe the multi-faceted impact of games as well by breaking it down into: 1.) the significance of the game in question, its rule systems, form and message in relation to itself and the body of games created before it (what does the game mean to games?), 2.) the significance of the relationship the game forms with a person through the execution of its form, as well as the meeting of the game's message with the players ideals and expectations (what does the game mean to an individual?) and 3.) the significance of the game's message to the human condition and society at large (What does the game say about society and humankind?).

Juul goes on to define games as having six features, which I will list out in both his terms and layman terms.

Game Have:

1.) Fixed Rules

     Games try to make their rules as unambiguous as possible.

2.) Variable and Quantifiable Outcomes

     Games must have outcomes which are both definite and differing.

3.) Valorization of the Outcome

     Games have some outcomes that are more desirable than others.

4.) Player Effort

    Games are interactive; players can influence the course and outcome of gameplay.

5.) Attachment of the Player to the Outcome

     Players are psychologically and emotionally invested in the game's outcome.

6.) Negotiable Consequences

     Real-life consequences are not inherent in games but they can be circumstantially added.

He says that every 'game' that doesn't have all of these features is either not a game or what he calls 'borderline cases'.

There's more to discuss but the jewel in Juul's work is his breakdown and then definition of games.